VALPARAISO TO SYDNEY : SECTOR THREE

The manor house at Concha Y Toro vineyard

Now that's what we call a barrel of wine!

This has been the only tour so far that we wondered whether a 2-hour coach trip one way to get to a vineyard was worth it!

Valparaiso and Santiago are simply big cities and you could be anywhere, but again the sun was shining and the temperature was around 28c when the coach pulled up at the restaurant where we were to have lunch before visiting the winery.

The menu was by now becoming fairly predictable! Pisco sour and empanadas to start, followed by soup, then steak and rice!!  Dessert was fresh fruit salad, all washed down with a very good red or white wine.

To those of you who know your wine, our visit was to the Concha y Toro vineyard who produce the well known red wine Casillero Del Diablo available at all UK supermarkets.  We had a tasting of 2 wines, one white and one red, but resisted the temptation to buy any.  The Casillero Del Diablo was $7, or about £5 in the UK, but we didn’t see the point of buying wine that is freely available at home.

Having left the ship at 0745 we got back just before 1900 with just a short time left to shower and change before dinner at 2030.

We now start an 8-day crossing of the Pacific, broken only by a cruise-by Easter Island on the 11^th, and a visit from some 50-or so Pitcairn islanders on the 14^th. From our point of view, 8 days at sea is simply wonderful and a chance not to have to get up at 0615!

Clocks were put back another hour today and we are now 4 hours behind UK. Weather is 17c and overcast.  Our next stop is Papeete in Tahiti where we are warned it is the rainy season, and that is where the next blog will be coming from.