San Pedro de Atacama: Is this real life?



Never have I ever seen nature so strange and so beautiful as I saw in San Pedro de Atacama. If I wasn't a nature lover before, I certainly am now!

 

San Pedro, in northern Chile, is in the middle of the driest desert in the world. When the sun is out, it's over 80 degrees, but a dry heat. At night, it drops to nearly 40 degrees. But San Pedro also lies at about 2,400 meters (7,900 feet) above sea level. So while the little adobe town is dry and dusty, the mountains and Lincancabur volcano in the distance are snow capped, creating a strangely beautiful contrast. Even though it almost never rains in the area, the runoff from the melting snow on the mountains is enough to produce and sustain vegetation in the middle of the desert, creating an even more stunning contrast of colors in the region.



Valle de la Muerte



San Pedro is a tiny little backpacker haven, filled single-story adobe houses,  unpaved streets, and countless tourist offices. Travelers from all over the world come to stay here for the easy access to the numerous natural attractions nearby.



My first stop was to the Valle de la Luna and Valle de la Muerte These areas of red rock formations, sand dunes, and salt-covered terrain really look like another planet (hence why the areas are called the Moon Valley and Death or Mars Valley). After some hiking around the dunes and cliffs, I watched the sun set over the valley, casting beautiful colors onto the snow capped peaks in the background.





The next day, I ventured higher above sea level (about 4,200 meters or 13,500 feet) to reach two altiplano lagoons, Laguna Miscanti and Laguna Miñiques. I was left breathless, not just from the lack of oxygen due to the altitude, but also at the sight of the vast blue lakes with volcanoes and mountains towering above them. On the way back down to San Pedro, we stopped at a flamingo reserve to see the Chilean flamingos feasting and flying among salt-rock formations in the Chaxa Lagoon.

Laguna Miscanti


Early the next morning (4am!), I headed out to El Tatio, a geyser field with over 80 active geysers. The volcanic activity in the region creates really strange and stunning effects, such as these geysers and nearby natural hot thermal baths where you could bravely take a swim (even though the water was over 100 degrees, the air temperature was below freezing because it was at 4,200 meters above sea level...and before the sunrise!).

  

Later in the day and back at sea level, the sun was out and the air was hot and dry. So I headed to another lagoon, Laguna Cejar, which has an incredibly high salt content, so you can easily float without even trying. In fact, it's really hard not to float. I tried to swim down or even tread water and found it nearly impossible: my limbs naturally floated back up to the surface.

The nights in San Pedro are just as beautiful as the days because Northern Chile is one of the best places in the world for stargazing. A little ways outside the city I took an Astronomical Celestial Tour: a stargazing adventure at an Astronomical base where you could look through heavy duty telescopes to view constellations, Mars, Saturn, and other galaxies. Even without a telescope, the night sky was the most beautiful I have ever seen (one thing I definitely miss living in the city). It looked so unreal!



For my last day in San Pedro, I rented a bike and explored the sprawling desert landscape. I biked among the red rocks and dunes and headed to Pukará de Quitor, a fort built by the Atacameño people in the 12th century. I hiked up to the top of the fort for an incredible view over the Atacama valley, overlooking San Pedro and the surrounding mountains. I still couldn't get over the beautiful contrasting colors of the red desert, the vibrant green vegetation, and the snow covered peaks in the distance. It looked like the desktop background picture on a computer, the colors too vibrant to be real.

The natural beauty near San Pedro seemed too incredible to be real.

It's times like these when I'm standing in the middle of the desert, or on the top of a mountain, or looking at the sun setting over a deep blue lagoon that I can't help but acknowledge that God is real, and He is the most creative and talented artist ever.

It's moments like these that I feel so big and so small at the same time.

It's times like these that make all the hassles and costs of traveling so worth it.

It's moments like these that make me feel so blessed to have such incredible adventures.

City life: Lima and Santiago

After my adventure on Lake Titicaca, I had some time to enjoy city life!

I spent a few days in Lima and then headed south to Santiago, Chile. In both cities, I traveled with my friend Vanessa, who is also traveling through South America and our paths happened to cross. ¡Que suerte! So in both cities, we had great couchsurfing experiences and stayed with wonderful hosts who were both incredibly generous and gracious. I love South American culture for many reasons, but especially because the people are so warm and hospitable.

In Lima, we walked around the old and new parts of the city, enjoyed the beach, and had the best ceviche in the whole world. I would go back to Lima just to have more of that ceviche. Mmmm

In Santiago, we also walked around the city center and happened to walk directly into the middle of a student strike demonstration. The students in Chile have been on strike for a while, and we witnessed them chanting and throwing rocks at the police. We could see and smell the tear gas that the police threw and the students, and we even had to duck into a store to avoid getting sprayed by the tanks that were shooting water to disrupt the riot.

After Santiago, Vanessa and I took a weekend trip to Viña del Mar and Valparaiso, two coastal towns right next to each other, but worlds apart in so many ways. Viña is a relaxed resort town with beautiful beaches while Valparaiso reminds me of a grittier version of San Francisco. We stayed in Viña with another great couchsurfing host and took a day to explore Valparaiso. I loved all the colored buildings stacked up on the hills and tons of graffiti and street art that covered nearly every building. Valparaiso is also famous for its "ascensores" They are like elevators or cable cars that ride tracks up and down the hills, providing for easier transport and also access to some great viewpoints overlooking the city and the sea.

Back near Santiago, we took a day trip with our wonderful host, Diego, to the little town of Pomaire. We had to try the famous 1-kilo empanada and pastel de choclo (sort of a mix between shepherd's pie and corn bread). They were both delicious although all 3 of us felt a bit sick the next day....oh well, it was bound to happen eventually. It's the only time I have ever gotten sick while traveling, and it wasn't even too bad. Hoping it doesn't happen again (knocking on wood!).

After our city travels together, Vanessa left for Uruguay and Argentina, and I spent some more time in Chile. I am really in love with this country. There is so much to see here and such a diverse landscape! After much debating, I decided not to head south to Patagonia (so I already know I have to come back someday to go there...) but instead to head north to a little down in the desert called San Pedro de Atacama. But I have un montón to say about that trip, so I'll have to tell you in a separate post!

While I will always be a city girl, on this trip I have preferred my travels that involve seeing God's beautiful, natural creation. I have definitely learned that I prefer to live in the city, but to travel for nature. More to come on that later!

Lake Titicaca

Lake Titicaca is the highest navigable lake in the world, located in the Andes at 3,811 meters (12,500 feet) above sea level. It is also the largest lake in South America. The skies are so vast and blue, and it feels more like an ocean than a lake, especially when watching the sun set over the lake.

 
 For my solo adventure, I took a 2-day boat tour out onto the lake. We stopped at 3 different islands (the lake has over 40 natural islands and 44 man-made islands).

Our first stop was at Uros Island. This is a man-made floating island, made out of reeds. All of the houses are also made of the same type of reeds. Walking on the island felt strange, like a floating bog or like walking on a waterbed. Some of the inhabitants graciously showed us how they make the islands out of reeds and let us peek inside their houses. Thanks to the revenue from tourism, many of the houses even have solar panels for electricty.

Our second stop was to Amantaní Island. A natural island with about 4,000 inhabitants, the people still mostly wear traditional clothing and speak Quechua. It was here that we met our host families for the night and joined them for lunch. After lunch, we hiked up to the two mountains on the island, called Pachatata (Father Earth) and Pachamama (Mother Earth). Hiking up to over 4,000 meters was tough, since my lungs were still not aclimated to the lack of oxygen, but the view of the sunset over the lake from the top was well worth the huffing and puffing. After dinner, our host families dressed us up in traditional clothing and we went to a fiesta with other families from the island! We danced long into the night, wearing our traditional outfits and grooving to the live band. The people were so welcoming, wanting to share with us all of their customs and traditionals. And our family was so generous: sharing conversation, offering us delicious meals and giving us the few blankets they had for the chilly night.

The next morning, we said goodbye to our host families and headed to our third and final stop: Taquile Island. This is another hilly natural island where we enjoyed another short hike to get an incredible view over the deep blue lake. We learned about the culture on the Taquile Island and enjoyed a delicious lunch of fresh trout--straight out of Lake Titicaca. After lunch, we relaxed in the sun and drank some "explosive" tea, which is a mix of fresh muña (an Andean plant similar to mint) and coca leaves (known for having many benefits, especially for helping with altitude sickness). Finally, we boarded the boat once again for the journey back to the mainland city of Puno.

Visiting Lake Titicaca has definitely been a highlight of my trip so far. Pictures cannot even begin to describe how beautiful the lake is and how vast the skies are. I also made some great friends on the tour and had the opportunity to experience some of the traditional island cultures up close.





Tonight I say goodbye to the lake and head to Lima for a few days.
City life, sea level, and warmer weather here I come!

One for the bucket list: Machu Picchu

I arrived in Peru and figured the first thing I should do was to visit Machu Picchu. One to check off the life bucket list!

Most people who visit Machu Picchu stay in the little tourist town of Cusco, so we followed suit. Although touristy, it's a really cute town with cobblestone streets, many public plazas and markets, abundant restaurants, and a view of the mountains in the distance. However, we were still not very close to Machu Picchu.

There is really only one way to get there, so of course they can make it difficult and somewhat of a pain to finally reach the site. But with no other options, we got up before dawn, took the bus, then a train, then another bus and, 5 hours later, arrived at the the entrance! And it was raining (a risk we knew would exist, coming during the less busy rainy season). But after waiting it out for a bit, it cleared up and the sun came out, so we seized the opportunity. After a short hike up a hill, we reached the postcard picture-perfect spot. The sky was clear and the sun was shinning: an answer to our prayers. We snapped the classic pictures, then continued to explore the ruins. We walked among the ancient architecture, sat for a while on the hills and took it all in; breathing in the fresh mountain air and imagining what this place must have been like when the ancient Incas actually lived here and it wasn't just overrun with tourists. It is amazing to me that it was only discovered 100 years ago.

The rain started up again later in the afternoon, so that was our cue to start the 5 hour journey back to Cusco. While it was a pain to get to, I really cannot complain at all. It was totally worth the time and the hassle. Machu Picchu really does not dissapoint. It was breathtaking. I still don´t believe that my pictures are real--they look like postcards and I look like I'm photoshopped into the foreground! I am so blessed to have had the opportunity to experience this "Wonder of the World."

We returned back to Cusco after a long day, exhausted but ecstatic after our adventure. We enjoyed one more day relaxing and exploring Cusco together, before I had to say goodbye to Abby as she left for Trujillo to work with an organization there for the whole summer.
Now on to more adventures of my own!

A Leap of Faith

In honor of leap day, I decided to take a leap, quite literally.  I jumped off a bridge.

Mandy, Abby, and I were in the town of Baños, Ecuador where there is a bridge some 100 meters or so above a ravine that you can jump off (with a safety harness, of course). Although I had already bungee jumped from 134 meters, somehow, this time I was much more nervous. I think part of it was because my body knew what to expect now, so the adrenaline started pumping earlier. Also, when I bungee jumped, I didn't have time to get nervous: they basically push you off, whereas this time, the guide asked if I was ready, calmly counted to three, etc. This gave my nerves time to get worked up. Looking over the bridge for about an hour before taking the plunge probably didn't help either.

But finally, I just relaxed, and jumped. I don't know why people (er...I) do these crazy things. I think it makes you feel alive and courageous for taking a risk, overcoming a fear, and putting yourself out of your comfort zone. This whole trip is really one big leap of faith for me. Every day I'm taking risks, overcoming fears, and putting myself out of my comfort zone, but just not always in such a big and obvious way as jumping off a bridge. I think it's somewhat appropriate for this Lenten season: I'm giving up a home and comforts in order to discover new things, find adventure, and learn to live simply.

So while it may be terrifying to take the leap, the things you learn about yourself along the way are worth the momentary pang of fear.
This was my last big adventure in Ecuador. A few days later, Abby and I packed up, said our tearful goodbyes to Mandy, and headed off to Peru to take more leaps (this time only figuratively) and have more adventures.

Ecuador: Feliz Carnival!

My time in Ecuador has been a blast and a half so far. I came to visit my friend Mandy, who is currently living in Quito, and decided to meet my friends Abby and Colleen here as well, which was a surprise to some of them. (You can read the whole story of our sneaky surprises on my friend Abby's blog, because she tells it better than me: http://shiftinghabitat.blogspot.com/2012/02/surprise.html )

Reunited with 3 of my former housemates from college, we filled our time catching up while, of course, doing some sightseeing. Highlights include: climbing up the Basilica in Historic Quito for a beautiful view of the city nestled into the mountains; standing on the equator; riding the Teleférico cable car up into the Andes for another hopeful view the city (but instead all we could see was the inside of a cloud we were in); relaxing in hot springs; and ziplining over the jungle canopy. Between beautiful sights, bountiful laughs, and exciting adventures, the memories and our time spent together are the best recuerdos.

 

Another highlight of Ecuador has been celebrating Carnival! Similar to Mardi Gras, Carnival is usually celebrated in South America the few days leading up to Ash Wednesday and the Lenten season. In fact, it is celebrated all over the world in many different ways. Most people think of the most flashy Carnival celebrations, like those in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with elaborate masks, costumes, and parades.

But in Ecuador, it is celebrated a little differently. There are still parades with costumes and indigenous dancing, but the most fun, and most widely practiced form of "playing" Ecuadorian Carnival is by being diablitos: playfully mischievous little devils that throw water, flour, and eggs at unsuspecting victims. We played Carnival with some of Mandy's friends here, and it turned into a full out war with kids and adults alike. By the end, we were all soaked in water and caricoa (similar to silly string, it's a colored foam-like substance that dries like water). People mostly play with other people they know, but a few times, neighbors would throw water at us from their windows or roofs while we were playing on the streets.
In some busy areas or at the parades, you would get covered in every substance no matter what, just by innocently walking through the street. 





I'm not exactly sure why Carnival is celebrated (or Mardi Gras for that matter), but it is just a fun time for adults to act like kids and to be playfully mischievous. I think has something to do with letting loose and having fun before the Lenten season comes. I learned from some quick Wikipedia research that some say the name Carnival comes from the Latin expression "carne vale," which means "farewell to meat, signifying that those were the last days when one could eat meat before the fasting of Lent. The word carne may also be translated as flesh, so suggesting carne vale as "a farewell to the flesh", meaning that Carnival encourages you to let go of your former (or everyday) self and embracing the carefree nature of the festival.

Whatever it means, it was a a blast. Feliz Carnival!

Honduras. Untitled.

My trip down south couldn't have started out any better. I got to spend time with my best friend, and had the opportunity to see some of the underestimated beauty of Honduras. Here's an extended summary of my viaje:

I'm so happy I decided to go visit Alyssa in Honduras. She is a teacher in Tela, which is on the northern coast of Honduras on the Caribbean Sea.  I wanted to see her daily life, where she lived and worked, and also see the beautiful country and soak up some sun while I was at it.

After spending a few rainy days in Tela (it is the rainy season after all), Alyssa and I headed into central Honduras for the weekend. We stayed at a great hostel/brewery/restaurant (http://www.ddbrewery.com) near the picturesque Lake Yojoa.  The lake is known for having some rare birds, so we took a birdwatching boat tour out onto the lake. We also visited some caves and the impressive Pulhapanzak waterfall.
But the highlight of our weekend was probably eating fresh caught tilapia from the lake while watching the sunset over the same lake. Oh, and hitchhiking was a great thing to check of my list too (Mom, just pretend you didn't read that).

Next, I ventured off on my own for a few days to Copan Ruinas, near the Guatemalan border. Settled in the Copan Valley, it's a quaint and sleepy little Spanish looking town with cobblestone streets and open air markets. Nearby are the Copan Mayan ruins and some great hiking up into the mountains to overlook the valley. I also went horseback riding into the mountains to visit some smaller villages and other ruins. My favorite part of all was visiting the bird park, Macaw Mountain. It is a rescue park that saves rare and endangered birds to prepare them to be released back into the wild. 

Then I returned back to Tela and visited Punta Sal, a secluded beach and National Park. It can only be reached by boat, but then you get to enjoy hiking next to monkies, poisonous spiders and crabs. We also went snorkeling and saw lots of coral, tropical fish, and jellyfish. Thankfully, the weather had cleared up, so I had a perfect sunny day to lay on the beach.

 Alyssa, her roommate Becky, and I spent one last night out together in San Pedro Sula before I had to take off and say goodbye. I never would have thought to come to Honduras if Alyssa weren't there, but I'm so happy I did.  I experienced a lot of the natural and cultural beauty of Honduras, but best of all, I got to spend time with someone that I love. That was the most beautiful and most exciting part of all. Thank you for everything Alyssa!