Last stop Santiago...

Santiago's main plaza

The bullet hole beneath the eye from the 1973 coup

My last few days were spent in the Chilean capital of Santiago. I only had time to briefly explore but by far the best thing I did was spend half a day in the museum of memory and human rights.

The beautiful park atop Santa Lucia hill in the city centre

Built to remember and commemorate the victims of the military dictatorship led by Gen. Pinochet from 1973-1990, the museum gave a fascinating view on the events leading up to the 1973 coup d'etat, the time in power, and the vote that eventually peacefully ended the dictatorship in 1990.

An interesting walking tour of the city also pointed out a lot of monuments and remnants from that era, which still divides Chileans today.







A final day spent exploring some of the parks and neighbourhoods, eating 'italianos' (Chilean hothogs with lashings of avacado, tomato and mayo) and lucuma ice cream (Peruvian fruit), visiting the museum of belle artes and buying last minute souvenirs and it was time to pack up my backpack one last time.

My jeans, patched up in Peru but now on their last legs

Taking the bus to the airport to catch my flight to Auckland I had mixed feelings about leaving South America. Looking forward to catching up with my family in NZ over Christmas, relief to not have to sleep in another dorm, wear the same worn-out clothes or plan another day of travelling, sadness at leaving behind a continent, language, and way of life I had grown to love. But overwhelmingly looking forward to coming home.