Chilean authorities have detained a Finnish tourist after he tried to steal the earlobe of one of the world-famous Easter Island moai stone statues this past weekend. Police said a woman saw a man named Marko Kulju "rip off the earlobe, which then fell and broke into pieces." If convicted, the alleged earlobe thief could face up to seven years in prison and be charged a fine. [BBC]

Passapoga, a strip club in Santiago, Chile is offering gringo customers the attentions of its hostesses at 2004 exchange rates. This publicity stunt means that visitors to the club can buy "a drink" with one of the 50 women who work there for $23 instead of $32. Of course, anything sexual that happens between the patron and the lady during all this drinking is purely coincidental. The hostesses are cool with the program, because although it reduces their commissions, they say it's been bringing in a lot more customers. [via]

Passapoga, a strip club in Santiago, Chile is offering gringo customers the attentions of its hostesses at 2004 exchange rates. This publicity stunt means that visitors to the club can buy "a drink" with one of the 50 women who work there for $23 instead of $32. Of course, anything sexual that happens between the patron and the lady during all this drinking is purely coincidental. The hostesses are cool with the program, because although it reduces their commissions, they say it's been bringing in a lot more customers. [via]

This week our roaming correspondent, Monica Guy, is giving us the low-down on the Chilean Hotel Scene. Here she encounters una vista mal. Enjoy.

Lucky Lorie and Paul Bennett, who found a killer view staring at them out of the window of the businessy Park Plaza Hotel in Santiago, Chile.

We on the other hand spent the night in the Radisson Plaza Santiago Hotel, a similar 160-room 5-star mega-hotel in Santiago's business district.

In their information about the local area, they forgot to mention they're backed right onto a mega-building site which actually seems to create 100 times more dust and noise and pollution than buildings.

If you're lucky, you'll be on the other side

Built within MallSport, a mall designed for sporting enthusiasts, Wave House is the first artificial wave in South America--a place where surfers and surf wannabes can try their hand at riding 10 foot swell.

The pool pumps water and forces it into the pool, via high powered nozzles, to simulate large waves. There is only one ride per session, which means expect the queue to be massive, but the pool should have a low grommet count.

Looking for a non-boring summer vacation spot? We aim to please:

Check out our Summer Vacations With An Edge Map.

Know a spot we should consider for this map? Tip the help.

Related Stories:
· Surf Travel [Jaunted]
· Summer Vacations With An Edge [Jaunted]

There may be cutbacks in content coming to the Los Angeles Times Travel section (at least according to LA Observed), and a couple of readers have complained recently that the section isn’t as compelling as it once was, but Sunday’s section did have one terrific story, particularly for those who, like me, love Latin music: Augustin Gurza’s The New Song of Santiago about Chile’s rock en español and folksy New Song troubador scenes. “Pinochet’s death earlier this month at age 91 may mark a turning point in the country’s drive to reclaim its cultural soul,” he writes. “Today, Chile’s artistic rebirth is being fueled partly by an economic boom that’s considered a model for Latin American prosperity. (Ironically, some attribute this surge to Pinochet’s policies.) Signs of new life are everywhere.”

2006 Wrap-Ups
– “The 25 Most E-Mailed Travel Articles of 2006” (NYT)
– “Passports from 2006” (Chicago Tribune)
– “Bon voyage, bad voyage” (Globe and Mail)

Oaxaca
– “Once again, Oaxaca begins to right itself” (LA Times)

Portland’s Pearl District
– “New luster in Portland’s Pearl” (LA Times)

St. Petersburg
– “Holiday on Ice in St. Petersburg, With a Shot of Vodka on the Side” (NYT)

San Antonio
– “A Side of San Antonio That Nearly Forgets the Alamo” (NYT)

Santiago
– “The new song of Santiago” (LA Times)

Observes Marc Cooper in today’s Los Angeles Times: “Not with little irony did the gods choose to reclaim former Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet on Sunday, which was International Human Rights Day.”

Argentina
– “Maté obsession knows no class, age boundaries” (San Francisco Chronicle)

Brazil
– “In Lapa, Rio de Janeiro, the Samba Never Stopped” (NYT)
– “Discover ‘Black Gold’ in Ouro Preto, Brazil” (Houston Chronicle)

Car-less California
– “A freeway-free coastal journey” (LA Times)

Chile
– “Surreal Patagonia” (San Francisco Chronicle)

Mexico
– “Chiapas, Without Reservations” (Washington Post)

New Orleans
– “Back to New Orleans, Gently” (NYT)

Oslo, Norway
– “Norway’s grand prize” (LA Times)

Protecting World Heritage
– “Saving the Great Wall From Being Loved to Death” (NYT)
– “Wearing out our welcome” (LA Times)

Senegal
– “7 hours away” (Guardian)

We are suckers for a room with a killer view.  We find that we are even more likely to forgive some minor hotel inconveniences if we can stare out the window at something pretty--yeah we are that shallow. Let's help out our fellow hotel mavens by uploading rooms with killer views to the HotelChatter/Flickr photo pool, or by sending the photo along to us. We will feature our favorites in this space from time to time. Remember to tell us the name of the hotel and the room number of the hot view.

Visit the web site for the Park Plaza Hotel in Santiago, Chile, and you get the impression that this is a sedate 104-room