Santiago

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Well the tour has ended and it seems amazing to me that we were travelling as a group for 3 weeks . I did enjoy the group and our CEO was excellent . Always available and seemingly happy to be there for us . We did well considering 5 of us were on antibiotics for various reasons , mostly fevers and stomach issues , and we just kept on trucking .

Each of the countries has something special to offer . Peru it was the Inca ruins and cities , Bolivia it was the Andies and Chile it is the whole civilization thing...a modern , well ordered country .

San Pedro de Alticama was a treat . The town itself is a bit of an oasis in the middle of the 2nd driest desert in the world . They have rain only 3 times a year ! The Valley of the Moon and the Valley of Death are stark . The desert here isn,t flat sand but mountains of clay . The erosion caused by the wind has created amazing shapes and fortunately we were able to get to high points that overlooked the valleys , hills and watersheds .

Flying to Santiago was a treat after some of the 4-5 hour bus rides we endured through Bolivia . I again came to realize I am NOT a road trip kind of person.

Santiago is an amazing city . We are staying in the historic center and it is so easy to walk about and explore . Things here are relatively safe although pick pockets are not uncommon . On day one I did a hop-on-hop -off tour with Sybille to explore the larger space . There are 6 million people that live here and as you can imagine things are sprawled all over the place. Day 2 seven of us went out to the Concha y Toro vineyard . Beautiful place but as it was raining (VERY unusual at this time ) it did curb our enthusiasm . The bus ride 90 minutes each way , was also unexpected . I decided NOT to go to Valparaso today because it would have been 2 hours each way and I don{t want to see another bus for a while. I slept in this morning and spent @4 hours walking about the city taking in the sites and watching people . Very pleasurable .

Enough for now . My phone will no longer do email ... I think I may owe Sasktel some money ...So communication for the next few days will have to happen here . Fortunately there is an internet cafe around the corner from the hotel .



Hope all is well . The winter reports sound a bit harsh ... will I have to shovel when I get home ?

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Comments

[Donnie]

So glad that your trip has been such a success. Everyone has been saying that it is bitterly cold in Regina. Oh well . . .
When you get back to Regina dig the long underwear as everyone is saying it is COLD. See you back in Siberia! ?

[ROGER LABELLE]

HOME SOON
SOUNDS LIKE IT HAS BEEN A GREAT TRIP. KEEP ON ENJOYING. THE SNOW BACK NORTH CAN WAIT. NETTIE WAS OVER TODAY, SHE SAYS HELLO. ROGER

[Shirley Hauta]

A few more days!
Lovely to hear that your adventure has gone so well. I am interested to hear about Bolivia; have heard the water shortages are bad there, glaciers melted and no new source of water. Did you experience or hear anything of that? Yes, it has been cold here for a couple weeks; we have very little snow in Saskatoon, but there may be more in your neck of the woods! What time are you home on Wednesday? Rhoda's has a surprise winter sale, 25% off everything!

[Brenda]

So far no shovelling
We have bitter cold but lititle snow. Forcasts are for a bit but hopefully not too much of a shock for you. See you soon and welcome home. Will you need groceries? A ride?