Day 198: Ruta 68

Santiago – Vina del Mar, Chile

Sometimes I questioned my own logic. So, the bus from Santiago to Vina del Mar only costs $8. Yet, I chose to take the metro and walk to meet up with Bruno at his CS host’s apartment. Then we took another metro and was misled by a rather stupid metro worker and ended up having to walk an hour an a half to the junction of Route 68 (the highway that we plan to hitchhiked from). All underneath the blazing sun and with our backpacks.

But hey! It’s not the destination that counts, but the journey, no? Besides, when and where else will I get the chance to hitchhike. I’m too much a wimp to do it on my own and Bruno is a pro when it comes to it.

Once we made it to Route 68, it took us less than 10 minutes to catch our ride. It’s amazing! Bruno told me earlier that it’s easiest when there are two travellers, one male and one female. And usually, it’s easiest to get ride from a solo male with an old car. He was dead on.

The gentleman who gave us a ride was a middle age Spaniard driving an old Opel. His name is Gonzalo. The ride with Gonzalo was perfect. He had this mixed CD that he played really loud and all the songs were fantastic! Bruno and I wished we could make a copy of the disc. One of the songs played was an Italian classic called “Cantare Volare”. Never heard of the song before but the two of them were singing on top of their lungs to it. From now on, I’ll forever associate this song to this trip :] Such a great memory.

Vina del Mar turned out to be such a beautiful beautiful seaside town. It totally reminded me of Monaco. Clean, wealthy and has a cool casino. Originally, I was planning to stay in a hostel, but Bruno had asked his CS host, Antonella, if she could host an extra person. So, besides, hitchhiking Bruno’s hitchhiking trip, I also hitchhiked his couchsurfing session. Hehe.

Antonella is a 19 year-old Chilean. First time hosting somebody. She’s a medical student in Vina del Mar, aiming to become a surgeon. She lives with her grandma, two dogs and a cat, Simon. The family was really warm and welcoming. I went shopping with Antonella and then we all had dinner and chatted away until really late at night.