Arriving at Punta Arenas, Chile

January 26, 1994

4:05pm

When we got to Punta Arenas, the land appeared rough and clumpy, like a battlefield: pocked and pitted. Rough-looking bushes here and there and a straw-colored grass everywhere. We waited forever it seemed, in disarray, for our passports to be stamped by a single passport officer. Then, we waited for busses to take us to the ship.

Airport at Punta Arenas, and the Chilean flag

Monument to a Chilean president

On the bus, we were given a brief tour of the surrounding area (we didn't actually land at Punta Arenas, but about 20 minutes away from it, across farming lands similar to Pennsylvania but all dried up.

The Straits of Magellan and a farm near Punta Arenas

When we got to Punta Arenas, we were taken to a Chilean restaurant where we had a buffet of Chilean food -- very good! We saw a little bit of Chilean home life, in the houses near the restaurant and the kids chasing a dog around the block.

El Arriero restaurant in Punta Arenas (above) and nearby homes (below)

You may continue the story with a tour of the city, or return to today's table of contents.