We flew around a lot in South America and it was a different experience than we face in the USA.  First, get used to very long lines in the airport or go through immigration. These can be frustrating and time consuming, but you just have to deal with it.  You don’t have to take off your shoes, remove your belt, take out your laptop.  It is simple from that aspect.  But they do check your passport like 3 times at different stages for some reason….Don’t expect your favorite snacks, food or drinks on the flight that you are accustomed to with American based airlines.  It is totally hit and miss.  The best bet is to always pack your desired drink or water in your carry on.

Yep – going through security is a non-issue if you multiple bottles of water…open, full…it never matters. You can even carry bottles of wine through sometimes. Yep – in Santiago, I boarded with 2 full bottles of wine in my backpack. Not a single question or a dirty look. I guess I cannot complain – now I don’t have to find an open store to have a glass of wine when we land in Easter Island tonight 🙂

A view from our hotel restaurant enjoying a seafood chowder and salad after our morning tour around some of the nearby historical ruins…more to come tomorrow!

…and when we had a pisco sour at the bar before we when into town for dinner, the local chicken joined us for the free mixed nuts: