Flying over the Andes, landing in Santiago

So we finally left Buenos Aires for, well, Sao Paulo via Santiago on LAN Chile. Rich and I had a plan to trick LAN in to letting stay at least one night in Santiago so when we arrived at Ezeiza airport in Buenos Aires we started to sweet talk the agent, but found out quickly no sweet talk was actually needed. You see, every American needs a visa for Brazil and the airlines are the first line of enforcement. I have a visa and so does Rich, but not in the passport he is carrying! So, the agent checked us to Santiago only and told us we should figure it out there. Before we boarded the plane we ran to the Admiral's Club in Buenos Aires to ask for help. Basically, we needed a good two days to fix the visa/passport issue. The agent guaranteed that we would leave at 7am on Saturday and then the gate agent confirmed so we boarded happy.

This was the first time flying LAN Chile and was very excited to see what their business product was like. LAN has more space than American, but the seat is a bit more rigid and not as soft and plush as American. Nonetheless, the service was excellent, the seat laid completely flat, and the food was amazing. About 2 hours into the flight the plane started to approach the Andes which is an amazing sight! The Andes are so high the plane flies just over them and then a sharp turn down into the valley Santiago lies in right up against the majestic Andes. After landing, being shocked by having to pay the $131 per person "reciprocity" fee, and then being shocked by rental car process we went up to reconfirm with LAN what the Adminral's Club did in Buenos Aires. We found out LAN cancelled the flight, reverted us back to the original itinerary and blamed it on the fact we were flying on a ticket issued by American. Rich decided to yell at the LAN agents while I called up the American Airlines Executive Platinum desk on my cell phone. I told the agent that we really needed to fix the visa issue and she promptly rebooked us on the 2:15pm flight on Saturday (instead of the yucky 7am flight)! It appears LAN is not so helpful in the end, but American, especially lately has risen above and beyond expectations.

View of the Andes provided by LAN Chile

We finally checked into our hotel in Santiago and for the next few hours worked with our friends in Miami, especially Eddie Diaz (thanks big guy!), to find Rich's passport with the Brazilian visa and then figure out how to get it to Santiago by the time our flight leaves on Saturday. We then decided to have lunch, feed some homeless kittens, and go back for a well deserved rest. I must say that Santiago is very modern and very beautiful....more to come soon!

Poor Chilean Kitty!