Valparaiso and Tara, the Family Farm

I loved being in Valparaiso! Carolina and members of her family refer to it as the "prostitute little sister" of Vina del Mar. But I really like Valpo; I know that there is more crime here, more graffiti-some of which was definitely artistic (I don't think I saw any street graffiti in Vina), and it appeared to be a little sketchy in certain areas. However, I felt like I was amongst the people! The weather was just gorgeous and walking (more like climbing) around Valpo's streets gave me a good sense of the place, I think. There were quite a lot of people walking around and a shopkeeper asked me where I was from because it seemed to him that I had "un acento centroamericano," which made me laugh inside. We only spent like 3 hours here in Valparaiso (which didn't seem like enough to me) but I loved the view and our lunch at a little, off the beaten-path pizza place was very good.




And here are some more pictures from the streets of Valparaiso. I really did like Valpo; I suppose that many people, even here in Chile, do not like Vina del Mar's "prostitute little sister," but I could definitely see its charm. I'm sure it was quite different when Pablo Neruda was alive and living here, but it still was one of my favorite places that we visited. I felt like I was among "the people." I was very excited to go to Neruda's home here in Valpo. It is forbidden to take any pictures anywhere inside the house, so I had to settle for a few shots from the outside and one of my friend Kristi and I in front of his house with the view of the bay behind us. It was a very eclectic house with five levels. My favorite room was his personal study; I could see the appeal of looking out over the ocean and being so inspired by its beauty as to be almost compelled to construct such pulchritudinous poetry. "Pablo Neruda" was the pen name (and eventual legal name) of Neftali Ricardo Reyes Basoalto. He was born in 1904 and died in 1973 at the age of 69. He won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1971. Neruda was in the hospital as Pinochet took over Chile in 1973 and when Neruda died, Pinochet ordered that Neruda's funeral did not become a public event (he even instituted a curfew). But after Neruda succumbed to heart failure, thousands of Chileans took to the streets in honor of their most celebrated and loved poet. It was a remarkable experience being in his house, particularly the room in which he worked.

Then we spent the better part of our second day in Chile at Carolina's family farm, Tara. She starting calling it that years ago because of Gone With the Wind and somehow, the name just stuck. Anyways, it's located at the foothills of the Andes. We were able to stop by Carolina's grandfather's grave in San Felipe; then we spent the afternoon at Tara. Carolina and Fernando cooked everyone a nice meal and we had a great time. The land was peaceful and beautiful. We even went back to Tara at the end of our visit to Chile. It brought back a few memories of my Grandparents' ranch in California. I really enjoyed our afternoon at Tara.