Text: Peter Johansson
Editing: Christer Lundstedt
Photos: Christer Lundstedt, Peter Johansson
Videos: Christer Lundstedt



Wednesday 24th of July

08.15 It is a new morning here in Iquique, at Hotel Bamboo and in room 404. Nothing wrong with our room but a little more space to move around in would be desirable. We'll see what the next home gives us.

09.02 There are days we are feeling great, willing to head out to investigate the world. Today we are mostly waiting for the time to move on so that we get to do the same.

09.47 We watch TV until further notice. CNN monitors the Mueller report as well as the change of Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. We continue to keep track on time. Soon we will proceed to the next destination here in Chile. Will it go smooth to leave the key at check-out?

09.56 The time to check out is here. Our bus departs at 10.30.

10.14 There were no problems in leaving the key. On the way to the bus terminal we noted that the mist from the sea is gone today. Even the clouds were few. There will of course be sunshine when we're not going to be here anymore.

10.39 We have reached today's bus terminal along the street Latorre. Just before departure, the bus host discussed about something with a passenger. It might have been about his position in the bus. He ended up getting off. Our driver had a crowded surrounding in the beginning, but now we are on our way. There were various vehicles that were all but well parked. Today's bus company is called Kenny Bus (https://www.kennybus.cl).

We are leaving Iquique.

An interesting meeting.

The straightest road to Calama.

11.45 To say that it is dry around us is just the beginning. In these regions, rain is rare. The landscape around us is brown and dry. We are in the driest desert in the world, the Atacama Desert. Here it rains about a millimetre every year and there are parts of the desert where rain has never been documented at all.

12.16 Here and there on the areas to the right or left of the straight road there is sometimes a small house with a cross visible. Sometimes it's just the cross and sometimes just the house. What is their purpose? Are they houses for the saints, in memory of someone that died in an accident or just a kind of decoration?

13.07 The brown, dry landscape is not as flat anymore. Some hills are visible.

13.42 The bus has now stopped in the middle of nothing. People bring their belongings and get out of the bus. Maybe we might as well do the same. We don't know why, but will soon.

13.50 All luggage and all possessions have been X-rayed, is it some kind of customs, a security check? I don't know why at all. At least we are close to Quillagua on the border between the provinces of Tarapacá and Antofagasta. A flashing, slowly riding police car is coming from the other direction. Not another accident, please!

The pedestrian street Eleuterio Ramirez in Calama.

Hotel Modular Express, Calama.

Peter in room 220.

This painting is also a heater.

14.02 We got great news! There was no new road accident without a transport, a transport of a broad cargo to say the least. It seemed like some sort of huge, giant vehicle. Perhaps it is something that belongs to the mines in the area. It was at least as wide as the road and was followed by a bunch of trucks that also carried large wide things.

14.50 A little variation in the surrounding landscape would be welcome. I feel like we've already seen these views. Desert is not that exciting.

15.47 We have, on our way to today's final destination Calama, passed an open pit, a huge mining hole. We're in Chuquicamata, a pretty depressing place. A dusty mining hole in a desert is not that fun. After all, Chile is the world's largest copper producer and the largest part of its production comes from Chuquicamata, the world's largest open copper mine. It is about 6 kilometres long, 4 kilometres wide and 850 meters deep.

16.04 Our bus stopped at a terminal along Avenida Balmaceda. We first went to a nearby ticket office to buy bus tickets for tomorrow. We saw a sign on the bus company Atacama 2000 that we plan to go with but it did not help. The woman behind the counter explained that we were in the wrong place. We'll figure this out later, now towards the hotel.

16.31 It is much cooler here in the higher altitudes. We are in Calama which is located 2260 meters above sea level. The hotel we strolled to is beautifully yellow and purple and is called Hotel Modular Express (https://www.modularexpress.cl). Here we have allocated the room 220. The room is modern and has a large painting that generates heat, the most beautiful radiator we have experienced.

Christer is walking through Calama.

We have found the bus terminal used by the company Atacama 2000.

Christer and Catedral San Juan Batista.

Plaza 23 de Marzo, Calama.

Beautiful art near the cathedral.

17.31 Now it's time to leave our room for evening activities. We need food above all else.

18.01 During our city walk we first navigated to the bus terminal that houses the company Atacama 2000. There we have bought bus tickets for tomorrow when we travel on to San Pedro de Atacama. Today's dinner host will be the small pizzeria La Pizzata. Now we got our glasses, remains to get the orders. One of the pizzas had got its name from the mine north of the city. Can it be good?

19.22 It was not the biggest or most culinary pizzas we had eaten. Despite words on the contrary, the dough felt pre-baked. On the way home we bought sponge cakes from a girl who stood and sold these in the centre. Here in the room it is warm and comfortable. The heat source is the previously mentioned painting.

20.18 We have not done that much today, we have mostly travelled by bus, but we have managed to get tired anyway.

22.26 The sponge cakes we bought were great. What do we do next? To sleep, perchance to dream is an option.


Thursday 25th of July

08.35 The next thing to happen last evening is the fact that we fell asleep. The painting has kept the heat in the room during the night. There will be a short stay in this room and in this hotel. Calama is just an overnight place on the way to new views. A night's stay is too short though three nights sometimes feels too much when to visit a city.

09.25 The breakfast restaurant here at Hotel Modular Express is new and fresh just like the hotel itself. However, it would have been more pleasant if it had offered some kind of heat. It's freezing when we're inside. We are quite alone in the large room that has little sense of a dining room in a school.

10.12 There was just a knock on the door of our room. I opened and there were two young ladies. They wanted to come in and take good care of, not us but the room. Wouldn't it be better to wait with the cleaning until we check out? Some hotels keep track of this, others don't.

11.01 It's time to leave our purple and yellow home to embark on the streets of Calama and have a lunch before further transportation.

11.54 This city also has a restaurant in the Schopdog chain (https://schopdog.cl). I will something do unexpected and eat a vegetarian dish and skip beer and alcohol.

Christer in the breakfast restaurant at Hotel Modular Express.

Interesting decorations inside Schopdog in Calama.

Peter is having a vegetarian lunch at Schopdog. Christer has not forgot the meat.

12.48 Our lunch was eaten and paid for. We and our luggage are outside again. It is strong winds on Plaza 23 de Marzo square by the cathedral which bears the name Catedral San Juan Bautista (Cathedral of St. John the Baptist). A bit away stands a shouting man. He seems to have something religious to say. I must honestly say that is more screaming than talking.

13.07 Enough with the waiting in the cold weather. We are about to head for the terminal, or rather the garage where the buses from Atacama 2000 arrive at and depart from.

13.37 We first managed to go wrong and continued some crossings too long before we realized our mistake. After a moment of waiting at the parking area where the bus would show up, the bus from Atacama 2000 finally arrived. Let's go south-east.

14.22 The Atacama Desert, as I said, is dry. In this part of the desert it rains even more rarely. It is flat and gray-brown all the way to the horizon.

15.11 There are many shades of brown in the landscape around us. There are absolutely no green areas in sight.

15.35 There is suddenly something green in the middle of the arid desert, it is the tourist town of San Pedro de Atacama. That's where this bus goes with all its passengers.

The dry Atacama desert.

The bus who brought us from Calama to San Pedro de Atacama.

We have reached our next accomodation, Hostal Mamatierra.

We are staying in room 2.

Our small cold room.

A dog is watching.

16.04 We are resident and satisfied in room 2. We stay at Hostal Mamatierra (http://www.hostalmamatierra.cl), a hostel located on Pachamama Street a stone's throw from the bus station here in San Pedro de Atacama. It's time to plan the rest of the first day here. From one to the other, Christer currently has 2010 pesos in coins.

17.13 After I have washed today's clothes and we planned the upcoming hours, now head out for an ocular inspection and some culinary enjoy. My washed clothes hang to dry on a chair outside our room. Will they dry before we move on? It's cold here in the city, but the sun is warming. San Pedro de Atacama is located at 2408 meters above sea level and the winter remains.

17.37 There are plenty of dogs here in the city. It is also extremely dry and dusty. We make the first stop of the evening at the French bakery and cafe La Franchutería (http://www.lafranchuteria.com). The waiter recommended some of the more expensive things in the menu. We did not listen to this and have ordered black coffee and croissants.

18.45 After the coffee stop, we have strolled around the city's central parts and looked at restaurants and in shops. We have bought with us beverages to have if necessary later. Now, we have been at the pizzeria, El Charrúa (http://pizzeriaelcharrua.cl). We had planned to eat dinner, but there are no empty seats the small room. We're standing by, maybe looking for something else.

19.34 Finally after ever so much wandering around the city we found an opening, a free table at El Charrúa.

Peter is visiting La Franchutería.

The town hall in San Pedro de Atacama.

Iglesia San Pedro.

The entrance to the town church.

The dogs have control in San Pedro de Atacama.

Peter is enjoying a pizza at Pizzeria El Charrúa.

20.19 Danish tourists entered the restaurant at the end of the long-awaited dinner here at El Charrúa. We finished our dinner, paid and said thank you. Given how many people queued to tables here, you do not want to sit too long and take up space. It is a heat way home in Sweden. It's not like that here. It's really cold when the sun's gone. It can get chilly in our room that lacks heat source.

20.56 We're back at hostal Mamatierra. Our hostel has got its name by street Pachamama which means "Mother Earth". It, in turn, is a divinity in the ancient Inca culture.

22.23 I just had a hiccup. It is far from warm in the room. It'll be fine, as long as you're wrapped in the thick blanket. I don't think falling asleep is a problem. You sleep well when it's cool. The question is will we wake up? Hope we don't freeze to death in our sleep. Tomorrow we will see more of the city and also book some kind of activity.


Friday 26th of July

08.16 We have survived the night. We're awake. It went fine to sleep but it was an icy awakening. I'm in bed with a blanket and a blanket over me. It was a challenge to empty the bladder during the night. Darkness and cold was challenging. In addition, I had to keep in my mind to not close the door. Then it locks.

08.44 We have no showers here, but as long as there is a shower, it's OK. You just have to stand the cold before the hot water comes.

09.37 We were during breakfast indirect a part of the conversation at the neighbouring table. There sat representatives of the people who fear the silence. I am talking about Americans who always have a tone so that a whole block can follow the conversations. I'm happy with breakfast. I got coffee and a pancake, besides, it included more than that of course.

10.24 Now we are going to the city to look for things that we need and that might come in handy. We also want to reunite with the sun after the cold night we have just experienced. The advantage of being in the Atacama Desert is that it is more or less 100% guarantee that it will be sunny weather.

Morning at Hostal Mamatierra.

We are sitting here waiting for the sun to make us warm again.

Caracoles, the main street in San Pedro de Atacama.

Christer is visiting Café Peregrino.

Typical view in San Pedro de Atacama.

10.37 Plaza Activa del Adulto Mayor can be read on a wooden sign outside the outside facility where we now sit. We're sitting in Parque Tumisa that's not really a park. It is more a collection of benches and tables between our accommodation and bus station. Here you can exercise both brain and body. It is partly a small outdoor gym but there are also chess boards on the tables. We've come here to enjoy the sun. We need all the heat we can get after the cold night in the room.

11.10 After a short walk that included the purchase of bus tickets as well as the exchange of dollars down at bus station, we are now back at the sun drenched activity site Parque Tumisa. We're not alone here. A man actually activates himself. The chess boards remain unused.

11.48 Now we have been effective. We've had time to book an evening outing for tomorrow. In addition, we have found Café Peregrino and there ordered coffee. This café is located by the city's main square in an old white stone building.

12.11 Our documentation of our new home locality continues. In the square of the city there is full activity. Expo Feria is the name of what's going on. Local food and products are sold, music is performed and much else happens. There are times when I miss travelling in warmer regions. But when we're in the tropics, I can't wait to cool down. You're never completely satisfied. In the daytime, however, there are decent temperatures here. We'll have to thank the sun for that.

12.44 After some more photographing and wandering here in San Pedro de Atacama, we have settled down at the restaurant Las Delicias de Carmen (http://www.lasdeliciasdecarmen.cl) for lunch. The table clothes are yellow, and the beer is in a can. The restaurant has a number of lunch options at great prices. We've chosen spaghetti.

13.42 Food certainly is great to have. On the way home, I bought a tube of toothpaste. Now let's catch our breath and pick up some things at home for this afternoon's further activities.

Expo Feria is the name of these activities on the main square.

In San Pedro de Atacama you can find different types of tours.

A photo of one of the dogs in town.

We are heading to the lunch restaurant Las Delicias de Carmen.

Christer at the entrance of this town.

15.09 NIKE could be read on the black backpack that was carried by the man who walked past us now. We found another bench in Parque Tumisa. The time has come to read in our books. We had first thought of a hike outside the city limits to sit in nature. We quickly realized that we needed to walk a long way before we reach something we can call nature. Let's just sit here.

16.10 On the way back to Mamatierra, we met a German shepherd dog. She turned her heels, her paws and joined us on the hike. Now we have found a new bench and the dog rests at our feet. Can we take her to the next location? Why are the dogs looking for us? Is it the International Organisation FIDO or?

16.42 On the way home, the dog followed us, but she stayed out on the sidewalk. I strongly doubt that she had been welcome in and she probably understood that too.

17.37 It is actually possible to pass the time of doing most nothing. Will there be something of interest before we leave again?

18.46 It cools down a lot in our room now that the sun has gone down. We hear a French tourist who enthusiastically tells an American that he's been on a fantastic tour today and there seen a rabbit similar animal. We don't need a rabbit. We need a stove. We suspect that the frog eater has seen a viscacha, the animal we saw on our excursion in the Salar de Uyuni.

Dry and dusty conditions in San Pedro de Atacama.

The volcano Licancábur is situated at the border to Bolivia and reaches 5920 meters above sea level.

A town filled with tourists.

Peter is reading a book in Parque Tumisa.

Christer has dog company.

19.23 The time has come to get things going, make things happen this evening. What will we find this time? How is the temperature and price situation out there?

20.25 We practiced wandering in the dark before we sat down at the restaurant El Toconar (http://www.eltoconar.cl). There are lower temperatures and higher prices here than we imagined. They have heaters on the patio but they do not help. Where are the cheap prices we had in Argentina? They're so missed.

20.47 We have had our dinner and are fed. Much more is not to say. There's a lot that could have been better. There are, for example, the food, the prices and the temperature. At the table next to us sat a group of young women and conversed. One of them enthusiastically spoke about Finland.

21.28 We are back from a cold dinner room with Ace of Base in the speakers, mediocre food but good beer. It's cold in the room and I will slip in under the blanket. After all, in any case, it's better to be in the room. At the restaurant, we didn't have blankets.


VIDEOS


You can see 24 photos from July 24 in this photoalbum.
You can see 32 photos from July 25 in this photoalbum.
You can see 46 photos from July 26 in this photoalbum.


CONTINUE


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