December 23,

When we awoke today, we had no real plans, no agenda. So after our Javas and breakfast of eggs and bacon, we decided to head out.

Our place has a washing machine… it does not work. We hand-washed some essentials yesterday, but we need a real machine. So we looked up and walked to the closest laundromat to check it out. The place prices laundry by the kilogram, and the lady quoted 2,500 CLP which would be $2.76 for 2.2 lbs… not too bad. That mission accomplished, we left and walked down to the coast, and along further.

We came to a tourist information place and a young lady gave us a map. She pointed out things to do and see on the map. She also told us of free tours and general lay out of the city. She was very helpful, speaking in English to us. I know that is her job, but she was enthusiastic. It does make a difference. As we left we came by the ferris wheel, called La Gran Rueda Vina del Mar. We decided to ride it. Jeff purchased the tickets, costing 6,500 CLP each ($7.18 each). Once on board we were given 4 full circles around. It was simple fun looking around the coast and the city of Vina del Mar.

When our ride finished, we walked alongside the beach further on a boardwalk. We went out onto the only pier on the beach, called Vergara Pier, which has a crane built on the pier. There was not an admission fee. The crane and pier are kept up as a tourist attraction. Per Wikipedia, the pier was built in 1894 and served as unloading for coal and raw sugar. The crane was built in 1937 – it’s a 62 ton Derrick Crane!! Anyway, the pier was also a place for fishing – there were a couple of men taking advantage of the pier in this way. I did not see them catching anything though. But Jeff and I did see two very large dead, floating jellyfish.

We left the pier and walked along the boardwalk for a bit more. We departed, when we felt ready for lunch. Heading on our way back, we saw a Papa John’s Pizza place and knew that would be lunch. It has been a while since we have had pizza. We went in and had a pepperoni, black olive, and extra cheese pizza; breadsticks; and a 1.5 liter Sprite as a package meal. We paid 18,490 CLP or $20.43.

Back at our place we settled in and watched some movies. Supper was the breadsticks we had leftover with nectarines and apricots.