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All sailors probably have their dream ports. One of mine was and still is Valparaíso in Chile. It is a fantastic port, due to its location and the great country of Chile.

You reach the port extremely easily – basically straight in from the sea. Located on the south side of a broad bay, it is open to the Pacific Ocean. The city stands on the slopes of the coastal mountains, which end in the rocky peninsula Point Angelas. 40 years ago the docks were right in the city but today the container port is to the starboard side on a small peninsula.

The city is reached by funicular railway (or elevator) system that takes you to the lower and upper parts and homes. Just a few minutes walk from the docks, I took the train as a boy to the capital, Santiago de Chile, 140km away through the Andes Mountains.

Valparaíso is the commercial and industrial centre, and the port offers good shelter from southerly and westerly winds, whilst remaining open to the north. Arriving there again recently it remains a port of my dreams. Chile is an amazing country, with the driest deserts on earth, glaciers, fjords, semi-tropical areas as well as volcanoes and the Andes mountains.