Santiago, Chile, is a destination I have always wanted to visit. Even as a child I loved finding the country on a map, obsessed with the shape of the country and questioning why Chile was shaped like a chilli pepper yet spelled differently.

Upon arrival I was a little disheartened as for the first time I was ripped off my a taxi driver that drove me from the bus station to the hostel.  Serves me right for not educating myself on the exchange rates prior to arrival.

Santiago, Chile’s capital and largest city, sits in a valley surrounded by the snow-capped Andes and the Chilean Coastal Range. Plaza de Armas, the grand heart of the city’s old colonial core, is home to 2 neoclassical landmarks: the early-19th-century Royal Court Palace, which houses the National History Museum, and the 18th-century Metropolitan Cathedral. Barrio Brasil and bohemian Barrio Bellavista offer lively nightlife.  –Wikipedia

I only spent two days here before booking a bus to travel north.  I hope to return one day and experience the cosmopolitan and energetic city with more of an open mind, I feel my love of Argentina and first experiences upon arriving in the city have given me a false impression of the place that many have told me is incredible.