The Germans, cont.

I have seen some wonderful skies at night, far away from the city lights, but I have never experienced a sky like this before. The stars were so brilliantly shining against the inky black of the night, galaxies and constellations jumped out of the background. Most impresively though, was the way that they sparkled. It was like each star was a piece of glass spinning and twisting in the sun. Since we missed the sunset we decided that sunrise would be just as good. We sat mesmorized by the stars for quite some time before getting snuggled into the car for our first night, Tinka and Philip reclining in the front seats and me scrunched up in the back.

In the morning we tumbled out of the car and for the first time had a look at where we actually were. We still weren`t sure what we were supposed to be looking for, but we found outselves in a valley surrounded by a landscape that appeared to be similar to the surface of the moon. We scampered across the uneven ground - a hard mixture of sand and salt that gave the desert the appearance of a fresh dusting of snow. It crunched and broke slightly beneath our feet and gave off a hollow sound when a piece of it was thrown against itself. We weren`t sure if we should be worried about the possibility of falling through, if there was even anywhere to fall to. We climbed the tallest hill we could find just in time to watch the sun as it crested over the top of the larger hills in the distance. Out lighting may not have been as impressive as it is at sunset, but it was worth the sacrifice to be able to experience the strange lunar landscape without tour groups crowding our space.

We were back in our car heading out of the park when we spotted a perfect sand dune, with smooth tan sand blown up into a perfect peak. We stopped the car and struggled up the sandy slope. From the top we had a fabulous view which we stopped to admire for a bit before haveing som fun jumping and sliding our way back down. After a small stop in the town of San Pedro for a walk around the plaza, we continued on down the road past wild alpacas, goats, and donkeys until we reached Salar de Atacama. At 300,000 hectares, this is the third largest expanse of salt flats in the world. The area of the lake that we visited was part of the Reserva Nacional de los Flamencos. Several flamingos and other birds call this place home and could be seen dancing and digging for brine shrimp among the salty water.

Quebrada de Jere is a small gorge sprouting green vegetation in the middle of this barren land. We decided it would be a good place to stop and have a picnic of cheese and avocado sandwiches followed by a little nap atop park benches. After our rest in the desert oasis we hit the road once more down the same stretch of repetitive yellow and tan neverending dustiness. We stopped in Calama to replenish our cheese, avocado, and bread supply before settling a few hours later at quiet beach where we stopped the car for the night. We ate more sandwiches at sunset sitting on the sand with waves lapping at our feet. The second night in the car was a little less comforable for Tinka and I though Philip, tallest of us all, still rested well.

In the morning we bought more bread for more snadwiches and started up the coast again back toward Iquique to return the car. After returning the car and using the internet, we had dinner at an overpriced Chifa. Chinese food is one of the only semi-reliable options for a vegetarian in Chile. Then, we boarded a 9pm bus to Copiapò and arrived 12 hours later. Spending three consequtive nights without a bed
definitely took its toll on me and I can no longer deny the inextricable link beyween my diet and my state of mind. Chile is not very easy for a vegetarian and so far I have had a diet consisting mostly of bread, cheese (sadly, not good cheese) french fries, and when I am lucky, some avocado. My skin is bad, I am grumpy, my outlook is gloomy, and my energy is low. How anyone exists here with the colorless plates of starches and meats, I will never understand.

We stayed one night in Copiapò amd were thankful for a bed, even if it was in one of the more strange accomodations I have stayed at. At 7:30am the next morning we boarded our bus toward La Serena, then a second bus to Pisco Elqui, a small town in a pretty setting where orchards and vineyards collided with arid mountains. The area is known as a center of mystical energy and is one of the main astronomical centers in the world. Pisco Elqui is also a large producer of its namesake, pisco. In the spirit of being settled for a few days we whipped up some pisco sours before I climbed into my bed illuminated by the white quartz light glowing above my head.

On the way to our next destination we stopped at a small organic winery, Cavas de Valle, where I was reminded how wonderful good wine can be, then we went to Coquimbo where we spent the night in a mansion built in 1890.

We headed to Valparaiso the next day which is where Tinka lived during her stay in Chile. Valpo for short, has a more bohemian feel to it than the other places I have been to so far in Chile. Set on a bay with resident sea lions, steep hillsides with narrow twisting roads, neighborhoods with unique personalities, and cable operated asensors (funicular elevators) it reminded me of San Francisco. Add to that its radical past, liberal population, and a reputation as a place where anything goes and I was certain this was the South American SF. The way the streets climb the hills, the way the wind hits your face while sitting in a park, the way the sun shines, and the way the fog rolled all reminded me of SF. Like SF, Valpo was also nearly destroyed by an earthquake in 1906...all these similarities made me long to return to the city by the bay.

But I was also longing to get out of the city. I was starting to go a little crazy from the noise constantly invading my head everywhere I went. I couldn`t breath without smelling car exhaust. I needed to be alone in a place where there was always someone there. My time with the German`s was reaching the end. Ultimately, I don`t play well with others. I found myself enjoying their company less and less and no longer feeling excited by having someone to share some adventures with, but stifled instead. I needed to get out. I was burnt out on the desert and the cities and wanted to get back to my routine where I worry about no one else but me, where I can happily wander around for hours reading every menu until I find a suitable place to eat, where I can stroll through the aisles of foreign supermarkets unrushed, where I can get back to nature and again feel the simple enjoyment of dirt beneath my fingernails instead of city grime.

So this morning I bid my farewells to the Germans and am again off on my own and feel the energy I was lacking returning to my bones. Tomorrow evening I am meeting Sergio from Geo Wines and will go to Isla de Maipo and visit the vineyards and taste some wonderful examples of Chilean vino and then Wednesday I will continue still farther South where the desert will start to give way to water.