Lewis the Lion hurried along towards the imposing hill which overlooked Santiago: Cerro San Cristóbal. He wanted to get to the top so that he could see the sun setting over the city. Luckily there was a funicular from Pío Nono which would take him up in an instant.
Lewis sees the La Madre de Santiago staue from a distance
While he was waiting in the queue with Helen, he met a lovely little boy who wanted to show him how he’d had his face painted that day.
Lewis meets a friend who has had his face painted!
Lewis thought that he looked just great and was reminded of the times back in England when his friend Helen had also painted children’s faces during summer fayres and the like.
Lewis catches the funicular up San Cristóbal Hill
As they boarded the carriage of the funicular, they heard someone calling their name. It was their Italian friend, Alessandro! How strange to bump into him yet again on their journey! First they had met in Bariloche, then had met on the volcano in Pucón and now here he was again in Santiago: what a small world!
Lewis, Helen and Alessandro on the San Cristóbal Hill
The funicular took them to a viewing balcony which overlooked the city. The view was magnificent!
Lewis climbs the San Cristóbal Hill
Lewis the Lion hadn’t imagined that Santiago was such a big city but it seemed to stretch on for miles and miles.
Overlooking Santiago whilst going up in the funicular
Most impressively it was also surrounded by the beautiful Andean mountain range which seemed to act as a backdrop to all the skyscrapers and city buildings.
Lewis admires the view from San Cristobal Hill
Here is a photo of Lewis and Helen at the top of the hill.
Lewis the Lion and Helen arrive at the top of the hill
A little bit further on were steps leading up to the enormous statue of the Virgin Mary.
Lewis at the foot of the Our Lady statue on San Cristobal Hill
Lewis the Lion was reminded of the time he was in Brazil when he went to a similar statue on top of a big mountain, Corcovado, to see the statue of Christ the Redeemer. In much the same fashion, the white statue was perched on top of a little chapel where people could go and pray.
Lewis finds this place of prayer besides La Madre de Santiago
The inside of the chapel was bright and inviting and seemed to be a place of both reverence and joy. Lewis the Lion thought that it was just beautiful! He was also given a little prayer card as a memento.
Lewis receives a special prayer card - La Madre de Santiago
As he came out of the chapel, he noticed that the colours in the sky were starting to change. It was half past five at night and the sun was starting to set. Watching the sunset is one of Lewis the Lion’s favourite past-times as he loves to see the colours change in the sky from sky-blues, to pinks, to oranges and to reds before the night sets in with an ever darkening blue. He also loves the sense of calm that seems to descend upon the world below. Lewis the Lion thinks that sunset is just a magical time of day!
Lewis looks out over the vast city of Santiago
Click here to see the spectacular view that Lewis the Lion saw from the top of the San Cristobal Hill, overlooking Chile’s capital city, Santiago.
Moreover, some other people seemed to have the same idea as Lewis the Lion on this particular evening. As Lewis went to sit on the steps to absorb this special moment, he couldn’t believe it but here were more of his friends who were doing exactly the same thing! This time it was his friends, Katie, Katie and Sophie who he had also met climbing the Villaricca Volcano in Pucón. What a coincidence!
Lewis' friends watch the sunset
By now, it was night time and it was starting to get decidedly chilly so the group of friends headed back to the funicular to take them back down the hill. Lewis the Lion was delighted to meet some Chilean policemen in the same carriage and had a couple of photos taken with them.
The Carabineros say 'Hola' to Lewis the Lion
Franco, the tour guide, had told him only yesterday that Chilean policemen were friendly people and he was right!
Lewis and Helen meet some Chilean policemen
At the bottom of the hill, Lewis the Lion said goodbye to his friends and arranged to go and enjoy a traditional Chilean meal with them another time. (Lewis will write about traditional Chilean food in one of his next blogs).
Like Lewis the Lion, do you have a favourite time of day?
When is it and why?
