A special view

I have enjoyed every opportunity to explore Santiago -- on foot, bike, in metro or bus.  But, I had by far the best view the other weekend, on horseback in the mountains at the edge of town.  An astronomer at ALMA and his family organized a "cabalgata (horseback ride)" from the stables where their daughter takes horseback riding lessons.  The stables are northeast of town, a few kilometers along a dirt road.  It's amazing how the city ends so abruptly, mostly due to the dramatic mountains on the outskirts.

With two guides -- the girl's horseback riding teacher, and a horse whisperer who works at the stables -- we met the horses around 8 pm.  Some of the others had never been on a horse before, or only had horror stories of being thrown off horses, so I give them a lot of credit for bravely getting "back in the saddle".  Actually, being from Texas and having ridden horses growing up, I may have solidified Texas' cowboy/girl stereotype in the eyes of the (very international) group.  One by one we were assigned horses, and when the horse whisperer walked one horse up to those of us remaining, and asked "Which of you is the most experienced with horses?", I realized that I had to volunteer.  I braced myself for a wild ride, but my horse turned out to be only slightly stubborn.  

We rode for a couple of hours, slowly climbing the hill which overlooks the city to our west, with a fantastic view the whole way.  As the sun set, the lights were coming on in Santiago, and we could see the vastness of the city, but also the dramatic limit between civilization and uninhabited mountains. At the top, we had a bonfire, and a typical Chilean "asado" (barbeque). 

Content with the food, drinks, and great conversation among my new friends, we gradually descended along a dirt road to the stables.  I needed to focus on staying awake, because by 2 am, I felt very relaxed on the horse, loping along down the hill.  The photos here are from Andreas, the astronomer who organized the trip.  To me, the photos are beautiful, and they capture the drama of the light and the dark, feeling so near the city yet outside of the city at the same time.