June 10th, 2015

I’m 27.  Scary. My friends are getting married, having kids, and contributing to pension plans.  Still I wouldn’t trade this freedom for anything.  I hope I’m still going at 30, I should be.

Birthdays on the road can suck.  Last year I was lucky enough to be home briefly to celebrate my birthday, the year before I’d been teaching in Bradford England but had lots of friends around to celebrate with.  I consider myself very lucky that my first birthday really travelling, didn’t suck, in fact it was pretty awesome.  And that’s a credit to my friends,  Natalie,  Anna, Mirela, Torsten and Baudouin.

For those who follow this blog closely or know me, they know the one thing I don’t do a lot of on the road is partying.  The not drinking or using drugs makes clubs quite a bit less enjoyable, but still, for my 27th birthday, surrounded by friends, it seemed like a good idea to do something special.

The day begins with a delicious carrot cake cupcake from Anna before we move on to the main breakfast event, Mirela and Torsten coming over to join Anna and me for some Canadian Pancakes.  Berries,  Syrup, Whip Cream, Ice Cream, chocolate chips, the whole shebang.  I love making pancakes for people which goes all the way back to my bi weekly Canadian breakfasts back in Bradford England where every two weeks Canadian teachers would come over for a feast and venting session.

After Breakfast, comes a great gift in the form of two excellent ping pong paddles which fill most of the rest of the day until Dinner Time when Natalie, a friend I first met in Puerto Varas before reconnecting here in Santiago, joins us for the evening.

Like all special days in South America,  thinking back to Christmas with my brother and his girlfriend in Ecuador,  the dinner is Mexican food, and pretty good Mexican food at that.  We head around the corner from Casa Roja and enjoy the tasty if slightly pricey meal at Plaza Garibaldi before heading to the Princesa Insolente hostel where Torsten and Mirela are staying to chill for a few hours.

Now for those looking to party on a Wednesday in Santiago, there’s one option better than any of the others, Miercoles Po, a giant roving party every Wednesday mainly catering to Santiago’s university exchange students.  Normally there’s a hefty cover charge, but because Mirela and Torsten are staying at the Princesa Insolente, we get in free, just one problem finding the party.

Miercoles Po roughly translates to Wednesday’s friend and each week it’s in a different location, luckily we’re joined by an Austrian guy and a Brazilian guy who help us find the club on the outskirts of Bellavista.  Inside is madness and certainly a great party.  Even for someone who doesn’t much enjoy clubbing the night ends up being a lot of fun, surrounded by friends, surprisingly decent music for a club, and so many happy travellers and exchange students whiling the night away.

It’s almost 4 am by the time we find ourselves out on the street hailing two taxi’s to whisk us back across Santiago to our respective hostels.  As I drift off to sleep I find myself still very much in love with travel, and all the wonderful new friends it brings from the distant corners of our fascinating and varied world.

For those in Santiago looking to find Miercoles Po and the huge party inside, here’s the website.  Go out, enjoy and get home safe!