Palegoldenrod

(Please prepare yourself once again for a flurry of posts in an effort to catch up on the last month of my travels).

Puerto Iguazu is a town in Northeastern Argentina – the Argentine town at Iguazu Falls. After farewelling the guys in BA I jumped on a Crucero del Norte bus (cama, of course) for a 17 hour overnight solo busride and a chance to catch up on some sleep.

I didn’t realise that the bus was so cold until I stepped off and into humid 35 degree heat and full midday sun. Looking around, I was already starting to appreciate the town – green, quiet, wide streets with parks and cafes and not much else. After a week of party in BA, the town was looking perfect.

I had selected a random hostel from hostelworld – Puerto Canoas – because it was in town and it wasn’t the HI hostel. I wanted quiet, not more parties… and anyway, the HI Hostel was out of town. I took a taxi to the hostel which turned out to be a whole 3 blocks away (I didn’t care, I was tired and hot). The owners there spoke no English, I realised immediately – as I walked in the door another Australian guest was trying and failing to ask (in English) how he could wash his clothes. Excellent I thought, more opportunity to practice after having travelled with English speakers for a few weeks

After dumping my gear I decided to go for a walk through the town and then along the river. As usual I was unprepared. I had not researched Iguazu much, except how to get to the falls themselves. While walking along the riverbank I discovered that there is a place there where two huge rivers converge. From the top of the hill there you can see the two other points of land – Brazil and Paraguay, each with an obelisk and their national colours. The convergence of 3 nations. Very cool to see.

I walked back and spent the rest of the afternoon in a hammock at the hostel, soaking it all in. The courtyard with strange and unusual plants overflowing the garden borders, the humidity; the terracota tiles on the ground and the brightly painted walls; the blue sky; the sound of the birds and the breeze in the trees. After dark, the sound of heavy rain on the tin roof. It was wonderful.

The next day I jumped on an early bus to the falls themselves, to arrive shortly after the park had opened. I decided to go by myself rather than with a tour – it was cheaper, I could stay as long as I wanted and move at my own pace. I’m glad I did it that way.

I really wish I could upload my photos for you right now, because I don’t think that anything can explain the falls except the photos. Actually, not even then. You really need to be there, to see the whole thing… to turn around 360 and see the sheer size of it all and feel like you are (in the words of Kimya Dawson) “a speck of dust inside a giant’s eye”. Especially at one place where there is a boardwalk that takes you right up to a wall of water from a huge fall. Standing there with that vast amount of water falling from such a great height behind you – when you turn to face it there is nothing but a wall of water filling your vision… the deep rumbling blocking out everything else and the water spray, cold and fresh, drenching your clothes through. It is definitely an experience.

There is an island there too which looked really cool and is accessible only by boat, but because the river was up so high no one could go across that day (d’oh).

I walked around the falls (the Argentine side only) for the whole day and finally went back to the town for a coffee. I then booked my ticket to Salta and then spent another relaxing evening at the hostel.

I wish I could easily write in mathematical notation on this blog. I’d write a formula for my contactability inversely proportional to my immersion in Bolivia. I’d write a formula defining the limit of z (where z is my Spanish speaking ability) as x approaches infinity (where x is the time I have spent travelling with non-spanish speakers or perhaps more accurately, native English speakers – damn you Pommies) and factoring in y which would either be the number of non-spanish speakers I have spent time with, or some measurement of my laziness. I would attempt to write a mathematical explanation for my desire to be incredibly nerdy right now…. unquantifiable maybe

Anyway, here is a bunch of news / info which will hopefully tide over those who have bombarded my delicate little inbox with (initially) polite enquiries after my health and whereabouts, but finally degenerating into name-calling, bribery and down-right skullduggery in a vain attempt to get me to communicate. My lack of communication, I assure you, is not deliberate. It has been thrust apon me, unwanted though not entirely unexpected. It is South America. (Funny though that even Branxton has better connection than Cochabamba, lol).

• I am in Cochabamba, Bolivia
• I am fine. Cochabamba is quiet, safe, and appears to be likely to stay that way. If it looks like it won’t, I’ll leave for Peru via La Paz (which is the opposite direction to most of the trouble, if you don’t know yet).
• I am staying with Cristhian / Figu and his family while I am hunting for an apartment here to stay for a few months. I think we have found a nice one.
• I am having extreme internet problems which prevent me from doing almost anything except responding to emails. I am in an internet cafe now just so I can write this for you all.
• If you want me to be able to respond, for now you can contact me via: my contact form on this site; skype; direct email; or my Bolivian mobile phone. (The latter is on my facebook profile)
• Yes, I am still playing the Mandolin.
• Yes, my cough has finally disappeared and I am able to once again speak without sounding like an 80 year old
• Yes, I have a pile of photos to upload and I am not sure when or how I will be able to do it. Hopefully when I have internet connection at my apartment. Fingers crossed…
• No, fortunately I have yet to fall ill due to food or water, but I have been affected by altitude (a story for a better blog post about my travels, when next I have time). Luckily Cochabamba is much lower and I can actually breathe / move / function properly here.

OK, time for me to go… I love you all. Please let me know what is going on with your travels or back at home, I do miss my stories!

Hugs!

Carly

More junk from the mind of a travel-maddened, exhausted, over-partied, distant chica wandering lost and in a daze through South America. I think I have hit a point where my thinking is becoming seriously affected by this experience and has yet to settle down. Its an odd experience.

Anyway, as usual, an apology and a reminder that this really isn’t here for you. Its here because I can. hugs to all my homies in da big hizzouse of da world

He called out over the noise
“hold on to each other!”
afraid we would lose each other in the press of people.
I was afraid
I would lose myself

“HOLD ON to each other”, I thought.
Profound.
I, who had never really held on to anyone
There, with strangers
Wanting to hold on
to HOLD ON!

“Who are strangers,” I thought
“but friends we haven’t yet met.”
An old saying that made me smile.
One I usually scoff at -
I hate that shite.
But not that night.

I held on
With every part of me.
I asked them to carry me gently to the places where the poets are
so I could stroll once more with Clare and Cohen and Shelley
like I used to when I was young
when things felt more real

I almost found it again
that place where I could see and taste and touch and smell
and love
where I could breathe and know I was alive

Then the crowd was gone
and the stranger-friends dispersed
scattered in the four directions
and I’m on the road again
a long bus ride with time to ponder
the nature of love and friendship

23 hours of uninterrupted road
to hold on to

A full week in Buenos Aires, especially in the Milhouse Hostel, may be enough to kill some people. It is quite possible to inadvertently party yourself to death in that place. I think I came close.

Brad and I arrived at about 10am after an interesting taxi ride from the bus station where I took the opportunity to practice my spanish and essentially unravel the taxista’s life story as well as grab some tips for nightlife in BA. We couldn’t check in until 1 so we sat internetting in the foyer for a few hours where I got talking to Jay (England).

I quickly determined that Jay was indeed not a freak (remembering a certain crazy Isreali at another hostel) but instead quite cool, if a bit too witty for his own good. After meeting up with Brad’s sister Aline and her friend Sharni, we all agreed to head out that night. We hit the Bahrein for some drum and bass and while the night was still quiet at 2am by 3 it had picked up and we let Brad loose on the dancefloor with us where the statue made its famous appearance once again. A good time was had by all.

Over the next few days and nights we explored Palermo, La Boca, the centre and Recoleta, some restaurants, the movies, as well as checking out a hip-hop / reggaeton club called Lost with some more of Aline’s friends. After Lost, Jay, Brad and I wandered over to club 69 for “electronic music and a tranny show” which instead turned out be a sex show and the first time I have seen a completely naked woman on stage. It was an interesting night. Also Carly’s lesson #1: do not accept a smoke from a cute Argentinian. Especially not in a club like that. But never fear, no harm befell me. My boys (ever my heroic protectors) and I made it home safely even if we were generally a bit disappointed with the evening.

Brad, Aline and Sharni left us towards the end of the week and Jay met two new incredibly cool people: Zac (Australia) and Charlie (England). On my last Saturday night Jay, Zac, Charlie and I booked a trip to the Pacha Club via the hostel (a bus straight to the club, access to the VIP room etc) and off we went. Best night ever in South America so far, hands down, hard to beat. Do it. There was an English DJ playing (sorry guys, I can’t remember who, but the boys were excited to hear about it) the music was good, the company was great, the vibe was unbelievable – there were a few thousand people on the main dance floor. All round awesome. Never did find the VIP room though, haha.

We were there until close at 7am and eventually managed to find a taxi back home where we had some breakfast. Some of us decided to catch a few hours sleep while others wanted to push through to the afternoon when we had a soccer trip planned. We again booked with the hostel because we were lazy (it is much more expensive than buying the ticket directly from the stadium – the only convenience is the bus… don’t buy through the hostel unless you are as lazy as us).

The football game was a disappointment, and no it wasn’t just because we were feeling seedy. The talent (or lack thereof) was, as Charlie declared, “meh”, but the crowd was loud and passionate and singing a lot, and the day was nice so that was OK.

My last few days included eating the best steak ever which was stuffed with cheese, ham, sundried tomato and god knows what else, and which practically climbed into my mouth to be enjoyed. When I remember the name of the place I will let you know, but it is in Palermo. I also spent some time at the Ecological Reserve with Jay, and wandering some more through the city to see the Cathedral near Plaza de Mayo and some shops.

Finally I sadly had to say goodbye to my new friends in BA and jump on my bus for Puerto Iguazu. I really wanted to hang around a bit longer with Charlie, Zac and Jay – three of the coolest people I have met on the road, and who I dearly hope I will see again. I really had the best time with you guys, especially Jay who I was lucky enough to spend a whole week with (thats a record on my travels). Much love to you all on your travels and take care.

I don’t really have much to say about my few days in Cordóba – they seem like a dim memory now, though it was only a week ago.

I was lucky enough to (once again) meet cool people in the forms of James, Brad and Vik and of course we went out drinking and dancing. Tequilas made a reappearance with the expected effect – a somewhat tipsy Carly but a good night.

We stayed in Baluch Backpackers Hostel (I’ll review it for you later). It was a nice enough hostel though it was away from the hopping part of town which upon arrival I realised was Nuevo Cordóba and not the centre. The city generally felt sort of dead, despite the fact that we were there on a weekend. The locals at the hostel told us that the after-parties were better than the actual clubbing, but that said after-parties started at 6 or 7 in the morning. WhatEV0R. We went out at 12am and were tired and in bed by 6.30. That was good enough for us

James realised that he liked my mandolin and had some fun with it (he can play it better than I can, though that didn’t surprise me as I think everyone can play it better than I, lol) and Brad and I discovered that not only were we headed to Buenos Aires on the same day, but we planned to stay in the same hostel. We quickly decided to book tickets together on the same bus and spend our last day horse riding.

We went with the hostel’s horseriding tour which turned out to be a 2 hour ride to the place, then 2 hours of horse riding (most of which was on a dirt road to get to the “cool” part) and then a 2 hour bus ride back. The scenery was not as spectacular as I had hoped, but the bus ride itself gave me an opportunity to see some parts near Cordóba that I hadn’t laid eyes on yet – there is some beautiful country out there.

My horse was a bit feisty and insisted on a bit of a pace most of the way, which was a pleasant change from the trudging whore-horses I have been riding since I arrived. Brad was not so lucky and was reduced to plodding along far behind the guide Maxi and I. Suffice to say that Brad and I agreed that this particular horse riding tour did not deserve to be rated.

So went my time in Cordóba… on to Buenos Aires!

In a few hours I am off to Argentina. By bus. 16 hours. oooer.

For those of you who do contact me by phone, my Chilean number won’t function outside the country, so good luck with that (lol@you).

I’ll be going to Cordoba first. I’ll keep you updated

Farewell to all my friends in Santiago – I am going to miss you a lot!

Take care everyone, I love you all.

Carly

I did so much in my last month in Santiago. Next week I am leaving Chile for Argentina and eventually to Bolivia for a few months.

Parties

I went to Grainne’s farewell at her house (nicknamed the Pisco Disco) and met some of the most awesome people in Santiago. Abraham, a very talented drummer who has now gone to England to compete for a scholarship to study music; Cristhian, a software developer / network admin who also DJs on Santiago Radio and other clubs – now gone back to Bolivia to visit his family for a while; Cris’ girlfriend Bio, an Italian with a great sense of humour and who is a lot of fun; Mauricio and Christian, whose professions are cinematography and who produce music videos among other things; Pablo, a photographer…. ah, so many cool people. Hi guys!

I partied at the Pisco Disco many times over the last month or so, including catching some of Abraham’s concerts with various groups. I had a lot of fun

Sight Seeing

Dennis and I went to the Pre-Columbian Museum in Santiago (don’t miss it) as well as the Museum of Natural History at Quinta Normal (missable… nothing special). We went for a walk through Quinta Normal park too which was nice enough, though nothing too spectacular.

I checked out Parque Arauco, which is really just a shopping mall and doesn’t reflect anything of Chilean culture at all, except the division between rich and poor.

I went with Rose to the Exposición del Cuerpo (Exhibition of the Body) where human bodies have been plasticised and sliced and diced and made available to the public. It was very interesting, though I also learnt that this particular exhibition has some questions raised over the source of the bodies used – some believe they may have been underhandedly acquired from asia.

Music

I enjoyed two symphonic orchestra concerts with my friend Dennis: one was the Santiago Symphonic Orchestra, one a combined concert of the Youth Orchestras from Munich, Germany and Chile. The youth orchestra concert was free at the Catholic University – there are so many free and awesome events in Santiago… Make sure you catch some of them!

I went to an Inti Illimani concert with Patricio and his family, to also support Pato’s cousin who is the percussionist in the supporting band. Both groups were great.

Dennis and I also went to a performance at the Goethe Insitut. We thought it would be some classical style music but it turned out to be “experimental” (a bit much for us).

I went with the Pisco Disco guys to some of Abraham’s concerts and also to an album launch to see Christian Carmona’s music video being displayed to the public for the first time. Excellent work on both counts.

Valparaiso

Dennis and I went to Valparaiso again for a weekend and were lucky enough to be there when the weather was perfect. It was sunny, a very slight breeze, warm (about 18 degrees or so) and we walked a lot and took some very cool photographs. Dennis is a great person to spend time with (very relaxed and easy going) and I really enjoyed this experience at Valpo.

We went to the old prison at the top of one of the cerros, which is now a public space for art and music. The vibe there was so strong and unique. A very special place. We also went out dancing on Saturday night in Valpo which was cool too.

I think Valpo is my favourite place in Chile so far, and if I come back I want to go there again. There are one million more photos from this trip on my Flickr page.

Mendoza

My visa was getting a bit tight so I went to Mendoza, Argentina for a weekend. The pass through the Andes closes every night in winter (and sometimes in the day in bad weather) so there are a lot of people trying to get through last thing at night. After a three hour wait at the border I got through and arrived in Mendoza at midnight, without having booked a hostel. Luckily I chatted to another traveller and went with him to a hostel nearby which was clean and relatively cheap, if not very quiet.

I wandered around Mendoza, feeling somewhat weird after all the familiar faces and action of the big city of Santiago. Mendoza is very quiet. I walked around quite a bit and was just starting to get comfortable when I returned to Santiago. Unlucky for me when I arrived at the bus terminal I realised I had forgotten to change my watch to local time and had missed my bus by half an hour (d’oh).

So I paid for another ticket in a microbus and when I arrived at the loooong waiting line at the border spoke to the conductor on my original bus (held up in in the line too) and changed to my original, more comfortable, warmer bus for the rest of the journey.

Jamming

I practiced both my violin and mandolin much more. Last week I took my violin up to Cerro San Cristobal and sat in the sun and played and sang for a few hours. To my surprise some people walking by stopped and sat with me and one guy started humming / singing harmonies. It was really cool – especially because I can neither sing nor play very well, haha.

I also jammed with my cousin a lot, with him playing either the chaurango or piano. I really love music even though I make it poorly (he is much better than me!).

Hanging out

I caught up with Rosemarie (what up, chica!) for shopping, talking, drinks, and everything in between; Dennis (of course), Patricio, the guys from the Pisco Disco (Cris, Abraham, Mauricio, Francisco and all the rest), Luis, Jorge, Diego, my friends at the Dublin Pub, Club 102 and the Ex Fabrica Club…. I had a lot of fun with you all.

Thank you for being so awesome – I will miss you.

On Friday morning I arrived at a hostel in San Pedro to meet my new travel mates – the guys on the Pachamama tour back to Santiago. First I met one Yerson Muñoz – our guide – a young Chilean with a wicked sense of humour and an unhealthy enjoyment of teaching bad spanish words to foreigners.

My other travel partners were two English couples who knew each other from England and so were very relaxed and a lot of fun. Because the bus was quite empty we could stretch out and take up more room than my trip north to San Pedro – awesome.

I also learnt a whole bunch more Spanish (read: bad words) and, as Yerson was quite relaxed, was comfortable enough to practice a bit of mine. While this sometimes resulted in being laughed at, it was all good, haha.

Pan de Azucar

We left San Pedro a little late (one of the guys had his new iPod stolen and exchanged for a crappy damaged one without music in San Pedro and needed to go to the cops about it for insurance). We stopped by a ruined town in the middle of the desert which was sorta cool.

As a result of leaving late we arrived at Pan de Azucar after sunset… we got out, walked around the bus a little and then decided to push on to the cabins at Bahia Iglesa again rather than camp in the cold at the park. lol.

Bahia Iglesa

We stayed that night at Bahia Iglesia again – a reason for another barbeque (awesome). Some music and drinks and then off again to Valle Elqui.

Valle Elqui – Vicuña

We stayed two nights here… the first night we went to Mamalluca observatory which was pretty cool. This observatory is not a research observatory – rather it is for tourists and education only. We listened to a presentation on the origins and formation of the universe, the lifecycle of stars etc. Then we went up to the dome and had a peek through the big telescope at such things as Jupiter, the Moon and some star clusters. Afterwards we were able to take pictures of the moon through some smaller telescopes outside.

Later we visited “disco” which was pretty ordinary, but we had some drinks and danced anyway, haha. We went to go back to the hostel at about 4am but Yerson was also a bit tipsy and got us lost on the walk home, ahaha. Eventually we all arrived in one piece.

The next day we (finally) got up and Andy and I decided to participate in the day’s activities – horse riding and a tour of the Capelo Pisco Factory. In reality the tour of the factory was not very interesting, and the horse riding (for only a half hour I think) was very short, though the view from the mountain was pretty cool. I think if I go horse riding again I want to ride for a longer time.

We had a quiet night that night – I think we were still tired from the night before.

Fray Jorge National Park

The last day of the trip took us through Fray Jorge National Park just for a toilet stop and a half hour walk. The walk was nice enough – you can see the different types of vegetation in the different parts of the hills depending on the height and whether direct sunlight is received or not. All very interesting.

I don’t have many photos this time because really I wasn’t in the mood for taking photos, though a lot of the scenery was quite beautiful.

I was disappointed at the speed of the tour especially on the way back. There was a lot of driving, and unfortunately waiting for an entire week for the next bus was, in most places, too much time… Maybe it would be better in Summer when the buses come through a few times a week rather than just once. Hmm.

In general, Pachamama was a good service, though there is a lot of driving involved covering these distances, especially on the return leg.

Poor old PGR, so neglected. Please prepare for a barrage of posts as I cover my adventures of the last two months

So, I spent a little over a week in San Pedro de Atacama while I waited for the Pachamama bus to return and take me back to Santiago.

So I stayed in San Pedro de Atacama from Thursday night, Saturday morning my group left on the tour and I moved with a friend to another hostel a bit closer to the centre of town and a bit warmer.

The next few days were quite relaxed… I walked around the town; I picked a direction and walked in the desert for a few hours; I found a book trader and a hammock in the sun and read; I went to the markets and the museum.

When my friend left for Bolivia I decided I would actually do something… I went to a tour office to arrange for a tour to the Geysers del Tatío, where I started chatting with a girl from Ireland named Grainne. We realised we were going to the same tour in the morning and that we were both travelling solo and got talking… we decided to go horse riding together too one day, and for dinner that night.

While I was relaxing that afternoon a strapping young Chilean man spotted me in the hammock and asked me if I could recommend any places to go. He introduced himself as Patricio (Pato) and he was visiting San Pedro for a week with his friend Rosemarie.

He and Rose joined Grainne and I for dinner – we all got along very well and had some fun. Over the next few days we hung out quite a bit together and were joined by others from Brasil, Turkey and the United States.

Grainne and I went to the Geysers del Tatío – a 4am start and -15ºC at the Geysers at sunrise, but beautiful. It was funny, on the way back you get to see cute llamas and then you stop in a village called Machuco and you get to eat them. Hahaha.

We also went horseriding in the Valle de la Muerte, again beautiful, though it was the first time I’d been on a horse in more than 10 years and I felt quite uncomfortable for the first hour. The saddles were also different to in Australia, and the horses were trained for single-handed control (I’ve no idea what the proper name for that is) which was weird to get used to.

Grainne, Rosemarie, Arturo, Pato and I decided to go for a walk to the Valle de la Meurte for some fun. We packed some water and a bit of food and trudged off into the middle of the desert. A combination of me being very unfit, walking on sand with bad knees, the heat and the altitude made for an easily exhausted Carly, so when Grainne and Pato (both marathon runners) decided to climb up the steepest part of the biggest sand dune in the valley, and Rose and Arturo decided they would clamber over the rocks nearby, I sat myself down in waved them on. It took them over an hour to scale the damn thing, and I could hear Pato repeatedly exclaiming “oh shit” as he and Grainne realised that they could no longer walk up the sand and needed to crawl the rest of the way… this was 1/3 of the way up.

But they finally made it and were (rightfully) very proud of themselves.

We also visited nearby Quitor, a ruin of a native village and fort which was the location of the first Spanish defeat in the area. There was a great feeling there, especially at the top with such a broad view across the valleys.

After all this I prepared to head back down to Santiago with Pachamama… (next installment)

As usual, more photos can be found on my Flickr Profile.

OK, OK. You’ve come to expect everything a little late with me. I’m sorry. Again.

So here is a bit of a spiel about my recent wanderings around the north of Chile. I booked a loop tour with a company called Pachamama By Bus. Now I prefer not to travel with tours, but these guys are good because they take you to places that a direct bus can’t, and also you can jump on and off whenever you want and often as you want. You just need to wait for the next bus to come through, which in winter is weekly.

Some background info (very rough). Chile is roughly divided into two contrasting climates – desert to the North of Santiago (in fact the driest desert in the world) and temperate fertility and greenness in the South. As Santiago was getting cold I decided to take refuge in the desert!

Here is a very brief rundown for you

My friend Beatrice had just finished her internship on Friday afternoon, so we decided on Friday night that we would leave with the tour on Saturday morning. All very last minute, haha.

Day 1 – Santiago to La Serena

We left from Barrio Brasil, hostel La Casa Roja (looks like a really awesome place) at 9ish am. Our tour guide was Maria Jose (nick name Cote) a young woman who looks like she has character, though a bit tired. Our driver was Marco, who seemed fun from the start. Cote spoke English very well, Marco knew a little. Beatrice and I, having spoken an awful lot of English and not enough Spanish, determined to try and speak Spanish as much as we could.

Our travelling companions consisted of:

• a group of 3 English girls travelling together
• a group of 3 English boys travelling together
• a group of 2 English girls who had run into the 3 English boys in the past
• an Australian girl
• a solo travelling English girl

The trip took us to a small town for lunch, where we had a peek at a cool little church that is built into the rock right on the beach. Then we went straight through to La Serena where we arrived just in time for sunset on the beach.

We have a short amount of time for a bit of shopping and then to dinner. A few of the less tired of us go out for a few drinks but generally everyone ends up in bed at a reasonable hour. Aburridisimo

Day 2 – La Serena to Bahia Iglesa

In the morning we had a newcomer to our midst. Chrissie, a german girl, had arrived overnight. She originally intended to join us for the departure from Santiago but had become stuck in Argentina and had only just managed to join us in time in La Serena.

From La Serena we went north along the coast to Punta Choros, where we went for a boat tour to a few protected islands (including Isla Demas) to check out the penguins and other birds and plant life. On the way to the islands we saw a bunch of dolphins and everyone get very excited and started taking photos of empty water or whitewash, haha. We jumped off on the only island we could (the others are completely protected) and had some lunch and a wander around before we went back to the bus and pushed through to Bahia Iglesa.

Our accommodation in Bahia Iglesa was cabins on the beach – simple, but clean and warm. And did I mention it was close to the beach?

Day 3 – Bahia Iglesa

The weather was pretty nice so Beatrice and I went for a walk down to the beach. The sand is really white (its not really sand, it is crushed shells) the water is very blue; the rocks are black. The sun was out. It was nice.

The interesting thing for me was seeing the desert extend right down to the ocean. Having grown up on the East coast of Australia, I am mentally conditioned to expect coastal areas to be greener than the interior of a continent. But here… there is nothing. In many areas absolutely no vegetation at all.

We went for a short trip to nearby Caldera, to visit the internet cafe and pick up some groceries for dinner.

In the afternoon Beatrice and I went for a walk through other parts of Bahia Iglesa. We climbed a hill with the cross on it and got a nice view over the village and into the desert. We then had a pack of dogs follow us back to the campsite. Beatrice was terrified.

Later in the evening everyone helped prepare food and Marco cooked us a barbeque (yorm). Drinking games ensued, spearheaded by the English. The highlights of the evening included several climbings of the tree, several fallings from the tree, and one incident of Carly being kicked in the head by a person in the process of falling. All in all it was a big, good night.

Day 4 – Bahia Iglesa to Antofogasta

We hauled ourselves out of bed to shower and made our way to Antofogasta. On the way the bus stopped in the middle of nowhere in the desert and bought icecreams from a man on the side of the road with a freezer box.

We also went to a sculpture of a giant hand. Cote told us that there is another hand in the very south of Chile, in the lush landscape, with only its fingers showing. These two hands show the contrasts of Chile – desert and lush green.

We arrived late in Antofogasta and missed out on the light to get decent photographs of the Arch, a naturally formed archway of sandstone just off the coast which is a famous landmark of the area.

The hostel in Antofogasta was very nice

Day 5 – Antofogasta to San Pedro de Atacama

From Antofagasta we set off for San Pedro. I found it unbelievable how much time could be spent driving through a desert… it is HUGE.

In the middle of nowhere we arrived at the town Baquedano, important because it marks the entry into the heart of the desert (our guides needed to provide the police with a list of passenger names) but also the junction of two important rail lines through the desert. I think one runs north-south and the other east-west. At Baquedano we had lunch and visited a railway museum which was pretty cool.

We continued on for hours and eventually stopped at a few different places in the salt flats followed by the tiny Oasis village of Peine. We learned that a lot of water in the area comes from subterranean supplies and is heavy in arsenic among other things.

For sunset we went to Chaxa Lagoon, a reserve for flamingos. It was beautiful. I was just saying so when my camera’s battery ran out, so unfortunately I missed the opportunity to photograph a lot of the event. But the experience was well worth it.

We arrived at San Pedro early – our hostel greeted us with a warm fire and warm red wine with cinnamon and lemon I think. It tasted interesting but nice.

We all went out for dinner, a few of us came back early and I sat and drank and talked with Marco and some other hostel residents around the fire for a few hours. It was a nice night.

Day 6 – San Pedro de Atacama

I woke in the morning to find Beatrice and one of the other girls had been violently ill through the night and were still unwell. We weren’t sure if it was altitude (San Pedro is quite high – about 2300m above sea level), food poisoning or a viral bug. Those two girls had gone to bed fairly early – the others were also feeling a little under the weather but due to a big night rather than anything else.

We had a free morning, where I wandered around the village and jumped on the interwebs. Some of us had lunch at a local cafe (the food was sooo nice) and then we went to the Valle de la Luna (Valley of the Moon) in the afternoon.

First we went through some cool little caves near the entrance of the valley, then checked out some cool rock formations, and then on to the main viewpoint for the sunset.

We needed to climb a large sand dune and then part of a mountain ridge for the best view. It was well worth it, even though the altitude was effecting most of us. The view from this ridge at sunset is the view seen on so many postcards from Chile.

There were a lot of people up on the ridge, but it was still awesome. We took the shortcut way down (ran down a steep part of the sand dune) and then it was back in the bus to San Pedro and out for dinner again.

I told Cote and Marco that I wanted to stay in San Pedro for a week and get the next bus. I needed a break from travel and San Pedro was beautiful – both the village and the area around it.

Unfortunately Beatrice was too ill to stay with me. We agreed to catch up again, either in Santiago or Germany (when I finally get there) and in the morning I said goodbye to most of my new friends.

Visit my flickr area for more (many more) photos. Coming up next: my week in San Pedro de Atacama and my return trip.