Los Dominicos is an artisan market, located further outside the city centre. It would be our first time taking the convenient, efficient metro subway system to get there. Gavin was not interested in visiting the market, so it was only Gabby, Jon and I whom would be exploring it. We're quite glad we did. After a 20 minute train ride outside the city center, we were let off at a large park leading towards a white, twin towered Spanish colonial church; the dry Andres serving as a backdrop.
Entering the market, the artisanal workshops lined the narrow, sandy paths shaded by various palms or olive trees. In most of the stores, the artist themselves would practice their craftsmanship, using natural materials. From antiques, leather, wood, wicker, clay, glass, wool, roots, paintings and semiprecious stones - including the rare, deep blue lapis lazuli stone; all could be found here. Wandering through, we came across a lovely Bonsai tree garden, many of which you could purchase. With the sounds of parakeets yelping in the distance, we also came to discover their was a pet store on premises as well. Gabby and I told ourselves, if we had lived in Santiago, this is certainly where we would shop. Later in the evening, Gabby would wear glimmering, stone earrings, dangling from her ears, matching the hazel of her eyes. A lovely handmade piece to take home.
Our evening would have us in the Teatro Municipal, a building from 1857 inspired by the French neoclassical style. We had anticipated the evening to see the Ballet de Santiago perform Prokofiev's Romeo y Julieta, a favorite of me and Gabby's. Our seats were in the orchestra. Three stories of balconies wrapped around the stage. Paintings of angels, set against deep blue, lie on the ceiling above the crystal chandelier. It was a majestic theatre, set in in white and red.
The classical piece was the first Gavin had seen. He enjoyed the "3 dimensional" backdrops, while Gabby and I devoted our attention to the costume design and the 'turnout' of the dancers. While the choreography was slightly different, we immensely enjoyed it. Afterwards, we found ourselves humming the music for days, and reminiscing of our own dancing days of old.
Thursday, the 4 of us set off through the Andes on a 7 hour bus ride to Mendoza, Argentina. While I slept through most of the ride, I was glad to hear Gabby and Jon enjoyed taking in the views of the mountains. There, they could see large irrigation pipes stemming the lengths of the mountains irrigating the surrounding, dry countryside. We saw herds of animals, as we climbed over 40 curves ascending. At the border, there was some time to stretch our legs and get some food. After exchanging money, Gabby ordered "perros calientes" from a local food vendor, which translates to 'hot dogs.' She was presented with a puzzled look from the vendor, whom instead just served her a ham and cheese sandwich. We later realized that hot dogs here are called 'panchos', so it was of no surprise people didn't understand why we were asking for a hot dog in the literal sense.
After finally arriving in Mendoza, we took a cab to the wine growing countryside town of Maipu. Down a street lined with fragrant orchards of olives, peaches, plums and vineyards was our lodge, Tikay Killa, meaning 'springtime' in the language of Quechua. Bushes of lavender lined the lodge, and our wonderful inn keeper, Francisco, showed us to our rooms accompanied by his labrador, Soki. We welcomed the fresh air, and the relaxing, quiet atmosphere that surrounded us after spending time in the bustling metropolis that was Santiago. Arrangements were made for the remainder of our time in Maipu, in which we much anticipated.
June y Gabby y Gavin y John
2 comments:
I'm glad that Gabby got a ham and cheese sandwich handed to her in- stead of a hot dog. It could have been worse!
“Your true traveler finds boredom rather agreeable than painful. It is the symbol of his liberty-his excessive freedom. He accepts his boredom, when it comes, not merely philosophically, but almost with pleasure.” – Aldous Huxley
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