Above Santiago´s smog...

45 minutes away from Santiago, on the way to Farellones, a family ski resort, on a beautiful winter day.

A cold and rainy Sunday afternoon.

What's better than sharing a coffee with a friend on such a lousy day? Wide choice of nice places in Santiago Centro, but I particularly enjoy this one, the Café Concepto. Small, warm, nice music, wifi, tea and pastries...What a great coffee shop to scare away the usual Sunday evening blues!

An underground exhibition.

It may look like an art gallery or even a museum, but it's not. To make art and culture more accessible to all, the city of Santiago along with Transantiago (the company in charge of all public transportation in the capital city) organize exhibitions, concerts and other events, all available for free, in various subway stations. The station Bellas Artes (Fine Arts) usually host drawing or paintings exhibits. The one above goes over 50 years of some of the best Chilean newspapers comics. Underground art, litterally...

The latest news.

It was 5.30 pm yesterday Thursday 25th of June when Chile found out what had happened to the King of Pop, Michael Jackson. All media were talking about a heart attack, when www.TMZ.com, who seemed to have its own inside sources, was already claiming "Michael Jackson dies at 50".

Regular Chilean TV programs were interrupted for the breaking news, and here, just like everywhere else in the world, probably, morning shows were almost 100% dedicated to the greatest pop star of all times, as were the newspapers.

Early morning nap.

Nothing like napping a bit on the way to work. Though it's pretty cold outside, the morning sun through the window feels nice and warm. It sure doesn't help commuters to stay awake, especially if they've had a short night (whatever the reason may be, but a few beers with friends and neighbours would most likely be one if there was a football game the night before). And the box of crackers he's holding is probably what he'll have for breakfast at work. A chilean recipe for hangovers?

A glimpse of the Santiago Transportation System.

The Transantiago system is a very intricated, complex system that will get you wherever you need to go in the Santiago area, but only if you know how to use it. If getting on subway train is a piece of cake, on the other hand, when it comes to taking a bus (or "micro" as they call it), it's a whole other story... more like a nightmare, really. But once you know which one to get on (by zone, numbers, letters, colours) , and if you're willing to risk your life (bus drivers all seem to be frustrated formula 1-wannabe drivers), then no doubt you'll get to destination...si Dios quiere.

Your daily dose of vitamins.

On your way to work, why not grab a freshly squeezed orange juice, along with your free newspapers? For 500 pesos (80 cents), you will be able to get your daily dose of vitamins, to help your system fight back the flu, among other nasty winter joys. Definitely a must-have!

Publimetro, you can't miss it!

Bright orange hats and jackets, nice and smiling señoritas and a friendly "Buenos dias, Publimetro!", the morning motto you'll hear if you manage to get to the subway before they run out...usually 15 minutes before they started handing it out.

A Santiago's Sunday best

At the very top of the Cerro Santa Lucia (Santa Lucia Hill) tourists and people of Santiago, families and lovers, gather to enjoy the incredible view of the city at the foot of the now-snow-covered Cordillera. Quite a few steep steps, but definitely worth it!

Saturday is market day.

The Santiago Centro's main market place is called "Vega central". Always a very busy place, with such narrow alleys that only small carts can be used to deliver goods. Crowd, poorly paved streets, rain are the main obstacles for these hard-working men.

Platform shot - Metro Bellas Artes L.5

Santiago, Paris or New York... reading the free newspapers, handed out outside of the subway station seems to be an international morning habit.

Coffee to take away.

Want a warm coffee? This is a nice place to have one, with croissants on the side, and newspapers of the day. You'll just have to wait 8.30 am for this bistrot to open.

Metro shot - L.5 - 8.30 am

(c) Lau

I take the L5 metro every morning to work, along the beautiful cordillera, the sun rising over it. A nice way to start a day...