We crossed into Chile via Bolivia and found ourselves on top of the small but touristy town of San Pedro de Atacama. We went from the highest desert in the world and the driest. We got to our hostel, cleaned off the crusted salt from our dried-out skin, and went exploring. People said they know some travelers who get stuck in this town for weeks due to its nice restaurants, dirt roads and friendly local population and I can certainly see how. The town can be explored on foot, but the surrounding attractions are what really make it worth spending time in.
We went sandboarding down the dunes in Death Valley (appropriately named this due to the amounts of people who used to die try crossing it, or so they say...) and watched the sun set over the Valley of the Moon (this mysterious place closely resembles the surface of the moon, and for all you conspirators out there, it is said this is where they say the US faked the lunar landing, if you believe that kind of thing).
Sandboarding down was great. Walking back up was the worst.
My favorite part of San Pedro was renting mountain bikes and cruising for 4 hours through the Devil´s Gorge and out 10kms to a small abandoned church. Liora didn´t have so much fun and it was most exhausting biking in the heat of the day, but we made it and to see the endless, out-of-this-world landscapes that surround this town was all very worth it. Besides, we had to engage in some physical activity before we caught our bus to Santiago and would be sitting for 24 hours.
We departed at 5:50pm and got to Calama around 7:30pm. We caught a quick dinner at Pollo Rey, aka pollo a la brassa, the fast food of Chile and then caught our next sleeper bus to Santiago. It was a smooth ride, besides the guy snoring behind me and whose legs were too long to allow my seat to fully recline. I was more than happy to see him get off the bus around midnight when we stopped in who knows what town for more passengers. Thankfully the seat behind me remained empty for the final length of the trip.
Pollo a la brassa...mmm, good.
We spent two days in Santiago and enjoyed being at sea level once more with plenty of sunshine. It has reached nearly 80 degrees and we are taking it in for all its worth (it´s gonna be cold in NY when we get back!!). It is pretty slow on Sundays, but Santiago is a very happening, home-town feeling city. Don´t get me wrong, it´s huge and when we trekked to the top of the mountain of San Cristobal, the 360 degree expanse of the city was breathtaking. With the ice-capped Andes lining the east and knowing the ocean is due west, if I were a Chilean, I would probably live right in Santiago. Most travelers we met didn´t have too many good things to say about it but once we got aquainted with the city, Liora and I both agreed this would certainly be a place to spend more time and finding the small secrets Santiago has to offer. Bellavista and Barrio Brasil seem to be among the popular neighborhoods for eating, dancing and local entertainment. We hit up a jazz club Saturday night, Club de Jazz, the largest most well-established in Latin America in fact, heard the classics and enjoyed big city living once more.
Futhermore, Chile is known for serving scrumptious, abundant dishes of fresh seafood consisting of thick slices of tuna and albacore, and the ceviche is to die for (just don´t try and order dinner before 9pm!). And if you are ever in need of a local street snack, be sure to try a completo - a standard hot dog and bun covered with sauerkraut, chunky tomatoes, guacamole and mayo. And if that isn´t enough be sure to line it with ketchup, mustard and some hot sauce. I didn´t think it was possible, but these delicious dogs really give the NY hot dog a run for their money.
One of many completos enjoyed on the streets of Chile.We are now heading west to the beaches of Valparaiso and Vina del Mar. Bring on the sunshine and beaches!
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