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One Good Day

One Good Day in Santiago

September 6, 2023 No Comments

So, you’re traveling to the big Chile, and you’ve booked a hotel in Santiago, but you don’t know what to do when you get there? Don’t worry; I’ve spent plenty of aimless days in Santiago so I could recommend one Good Day in Santiago to you!

Really Good Day tip: If you want to boost your day from Good to Really Good make a reservation at Ambrosia Bistro for dinner before you go out today. This may very well be one of the best restaurants you’ll find in South America. You owe it to yourself to try the food once! Make sure to emphasize you want indoor seating, my readers shouldn’t eat on the street.

Interior of Ambrosia Bistro is tight so make a reservation

Start Your Day

Hop on some sort of public transportation, the Metro in Santiago is excellent and really easy to use but you can hop on a bus or taxi just as well if the metro isn’t near your lodging. Make sure to buy a BIP card if you choose to ride the Metro. Head on over to the Parque Forestal. If you’re taking the Metro that’ll be either the Universidad Catolica stop or the Bellas Artes stop, but you should prioritize Universidad Catolica. Once you exit at the station and start walking towards the park, I recommend you find a coffee shop nearby on a street called José Victorino Lastarria. This is also an ideal street to come back to if you have another night in Santiago. You’ll see Lastarria is full of restaurants, cafes, and historical significance which works for day or night activities. Here’s an excellent guide for just this neighborhood if you want to explore more.

Make it to the park and take in the sights and sounds of the city. This is a lovely part of town and as long as the weather permits, I recommend you find a bench or a spot in the grass to chill for 15-20 minutes.

Alright, now that you’ve meditated and aligned your chakras or whatever, you’re ready to see some cool stuff. Walk across the park to the Museo de Bellas Artes. It’s completely free and has some amazing art you can take silly pics with, like this:

Museo Nacional de las Bellas Artes, Santiago Chile

Pretty cool huh? Take some time here to enjoy the art, take some pics, and maybe learn something. It’s not a requirement for a Good day, but sometimes I feel better after I learn something, even if it hurts my brain.

Lunch Time

Okay, that was cool, let’s grab some lunch! May I humbly suggest Cafe De La Barra right across the street from the museum? Depending on your taste, this place may be what you’re looking for, it’s humble offerings of some Chilean staples. Spoiler alert: Chilean staples means fried or grilled meat with a version of a potato. Try it with a Pisco Sour. Why not, you’re probably on vacation, just live a little for once in your sad blue/white collar life! If you’re looking for something a little more high end, with a wow-factor in the interior, look no further than Bar Liguria Lastarria. The interior feels like walking into a grand 1950s movie set, meanwhile the food is anything but stale. Cazuela de Vaca is a typical Chilean soup here, sure to soothe your soul here in the winter seasons.

After Lunch

After lunch we’ll have one more museum. I know what you’re thinking: “Museums are lame, they’re boring, they’re for retirees that have nothing better to do, I already did one and it was alright but I’m not burning a whole day in Santiago on museums”. Alright, fair enough, but this one is special. I’m not much for a museum person either, but this museum is not only free, it’s good!

It’s not exactly Burning Man but it’s a really good museum, give it a shot. Plus, did I mention the museum is free? We’re going to the Museum of Memory and Human Rights.

I’m going to suggest we arrive via the Metro line because the metro station is actually connected to the entrance of the museum, so you can hop off the train and arrive at the stairs to the museum. We’re gonna get off at the Quinta Normal stop. Walk up the stairs and once you’re outside, turn left, the entrance is at the bottom of the big rectangular block that is the museum.

Outside Museum of Memory and Human Rights

Now, the museum is free but if you want an English, self-guided, explanation of the museum you’ll need to “donate”. Just drop five bucks cheap-o, it’s worth it.

In this museum, you’ll learn about the events that lead up to the 1973 coup d’etat and what happened during the 20+ year military dictatorship that followed. It’s truly heart wrenching what many people in Chile lived through and is a great testament to how resilient people can be, living through uncertain times and making the most of their situation. I love this museum because it provides its guests a well told story of difficult to understand events. It’s especially shocking to see that many of the places you walked through today are historically significant areas in the history of Chile’s military dictatorship just a few decades earlier.

Alright, that was heavy, but I’m glad we did it. Good job, team. I say we’ve earned ourselves a treat. We have a little “choose-your-own-adventure” coming up now.

Last Activity

We have two options: the Yuppy-tourist option, or the Free-spirit-nomad option.

Yuppy-tourist: View + Dinner

Free-spirit-nomad: View + Hike

Yuppy-tourist Option

Yuppy-tourist option will involve another metro trip, this time we’re going to the Tobalaba metro station. We need to get to the Costanera building. The Costanera is the tallest building in Latin America and the view from the top is amazing + available to the general pubic. I’m recommending this option assuming you still have an hour of sunlight left or so, I want you to take in the view during the day, this option is available during the summer months more so than the winter.

Need tickets to get to the top of the Costanera Tower

To get to the top of the Costanera building, first make your way to the building itself. It’s really hard to miss. Enter into the mall at the base of the tower and descend the mall until you reach the bottom floor. From here, depending on where you entered you’ll need to walk around the mall a bit to find the entrance for “Sky Costanera”. Once you find the smallish entrance you’ll enter into a line to buy tickets (~$16/person) and wait for the elevator to take you up. It’s freaky fast. You have an unlimited amount of time up there but you have to wait for the elevator to take you down so it can actually take a while to leave once you’re up there.

Now that you had the best view in South America (probably, I dunno), you’re ready to have dinner and rest those poor feet.

Yuppy-Dinner

Now, time to end your Good day. Like I mentioned earlier, if you wanted a Really Good Day you would have set up a reservation for yourself at Ambrosia Bistro. You can either take a 15 minute walk there from the Costanera or you can order an uber. When you get there order something with pork belly in it, you probably won’t regret it. Otherwise, if you didn’t get a reservation at Ambrosia Bistro, you can find a restaurant in the Costanera mall or in a nearby neighborhood. I’d recommend walking down the street of Isidora Goyenechea to find an excellent restaurant with amazing cocktails.

Free-spirit-nomad Option

Free-spirit-nomad option will include some fantastic views as well but in a much different environment. You’re going to head over to the entrance of the National Zoo at the base of the metropolitan park of Santiago. I don’t know how you’re going to get there, maybe you take the bus, maybe you steal someone’s bike? Regardless, once you get to the Zoo entrance don’t go in, instead you walk over to the Funicular de Santiago by Turistik.

The funicular is a quick ride that drops you off near the top of the hill in the heart of Santiago. You’ll have some truly breathtaking views where the funicular drops you off, wow, I’m already jealous. Now, you need to walk up a bunch of stairs to the summit of the hill. You can tell you’re getting close because there’s a massive 50ft Virgin Mary statue at the top of the hill looking down at you. If you really need directions plug Cerro San Cristobal into Google Maps. Climb all the way to the feet of the statue.

By the way, I was assuming you still have some daylight left when you’re at the funicular because there are no lights at the top, so try to leave before it gets really dark or bring a headlamp. Don’t blame me if you miss a step in the dark and crack your head.

Now you’re going to hike down the hill and make friends with a bunch of locals hiking down with you. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention the last funicular goes down long before sunset so you’re only way down is on foot. Don’t worry though, you’re a Free-spirit-nomad built to survive this 3.8KM stroll down the hill. You’ll laugh and sing songs with the locals walking down the hill with you, you’ll also be in awe of the amazing views of the metropolis beneath you. Santiago is massive!

You’ll probably be able to wave hello at the last of the Yuppy-tourists at the top of the Costanera tower waiting in line for the single elevator that can take them down to safety. What are the odds both of you are in your respective journey’s today based off of my advice? Pretty humbling to think people rely on me for any sort of advice, especially on how to spend their time. Also sort of terrifying, why would you listen to me? Go do your own thing, make mistakes, sing karaoke, get lost in the woods, set fire to something, or just stay at home and read some more travel blogs; just make sure you’re doing what you want to do!

I digress, assuming you made it down the hill alive and without being robbed (above average chance of that happening tonight BTW, what?) you’ll need to look for food. We’ve come to the end of our Good day! If you wanted a Really Good Day you would’ve gotten yourself a reservation at Ambrosia Bistro but something tells me if you’re reading this Free-spirit-nomad section you don’t have an appreciation for the finer things in life and you don’t even know how to book yourself a reservation.

Free-spirit-nomad Dinner

It’s dinner time in Santiago and there’s so many great options for a free spirit like yourself, why don’t you wrangle up some local llamas and mozzie on over to the Barrio Italia. If llamas are not available for some bizarre reason, can take the metro and exit at the Santa Isabel or Salvador stops. You can wander the wild blocks of Ave. Italia looking for a place that serves sanguchito con papas al a pobres. That’s Spanish for sandwich with poverty fries you dumb tourist. Try out Barbazul Barrio Italia or Bar & Vuelvo, and order three more piscos before you make it home tonight, provecho!

Go Home

Alright that pretty much wraps things up for today, let’s go back to the Airbnb, my feet hurt.

Destinations

Where to eat in Vancouver

August 14, 2023 No Comments

Must Try Food For Your Trip to Vancouver

Intro

Vancouver is special for the foodie world because of the density of high end, critically acclaimed restaurants within the city. It’s home to 12 Bib Gourmand restaurants and 8 one-star Michelin restaurants. This means, if you stay within Vancouver proper you’ll have access to 20 Michelin guide restaurants within 30 minutes walking distance. Trust me, in the summer you’ll want to walk, the weather here is amazing! Now, onto the guide.

Yaletown

Tasty Indian

The vibes, the atmosphere, stupendous. The food and drinks, relatable. You’ll enjoy Tasty Indian because the Yuppy modern interior betrays an intense expertise of Indian cuisine. You’ve never had a paneer quite like this. The Tandoori Paneer Tikka is gonna light up your day and give you something to write home about. If you happen to come during lunch hours, enjoy a very generous veg or non-veg Thali, here known as a lunch tray. The Thali comes loaded with dahl, two pieces of tandoori (grilled) chicken, garlic naan, and your choice of butter chicken (my choice) or lamb curry. All this for less than $20 USD!

RV’s Butter Chicken

If you want a more laid back atmosphere that harkens to your days of eating tikka masala in a roadside restaurant in the heart of your favorite Indian city then you need to make your way RV’s Butter Chicken. They have none of the frills of Tasty Indian but all the heart and talent. Personally I’m obsessed with their Paneer Tikka Masala, but their naan alone is worth the hike. You’ll also be impressed with their spicy chili chicken wings, that’ll leave you regretting you ever put BBQ sauce on a piece of chicken. It’s time to nut up and go to RV’s fam.

Honey Brew

Honey Brew is plain and simple the best dessert spot in Vancouver. Yes! There are a lot of good spots in Vancouver to get dessert. The problem is, they close early and don’t have strudel!!!! If you know what’s good for you, you’ll walk over to Honey Brew at 9:30 PM, while the sun is still out in Vancouver, and order yourself a strawberry & rhubarb strudel with ice cream and whip cream. Maybe get yourself a coffee, go crazy, it’s your world we’re just living in it. The point is, Honey Brew is open for late night rendezvous with the strudel of your choosing. If that isn’t good enough for you, I think you need to assess your priorities.

Happy Noodle House

If you need a quick hit of Xiao Long Bao, Happy Noodle House is more than willing to oblige. You’ll need a lot of time because they have a well endowed waitlist and are short on dining space. What’s great about Happy Noodle is their ability to serve up Chinese classics without having to travel to Chinatown or Burnaby. While they may be in the heart of gentrified Vancouver they still serve up the hits as good as the rest of them.

Xiao Long Bao!!!!

Gastown/Chinatown

Hy’s Chophouse

Hy’s is going to be your go-to for special occasion dinners, or if you just want a proper steak during your stay in Vancouver. Hy’s a steakhouse’s steakhouse filled with old world knick-knacks and do an unconvincing job of fooling into thinking you’re an earl of a small plot of land in the county of Essex. The interior screams “quiet luxury” and the food is exceptional. If you insist, get a 16oz ribeye, but if you want to pamper yourself, get the steak au pouvoir. One of the really fun parts of Hy’s is their commitment to making you feel like that dirty duke in Robin Hood stories. Order the Bananas Foster and enjoy a very exciting table sideshow full of flames and steel. You’re gonna feel good when you leave Hy’s!

Black Rice Izakaya

Do you like sushi? Congrats you’re a basic Yuppy. Now, do you like exploring some of the furthest reaches sushi can take you? If so, you should mail it in to Black Rice Izakaya. They have some of the most excellent cuts of sushi I’ve ever had. This is all very surprising considering their humble circumstances. Black Rice isn’t trying to impress anyone, they just are. Come on over for great sushi, reasonable prices, and no-frills interiors.

Kissa Tanto

Wow, wow, wow. I don’t think I’ve ever fallen in love with a restaurant faster in my life. Just wandering through Chinatown, you would never spot Kissa Tanto. It’s a hole in the wall that quickly blooms into a Michelin guide restaurant as soon as you begin ascending the set of stairs that greets you at the entrance. When you arrive at the summit, you’re greeted by a funny scene. It’s similar to a high-class, candle-lit, 5-star-hotel, diner. The food is a fusion of Japanese and Italian. They have a ribeye that’s to die for but honestly anything on the menu is going to make you nostalgic for this night whenever you return to your sad corporate or blue-collar life. Arrive after 9PM and make sure you get a martini or negroni, it’s one of those places.

Burnaby

Crystal Mall

Do you like Chinese food? Do you like a lot of Chinese food? Do you like a lot of Chinese food all at once? Do you like saving money? Well hop on a long-ass metro ride to Crystal Mall. You’re going to get off at Metrotown station and you’ll walk yourself to the food court on the second floor of Crystal Mall. From there, order the best Xiao Long Bao of your life, the best Chinese BBQ combo of your life, and a wonton soup to cap things off. Seriously though, please order as much food as you think two of yourself can eat. It’s excellent and cheap food!

Chung Chun

On your walk to Crystal Mall, make a quick stop at Chung Chun and order a mozzarella rice dog. You’re welcome!

North Vancouver

Tap & Barrel

If you want to soak in the city’s great views, take a ferry ride across Vancouver Harbor to North Vancouver. Once you’re there, hit up Tap & Barrel for a killer view of the city, especially when the clock strikes 9 PM and their late happy hour kicks in. Now, the real deal is their Happy Hour steak frites – trust me, it’s a mouthwatering dish. And here’s a tip: pair that bad boy with their happy hour red wine recommendation, and you’re in for a great hang. Tap & Barrel gets how to blend good food, epic views, and prices that won’t break your piggy bank. It’s a spot you don’t want to skip, whether you’re a local legend or just passing through.

Squamish

Watershed Grill

If you’re one of the thousands of people who do the drive to Whistler for a day trip on Saturday or Sunday, think about stopping for lunch/dinner at the Watershed Grill. The food is decent, they can’t mess it up. The reason to stop here is not for the mediocre bar food, it’s for the gorgeous views of the Squamish river. Most places you can stop along the way to Whistler are gonna be pretty basic but none of them have this view! Trust me, stop at Watershed and plop yourself on one of the picnic benches along the river bank.

Kitsilano

Vij’s

Honestly, you may just want to move to Kitsilano, if you’re a food lover. It has a high concentration of Michelin guide restaurants, the best of which is clearly Vij’s. The dishes here were all new to me, something I always love to see. I also hate it when upscale restaurants jip you on the food, don’t worry Vij’s is far from this case. The whole vibe here is just like hanging out in your rich, Indian, besties living room while his mom cooks you dinner after school. The naan bread is so fluffy and doesn’t stop coming; you will leave Vij’s nice and stuffed! If you’re a non-veg person, do yourself a favor and order the lamb popsicles. If you are veg, God bless ya, get yourself a samosa the size of your heart! It’s a rare person who wouldn’t enjoy Vij’s, so make sure to get a reservation in advance.

Beautiful view of the kitchen from the entry way and bar

Delara

Another Michelin guide restaurant in Kitsilano, I’m telling you, Vancouver is stacked. I truly think Delara is best enjoyed in the day. There’s a lot of natural light pouring into this restaurant and it creates a laid back and happy atmosphere to enjoy lunch or an early dinner in Vancouver. Get acquainted with the interesting and subtle flavors or Delara. The food here is complicated and pretty to look at, but is also hearty. Don’t worry, you’re gonna walk out of Delara feeling satisfied. I’d recommend a dish that comes with the Crispy Saffron rice. Months later I’m still thinking about that rice, and so will you!

Victoria

Fantan Cafe

There’s a lot of generic restaurants and breweries to check out in Victoria and if that’s more your speed then more power to you. For those interested in a more local connection think about visiting the Chinatown in Victoria. On the main drag of Chinatown you’ll find a very funky store front. Inside the funky storefront are some of the best noodles you’ll have in Canada. Fantan Cafe has got a small interior so I’d recommend taking the noods to-go. If you’re trying to avoid soy like I am, order the Singapore Rice Noodles with chicken. I love the curry taste of these noodles and they’re not as heavy/greasy as most other stir fried noodle dishes.

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