Last day in Santiago. One more walk through the city before the next leg of the trip.
A Chilean lunch — Palta Reina
One of the things I'd wanted to eat in Chile was Palta Reina — literally "queen avocado." A hollowed-out avocado stuffed with chicken or tuna salad, a Chilean home-cooking staple.
An avocado generously filled with chicken salad, white rice, sautéed zucchini and carrots, sliced tomato — together it's a complete almuerzo (set lunch). The avocado was big and creamy, and paired well with the chicken salad. Chile is also an avocado-producing country, so they're cheap even at supermarkets.
Chilean food on the whole is simple and not heavy. Mild flavors, easy to eat, the kind of food you could eat every day.
Christmas already, in October
In the afternoon, a stop at a shopping mall. The surprise: the Christmas decorations were already up. Chile is in the southern hemisphere, so October is spring — and even so, the seasonal decorations were already starting.
The mall layout is similar to malls in Japan: food court, apparel, cafés. Chilean youth fashion and the way people pass the time felt closer to Japan than I'd expected. Just because it's South America doesn't mean everything is different.
Santiago turned out to be a better city than I'd expected before coming. Architecture, food, people, and the dry blue sky. I'd come back if I had the chance.