Middle Chile, wine country.

We have begun our journey to the South of this extremely long country. Today’s journey brought us to a veritable Vineyard Haven. This is wine country, and they take their vino very seriously here. We are in Middle Chile, between the town of Santa Cruz, and the picturesque, minute town of Lolol.

The drive here took us through many a road, some along the ocean, some along a most serene, hilly countryside. A very marked difference from the arid landscapes of the North.

This area is the heartland of the country. Extremely fertile valleys, not as dramatic, but certainly pleasant to the eye. Everything is grown here, from the wine grapes to fruit of all sorts, to corn and vegetables; it is a veritable Eden.

Santa Cruz Valley

Our hotel is divine. The grounds are impeccable, with pear, peach, plum, fig, and orange trees. The pool is magnificent and perfect for the 88 degree sunny weather.

In the town of Santa Cruz we found what is possibly the best little-known museum in the world. We spent three full hours there and still missed more than half of the displays. It covers all aspects of the history of Chile from pre-history to the present days, and the volume of items, and the quality of the displays are absolutely stunning. What a jewel of a find.

The mouth of a prehistoric shark, compared to a present-day great white shark's (at center)

The mummified head of a Mapuche Indian that precedes Egyptian mummification

These are the oldest human fossils in existence. They date back 11,500 years!

This 500-year old crucifix was brought in by the colonizing Spaniards

A horse-drawn funeral cart, in use in the 1800s

The actual uniforms of the 33 Chilean miners that were rescued from the mining disaster of 2010, after 69 days being trapped 800 meters underground. The event was followed worldwide.

We had dinner in Lolol. The town was all but destroyed by an earthquake in 2018, but its charm is still there. Gauchos on horseback, gaslit streetlights, cobblestones, and a colonial architecture of old.

Lolol

Earthquake damage still apparent 6 years later

A Lolol gaslit lamp-post

Tomorrow we’ll continue southward, reaching the town of Cobquecura on the shore. Stay tuned. Good night.