Chile

The bus trip from Mendoza to Santiago was rough. It was a public holiday so the bus was full. We left at 10.45pm and headed for the Chilean border. While leaving the city we were privileged to witness the city fireworks celebrating ‘the day of the virgin’. I was on the top level and front seat –the perfect unspoilt view. It was so beautiful I just enjoyed it, didn’t even bother to scuffle for my camera. Around 1.30am we were woken to cross the border. It was absolutely freezing outside – I was fully awake in a nano second. The process of leaving Argentina was simple. Entering Chile was also pretty easy and they asked us to fill out forms declaring anything that may not be allowed – including fruit and vegetable. I declared I had an apple in my bag (I was not sure) and thankful I did. They scanned each of our bags independently and found it. One guy found himself in trouble for not declaring food – it was also the same guy who asked me to take through some cigarettes on his behalf. I refused.
By 3.40am we were on the road again and I was graced with one of the most beautiful views I have ever seen. The moon was perfectly bright and round. It was a clear night and I was shocked to see the magnificent snow-capped mountains of the Andes. I had forgotten that the border crossing was high in the mountains which would also explain the sub zero temperature. After witnessing the beauty of the Andes in the daylight it really was a treat to see it at night by moon light. I tried a photo through the window – it did not work. I could feel how steep we were by the speed and angle of the bus but it wasn’t until we saw the distant lights on the windy road far down the range in the bottom of the valley that it was so noticeable. It almost took my breath away. A great night for daydreaming.

There was a lot of snoring, bad smells and rough, windy roads, but I did manage to get some sleep. We arrived into Santiago (Chile) just before 7am and the song ‘santa clause is coming to town’ was playing. Wow, only 14 more days until Christmas. That’s only 2 weeks until Lima! :-)
I popped my luggage in storage and having limited time in Santiago, went straight into the city to look around. By chance I met this amazing 18yo lady from Austria, Lauren, who is volunteering for 10 months in the city and surrounding areas. This charity was established by Uni students and run by the youth. Researching their organisation, I like what I see. Very little money is taken for administration as almost all the staff is voluntary. They work with struggling communities to build homes, farms and businesses and have won various awards and grants through their approach in educating the communities to earn the assistance (not through simple hound-outs). The kind of person and organisation I could see myself working with in the future. Lauren was also kind to give me an extensive tour of the city and its history. Good practise for when her mother and brother visit her for Christmas. Fascinating times past.

I learnt while I was there that ALL public Universities, Secondary and Primary school students are on strike in Santiago – that means that no student from entry level primary to last year students at Uni are attending classes – and not since May. I could hardly believe it. They are protesting against having to pay for an education. They believe it should be free. What’s worse is that they (specifically uni students) are paying each month (approx. $600 USD which is very expensive for the average Chilean) for a qualification they are not receiving. And they will not see this money again, not to mention the year wasted waiting.

Everyone in South America – especially Argentinian and Chilean people eat extremely late. Most restaurants don’t open before 8pm or close before 1am. Most people eat around 10pm. On Friday I had been out exploring the city all day and arrived back at the hostel at 8.30 hungry for dinner. The suggestion was made to have a BBQ (Chili style) which sounded fabulous, so at 9.00 we had agreed, decided on the meat and 2 people went shopping. They returned at 11.10pm, fired up the webber and got the meat on around midnight. The smell was torture. We took our first bite at 2.47am and it was magnificent.

The process was slow and long but definitely worth the wait – it was crispy and smoked on the outside and perfectly succulent on the inside. I slept after eating (no surprises there) and everyone else went out dancing. We had such a brilliant night that the owner (Ivan) asked me to stay an extra night as the following night they had a pre-bbq organised with all kinds of meats and side dishes that I would adore. He even offered me the night for free. But I have to move on – must get to Lima before Christmas. I would love to return one day.

I then made my way to San Pedro de Atacama – a place in the middle of the desert in North Chile. Atacama Desert is the driest desert in the world. The journey from Santiago started on the beautiful coast and turned almost moon-like landscape closer to our arrival. It’s amazing that after a 25 hour bus trip I could feel so perfectly relaxed and rested. I decided to spend the extra $23AUD and get a sleeper bus. Amazing. Even though we didn’t get whisky, champagne or coffee on this bus, it was the most comfortable I have experienced.

San Pedro’s is what you’d expect from a desert town – very hot, dry and dusty. During the day the temperatures get very high and then extremely cold at night. I spent the morning wandering the one street of this tiny little town and did the Moon Tour in the afternoon. We set off around 3pm and saw the most amazing barren country side – incredibly moon like. We visited many sights, valleys and canyons. We all closed our eyes and listened to the rocks crackling like ice in a glass of liquid and watched the sunset over the stunning valley with its own little oasis, San Pedro de Atacama.

The following day I decided to walk to a nearby lagoon. It was marked on a map given to tourists when they hire mountain bikes to get around the sites. I decided to walk this 8km odd round trip. I thought it was a little strange about halfway there that I hadn’t’ seen anyone else but decided to keep walking. I had a hat, plenty of water, sunscreen and my phone.

The landscape was naked, exposed to the harsh weather. I could see for miles into the mountains and aside from the deep cracked clay plains, there was the odd tumble weed crossing my path and a group of green trees in the distance. I still saw no one, not even a car. I kept walking.

Almost an hour later, I finally reached the group of trees only to be greeted by a couple of workers to say that the lagoon was bare. It would have been a beautiful oasis but there was no water, not even a puddle. I thanked them for the blatantly obvious information and started walking back.

I was trying to think of the last time it had been that quiet. I couldn’t. Perhaps the 10 day Vipassana retreat in Kenya. It was a time for reflection – where I had been, the work we had accomplished on FreMo’s and where to from here with ’That’s What Friends Are For’. It was time I needed – time I had craved without knowing it. Values, life, love, family, future... It was so peaceful but also quite lonely. I decided to talk to my camera.



I made it back to the hostel with enough time to check my emails, have a shower, bite to eat and then made my way to the bus station for another overnight bus – this one to Arica (Nth Chile) en route to La Paz in Bolivia. There is something I am very much looking forward to doing there – the sole reason for my journey slightly off course…