One of the many things I so love about travelling as a backpacker is the flexibility. You can go almost whereever you like and stay as long as you like or change plans when you feel like it. So it happened that I am back in Argentina after a spending only 15 days in Chile. I really loved Chile but the price level yet again was stressing my budget too much and that is why I will make my way to Bolivia soon where costs are much lower. Also I met my travel buddy Juliaan again with whom I travelled through Chile which altered my initial plans. Together we will be going to Bolivia soon and now after doing most of Argentina alone it feels good to have some great company again.

About Chile: I got there after fours days in transit and spending more than 60 hours on different busses. I made my way from Ushuaia up to Santiago de Chile where I spent four nights. Although the capital of Chile does not have any great sights, I must say I really liked the modern yet not too hectic atmosphere of the city. On we went to La Serena where we had a swim in the Pacific Ocean (the third ocean on this trip) and planned our trip into the Elqui village which is situated in a nice picturesque valley and has a lovely hippyish vibe. After spending only one night in Elqui we moved on to San Pedro de Atacama in the north of the country which is in the midst of the Atacama Desert about 2400 meters above sea level. Eventhough it is a quite touristy place the town has some amazing options for activities such as star gazing, sandboarding or cycling. Adding the fact that we stayed in a hostel with some fun people it made this part of my Chile experience the highlight.

And just in case if you are wondering: I visited the Chilean part of Patagonia over the course of six days just before my trip to Antarctica. So technically it was my second time in Chile now.

The plan for now is to go to Bolivia where I want to do an intensive Spanish course in Sucre and of course seeing some of the major sights of the country like Salar de Uyuni, the Amazon Jungle and La Paz. But as we all know plans are only plans.

Chile – Patagonia: The French Valley on day two of the famous W-Trek

Chile – Patagonia: The last view point in the French Valley of the Torres del Paine trek

Chile – Patagonia: The morning of day three on the four days hike to the Torres

Chile – Patagonia: Early in the morning the Torres were still covered in clouds. The higher the sun rose the more clouds dissipated and the rocks finally were revealed

Chile – Patagonia: The famous rock formation in the Torres del Paine national park

Chile – Atacama desert: Having a six hours cycling tour through the driest desert of the world. Unfortunately I had a flat tire on the way back which made it adventurous

Chile – Atacama desert: Marvelling at Los Ojos del Salar after we had a swim there

Chile – Atacama desert: Boarding down the dunes of the Moon Valley

Chile – Atacama desert: The natural amphitheater in Death Valley

Chile – Atacama desert: On of the two salt lagoons in the midst of the desert

Chile – Atacama desert: On of the driest places on earth which makes it perfect for star gazing. This picture was taken with my camera through a powerful telescope. Apart from the moon, nebulas and Jupiter’s moons were clearly visible.