Fiestas Patrias in Chile

Finally. It's now. The big day in Chile. Actually they like to party for some days but this is the actual day - Fiestas Patrias.

We woke up to a deserted city. Like empty. We walked to Parque O'Higgins since that's where the party was supposed to be. An hour of empty city. Maybe they are all hung over. It wasn't until we got to the last 100 metres before the entrance that it got crowded. Like really festival crowded.

Then the party started, we had terremoto drinks, a couple of meat skewers, went to the main music area and enjoyed the party, the drunk Chileans, the Cueca dancing Chileans and the happy Chileans. We seemed like to only foreigners to make it there. What a party.

Nobody home

Yes, we like big flags in Chile

Terremoto drinks

Queue line Tequila

Meat on sticks - as we like them

Dancing la Cueca

Santiago city walk

OK. Were from Denmark and were not used to the ground shaking. You might say: Shaken, not stirred. Felt a bit dizzy this morning as we had been woken up a couple of times during the night. Nothing serious - but you kind of wait for it to stop or for you to run for the door.

The city was alive this morning. As normal. We set out for the important stuff first. Six kilos of clean clothes for the back packs. Yes. Then we decided to enjoy the great weather - and walk. Malene wanted to go for an outdoor shop so we walked for an hour and a half and got there at 4 PM. Only to find a sign in the window saying "Closing at 4 PM". So we headed back home a slightly different route. Fiestas Patrias starts early we just realised. Found a place next to where we live to have a cold drink and enjoy the sun. Not quite warm enough to sit outside unless the sun shines but spring is definitely here.

Headed home and cooked a nice dinner - and kept fingers crossed that it wouldn't shake too much this evening.

Yes, the lamp is not moving

Clean clothes

Enjoying the warm sunshine

Spring is here

Springtime ice cream

Getting ready for the Independence day

Cooking - not shaking

Heading to Santiago - and Terremoto 8.3

We had plenty of time this morning. Our bus to Santiago wasn't until 11, we knew how to get to the bus station, tickets bought yesterday. The bus ride to Santiago is only an hour, so we didn't have to spend too much time in the bus. From the bus station we already had the directions to our apartment and by experience and luck - we found it in the first go. Then we met Pablo - the concierge - he showed us the place on the eights floor. Everything was just as expected - our own place for the next few days.

We went around the block to check out the shops and cafe's, handed six kilos of laundry in to the dry cleaners, had coffee and shopped the supermarket for everything we needed for the next few days. We expect Chile to come to a halt due to the National Independence day and related parties. So a lot of shopping.

Malene was cooking for dinner and Mikkel was hanging out in the living room when the building started to move. At first slowly then more and more violently, lamps moving, cupboards and doors starting to make noise - and then panic. What to do????? Leave the building as fast as possible running down the stairs with our personal documents and the keys to the apartment. On the way down we met most of the other residents. They were standing in the doorway to their apartments looking concerned.

We made it to the street level and most of the shaking had stopped. A full three minutes had passed by. We decided to take a walk, went to the cafe where we could get wifi and saw the breaking news on BBC - earthquake in Chile. There was no panic - a few concerned people talking on their cell phones so after a while we decided to head home. Taking the advice from our friends in Valparaiso who on our city tour had told us: "Do what the locals do". And the locals - it seemed - went home.

We had dinner, and watched the news on TV for the rest of the night. Our stuff left in front of the door to the apartment - ready to leave on short notice. During the night we learned about aftershocks - we had a few. Not too much sleep though.

Live music on the local bus

Bus station in Valpo

Almost in Santiago

Stuff packed for emergencies

Ready to leave on no notice