After 17 hours of travel, we finally made it to our first destination: San Pedro de Atacama, a green oasis in the middle of the world’s most arid desert. While touring the Valley of the Moon, I had an out-of-this-world experience. The valley is 30 minutes away from town and at the tallest point we climbed to, we could not see civilization for miles and miles. The valley takes the name of “Moon Valley” because of its incredible resemblance to the moon’s surface: unlikely and surreal mineral formations, an incredible aridity, and its deserted and inhabitable quality. I really did feel like I was in the moon. At sunset, it was clear that this valley was a magical place.
Having only seen 2% of all there is to see in San Pedro de Atacama, we ventured out to Bolivia for our Uyuni/Atacama tour. The morning was hectic: early morning cold, a tour bus, and a very long line at immigration. Crossing the border and dealing with the Bolivian immigration officers, was odd. It was clear that we were not in Chile anymore. The sketchiness of the whole process left me 40$ short and with a very bad first impression of Bolivia. Nevertheless, we proceeded with our trip to explore white, green, blue, and red high plain lagoons, volcanoes, and geysers, to see flamingos, and to bathe in naturally heated hot springs. It. Was. AMAZING. There are no words or pictures that could capture the beauty of the Bolivian high plains. None. It was all so unspoiled, awe inspiring, and breathtaking.
After sleeping in the coldest hostel in the world, I began to adapt to the altitude, the aridity, and the cold. We continued our journey to the Uyuni Salt Flats. On our second day, I raced llamas down to a red lagoon; saw colored hills and a tree made of stone, had lunch with a view, and did a headstand in front of an active volcano. It was a pretty magical day but the night was even better. We arrived to our hostel, which was made completely out of salt from the Uyuni Salt Flats, and spent the night eating fries and chicken (our best meal of the trip).
The last full day of the tour was the day we were finally got to see the notorious Uyuni Salt Flats. I was stoked! I had traveled three days and endured cold hostels and not-so-great food; I was ready to be amazed. And I was, but honestly, after all that I had seen before, I can’t say that I was overwhelmingly impressed. The feeling of being in the middle of miles and miles of salt was pretty incredible. The contrast of the blue sky and the white salt felt unreal; I thought I was in heaven. There was nothing else but me, my six travel companions, and our jeep.
As if things could not get more dreamlike, after a short ride, we arrived at an island in the middle of the salt flats that was entirely made out of stone and cacti. I climbed to the top and tried to wrap my head around the fact that I was there. Bliss and gratitude came to mind. Then, the photo-shoot started. We drove to the very center of the salt flats and had an hour to just be there and of course, play with perspective! It was a blast to be eaten by Piscosaurio (our dinosaur), to be smashed by our friend’s foot, and to sit on the top of a wine bottle.
We spent our last night in a little town in the middle of nowhere. By this point, we were spent. The cold, the altitude, the sitting-in-a-jeep-for-hours had really taken a toll on us. The last day consisted of us taking a transfer for three hours back to the border, having breakfast in the cold, and crossing back to Chile. Interestingly enough, the Chilean transport authority was on strike… Tired and hungry, we went to get real food and celebratory drinks. The rest of the evening was spent shopping and resting in town. San Pedro de Atacama is the cutest little town. Artisan shops everywhere, narrow streets, and a main square perfect for reading or eating ice cream. The town is hot during the day and cold at night. And it is at night when the sky becomes the stage for an amazing star gazing experience.