Valparaiso, Vina del Mar & my near death experience horseback riding

We've had some time off from projects so we decided to go to Valparaiso and Vina del Mar, where Megan studied abroad and where her boyfriend lives. These beach cities are so cool! The houses are built up on the side of a mountain so it is a really steep climb to get up there. There are some machines called ascensors that work on a pulley system to bring you up and down which helps a lot. Mostly we've just been exploring the beach, little shops and Pablo Neruda's house! There is a German restaurant and bar across from our hostel. It is pseudo-open. The two Germans that opened it have been waiting for their permit for 8 months here so they serve people but can't  have the front door open so you walk though the back. And they just tell the cops that they have private parties. They had one kind of beer that they have a German dude brew for them and no real menu so they just whipped up some delicious German food for us!

We drove out to a place called ConCon for cabalgata- or riding horses on the beach. I was very excited because I love the ocean and I have gone on horseback tours before. This was a little different. We were put on a horse and basically were just set free. We all stuck together but we weren't just in a line like I've experienced before. I got used to my horse trotting which was scary at first. I named him Rocky Road. But then the guide said we could gallop and that was the most terrifying thing of my life! I felt like I was going to fall off and if you know my life then you know I would be the one to fall off the horse on such an excursion. But we all survived and felt awesome afterwards!!!! Megan especially loved galloping, she was a natural. Unfortunately, she and I had the two slowest horses that would just stop when they wanted to and mine kept eating all the time. And they were friends so we rode right next to each other a lot. The horse her boyfriend had would never like our horses- the guide explained they did not grow up in the same herd or something so they would always be unfriendly. We went by the beach after and had some seafood and beer- the perfect way to end the excursion!

Our hostel is really nice!

Hostal Destino Bellavista

Vina del Mar

Beach dog

We watched the sunset in Vina del Mar

Valparaiso- view from the hostel

An example of the ascensors

This photo is not mine, I found it online, but it shows the ascensor we've been riding in our neighborhood. It is called Ascensor Espiritu Santo. Each ride costs the equivalent of 20 cents!

Me and Pablo Neruda hanging out

One of Pablo's houses- La Sebastiana