Southern Chile: Talca

Talca

Note: I had wanted to go visit the Salto de Laja which is a mini version of Iguazu Falls, but still looks impressive on the Internet. There is also a 2^nd waterfall near it. However, due to limited time and limited resources (couldn’t find accommodation on Internet or LP book near the Linea Azul bus station in Los Angeles), I decided not to go this time. Salto de Laja is about halfway between Los Angeles and Chillan.

ALSO, you can see the result of February’s terremoto as many buildings are half collapsed or have been demolished. You will also see many being rebuilt. Some of the places in the LP book are being rebuilt.

Foodies

When you arrive at the main bus terminal, you will find several small restaurants for a cheap meal such as churrasco, cazuela, sandwiches. There are also 3 supermarkets and several vegetable and fruit vendors in that area.

Farmer’s Market- There is a huge indoor farmer’s market and the vegetables and fruits are cheapest here. It is on 11 oriente between approximately 2 Norte and O’Higgins. I think it is open daily and the hours are listed outside. Open Daily (except M or Tues, I don't remember) from 7am-4pm.

Jeremy’s Commentary:

Bus terminal restaurant Anden 3 Restaurant: We ate a quick lunch near the bus terminal at a little place that is one of a dozen or so identical restaurants. BUT be careful …don’t go to restaurants that don’t list prices. We feel we got overcharged because we were tourists.

Pirandello- cute little restaurant that has tasty pizzas for a great price. We got two individual pizzas which was just the right amount of food. They have other Italian dishes but didn’t try any.

Completo Stands on 5 Oriente and 2 Sur. Tons of stands selling completes at super cheap prices. I thought it was decent. Nice thing is that they stay open till 3am! Locals rave that the best completo is at "Lomax(?)". I will try to go eat there if I can.

Cafeteria La Papa – Decent pastries. The chocolate raspberry cake was good but the cheesecake was a little bland. Try other pastries they have…they look good. They also have fruit drinks which we also did not try.

Pollo Express – Tasty fried chicken, decent papas fritas and ensaladas and affordable prices. Good cheap meal if you want to save money.

Olivar- This is next to Las Viejas Cochinas (in LP book) which is right next to the Rio Claro right after you cross the bridge. It is probably 25 blocks from the Bus Terminal. I ended up going here instead of Las Viejas Cochinas because I heard it served the same food but was cheaper and with slightly less people. Be prepared to wait an hour for your food. I went on Sunday afternoon and there were TONS of people.

It is knows for its "Pollo Mariscal" which has tender chicken, longanizas sausages, onions, mussles, clams, and tomato. It was pretty good and I also liked the "Punch" which is like sangria with red or white wine and your choice of pineapple, strawberry, or peach. The large salad had 6 different ingredients. I heard the other food like the beef was "ok" from my friends.

SLEEP

Note: There are few budget accommodations in this town and many listed in LP book are not within walking distance from the bus terminal though you can take taxi or collectivos. Confirm the prices if you plan to stay more than just the night especially at the hotels near the bus terminal. We figure many of the bus drivers either shower or just sleep a couple hours at these hotels, so there are many different types of accommodations and prices.

Hotel Lircay- Nice big rooms that look recently renovated and includes TV, wi-fi and breakfast. The price per night is a little high and the biggest problem is that it is a little far from the bus station, but you can take a taxi for $1.700CLP or walk 2-3 blocks to the micro stop to get to the bus station at $350CLP (runs until 10pm).

Hotel Terminal- Rooms were ok. Had WiFi. A little cramped and always had a chemical/cleaner smell. Had trouble getting hot water in the show. Felt pretty safe in the hotel in this semi-safe neighborhood near the bus terminal. They used pad locks on the door to lock it when you leave…also strange. Rooms were cheap but they charged more if you keep your luggage in the room during the day. The advantage of staying here is that it is ½ block from the bus terminal.

TO DO

Note: O’Higgins museum is closed.

Tourist Info Office- Across from Plaza De Armas is pretty helpful with lots of brochures and maps, but they do not speak much English.

1 Sur- A closed off street lined with department stores, street vendors, some restaurants and cafes including Café La Papa. Pirandello and the complete stands are near it.

Churches- The architecture of the churches in town are remarkable. The damage from the terremoto makes them look even more antitque.

Antique train ride, Terrasur,- I took the bus to Constitucion (2 hour bus ride) in the afternoon which goes through the countryside. The bus goes to the main bus terminal which is the same place that the Terrasur Tren takes off. You can take this train at 7:15am OR 4:15pm. You buy your tickets on the train so there are no assigned seats.

There are definitely more people in the afternoon and it was interesting to see locals bring lots of groceries onto the train to get dropped off at the little historic train stops in the countryside where all you see are fields of crops, horses, cows and 1-2 homes every 20 minutes. Our train conductor dropped off a case of tomatoes to an elderly couple at one of the train stations.

I only had 1 hour in Constitucion so I walked along the river where the fisherman docked their boats and saw various types of birds. Walked to the beach, but did not see the cool rock formations as that was further down. If I had more time, I probably would’ve figured out which micro or collective could drop me off closer to the main part of the beach. The bus there does go by the beach. However, I wouldn’t spend more than 2-3 hours in this little sleepy town.

Reserva Nacional Altos Del Lircay-

There are numerous day long and multi-day hikes. However, many of them require more than 7 hours. Therefore, the 2 hikes that were recommended in LP book were not doable as we found that our bus ride took more than 2 hours there (left at 7:15am) and a little less than 2 hours back. We hiked to Mirador Valle which was a 6.5 hour hike going through forests and valleys with various wildlife encounters including blue-colored wasps, multi-colored lizards, grass grazing cows, lime colored beetles, red grasshoppers, etc. There were still snow on nearby mountains.

During my Southern Chile trip, I have been amazed by the quick moving monstrous clouds that whirl around the snow capped mountains in different shapes. I have not seen this in the United States.

Parque Radal Siete Tazas

This park is located half-way between Talca and Curíco. You have to take the bus to Molina and then transfer from there to go to the park. There is only 1 bus that goes there from Talca during off season so you would have to spend the night out there. The best season to go is during January and February where there are two bus companies that offer buses there.

It is best to go early morning to maximize your swimming time there!

I didn't bring my bikini when i went.

Bus Schedule (Jan and Feb 2011)

Talca to Molina (1 hour 10 minutes, 1.300CLP each way)- 6:30am (first), then every 30 minutes thereafter. 9pm (last leaves Molina)

Note: When i wanted to go back to Molina, the bus was every 50 minutes but there may be a 2nd bus company.

Molina to Radal Siete Tazas (1 hour 30 minutes, 2,000CLP each way, 2 bus companies)- Try to buy your morning ticket early.

Talmocur (phone #: 243467)- has office in Talca and Molina

Monday-Saturday

Leaves Molina at 12:15, 18:15, 20:15

Leaves Radal at 7:10, 10:15, 15:45

Sunday

Leaves Molina at 7:45, 14:00, 20:00, 21:00

Leaves Radal at 10:45, 15:00, 18:45

Bus Hernandez

Monday-Saturday, (Sunday)

Leaves Molina (8:00), (10:30), (13:30), 15:20, 16:30

ONLY SUNDAY- 14:30

Leaves Radal 11:30, 13:15, (17:00), (18:00), (19:00)

ONLY SUNDAY- 11:00

The micro that I took actually stopped at "Salto Velo de Novia" for 10 minutes for us to take pictures of it. It was quite spectacular to see this tall waterfall pouring out into the bluish-green pool. There is a company out there that posts rapelling down this waterfall as an excursion.

The micro will then drive by Conaf's entrance to Siete Tazas and Salto De La Leona. You can see 3 of the 7 cups. I didn't take the route to the river, but perhaps you can walk down that route to to swim near the waterfall.

HOWEVER, a 10-15 minute walk up the road (OR you can ask the micro to drop you) to Valle de Catta. This is a private campsite which offers cabins too. From here, you can pay 1.500CLP to get a different view of the Siete Tazas (which may be more inclusive), Salto De La Leona, and 2 other falls/rivers. It is a 1.5 hour walk total. I didn't have enough energy to go after my long day of micro riding and walking in the sun.

The last micro stop is at Parque Ingles where you will find 2 campsites and some small eats. I went to the Conaf office and found that I could walk to a mirador (which was ok) in less than 1 hour while I waited to get back on the micro to go back. Perhaps if I had more time, I would've gone on a 4 hour hike instead, but it was hot out and I had to return to Talca.