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I walk the length of the Parque Forestal the next morning. The park stretches along the Mapocho and contains several museums, Bellas Artes, Arte Contemporaneo and Arqueológico. I wander through these on my way to the Mercado Central at the other end. The Mercado has always been a favorite place. Gazing at the imposing wrought iron ceiling reminiscent of a London rail way station, I remember that the building was fabricated in England, brought piecemeal to Chile and assembled here for the National Exposition of 1872.


Later, it became a market, and it's a busy place, with produce and seafood and eating places. If you want fresh seafood, as I do, it's the place to be.

Due to the long coastline and the cold Humboldt current, Chile's seafood is excellent, and we are lucky to get a table at Donde Augusto's in the Mercado Central. After walking down the aisles of the market, where every form of Chilean produce and seafood is on display, I am hungry for congrio. Some people may be put off to learn they are eating conger eel, but it is delicious. I've arranged to meet someone here and we begin the meal with a taste of ceviche before I feast on grilled congrio and papas fritas, the ubiquitous French fry.

Following lunch, we stroll through the Vega Cental and Vega Chica, the markets where you can find just about anything under the sun. From there we drive to the Hipódromo Chile, which with the Club Hípico, is the center of horse racing in Santiago. There are no races scheduled today, but it's good to walk around the building.

I have some Excursions from Santiago planned next, including a trip to Sewell, also known as El Teniente, Chile, and if the weather holds good, a trip to Juan Fernandez Archipelago.

After that, I'll be traveling both directions to the extreme lengths of Chile.

Ah, but that's another dream...