Chile 1
From Bolivia and what was barely a dirt track, we drove onto the smoothest tarmac road we had seen since North America. One way it went to Argentina, the other way it went to Chile, then this non-road track leading back to Bolivia - the roads spoke volumes about the social situations of the 3 countries. Even driving on this road was a treat - the smooth hum of the tires on seal, the lack of jostling and sudden bumps, and the dawning reassurance that perhaps blowing out tires were now a thing of the past. We were delighted to enter Chile. Of course this luxury does not come without it´s penalty and entering San Pedro de Attacama we soon found we had to pay the price. Accomodation and food was well over double Bolivian prices but after walking around a little we found a hostal that didn´t completely bring us to our knees.
We spent the rest of the day walking around looking at hotels, trying to find a nice one to stay for the next two nights for my 30th birthday. Eventually we ran out of time and went to meet our Aussie friend Roxanne to celebrate her birthday. We sat out on the main plaza drinking beer that tasted like something more than coloured water and ate delicous salads. A local telethon was running so we were entertained by a variety of local artists as we bathed in the sun that lasted an hour longer with the time change crossing the border. Eventually after 1am we went back for some sleep, just in time to find most people in our hostal were just going out to start partying. Enough was enough for one night though and we were soon asleep.
The morning dawned hot, clear and (as is usual in the Atacama) dry. We had to be out of our room at 10:00am and still hadn´t found our next night´s accomodation. After wandering all over the place we finally settled on a room at the Awasi hotel. It was so comfortable and beautiful I never wanted to leave it - even though the only room they had available had twin beds rather than the double we wanted. The hotel only had 8 rooms but seemed to have around 100 couches heaped with colourful cushions scattered everywhere. There was a pool with sun loungers and even cabanas to sit in the shade when the sun grew too strong. Our room had a little outdoor courtyard with an outdoor shower also. We went into town for some internet time then dinner before retreating to the best night´s sleep I had had in a long time. Perhaps the clean sheets helped.
My birthday heralded a blue sky. Marty woke me and we went out to breakfast where the staff sang happy birthday to me. After French Toast and real coffee we played chess for a while. Marty had to do a couple of errands in town so I went and sat in a little nook to write in my diary and read. When he returned we made use of the icy cold swimming pool. The hotel gave us a bottle of champagne to celebrate with over lunch and Marty presented me with a lapiz necklace as a present. Lapiz is one of the stones that come from this area. The afternoon was long and sleepy. Towards the end of it we went into town so I could call my parents. We bumped into Roxanne and went and had a drink with her which made the day even better. Eventually we went back for the Awasi dinner we had organised the day before. The evening hostess told us that John Howard and a group of Autralian politicians including a couple of senators had stayed there two weeks before. Marty was impressed to discover that it wasn´t funded with tax payers money either. We enjoyed pea and ham soup, canalloni followed by little cakes - mine came with a candle. To finish my perfect day we retreated to the front of a fire place that drove away the cold night desert air for coffee and chocolates and another game of chess.
Our bus didn´t leave until 4pm so the kind staff let us use the hotel facilities until it was time to leave, then they drove us down to the bus station so we didn´t have to hike through the hot streets with our packs. As we drove off on the bus, we found that the dry environment didn´t even seem to allow the smallest plants to grow. San Pedro is an oasis and around it the Atacama - the driest desert in the world - sits and simmers. Some palces in this desert haven´t seen rain in 400 years. The road followed a pipeline (probably water) that had been undergoing some sort of repairs, earth was heaped up everywhere. Darkness descended and the bus attendant closed the curtains and turned on a movie. Chilean buses operate in a similar way to airplanes. A host or hostess seats everyone, opens and closes curtains at appropriate times, hands out food, collects rubbish then hands out blankets and pillows for overnighters. All in a very professional manner!
We arrived in Santiago city mid morning and took a taxi that actually had a meter (!) to the hostal we wanted to stay at. They were booked out so we stayed around the corner in a place called the Paris Hotel - possibly the cheapest accomodation in all of Santiago. It was located on a pleasant cobblestoned street with nice cafes and restaurants. We went out to explore and were delighted to discover a really good sushi restaurant where we ate dinner. After we went and saw a movie, The Infiltrators. Lucky for us, movies in this part of the world screen with English spoken and Spanish subtitles so we could understand everything.
The next day we went out to buy some fruit from the colourful stalls near our hotel for breakfast. A loud protest was going on and we were shocked to suddenly find police in full riot gear suddenly pouring into the area and begin arresting people. Media trucks were parked everywhere and news reporters closely followed the arrests being made. We watched for a moment but were too nervous to stay around - not wanting to be mistaken for a protestor when we didn´t even know what the protest was about, but also not wanting to be on the recieving end of tear gas. We found out later that protests like these are almost a daily occurence and this particular one was over some change of legislation relating to schools.
We walked down to a park and climbed up a hill in the middle. It had been a bastian at one point and there were still old brick lookout points and cannons facing the city. From above Santiago looked a lot more polluted and rough than we had realised from amongst the central district buildings. We descended back into it and spent a few hours at an internet cafe. After some sandwhiches, Marty retreated to our room to read and I went and explored a San Franciscan muesem and church. Full of dark memorabalia and religous icons as well as some superb early paintings, it closed at 6pm, so Marty came out with me to enjoy the crowds of people Christmas shopping in the walking malls. We ate at a cafeteria type place that was obviously popular with the locals and enjoyed our meals and conversation with the waiter.
In the morning we headed out to the airport to catch our flight to Easter Island. We had changed our flights so were hoping all would go smoothly....
Photos: www.katmarty.smugmug.com
