Made it...No more bus rides

---

Geo: -33.4691, -70.642

Actually I arrived at estacion central Santiago at 4AM, very early, nothing was open and even so its summer, Chile is indeed chill while the sun is down...

Anyhow...I was in contact with a guy from Couchsurfing to stay with him in his house in San Bernardo, the deep south of Región Metropolitana de Santiago...

Upon my arrival I was waiting inside the bus station, it's quite cold at 4 AM in the morning. Around 7AM I was going to search for the government offices in order to apply for the all so important RUT ID that allows me to buy a motorcycle in Chile in my name as a foreigner and also receive Chilean license plates and take it over international borders...

Altogether quite something, considering that no other country in South America is allowing you to do such a thing...I assume it's because of the strong German influence here, very organized police and government, without any corruption at all...

During my trip down here from Santa Cruz de la Sierra, everyone told me it's impossible to do such a thing as a foreigner...One more reason that never listening to such opinions but simply go and try...I took this ride all the way down here without clearly knowing if it's possible...

Well, guess what, it simply is possible and the government workers are extremely friendly and helpful with it. I was hitting the wrong office first and they told me to go to the central office de Registro Civil E Identificacion and register my passport, afterwards I had to go to Servicio de Impuestos Internos in order to register for the RUT ...Wooh...They issued me with a RUT on the spot...Present a valid address where they can mail it to, alongside my German passport and 800 CLP...I have received my ID number on the spot on a piece of paper so I can go ahead and buy my motorcycle while I wait for the original papers to arrive at my Santiago temporary address...Without those papers I can't leave on my road trip...

Anyway that wasn't my plan...Buying a motorbike and get ready will take at least a week anyway and we are in between Christmas and New Year, so not all Offices are open.

So I went to a Suzuki dealership in Paine, south of San Bernardo. I have already shortlisted my desired motorcycle for my trip that will take me into the Mountains over 5000m. If the engine does not have enough horsepower, it will simply not get up the mountains in such thin air...The dealership had it in black color.

I had to present my RUT ID, alongside my passport, now I had to go to the local office in Paine and apply for:

Seguro Obligatorio,
Permiso de circulacion,
revision tecnica

Upon success, they will issue me with registro nacional de vehículos motorizados, which takes another 2 weeks, luckily you don't have to wait for it but can simply pick it up on your way in any town in Chile.

The only thing missing now is my license plate. I already got my papers in order so I simply have to go to any dealership and get my license plate printed and stamped...Off I can go...My motorbike is ready to go and I decided to receive the necessary original documents in Antofagasta, otherwise I can't cross any international borders.

I already felt very comfortable in San Bernardo and simply stayed pass New Year's Eve...The few days during Christmas and New Year I took the opportunity ti buy some necessary accessories in downtown Santiago. There is an dedicated area dealing in everything around motorcycles.

I did buy indeed quite a few more things:

- Pannier bags for both sides,
- Good sunglasses that prevent the wind crossing your eyes, I did hear that the winds are
very strong at the time not just on the Pacific Highway but also up in the mountains,
- rubber mats for my top pannier,
- luggage straps,
- a Jacket to block out the strong sunrays,
- a good helmet,
- an air pump for the wheels,
- a few other things

Basically I was ready to go...My couchsurfing friend who simply handed me the keys to his house I stayed alone the past 2 weeks, also invited me to his home near Valparaiso so off I went to see him and visit the nice summer vacation towns on the Pacific coast...

---

Photos

Step 1: Apply for a RUT ID
This ID will allow you to become a semi-citizien, you are allowed to buy stuff in your own name. In my case it was about buying a motorbike and being able to take it over international borders

Few hours later...the official RUT ID
I need to present this paper at the motorcycle dealership along with my valid motorcylce driver's license, otherwise I will be unable to buy a motorcycle.

Rough sketch of the custom welded panniers
Upon sketching it, I was searching for a welding professional and showed him the sketch. He suggested to do it in steel instead of my intention, to use aluminum. Aluminum would have been 3 - 4 times for expensive. So I did it in steel and than simply coated it in rustproof black paint.

The trip I am half way through...
The first half was on buses, how awful...The actual trip is starting right now...

My temporary home in San Bernardo, Santiago
It's southern hemisphere summer...The motorbike has just received the custom welded steel panniers...I am almost ready to go but still have to buy a few accessories. The motorbike odometer has about 45km recorded.