Our last day started slowly, relaxing and finally packing. Upon learning that we were still allowed to check in a second bag for free, we found a box and filled it with some extra wine bottles and those likely-to-break wine glasses.
A farewell lunch
We wanted to re-visit Santa Rita, as our rushed lunch didn't do it justice. Of course, stuffing a bigger meal to fill ourselves before our late flight didn't hurt either.
Initially the plan was to do a tasting, as it would be the final one. Speaking with our English-speaking host, he advised us not too, since we were eating and could sample more wines at a much better rate. So we took his advice and bought a few glasses to sample with food instead.
The food was exquisite, and I got the closest thing to a rare steak all trip. The sea bass was simply cooked and was so light that I even liked it! Oddly enough, the middle-priced wine was some of the best I tasted all trip.
It is still strange to order meat and sides separately, and isn't something I would want to do often. Thinking about why Argentina and Chile wine-dining experiences are different, perhaps Argentina's reputation for its gastronomy results in the more complete dining experience. While it is nice sometimes to self-assemble piece by piece of your meal, including your wine, I do prefer to allow the chef to be creative in assembling everything.
Still, the meal at Santa Rita was the perfect way to end our trip.
Finding the airport
With time flying by, we said our good-byes and made our way to the airport. Looking at the map it seemed pretty self-explanatory. The only problem? We had no idea what the autopista ring-road would be called. But surely there'd be a sign, right?
Of course not. Next thing you know we were heading through Santiago, which was thankfully still on an autopista. Taking a chance, we head off the northward route for a westward one that should connect to the ring-road. So we head off any finally found a sign to point us to the airport. So we headed back north again, only to face gridlock traffic.
There was some construction on the autopista, so instead they closed off the entrances to the road and ran us along a parallel road with lighted intersections. While we left plenty of time in case of any traffic incidents, we were frustrated to have the clock running while not knowing how far the airport was.
Thankfully we made it with still plenty of time to spare, and only had to face minor frustrations when dropping off our rental.
The highlights
- Fruit: fresh, plentiful and cheap. (A special shout-out to goes out to chirimoya)
- Wine: lots of choices
- Sunshine and clear skies
- Empanadas, pastel de choclo and pebre
- Landscape: mountains, volcanoes, ocean and vineyards
Glad to leave behind
- Stray dogs: sometimes abused, sometimes injured, there are just too many
- Dust: it is everywhere
- Pan amasado: or what we called "hockey pucks" of bread
Final thoughts
Chile is a great country to visit. Chileans are friendly, laid back, and petty-crime is relatively low. All our days were sunny, with only a few clouds and not a single drop of rain. About as long as Canada is wide, there is so much diversity to be found. Now to visit the northern part!
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