After a week of hard work, we are happy to have a day of recreation and learning. On May 3oth, we decided to go find some culture and enjoy a day away from the office. But first, it is always a good idea to check with a local citizen, Jose, to get the lay of the land. He speaks un poco de ingles and I speak un poco de espanol. That leaves a lot of room for error, but we are brave souls and venture forth. 
Fall has come to our fair (smoggy) city and it is actually a delight since this is our first fall in Chile and this is more a city of trees than Boise, Idaho will ever be. Every street is lined with huge Sycamore trees that protect us from the burning southern hemisphere sun. 
This is the very street where we live. It offers beauty that I will miss when I leave here. 
These street scenes are our neighborhood. We often walk to the metro or we can take a bus. This was a great day for walking. The yellow building with the red roof is actually the Uruguay Embassy. It is lovely and always neat as a pin. Not a leaf out of place ever. 
Our destination today is the Presidential Palace at La Moneda. We get the subway and hop on for a speedy trip. We are dumped out into another world all together. It is now overcast and raining a little. 
We head down the stairs past a fountain and wall of water to enter the cultural center. We are delighted to see a giant display of ribbons. It was enough to delight an old girl's heart. 
They also had a great museum shop that reminded me of my other life long ago in another galaxy when I was a museum store buyer. Oh! Life was simple then.
Now we are walking in search of the Pre-Columbian Museum. That has been our goal from the beginning. But then, it is always important to enjoy the journey. That is a good lesson to apply to life as well. 
Santiago has flowers all year round. It also has flocks of pigeons everywhere. This little darling was just taking a break and enjoying the weather. The primroses are the winter blooms most often seen here. 
The doors in Santiago are very European. This is an especially beautiful one with an especially beautiful man in front of it. 
I bet they didn't get this door at Home Depot. You probably can't special order one either. 
We have arrived at last to see a group of embarrassed Pre-Columbian statues. They all look like they got caught without their undies. Oh dear! I guess even the ancient ones sometimes had nightmares about being in public naked. 
The pottery collection of Mayan, Olmec and other cultures was awe inspiring. I think these pots inspire modern day potters. 
I put this picture in for all the cat lovers in the family. This is probably a jaguar since they are revered in these ancient cultures. Oddly, it said there were not any living around the area. I wonder how they knew about them. Word of mouth I guess. Notice her four little kittens!
One final pot and it is time to leave the quiet and peace of the museum and enter the noisy plaza and thread our way though the hoards to the subway. Little did we know that even more artistic surprises awaited us.....in the subway. 
Isn't she grand in a gross sort of way? I think that is a cow floating on a cloud. Actually, all the subway stations have permanent art displays. This one makes me want to laugh out loud. What a great way to end a day in the city of Santiago. 
Now we have a walk home from the subway or we might catch a bus. This is our part of town and it strangely feels a little like home to us. 
While we were enjoying the museum, it was snowing in the Andes. We are snug in our apartment and enjoying the view from our patio. Another day in paradise, we feel blessed to have this experience.
Fall has come to our fair (smoggy) city and it is actually a delight since this is our first fall in Chile and this is more a city of trees than Boise, Idaho will ever be. Every street is lined with huge Sycamore trees that protect us from the burning southern hemisphere sun. 
This is the very street where we live. It offers beauty that I will miss when I leave here. 
These street scenes are our neighborhood. We often walk to the metro or we can take a bus. This was a great day for walking. The yellow building with the red roof is actually the Uruguay Embassy. It is lovely and always neat as a pin. Not a leaf out of place ever. 
Our destination today is the Presidential Palace at La Moneda. We get the subway and hop on for a speedy trip. We are dumped out into another world all together. It is now overcast and raining a little. 
We head down the stairs past a fountain and wall of water to enter the cultural center. We are delighted to see a giant display of ribbons. It was enough to delight an old girl's heart. 
They also had a great museum shop that reminded me of my other life long ago in another galaxy when I was a museum store buyer. Oh! Life was simple then. 
Now we are walking in search of the Pre-Columbian Museum. That has been our goal from the beginning. But then, it is always important to enjoy the journey. That is a good lesson to apply to life as well. 
Santiago has flowers all year round. It also has flocks of pigeons everywhere. This little darling was just taking a break and enjoying the weather. The primroses are the winter blooms most often seen here. 
The doors in Santiago are very European. This is an especially beautiful one with an especially beautiful man in front of it. 
I bet they didn't get this door at Home Depot. You probably can't special order one either. 
We have arrived at last to see a group of embarrassed Pre-Columbian statues. They all look like they got caught without their undies. Oh dear! I guess even the ancient ones sometimes had nightmares about being in public naked. 
The pottery collection of Mayan, Olmec and other cultures was awe inspiring. I think these pots inspire modern day potters. 
I put this picture in for all the cat lovers in the family. This is probably a jaguar since they are revered in these ancient cultures. Oddly, it said there were not any living around the area. I wonder how they knew about them. Word of mouth I guess. Notice her four little kittens!
One final pot and it is time to leave the quiet and peace of the museum and enter the noisy plaza and thread our way though the hoards to the subway. Little did we know that even more artistic surprises awaited us.....in the subway. 
Isn't she grand in a gross sort of way? I think that is a cow floating on a cloud. Actually, all the subway stations have permanent art displays. This one makes me want to laugh out loud. What a great way to end a day in the city of Santiago. 
Now we have a walk home from the subway or we might catch a bus. This is our part of town and it strangely feels a little like home to us. 
While we were enjoying the museum, it was snowing in the Andes. We are snug in our apartment and enjoying the view from our patio. Another day in paradise, we feel blessed to have this experience. 