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Published: January 9th 2006
'Chile'. What pops into your mind first? Some people may think of wine, others of hot peppers, and yet others of that cold feeling under snowy skies. It's a word and country that can certainly conjur up a lot of images. For me I will always think of my first week in South America, the most modern hostel I have ever visited, and life in the driest desert in the world. And good wine.
My plane arched over Santiago's surrounding feature, the Andes Mountains. As soon as I was heading in the bus towards Santiago, the view of the mountains was lost in smog. I followed up a recomended hostel from the tourist office, which can sometimes be a mistake on it's own as why on earth would they ever opt to stay in a place with bunk beds? But it seemed to be my lucky day, as the hostel was top notch. I wasn't expecting the hard wood floors and stunning view over Plaza De Armas. It was a classic old building with checkerboard tiles, 7 stories of sweeping staircases, even a floor between floors. (exactly like the Being John Malkovich movie!) Being right in the center of
Moonscape
Looking back it looks spooky! This was at the El Tatio Geysers, a bit too early in the morning the city should make navigation a little easier. Should do.
I spent the first couple of days wandering around a few different sights. I soon realized the few words of Spanish from the back of the Lonely Planet book were not going to get me far. Good thing that I hooked up with Phil, Helen and her brother Joe on the next exploration. We took a funicular ride up to see the Cerro San Cristobal, reaching for the clouds. A few artists sat on the steps etching the city skyline below. As far as a tourist attraction, I went and I conquered. There was nothing more hugely memorable about the day, apart from having taken a lot of cable cars to see nothing much else.
Back at the top notch hostel, I watched people screaming their support for the upcoming election. Some voters chose songs and dance circling the gigantic Christmas tree whilst others marched protests with their homemade signs. It was a contradiction to say the least! I roamed the streets as herds of people checked off their Christmas shopping lists. Men met up in the notorious coffee shops for a quick break and a
Crazy Moment
Not sure why, but still like it! look at the girls. I had read about these places in my book, but was surprised to see for myself that the ´cafe con piernas´(coffee with legs) were for real. A standing only cafe with a see through counter allows the men to ogle the scantily clad ladies serving espresso. It had a bit of an Italian feel to it to be honest! I fell upon a few other areas around town that allowed me to take in the history, a museum here, a statue there. Nothing completely grabbed me (apart from the wine!) so I followed the advice of a Chilean friend of a friend living in New Zealand. (thanks again
It's a good thing I have no problem with long bus journeys, as the wheels didn't stop rolling for 26 hours. Finally, I was there! San Pedro de Atacama was a world away from the streets of Santiago. Having joined forces with the cool kids on the bus, we shunned the hostel reps that jumped us and shoved flyers in our faces as soon as we were on ground and searched for one to our liking. Where we ended up walking to was not our final
stop, but it certainly allowed us to comprehend how life was on the edge of town. What was past the one story, straw roofed huts lining the streets? Nothing. Absolutely nothing but the desert, followed by some pretty big mountains. This is where I heard the whistles calling out like in the western movies, and a guy rode by on a horse adjusting his hat. Have I actually entered a time warp? Pinching myself I was still alert, and we made tracks for the town center.
I had wanted to get on a tour immediatly, but had arrived a few moments too late. Time for a beer and a meal to prep for a busy following day. One beer, two beer, three beer, more. Jandy and Joao and Joao kept going all night and I must admit I retired early. Life on the road does require a few early nights in you know!!
When my ride collected me at 4am my head felt a continous thumping and bumping. It was´t the previous nights´drinking, but the attempt to getting a few more hours of sleep resting my head on the window. We were driving to the world´s
highest geyser fields called El Tatio (at 4300 m) and it was not a particularily smooth ride. When we emerged from the van the driver was quick to get breakfast cooking, not too difficult really as all he had to do was drop the bag of eggs in one of the pools of hot water for a few minutes! The coffee and grub energized me enough to explore further and I walked in and out of a few of the spitting geysers. Similar to what I´ve recently seen in New Zealand, although the freedom to walk around here is much more appreciated. And the funny egg smell was only present if we left breakfast cooking for too long!
The guides challenged us in front of one of the geyers called ´the pool´. Funny how the guides are never up for a dip! I must admit, I was pretty apprehensive as the thought of being in a cold suit searching for my not so fluffy and absorbant towel certainly didn´t appeal. However, how often do you get a chance to bath in a geyser? So what was my first reaction? ¨This is not hot¨. Bugger. After a bit of
Plaza de Armas
Politics below, so I hid in the hostel manoevering I found a hotspot, burned my butt and decided to call it a day. It wasn´t even 7:30 yet!
When we drove away from the geysers, we saw a few alpacas roaming across the fields. Not an unusual sight in the area, and as the drive continued we saw llama and pink flamingoes as well. Not part of the tour criteria I´m afraid, so no stopping for photos. We next stopped at a tiny little village in the middle of nowhere. 40 people lived there and catered to the tour buses that wanted to photograph their church and their houses. It was a lifestyle that was difficult to comprehend, but the simplicity of it brought a smile to each locals´face, so who am I to comment?
After a mini siesta, I joined the afternoon tour with the gang from the bus. Valle de la Luna is a must see according to anybody that has ever been. It was a pleasant walk among the eroded landforms within Death Valley and an opportunity for our guide to fill our heads with crazy folklore. I watched the sandboarders hike up to the top of the dunes for their
Cafe con Piernas
The coffee houses here are known for having standing bars only, in order for the men to look at the legs of the coffee girls, who of course always wear the shortest and tightest skirts! few minutes of glory as they rode down. We climbed a few steps down into an old salt mine that had been abandoned just a few years previously. The last stop was climbing to the top of a dune to catch the pretty in pink colours that fell across the surrounding mountains. The number of people doing the same tour was a little annoying, although we all managed to find a spot far enough away from the others. My only other experience of life in the desert on this trip was in Namibia, and although it was more stunning in colours and bulk, I´ve understood far more about life in the desert here in Chile. Afterall, San Pedro de Atacama is the driest desert of the world! Surely that´s enough reason for a party!!
Having had a rather intense day in tours, the best plan for the following day might not have been to board the 26 hour bus ride south again, but fact remained, I needed to be back down south. Next time in Chile I´ll allot more than a week! It´s a bit difficult to squeeze in 6435km of coastline into such a short period of
time, and I haven´t even explored the coastline...yet!
I was far more alert for the bus ride back down south. I still never seem to read my book or write my blog, but at least I looked out the window often! The changes I saw in the land were quite amazing; brightly coloured houses caught up in the sandstorms of the desert, wineries hugging the base of the mountains and even families on a day out within the cactus trails. When I arrived in Santiago I dropped off my bags, sent a postcard and thought, ¨What the hell, another two hours on a bus now doesn´t make a difference to me!¨. So for my final day in Chile, I managed to make it to the coast and see the city of Valparaiso.
Knowing I was heading for the coast, I was disappointed to not see a beach to sleep the afternoon away. Apparently, the next town over (Vina Del Mar) fits that mold. Instead I walked from one end of town to the next, taking in the hills and the áscensores´. These were the elevators connecting the two areas of town and built back in the
late 1800´s. Buildings near the port were a bit rough looking, but then just slightly up the hill I´d see a gleaming pink palace. I found an outdoor table in the sun and had the best cocinerias (fish stew) I´ve ever had. Funny how food can really make a place happen! And then it was time to jump on the bus again in order to get a few hours of sleep before boarding my flight in Santiago. Go go go.
So Chile is over and I didn´t make the winery tour to meet the good looking ´tickle my tastebuds´owner. Maybe he´ll be in Buenos Aires as it is a city known for its´passionate culture. I certainly savoured it in the clubs, the stadium and the streets...
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JANDY
non-member comment
GREAT TO SEE CHILE !!!
IT WAS A VERY FUNNY TIME. THIS DAYS WERE AMAIZING DISCOVERING SAN PEDRO DE ATACAMA AND THE 5 OF US JOAO,JOAO, JEANINE,FIONA AND I WERE A GREAT FOOTBALL TEAM LEAFING ABOUT EVERYNG. GREATINGS FOLKS ! IT WAS A GREAT TIME JANDY