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Chilean North Coast (17-23 Nov. 1999)

Antofagasta is one of the most exotic places in South America for a person from Sweden (at least for a geography freak like me). In fact, the shanty-town covered hillsides leading up to the Atacama desert above town are indeed a quite intriguing sight. As a consequence, I couldn't help taking Anna for a stroll along the hillsides to see the view of the Pacific Ocean (see above). We ended up in the southern part of town, watching big waves and a local angler (see below).

The next day we lay sunning ourselves on the adjacent beach. We had our first baths in the Pacific Ocean and I didn't use sun lotion, getting really broiled. We joined a long bus-ride the other day, ending up in the beach resort of La Serena. Here I celebrated my birthday by being told my fortune by the lines of my hand. The local gypsy girl that carried out the trick even managed to acquire some of my money before a local Chilean helped me out by frightning her away. My rescuer was yet another example of friendly Chileans. He ended up promising to send a letter in the new millenium. It arrived in May. He was also an example of Chileans fleeing the country during the Pinochet years. The next example, a former Stockholm resident, we met outside our hotel in Vi�a del Mar a few days later. He enjoyed speaking Swedish with Anna (see left). The hotel was a carbon copy of Fawlty Towers, except that Basil was really nice and the breakfast-in-bed made us stay two nights. Like La Serena, Vi�a del Mar was a fair beach resort.

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Santiago