Chile

One of the first things we noticed in San Pedro was just how expensive it is here in Chile. Prices are similar to those back home, which after coming from Bolivia is quite a shock!

The first day in Chile was pretty uneventful although we went out for a few drinks in the evening and Roberto taught us a Bolivian dice game - Alana loved it!!

Another early morning start. This time we are off on a horse ride in the desert.

We met at the 'ranch' and were given chaps and a rather fetching straw hat each to wear.

Toy Story 4 - Jesse and.....

Woody get lost.....

in the Atacama desert!

We then headed off on our trusty steeds out into the wilderness (albeit with a tarmaced road running alongside it!). This time I was fortunate enough to be given an actual horse rather than a mule but Alana still said I was too big and looked ridiculous on it!

During our 3 hour ride we managed to go through an oasis, across a river, through the valley and along the sand dunes. Some of the views were amazing and the way the light hit the rocky hills was quite romantic.

Although expensive, the little town of San Pedro was quite pretty and we enjoyed our time here, but for now we are on a mission to find some sun and sand that is close to water rather than the middle of the desert, we are now off to the beach town of Caldera.

San Pedro town

The bus ride was the best we have had yet! We managed to get promotional seats downstairs in the full-cama area (fully reclining seats) and got some snacks, it was a great trip until at 1am we were dropped on the side of a dusty motorway and told that the twinkling lights in the distance were where we wanted to be! Brilliant!

Luckily we were dropped with another backpacker from Canada who spoke better Spanish than us and after half an hour of walking we came across a group of people who told us we had at least another hour of walking before we would get to the centre of town – we opted for a taxi!

After dropping the Canadian at her pre-booked hotel we went off in search for somewhere to stay for the night. We searched and searched but there was no room at any inn! In the end we literally squatted outside a hotel who were nice enough to let us use their bathroom. Thankfully it was a warm night so we didnt get much of a chill, we were however the fascination of every drunk who came ambling past on their way home.......we didnt get much sleep!!

As morning rolled around we headed down to the beach front and drank a bottle of yoghurt for breakfast. This seaside town wasnt as nice as we had been expecting but the people were. We were sat outside a naval office when an officer came out and spoke to us, telling us if we needed any help/use of the bathroom etc we were more than welcome to come inside.

We finally managed to get a room at about 11am in a rundown little hostel that cost us a whopping NZ$100 per night!! We decided to only stay for one and booked our tickets to Santiago for the following day.

After a quick shower and change of clothes we headed down to the beach where we chilled out for the afternoon, the following day was spent in a similar fashion, although we did manage to find a rocky area away from the main beach with a couple of sea lions basking in the sun on it which was cool.

Caldera Beach

Beautiful blue water with the desert backdrop.

Catching some rays!

In Santiago we visited the usual city sites, stopping for a Valentines picnic at Cerro Santa Lucia and enjoying a bottle of wine with dinner.

Cerro Santa Lucia

Some of the Santiago skyline

Check the mountains in the background

Plaza de Armas

A mix of old and new...

We both enjoyed Santiago which although a busy capital city still seemed quite relaxed and slow paced. The people were kind and courteous and have made us want to return.

We are now off to Argentina, crossing the Andes.