Chile -HolidaysThe options to visit CHile within 4 weeks were to go to the South, the North or the centre. We chose not to go all over places but we focused on one part. We go North and discover deserts and arid landscapes. It took a month to plan this trip. The challenge first was to choose how we are going to travel: - renting a car - on foot and public transport - renting a van We weighted the pos and cons. It took a while. Finally we made up our mind and decided to rent a car. Why renting a car? to be more independent! At first we selected the van option but after reading reviews, the vans from wicked van are not adapted as they are utility vans, good enough to drive in the city but not on sandy and bumpy roads. We requested quotes from other vans rental companies, but they were fully booked. What about public transport? In that part of the world, there is no public transport to go to the national parks. So dropped that idea too. Following that decision, what types of cars? Again we had to do some research. We´ve been told that a pick up would be more appropriate. Renting a pick up, 2x4, was so pricey - for 7 days - it came to €600!!! A German guy we met on the way commented that in Germany we could have rented a porsche. True though. This is the Chilean market price. Travelling in Chile is not cheap. Visiting North of Chile with a pick up! Let´s the adventure begin in Arica. Santiago ARICA To travel within Chile, we mostly flew as low cost airlines offered cheap flights with restricted terms. Airlines make you pay for everything! But still it remains cheaper than taking the bus. It reduces the travel time to. Flying to Arica took about 2 hours, 1600km. The landscape from Santiago to Arica changed extremely: flying over the Andes to land in the desert, 20 km away from Perú. We were so exiting to explore that part of the world, unknown for us. Renting the car was easy, we got lots of precious information: where to go and how to travel, we really appreciated the valued help. It was time to hit the road and learn how to drive in Chile. 5 years without driving at all and now in Chile where driving habits are a way different from what we used to, was a challenge. Arica and food We stayed in Chile although it was tempting to go to Perú. At that time, my visa was about to be processed therefore I could not go out of the country without an authorisation. It was not worth to get it, it would have been so difficult. Moreover, there is enough to see in Chile! We arrived in the evening to get some food and we were so surprised as food was so cheap and portions so big. That would be the only thing to be economical in that area. Lauca National Park -almost there ARICA-AZAPA VALLEY On our way to Putre we first went to the Azapa Valley. Azapa means in Aymara - soft land, is located in Arica and Parinacota region, in the 15th. It is an oasis, where the Rio San Jose runs through. Olive trees, tropical fruits are famous in that region. When we drove through the oasis, at some point, we could smell the intensive scent of the olives. As if we were bathing in an olive oil pool. We did not see much of the tropical fruits as they are protected a sandy coloured net. We stopped at San Miguel de Azapa. A small village with a church, a cemetery, the archeological museum and 100 houses max. On the hills, we could see geoglyphs and visit prehispanic villages. We visited the famous museum of San Miguel where we learned about the first indigenous people: the Chinchorros that lived there in 5000 BC. They were fishermen or hunters depending where they lived. The Chinchorros created differet techniques to mummify dead bodies 3000 years before the Egyptians. They emptied the body and used different colours black and later red to mummify. The museums presents all the civilasations that inhabited the region since the Chinchorros such as Tiwanaku, Incas, (Ancient Andean civilization) to the Spaniards. Searching for geoglyphs! Geoglyphs are drawing on the ground usually formed with stones. In San Miguel they are on hills that´s why they should be easy to find even with a map. It took us ages to find only one! No internet, no signal, no signboard we drove in deserted places. It was disappointing! We had still 3 weeks to discover more geoglyphs! Visiting the cemetery It was an interesting visit as tombs were quite fancy with colours and decorations. They are placed in the same directions! San Miguel - the village A tiny place with a market and two booths, a convenience store, and a church. We were quite lucky as the church was still opened. At 1 p.m, it closes. We tried to find a place to drink something, nothing there! As we looked for geoglyphs, we saw former board that named the route: the Slave route. Now renamed the desert route! Our first meeting with a lama! Poconchile - Molino and PUTRE We visited the LLuta valley too and had a break in Molinos to get something to eat. Restaurants at 4 p.m. were still open but did not have any food left. We tried our luck and got something! Rice with meat and salad. We drove through desert and oasis. A contrast landscape: dark blue sky, sandy and white mountains, and dark green vegetation. We reached 3,800 m altitude. We could feel it already: dry mouth and tongue, lack of oxygen... We were almost in Putre. What stroke us were the numbers of cars and trucks that laid on the side road as old carcasses or temples put up to commemorate the loves ones killed on that spot. Finally in Putre It took a day to reach Putre. We enjoyed the trip!
FINALLY THERE!
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