Into Northern Chile

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Somewhat regretfully, I loaded onto the bus for Tacna in southern Peru. From here, Chile was only a few kilometers away. I did hate to leave Peru. I liked everything about the country: the food, people, landscapes, accent...the only thing that seriously bothered me was the pollution. But I eventually had to be on my way. I got it into my head that it would be a good idea to arrive in Tacna in the middle of the night. I was so wrong! I didn´t feel comfortable enough to take a taxi in the middle of the night alone in a mostly deserted area of town, so I slept in the bus station. It was freezing, uncomfortable, and noisy. There were only a few others who stayed the night as well, one being the woman who kept her small cafe open all night in the station. I camped out in front of her cafe; at least I was not completely alone. In the morning several taxi drivers asked me if I was headed to Arica in Chile. I said yes, and settled on a price for them to take me there. When traveling by "colectivo" or a shared taxi, you have to wait for the car to fill up before you leave. I was the last person to get in, so the wait wasn´t long at all! I filled out some paperwork to get me over the border there at the bus station. Then the taxi driver handed my passport over to some other guy who hurried with it into a back room. Wait! Where were they going with my passport?! U.S. passports are worth roughly 3000$ here in Peru, so I am very sensitive about who handles it. I followed the guy into the back room to find my passport, while the other guy carried my luggage in the other direction. They both came rushing back to assure me that this was normal procedure; they needed to make a "list" of who would be crossing the border in the colectivo. Ok, and I thought I´ll give them about five minutes to make this "list" before I go back in there and search for the guy. Fortunately he came back out to the car, but I checked in his hand to make sure my passport was there. Maybe I was being a bit paranoid, but it´s good to be very aware of things like this.

The border crossing itself was quick and painless, and I was now in Chile!

Arica is the first town over the border. Many people on travel forums said not to bother with this town, since there was nothing here. But I found otherwise. I checked in at a hostel owned by a guy from New Zealand, and I felt just like I went to stay at my grandparents´house. He treated me and the other few travellers like family practically. The next day he let me borrow his body board out on the beach. The beach is mostly deserted on weekdays, and the sun is intense. It was my first time body boarding, and I admit, I didn´t really surf that many waves...ok, any waves, hehe. But I had so much fun trying! The water is really cold up here in northern Chile. On the weekend, the beach is full of young people sunbathing and playing sports.

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Photos

El Morro
A mountain at the edge of the beach

Trampolines
This would have been my paradise as a kid! Remember the jumping castle at the carnival? Do they still have that?

Rugby...
...I think.

Beach Volleyball
You know I´m a fan, so I had to include at least one photo.