Chile Esoterica

 

Stumbled into a grand house that I thought was a museum 

Graffiti Mansion

Graffiti mansion in Chile

The Andes

The Andes are a very unique mountain range. They are just insanely expansive stretching out into infinity.

Santa Lucía Hill an oasis within Santiago

Stumbling around Santiago, we had seen it all and were just about to head back to the hotel for some spa time. We passed by an intriguing mansion that looked like something out of a Latin version of Savannah from 150 years ago. Santa Lucia is a peaceful refuge from Santiago.

Parque Metropolitano de Santiago on a misty day

This is a funicular that whisks you away to a hill above the clouds 

A Street Llama in Santiago, Chile

 This guy was just hanging out apparently

Of course as soon as I took the picture, an errant Chilean hopped out to collect, so we made the most of it

Chasing the devil's wine in Chile

We went down to Chile to explore some wineries and switch seasons. Chile is a sly mix of South America with a twist of Europe. Dash of the devil.

The world's creepiest abandoned cities

I wrote this piece right before Kristin and I married, almost 2 years ago.  Over a million people read it, and I just noticed that I never published it on goboogo.  So, here it is.  Here is the original run.

Some cities die. The people leave, the streets go quiet, and the isolation takes on the macabre shape of a forlorn ghost-town - crumbling with haunting neglect and urban decay. From Taiwan to the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains, these abandoned cities lurk in the shadows of civilization. Their histories are carried in hushed whispers and futures stillborn from the day of their collapse. Some have fallen victim to catastrophe while others simply outlive their function. I think we can all agree on one thing - they are all very creepy.

Pripyat
Location: Pripyat, Ukraine - 100km from Kiev
Story: On April 26, 1986, the Chernobyl reactor began its tragic meltdown. The incident was a huge blow to the viability of the nuclear energy platform, and still today, the town of Pripyat is an abandoned shell of a city frozen in a 1980's Soviet time-warp. While the failed reactor has been entombed in a an appropriate sounding casing called a "sarcophagus," the area remains unsafe for human life. The town has thrived in one aspect though. Wildlife has returned to the area in droves. Wolves silently hunt among the towering apartment buildings, and boars forage for food in the abandoned amusement park - which strangely opened the day after the reactor explosion in the midst of evacuation.
Abandoned since: 1986