Chilean artisanal beers

After having discovered the hidden gem in Chile, the artisanal beer culture, I had to find out more! Cervecería Nacional has always been the ideal place for me to better familiarize myself with the passionate beer entrepreneurs of Chile. Although this place lies a bit removed from the centre, there is really no problem to safely and comfortably find your way there.  

For any beer enthusiast, and for all others really, the menu offers a great selection of breweries and types of beer that exist here in Chile. The names of the beers are as crafty as the beers themselves, and none of them that we drank left us disappointed. - Make it a norm, to always order different beers within the group, as to try a greater variety. After two-three beers, we felt ready to move on as many of the beers have up to 10% alc. To accompany the beers, food is also offered. We ordered a pizza with jalapeños and lots of cheese to somewhat balance with the beers! 

I definitely recommend to pass by when visiting Santiago. I´m a huge fan of sharing some quality beers with good friends, over some story telling and a healthy round of laughs!   

First round: Politik Kills, Kaf Blue & a Belgium Ale
 (all of them really good in their respective category)

Upon requesting "the beer I can´t leave without drinking", a Barley Wine I strongly recommend.
I believe it was a Rothhammer, the one they have on tap! - Among my friends, the absolute favorite!

¡Saludos po´weon! (like they say it here in Chile, cheers bud!)

Cerveceria Nacional:

http://cervecerianacional.cl/

Directions:

https://maps.google.cl/maps?saddr=Quinta+Normal&daddr=Compa%C3%B1%C3%ADa+de+Jes%C3%BAs+2858,+Santiago,+Regi%C3%B3n+Metropolitana&hl=en&ie=UTF8&ll=-33.440797,-70.676406&spn=0.002238,0.005284&sll=-33.440975,-70.677653&sspn=0.004476,0.010568&geocode=FQO9Af4dhoHJ-w%3BFeq6Af4dN5bJ-yl3FqsoUsRiljH2QSBn82vhWA&dirflg=w&mra=dme&mrsp=0&sz=17&t=m&z=18

The First Chapter of my trip

I am just about to buy my motorcycle and finally commence my journey! I have talked with various Honda resells after trying to find one second-hand, and will hopefully be able to settle a deal by Monday/Tuesday!

I am looking to buy a Tornado 250cc; -->

and equip it with some extra accessories! 

(And hopefully not excessive amounts of luggage!)

I have looked over the route and adjusted certain details. I will aim to drive all the way up to Lima/Peru, through Bolivia, to meet a good friend to my family. He has invited me to take part of his expedition to study the fauna in the Peruvian jungle. After about two weeks in Lima, I will head back to Bolivia, and continue my journey South through Argentina to Mendoza. I will finally finish off the route in mid December in Santiago again.

Highlights noted are, thus far; Valparaiso, the Atacama desert, the salt flats, La Paz, and all the national parks on the way! (Please feel free to leave suggestions!)

Upon my return to Santiago in January 2014, I plan to head South to explore Southern Chile, la Patagonia, and the Southern parts of Argentina! 

 I will keep you all up-dated!

The must-see Nightlife and the culinary experiences in Santiago

Although you may encounter Santiago very Europeanized; cold, commercial focused, big-city atmosphere, there are still some Latin roots to be found! It takes time to truly get a good picture of Santiago because all the neighbourhoods breaths a very different vibe. If you are limited by time, there should be no excuse to not visit Bellavista and Manuel Montt!

Gulden Draak, a Belgian favo.

As I was looking for bartender and waiter jobs when I first arrived, I found plenty of opportunities along the street Manuel Montt. This zone has grown to become a thriving, and diverse culinary centre in Santiago, and offers a great variety of cuisine, pubs, and a stunning selection of craft beers from around the world. The street has attracted professional and enthusiastic entrepreneurs to share their passion for food and drinks, and have thus built up a family friendly, artisanal neighbourhood of cuisine and beverages! And conveniently, at night the area transforms into a very popular nightclub scene! (Be sure to check out the Peruvian cuisine!)

Bellavista is another centre of food, drinks and dance, though with more of an artistic and underground culture feel! Pío Nono and Constitución are the two main streets of the neighbourhood packed with bars, restaurants, and nightclubs (leading up from Plaza Italia). The patios fill up with people enjoying just a beer or two in the afternoon, more so during the evening, and peaks around midnight when the nightclubs fill up!

Keep your eyes open for quality street performers!

But the real charm of Bellavista lies in the shadows of its popular radiance, in the calm and old-fashion local bars, which transcends in their cultural heritage and atmosphere. One I visited recently, endorses the acoustic music from the era of the dictatorship, when this type of folklore was band. The atmosphere takes you far away from the popular scene, and lets you recognize and appreciate a culturally very different scene in Santiago. And the "after" (as they also call it here in Chile) we headed for, lied hidden behind what appeared to be just a normal residence door a few blocks from the main street. But after ringing the door bell, it opened up to a thriving party atmosphere early in the morning!

We ran into a Metal concert !,,!_

Graffiti decorated streets

It is a tremndous advantage to go out with a local Chilean to truly find the best places in town. Still causion is always adviced due to their sometimes dubious and greedy character! ;)

Hope you all have a stellar time! XD

Food for thoughts...!

Chilean dinner, Cueca & the 18th of September

I must admit that I have not found the Chilean culture as striking and evident as perhaps the Uruguayan and Argentinian. Coming to be reminded that my days here in Santiago are numbered, I decided to take decisive action and proposed to my dear Chilean roommates that we prepare a typical Chilean dinner together! Upon this request, my roommates eagerly agreed on empanadas, Chilean style! Of course accompanied by a bottle of a Chilean red! 

The particularities of this Chilean empanada; is firstly its shape, different from the Uruguayan and Argentinian. Moreover, the traditional "Pino" is filled with cooked minced meat and onion, a quarter of an egg, an olive, and a few dried raisins. (Find a link to recipe at the bottom) It was explained to me that, although people eat all sorts of empanadas (which btw are very popular in South America), it is the Pino that is the most traditional to Chile. 

Curiously, this happens to be the traditional food had on the 18th of September, a super popular nation-wide celebration of Chilean culture. "Fiestas Patrias" marks the beginning of the independence process of 1810 and the first independent  governing body of Chile. Although it is inherently a religious celebration, I mostly hear talks of up-to-a-week of festivities including; BBQs, dancing the "Cueca" (national dance), and going to "Fondas" (a temporary local sales of food, drinks and dancing). - If you are in Chile in September, BE SURE to stay for the week of the 18th, if you want to see what Chile is really about!

My room-mates and I enjoyed some cueca music, which apparently only is played on the 18th really, as we were preparing the Chilean empanadas. This dish is surprisingly easy to prepare, and I urge any of you with interest to attempt it! And not too long after, we settled at the table with recently-taken-out-of-the oven, home-made empanadas, a bottle of red wine, and the traditional Cueca music in the background! I found myself thinking, "now this must be very Chilean!"  

Chilean Empanada:

http://tastingchile.wordpress.com/2010/09/11/foolproof-chilean-beef-empanada-de-horno/
History of the 18th of September and the independence movement in Chile:
http://latinamericanhistory.about.com/od/thehistoryofchile/p/09chileindependence.htm

The second chapter

I have started to draft on how I want to travel through South of Argentina and Chile. I will start up again in early/mid January 2014, and have as a goal to travel all the way South to Ushuaia (the worlds most Southern city) along the coast, and back up to Patagonia along the Andes, to finish off in Santiago again.

I have already mapped a few stops at distinguished national parks, well-known cities, and famous most-see-landscapes! I hope to reach Bariloche towards the end of February/beginning of March the latest. It doesn´t give me a whole lot of time, although I don´t want to miss the late-summer season in Patagonia!

Let me know what you think, and please share some opinions on the preliminary itinerary!
Thanks!

Big weekend in Santiago

Unlike the Argentinians and Uruguayans, but like most of the world, people mostly go out dancing until 3-4 am. For my colleagues and I at California Cantina who get off work at 3 am, only "afters" are available for the weekend party. Yet, last Friday I had the night off, therefore we completed the full Chilean check-list with;

1) "Previa" (pre-drinks) Lots of their (acclaimed) national drink Pisco mixed with soda! (Picture to the left). As a "gringo", I´m not even qualified for the DJ position, as Cumbia and Reggaeton dominated the previa.

2) "El baile" (dance club) I am surprised by the extent of electronic music that is played, but they seem to really like it!! Latin tunes you need to look for in the city! 

3) "El After" (after party) For those who hasn´t had enough just yet! (And those working until 3am) They can be hard to find, so find yourself a local who knows where one is! Generally fills up at 5-6ish. 

Chilean karaoke and dance!

4) And then; "El After After" (at someone´s house) Generally not recommended for those working the next day (I´m not sure how some of my friends managed with the Saturday shift!) We picked up boxes of Budweiser and enjoyed the morning sun at my friends house. At some later point, the mic and amplifier were taken out, and the group joined together for some karaoke and dance to Chilean Cumbia. - Not bad Chile!! When the hunger started to kick in, I found my way home in the afternoon for some food and a good nap!

See you again soon Peter!

After a few hours of good rest, I´m up again! A good friend of mine is throwing a fare-well party, which you should not miss! So, after a quick shower, some food on the run, and the next case of beers in hand, I´m ready for the next stop! The party proved to be a success as many close friends showed up! As I was one of the firsts ones to arrive, I witnessed all the Chileans arrive with their precious Pisco in hand. Amazing snack food was prepared and a bond fire lit in the backyard. The stereo music was in the early hours replaced by acoustic as the few of us remaining gathered around the fire.

Bondfire & Acoustic music!!

I was offered a couch, and enjoyed a well deserved rest! - Luckily not all the weekends are as "big" as this one! 

The Latin Spanish Accents

All South American countries speak a unique form of Spanish, some more extreme than others. My own impression so far is that Uruguay, Argentina and Chile speak with the most notably different accent, and can thus be hard to understand initially, even with proficient Mexican Spanish. While the Uruguayans and Argentinians for example use a heavy ´Italian´ accent, the Chileans use a complete (non-existent) dictionary of slang only applicable in Chile. Let´s have a look:

Commonly used Uruguayan hand-gesture, aka:"WTF man?!!" 

Uruguayans and Argentinians:

This is a good video to showcase the stereotypical sound and tone used. The accent can sometimes  be interpreted as assailing and quarrelsome, as they do enjoy their arguments! - "Obvio bo!"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8IpOfFlX8gc

Chilean:
Is generally referred to as the worst spoken Spanish in Latin America. (I don´t entirely agree!) Still even native Spanish speaker tell me they struggle with the Chilean accent. Mostly because:

1. Chileans generally speak m-u-c-h faster than other native Spanish speakers
2. Chileans are known for its extensive use of "made-up" words and slang, which essentially form the  mood and tone of  the conversation
3. Tone/mood, facial expression and eye contact also constitute a very important part of Chilean Spanish

You do well by knowing these;

"Po" = ´man´, something they frequently enrich their sentences with, "Weon" = man, dude etc., and "Catchai" = you know / you get it!?

Facial expressions!

Here is a 101 in Chilean Spanish

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=95RLVOnIerw

And here is a sample on how Chileans speak:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n4XqujAZxvQ

(for those of you who do not understand Spanish, skip to: 1:04 & 1:50 for the typical accent! ENjoy)

To conclude, the following song is attributed to you all learning spanish!!

Que difícil es hablar el español: (Oh, so hard it is to speak Spanish!)

A preliminary route of the First Chapter

Hey guys!
I have drafted a preliminary route of the first phase of my trip: the northern parts of Chile and Argentina.
Copy-n-paste to see it in google maps: http://goo.gl/maps/Lp5rH

Chile:
The plan is to initially start off from Santiago heading North towards Bolivia. In Chile I have listed stops in:
Valparaiso / Viña del Mar
La Serena (hopefully on the 18th of September, the Chilean national day)
Pan del Azúkar National Park
San Pedro de Atacama
Lauca National Park
I will also keep my eyes open for the Pisco vineyards along the way!
(Anything I forgot!??)

Bolivia:
I haven´t heard, or read anything about absolute essential stops in Bolivia, and the plan is to cruize through, enjoying the landscape, the people and some peace! The salt-flats is on the list! I will return to Bolivia at a later stage on my trip, thus no hurry!

Northern Argentina
This is something everyone talks about in the hostel world. Cities like Salta, Tucuman, Cordoba are well recognized and visited for their unique character and are thus the stops marked on my check-list!
I will save Mendoza for my trip out east, and Iguazu for next year, as I only have a month and a half before I need to be back in Santiago.

At the start of November, I am invited to take part of an expedition to explore the jungles of Peru in search and study of Orchids! A random stop perhaps, but certainly a one-time-opportunity to see the jungle from a very unique perspective! So I will fly out from Santiago and meet up with a friend to my family in Lima, who is in fact leading this expedition!

Head back East, from where I once came

After this 2 week break in Peru, I plan to head East from Santiago, passing through the impressive pass of the Andes, through the wine fields of Mendoza, the cultural city of Cordoba on my way to the beautiful summer of Uruguay!!

I´m going back to celebrate Christmas with my beautiful family in Sweden (due time) and plan to continue my journey in January 2014. Upon my return, I have waiting the astonishing south of Argentina, the incredible Patagonia and much later..Brazil!

Please leave comments!! I appreciate all feedback!!
Thanks,

The Winter in Southamerica

I was about to buy a sleeping bag in Vancouver, I though to myself; "maybe I get a lighter one since I also want to bring it to South America. My wise friend advised me to go for a thicker one as he told me; the winters get very cold. I thought to myself; "Yeah yeah, not like Sweden anyway".

Two of my room-mates, and our beloved mobile gas-heater

I have noticed that I about two really strong colds per winter here in South America (knock-on-wood, this one is still not over). And for sure, the winters are not even remotely as cold as in Sweden (and now I am just using Santiago and Montevideo as a reference) where we count -10 avg. over a good winter. So why is it so hard to adapt to the chill weather here?? All my friends seem to be just fine, with minor symptoms of a cold every once in a while.

I remember the winter in Uruguay, when I woke up I had prepared beside my bed a set of: a few t-shirts, 1-2 sweaters, and a hoodie that I instantly pulled over my torso to shield myself from the close to zero temperature in my bed room. And there it goes, the temperature is about the same inside as outside, which is hardly, or ever the case in Sweden. This is clearly something I haven´t accustomed myself to. It always surprises me when they sit with the door or window open here in the winter, but I guess at the end it hardly makes a difference. :P Thank god for our rolling gas-heater though, which spreads some hope of warmer climate to come!

My pride of being a Scandinavian Viking; not feeling nor suffering from the cold, is quickly waning as I over again fall victim to the constantly present chill temperature. (Or maybe it is this viking mentality that makes me pay dearly!?)  (Don´t answer that!!!)

Thanks MEC Vancouver for heaven on earth!

As the classic Scandinavian saying goes; "there is no bad weather, just bad clothing"! So walking around with a pair of socks and a layer of clothing in your house wont do! As well, I always keep a set of cloths ready to instantly swap into after a warm shower (which is a true morale booster!). Grandma´s wool socks and a pair sandals is highly recommended, as well as scarf and beenie! Still I am annoyed that I can´t sleep with an arm outside my sleeping bag! - And mentioning the sleeping bag, this thick sleeping bag that I bought in Vancouver, is without a doubt the most precious item I possess!

So, to all of you out there who is planing to go camping in South America in June, July, August, bring  a T-h-i-c-k sleeping bag!! :D

A real white winter is way easier to deal with! - With my two brothers in Whistler / Canada 2012

This entry is clearly a rant from me dealing with this cold, ..again! - Strangely it seems to come after a long night out ...  :S ) - THANK YOU ALL FOR LISTENING!