I'm fortunate enough to have summer in January (even though I would also love to be skiing with the Yale Nordic Ski team this weekend!), and I'm committed to taking advantage of the pleasant temperatures, sunshine, and long days. My favorite way to know a city is by foot, so each day I have decided on a new running route, and set out to explore.
In fact, running and biking seem to be relatively popular activities here, and the neighborhoods near where I live encourage this by maintaining very nice parks and bike paths. In fact, I took two longer runs this weekend, and in both, I think I spent about 70% of my time on paths, rather than on busy roads.
The other day, I headed to the Parque Bicentenario, a long park which runs several kilometers along the road called Bicentenario, in the neighborhood Vitacura where I work. The park includes wide paved paths, an awesome view of downtown (see below), sculptures and the architectural municipal building, winding dirt paths, a dog agility course (Aunt Kathy should come here to check out the international competition!), and manicured lawns where families were relaxing or playing sports. Something for everyone.
Today I jogged to the Parque de las Esculturas (sculpture park), a collection of outdoor sculptures set on green lawns in Providencia above the Costanera Norte, a major highway which runs underground through part of the city.
On the way home, I didn't exactly stick to my pre-selected route, because I found a several-kilometer bikepath, and then a major road which was closed to cars on Sundays so that bikers and runners could have the right-of-way. To me, these routes make the big city more liveable, and I was happy to see many Santiaguinos enjoying their summer vacations in this way.
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