| Days 1- Chile The trip begins from London.... Tuesday 26th march I have now arrived in sunny Santiago, where the temps are rocking...i had to endure a long flight and wait over in Bueans aires, so i am really tired. I should write a book, called the 101 most uncomfortable seating postions on a plane!! I had to restrain myself from mentioning the war as well on the whole flight as I there was many Argy�s there! Santiago is like Spain, in fact I may even be there... I have tomorrow to look around and meet up with some folk before the trip`starts on thursday, so it will be a busy day... Santiago sits in the middle of a valley surrounded by the Andes - its a awesome view as you fly in. I checked in ther hostel international and sorted out my kit (packed and re-packed again!). The hostel is quite nice with a cafeteria in it and a big mixture of nationalities (mainly Frenchies), I would recommend it but also another hostel where Margot was staying (free internet access and only $6 a nite!) Then I had a message to meet one of the girls on the trip, so I found her after a 30 min walk round the same streets! I was really knackered, having not slept properly since Sat nite, so wine probably wasn�t the best thing to drink, but I am on holiday. So we polished off a few cartons ($1 for 1 litre)...scrabled back for about 11.30 after waking most of the others on my floor! Weds 26th March I got up for about 6am after a hot nite... met up with a friend to do some sightseeing adn then saw some of the other chaps who are on the trip...we have an Aberdeen fan (strange, ,as I thought there was only one!) The city itself is pretty commercial and no one has jobs or goes to school...its like utopia! There is some nice buildings and museams, and its a mecca for shoppping. There is certain streets that only sell one thing...ie shoe streets/car parts and hairnets...weird! The chilean people speak spanish with a totally different accent to mainland spain, so its impossible for them to understand me or vice versa. But making the chicken noises is fun and works thursday 27th Checked out of the hotel and met some of the others on the trip(they had been going since Rio), so then we sat in the truck and had a breifing as to how things will work on there and what the schedule is for the next few months. After that finished we had some spare time to check out the town, so we went to a fast food place which took ages to get some food there. After ew went to a hill in the centre of the town and got some great views and sat and chatted for a while. There is not a great deal to see in Santiago, its a nice place to spend a few days but that`s about it. There is a nice mix of the old and new, but I was surprised as to how commercial the city is. Could be in London or somewhere... In the evening we went to a restuarant called 2 cows...yes Chile is also famous for its steaks and we all pigged out there eating and drinking as it was so cheap. I left there at 12ish and the place was still bz and steaks were still being cooked...smell of meat in the morning! Friday 28th The truck started for real and we had a 6 hr drive to La serena. On the bag of the bus, people slept, drank, ate, played cards and chatted. It was good fun, but I am still missing heaps of sleep. We stopped in a cafe (which was shut as it was Easter Friday) to make some lunch of Tuna, crackers and cheese. Nice stuff really>! After arriving in La Serena we headed to a supermarket to get ssome wine and beer. (others were doing the food, but the beer was the priority!) Then we headed to a campsite by the pacific which is very nice. They have hot and cold running showers and toliets. So for the last 2 days its been barbies and beer in the heat...lovely! Its about 28 here, so I am getting a nice colour although I think its dirt! I am sharing the tent with the scottish guy and so far I have�n�t had an early nite as its been quite drunken )or staying up late chatting). It gets quite cold here at nite, so I was glad for M�s sleeping bag and rest mat. Interesting conversations are had after several beers! The others on the truck are professional travellers but all with serious jobs as well. One of the girls so far had her bag )containing passport, wallet etc stolen), but that was in Santiago and she took it with her. Mine was all locked up in the pac safe. Not using it now trhough as the bag in in the truck and there is a safe for my passport etc... Sunday 31st (Easter Sunday!) Heard that Queen Mum died, we all several extra beers yesterday in mouring and I never showered as we held a wake! So today we will do much the same b4 driving to San Pedro De Atacama in the morning. Stopped in McDonalds for 5 big Mac�s b4 heading back to the campsite for some beers and food. Monday 1st Drove to Bahia Inglesa, which was basically a beach resort. We set u p camp on the beach and partied there. The beach was really polluted and there was a dead seal on it, so I didn� fancy a dip in it. The Chilean seal population seems to have dropped off since I arrived...there was nobody else on the beach and very few signs of life anywhere else so there was great shooting stars. Truck life - up at about 6.30 for brekkie (which is cooked by different teams every day), then its pack away tent and cooking gear b4 setting off at about 8ish. We drive for a few hours b4 stopping for sandwiches by the roadside. In the eve, we set up the cook tent and sleeping tent b4 the sun sets and then we start the drinking off until dinner is ready and either pass early or carry on drinking. Being a truck we can stop anywhere as we carry everything, so often just pull over on deserted beaches and set up camp. Tuesday 2nd+ Wednesday nite Drove to Parque national de Axucar. Really nice deserted beached and we all jumped into the cold sea as we all smelt bad...Stayed there and played frisbee and drank some more, nothing else to do. The desert there klooks like the moon, so the setting for beach was spectular as was the drive along the coast road (which we later found out was closed!). Awesome hills falling into the sea and just a barren desert landscape there. On Weds, I was cooking which was fun. We cooked some sauteed pots with vegs and beef kebabs on the barby...it was surprisingly nice...and nobody has died yet! Look out Jamie Oliver! Thursday 4th Drove into the heart of the Atacama desert (driest int he world) and set up camp there. Really nice as there was nothin there but rocks and sand and scorpions.. One of the guys who joined the trip in Rio was kicked off for fighting the previous nite...as he was using rocks I went to bed early after the previous nites activties which were quite drunken. Woke up really cold though at 6am as it was freezing... Friday 5th Arrived into San Pedro De Atacama after a 5 hr drive thru the desert and hills. This place is still within the desert and at 2500 metres, so its very hot. We have checked into a hostel to aclimatise for a few nites and also have a wash as I haven�t had one for the last 4 days or change my clothes. This is a tiny gringo town which seems to be full of backpackers...rather funny. Off out later to the Valley of the moon for dinner and so the sunset. This is where NASA tested some moon stuff and some say the "landings" actually took place...The valley of the moon was pretty spectacular, the landscape was so similair to the moon. We climbed a dune to get a better view of it, and it was really hard work because of the altitude, back home I could have run up it but I was panting and breathing heavy...hard work! SAn Pedro is on the gringo trail so there are heaps of backpackers here and its weird to hear so many UK accents! We looked for a place to set up a barby in the valley but it took us ages to find somewhere, esp as we got stuck in the sand for ages. Eventually, we set up the spit barby and slapped a couple cows on it, and then had some beers... Sat 6th Woke up quite early as the bed was a novelty, then went to have some brekkie in this really nice cafe/bar place (with internet). Then walked about some more, checked out the museam here with some mummies and daddies, that was really good. It was all in Spanish but very good! I have bought a lama wool hat as over the next 4 days we are crossing the salt plains which are at 3700 metres, so are warm during the day but at nite are below 0! So I will be out of range until I hit Potosi on Friday (which is at 4000 metres) its crazyness! |