“Can you touch it?”
“NO! You touch it!”
“I can’t, I’m taking the picture Mark, please…?”
“Uh … no. Gimme the camera. I take the picture.”
“Mark, I’d rather you touch the cactus than take a picture with my Nikon.”
Quick look around. Nope, no English speaker around. Hopefully no one understood what I said and witnessed this great parenting moment of mine.
“Gently…”
“It did NOT hurt!”
“Of course, he doesn’t. I wouldn’t hurt you! I think it would only hurt if … like, if you sat on it.”
“That’d be silly.”
“Yep. Okay, let’s go down. Hold my hand, it’s slippery.”
“Mommy … can you tell me a story?”
“How about after we go down the hill?”
“Okay, I’ll tell you a story then. It’s the story of the lion and the … the … cac…”
“Cactus?”
“YES! So, the lion sits on the cactus. Ouch! That hurt! That was silly!”
“What does the lion’s mommy say?”
“… Don’t sit on the cactus! This is not a toy, it’s a cactus!”
“And?”
“The end.”
And this is how we climbed the Cerro Santa Lucía, a small hill just a couple of blocks from where we are staying. Stairs are slippery and it’s taller than it seems but the view on downtown Santiago is nice.
For a better view and a fun experience, we headed to Cerro San Cristóbal, home of the Parque Metropolitano. The cable car is back to service after a long seven-year hiatus, so we were finally able to ride it to the peak of the hill, where a 22-meter statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary stands. Mark absolutely loved the two-kilometre ride from estación Oasis to estación Cumbre and back, and Feng likes the fact that for once, we didn’t have to walk downhill under the sun.
Eeek those are some big hills! Love the story to motivate Mark though 😉 And I know I’ve said it before, but he seriously looks so cute and so happy! Biggest smile ever
And your hair looks great, esp from the side. I’ve been daydreaming about cutting mine but curly hair is so… unpredictable.
OMG, don’t get me started on haircut. I’m not picky about my hair, I’m a wash-and-go kind of girl. But I get the worst haircuts ever in Canada… every single time, no matter where I go. So I get my hair cut in France or wherever I go. Just got it cut in Chile, first thing I did 😆
I know right! I struggle so much in Canada, used to get it cut every time I go to Europe! One of our Irish friends did mine last time lol
I don’t know why. Weird, eh?
That ride looks fun! It would probably give me weak knees but still be thrilling.
I don’t like heights either but somehow, I was okay. Bit dizzy, though.