Like many South American cities, Santiago is noisy, but unlike many cities in South America there is no undercurrent of threat. A nice lady on the bus, showed me pictures of her kids, explained where to go, and even drew a map for me. We passed lots of couples hugging and kissing in the parks on the drive to the hotel in Santiago. Not unusual in itself, but these were not teenagers, several were middle aged couples.

According to the guidebook, the reward of climbing Santa Lucia - the in the middle of town - is a marvelous view. It’s true, it is a marvelous view, but it’s of a fucking ugly city. I could hear the traffic through the haze of smog and just barely make out the mountains in the distance.