Spring Break: Part VIII

We arrived in San Pedro de Atacama Chile via Tur Bus on the morning of Thursday, September 17th, 2009. Although this night bus was not nearly as impressive as Cruz del Sur in Peru was, some of us slept better than ever before.

We descended the stairs from the second level, collected our bags, and hopped into an old van that was waiting to take us to our hostel. The hostel was off the beaten path, about a 10 minute walk from the center of town. It was a cute place with a tranquil courtyard with two comfortable hammocks. Once we settled in and took showers, we headed into town to plan our three day stay in San Pedro. We stopped in a number of tour offices and finally decided on the company recommended by Steven's Fodor's travel book. Fodor's had given us some trouble on other legs of the trip, but for some reason, this tour office seemed the most professional and gave us a great deal on three excursions over three days.

Satisfied with our decision to go wit Cosmo del Andino tours, we headed out to kill two hours before the first tour began that afternoon. We found a quaint restaurant for lunch. Since we were back in Chile, and far enough South, we decided it was okay to eat the vegetables. It was the first salad I had eaten in more than a week. It was delicious and I didn't leave one lettuce leaf on the plate. I also was no longer afraid to get fish, so I ordered the salmon, which came with a side of quinoa. I have heard a lot about this fantastic, protein-packed grain, but had never tried it before this trip. Peru was full of it. While there, I got hooked on these Inca energy bars that were bits of quinoa and puffed corn with some dried fruit, shaved coconuts and honey to keep it all together. It has a kind of spongy texture, but I liked it.

After lunch we wandered the streets for a little while before it was time to meet the tour guide at the office and head out to La Valle de la Luna, La Valle de la Muerte, y el Atardecer. It was a long day full of hiking and walking and climbing and sliding, but it was all worth it. We were tiered and a little cranky when we returned to the town for dinner, but we all had a good time. We knew we had to get up early the next day for a special tour of the geysers and that it was the 18 so we justified a quiet dinner and early bedtime.

Day 8: (Thursday, September 17th at 8:30 am until Thursday September 17th at 10:30pm)