south america

Patagonia, Part one: Santiago

~By: Marco

The 1st of December, a date that will never be the same for me again. A date which was the beginning of something new. Exactly one year ago, I had my first flight as an international flight attendant. It shaped me into who I am, and changed my perspective of life. On how we travel. Of what is out there.

Since then I have traveled to over 60 different airports – all around the world. To celebrate this one year anniversary, I wanted to explore a missing continent on my list: South America. Add a Spanish-speaking backpacking friend in the equation, and off I went. First stop: Santiago, Chile.

PART ONE: CHILE

At the gate I do a quick search of where I am actually going. Since this was a rather spontaneous decision, I honestly had no idea what to expect. I just booked the flight and that was it. I will see where it takes me. I find out that the area is called ‘Patagonia’ and after a quick image search, I start to smile. I always hate it when people smile at their phones, but now I am as guilty as everyone else.

Travel does funny things to me. I get a funny feeling in my stomach. The excitement of new places with new people is hard to match. As I walk towards the plane, I hear the oh-so-familiar final boarding call in the background. At the door I got assigned my seat–business class; hello job perks! I consider myself incredibly lucky, sitting there with a glass of champagne in my hand. The excitement in my stomach. Nothing booked, nothing planned. Just two weeks of adventures ahead. Why do people go to all-inclusive resorts again? I’ve never really understood.

After a smooth flight with actually a decent amount of sleep (probably due to the overflow of champagne), I meet my friend at arrivals. We have been friends since we went to school together in the Netherlands, where we both grew up. After school, he went traveling and I moved to the United Kingdom to work for my current airline. We hadn’t seen each other since, making the reunion even better.

My friend had met a family during his travels and without asking, an invitation was extended to stay in their guestroom. We were treated like family. The whole family lives close to each other. This resulted in breakfast at mum’s, lunch at a cousin’s and dinner at grandma’s. Even with me speaking zero Spanish, and them speaking zero English, you would be surprised how much fun you can have. Especially if you add in a few Pisco Sours (the local spirit). This particular family is possibly the most hospitable people I have ever met. Hearing the stories from my friend, it seems to be part of their culture. I wish we had a bit more of this in Northern Europe.

After being fed and watered, it was time to hit the road. We started with San Cristóbal Hill, one of the three hills of Santiago. I had just arrived from London where it was the start of winter and temperatures are just above zero. Here, with a clear blue sky and very little shade, the 25 degrees is quite a bit of change. A welcomed change. With one small bottle of water between the two of us (and the remnants of the Pisco Sour from last night still lingering) we definitely underestimated the 45 minute climb in the middle of the day. Luckily, we met a gardener on our way who happily brought us to a garden hose to fill up our bottle. Muchas gracias, señor! At the top, we enjoyed the incredible views over Santiago and some well deserved rest.

On our way down we agreed on booking a night bus towards Pucón. As a backpacker, I can highly recommend night buses. It saves you a night in a hostel plus you cover the necessary miles. If you’re lucky, you can even manage to get some sleep. However I must admit, it is not the most comfortable way to spend the night but hey, we all know traveling is not always how it looks on Instagram, right? Plus it makes you appreciate the little things in life again.

After an 8 hour bus ride we arrive in Pucón. The further we go south, the quieter it becomes. The villages get smaller, the food becomes more expensive (as do the beers), and the tops of the mountains are covered in more and more snow. I remind myself of the fact that I only packed one pair of jeans and one sweater/hoody/jumper. Travel light they said. After we gathered some information from our hostel we decided to hike volcano Villarrica (pronounced Billarrica). One of the most active volcanoes in Chile, I find out later. At 6:30 the next morning we get picked up from our hostel to be kitted up, as it is freezing at the top. This being my first ever volcano hike, I must say I was pretty excited. Imagine a kid-in-a-candy-store smile.

On the way to the volcano my friend is speaking crazy-fast Spanish with the local guides. I am enjoying the time ‘on my own’. Carefully listening to what they say, to see if I can pick up any words I might understand. All the while enjoying the incredible views and mentally preparing myself.

The whole group takes the cable car up to the base of the volcano. But not us! If you do it, you have to do it right. As confident as we are, we decide to hike from the start. With an additional 30 minutes of hiking, the guide is taking the lead at a pretty speedy pace. And I find myself regretting our decision already. Luckily, it isn’t all too bad and we join the rest of the group at the base of the mountain. The pace changed. As fast as we initially hiked, we are slowly climbing now. Everyone climbs the mountain in one big chain. And you know, the chain is only as strong as its weakest link.

As we get higher and higher, the temperature gets colder. Heavy winds start to blow into my face which forces me to continuously look down. Step by step, meter for meter. Focused on the two feet in front of me. We slowly make our way up until suddenly, we stop. Used to the pace, I fail to react quickly and bump hard into the backpack in front of me. How exciting is hiking again?

As we slowly reach the top, I quickly put on my gas mask as the smell is now unbearable. The weird sulfur smell makes people gag. I am glad to finally be released of my heavy backpack. Curious by nature, I detrimentally walk to the edge of the crater. Within seconds I see lava squirting out of the crater below us. This is what I came for; this is what I wanted to see. I look around, taking it all in– snow is everywhere, mountains as far as you can see. Smoke is billowing out of the crater now. It’s crazy knowing boiling lava is right below me. I sit down and appreciate the view. It was all worth it: every meter, every step. Even hitting the backpack in front of me over and over again.

Then the guide brings me back to reality. We have to make ourselves ready for the trek down. Or at least that is what I thought……..

Check parts two and three of Marco’s South American backpacking saga and our other blogs about Chile

Follow Marco’s adventures on Instagram: Marcookunst

Marco’s Travel Itinerary and Hostel Information

Flights: London Heathrow (LHR) > Aeropuerto Internacional Ministro Pistarini, Buenos Aires (EZE) > Aeropuerto Internacional Comodoro Arturo Merino Benítez, Santiago (SCL)

Bus: Santiago > Pucón > San Carlos de Bariloche > El Calafate > El Chaltén > El Calafate

Flights: Comandante Armando Tola International Airport, El Calafate (FTE) > Aeropuerto Internacional Ministro Pistarini, Buenos Aires (EZE) > London Heathrow (LHR)

Pucon: I love Pucon Hostel http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:kGXXEyIOAm0J:www.dutch.hostelworld.com/hosteldetails.php/I-love-Pucon-Hostel-and-Backpackers/Pucon/270352+&cd=6&hl=nl&ct=clnk&gl=uk&client=firefox-b-ab

Bariloche: Universal Travelers Lodge Hostel
http://www.hostelworld.com/hosteldetails.php/Universal-Traveller-s-Lodge-Hostel/Bariloche/79005?dateFrom=2017-04-07&dateTo=2017-04-10&number_of_guests=2&sc_pos=3

El Calafate: Hostel de las manos
http://www.hostelworld.com/hosteldetails.php/Hostel-de-las-Manos/El-Calafate/38194

El Chalten: La Comarca Hostel
http://www.hostelworld.com/hosteldetails.php/La-Comarca-Hostel/El-Chalten/59554?dateFrom=2017-04-07&dateTo=2017-04-10&number_of_guests=2

El Chalten: Racho Grande Hostel
http://www.hostelworld.com/hosteldetails.php/Rancho-Grande-Hostel/El-Chalten/16797?dateFrom=2017-04-21&dateTo=2017-04-22&number_of_guests=1

Buenos Aires: Rock Hostel & Brewery
http://www.dutch.hostelworld.com/hosteldetails.php/Rock-Hostel-and-Brewery/Buenos-Aires/69163

Flight El Calafate – Buenos Aires – Aerolineas Argentinas
http://www.aerolineas.com.ar/Welcome

Bus company – Andesmar
http://www.andesmar.com/

Bolivia: The “road” less traveled

~By: Amanda and Julie

When booking anything in a third world country you must take everything as “alternative facts”. Things get lost in translation, drivers veer off on personal agendas, and pictures on pamphlets rarely meet expectations. That being said, it’s almost always worth it and the experience will often exceed your expectations in ways you’d never comprehend.

A couple of weeks ago we were going through the extensive paperwork process of crossing by land from Peru to Bolivia as U.S. citizens. We booked a 3-Day Salt Flats tour from our hostel in La Paz and the only expectations we had were 3 meals a day and accommodations on the tour. Beyond that, all we knew is we would see the Uyuni Salt Flats and we were promised pink flamingos.
We took an overnight bus from La Paz to Uyuni and arrived around 5am where a man with a sign appeared out of no where in the dark with our names, escorted us through the empty town to a tiny cafe for breakfast. It had spotty wifi but the breakfast was filling and most importantly a wall filled with outlets to charge everything we owned, since electricity would be scarce the next three days. We basked in the heat of the fire burning oven and drank copious amounts of coca tea to prepare ourselves for the journey with no seeming itinerary.

Around 10am a lady from the travel agency next door came to find us, escorted us to our 4×4 jeep and introduced us to our driver. He was less than pleased that we showed up for a three day trip with our large backpacks filled to the gills for an entire month of traveling. He had to tie our big backpacks to the top of the jeep; we hadn’t been informed to pack lightly or to leave our bigger bags behind. Julie explained to him our dilemma and after many under the breath remarks about packing gold bricks, he tied down our bags under a tarp on top of the jeep. Plan to leave your larger backpack behind, stashing everything you will need for the tour a day pack. Our simple packing list includes:

Three days worth of warm clothing, we highly suggest packing layers.
Comfortable running shoes or hiking boots
Flip flops for the salt flats, the white salty residue stains.
Warm clothing for sleeping, no electricity means no heat. Our accommodations did provide warm bedding.
Back up chargers fully charged, we did not see electricity for over 48 hours.
Gallons of sunscreen
Toilet paper and hand sanitizer, it was not typical to find a bathroom with toilet paper or a sink
Swimsuit for the hot springs
Maybe some Xanax or melatonin

We all piled into the Nissan 4×4 with only a hint of our itinerary, we knew our first stop was the Cementerio de Trenes (the train cemetery). Expecting an hour drive, we were surprised when we pulled up 10 minutes later. Several rusting steal trains lay in the sand, like an abandoned children’s toy. Our driver warned us the structures were not exactly stable and to use caution. This did not stop us from exploding out of the jeep and running towards the trains like a bunch of 5 year olds who had just be released for recess. With a ‘Carpe Diem’ attitude we immediately threw caution to the wind and jumped on to the warm steal. Climbing the old trains was no easy task, however we were able to get several amazing pictures and laughs. Our 20 minute time allowance closed all too soon and we headed back to the jeep; next stop, the salt flats.

A couple of years ago I found a picture online captioned “where heaven meets earth”. I immediately clicked on the link and learned it was the Salar de Uyuni (the Salt Flats of Uyuni) located in Bolivia. My research began here, it would be a journey, but it was promptly moved to the top of my bucket list. As we headed out of town we spied hints of our impending destination, floating mountains and mirroring pools of water in the distance. Pulling into the salt flats, my heart skipped a beat… I had made it.

We scrambled outside, excited for our first view, ready for our feet to touch the sparkling white ground. This is where I believe our driver’s feelings for our group changed from unenthusiastic to the beginnings of a new friendship. He knew we were ready to fall in love with his country and now he was excited to show it. For our tour we had selected to only use a Spanish speaking local guide, an English speaking guide would have set us back an additional $75 each, definitely not in the budget. Luckily, Julie is perfectly fluent in Spanish and was able to translate the important information and facts. If no one in your group has a decent grasp on the Spanish language, I would recommend springing for the English guide.

Our first stop was a brief one, our guide knew we were itching to get our first experience inside the flats. He showed us where the clay underneath the salt flat was “breathing” as it bubbled up to create pools of water; it felt like we were on another planet in a far away galaxy. Our guide promised after lunch he would take us to the best locations on the flats to get those amazing pictures we had been planning for weeks, so we begrudgingly got back into the jeep.

We soon arrived at the hotel where we would have lunch, settled in the middle of the salt flats. It was an oasis surrounded by miles of white. The tour drivers bring and prepare all the food for the three day trip. So we clicked away with the Go Pro, while our new friend, Miguel, set up lunch. At this point the three year olds inside of us couldn’t help ourselves and Anna and I tried a bit of the salt; it was everything we hoped it would be. Julie still thinks we are weird. Inside we found our driver had spread out a feast, including llama steaks, a first for everyone. They are amazing and my taste buds compare it to a gamey steak.

Driving into the heart of the salt flats was just as it was captioned, straight into heaven. You are surrounded by pure white, the ground covered in salt which reflects off the sun like fairy dust. The entire 11,000 sq km flats is flanked by mountains which seem like a mirage in the distance. Once a prehistoric ocean which had dried up millions of years ago, the salt deposits are all that remains. During the rainy season in January enough water collects to create mirrored surface. It’s incredible the way the sun reflects off the mirror, unlike anything I had seen before.

Moving on to the dry part of the Salt Flats, it was time to take those crazy pictures. Armed with a Go Pro and an array of props you can use the flatness of the area to create an optical illusion in depth perception. I highly recommend when you plan your trip to utilize google to gather ideas and then bring toys and props to make amazing pictures you could not re-create anywhere else. We brought mini dinosaurs, a corona bottle and a Pringles can, which we danced out of. Use your imagination and get creative. Luckily our driver Miguel knew how to line up the props to create the best photos. Leaving the salt flats with brilliant memories and a slight sun burn (SPF or cover up) my soul was happy.

After a few words in Spanish, we talked Miguel into letting us plug his aux cord into our phones and run our music for a while. Cruising through the mountains we let the breeze whip through the windows as we captured pictures of gigantic cactus as the topography gradually changed.

We pulled into our hostel in San Juan around 5pm, the accommodations were basic and traditional. The walls and beds were made from salt and the roof was covered with straw. Afternoon tea was planned for 5:30 and we settled down to refresh with tea and cookies! Afterwards we were able to pay 10 BOB ($1.45) for a hot shower. Having not bathed since La Paz and caked in salt, the hot shower lifted our spirits after the long day. Special note if you take this tour, this is likely your last chance at a shower for the next two days. So unless you want to be responsible for the funky smell in the jeep, scrub up!

Dinner was served around 7:30 and both nights included an appetizer of the traditional Bolivian soup. I wish I could duplicate this soup at home… I love soup. The hostel sold beer and wine, which if you know anything about us, its how we start and end the day. After a couple of bottles of red and taking the opportunity to gaze at the stars uninterrupted by light pollution, it was time for sleep.

The continuation of our epic tour Bolivia-Embracing the middle of nowhere and our other Bolivia blogs

CHECK OUT OUR VIDEO OF THE TRIP ON YOUTUBE!

La Paz, Bolivia

~By: Damir

La Paz is a beautiful, historic, and cultural South American city that needs to be on every backpackers’ itinerary during their travels. Walking around La Paz at first might give you the impression that it’s just another large city in South America, but the more you spend exploring the city with its many markets and sights will gain you a realization of its cultural beauty.

Geography:

La Paz is located in the Altiplano (high plain) of west central Bolivia approximately 68km from Lake Titicaca. Many backpackers continue their travels through South America with a bus ride from Cusco, Peru through Puno and cross the border at Copacabana on their way to La Paz; some fly directly into La Paz’s El Alto International Airport. La Paz sits at approximately 3,650m (11,975ft) elevation which can definitely be felt as you walk up and down the steep streets of La Paz. Relax the first few days and enjoy the coca leaves and tea.

La Paz is nestled into a valley and overlooked by Illimani, the highest mountain in western Bolivia (6,438m / 21,122ft). This area of Bolivia has a highland climate including rainy summers and dry winters. The rain that I experienced while there in the summer is brief but heavy. It doesn’t rain the entire day but during the brief time that it does, it pours so make sure you bring an umbrella. I still remember walking around while it was lightly raining and thinking I would be fine. The rain fell harder and I kept walking down the steps into the city not realizing that I would need to walk back up all those steps both out of breath and wet.

Government:

La Paz is the legislative capitol of the Plurinational State of Bolivia while Sucre is the main executive and consitutional capitol. It is the third most populous city with around 877,000 residents in the city after Santa Cruz and El Alto although the La Paz metro urban area is the largest in all of Bolivia with a population of roughly 2.3 million residents. The current president, Evo Morales, is in his third consecutive term. This is upsetting to some Bolivian citizens as their constitution allows only two terms. Towards the end of his second term, Morales changed the country name from Republic of Bolivia to the Plurinational State of Bolivia and was allowed to run for the presidency again as the name of the nation was different and he was never president under the new name.

Speaking of bureaucracy; let’s talk about the San Pedro Prison. Bolivia is a guilty until proven innocent country so if caught you can expect to spend eight years in La Paz’ largest prison, San Pedro, before having a trial. After the trial, the previous eight years does not apply to whatever sentence you get. The jail is run by the inmates. That is correct, the inmates run the jail. They hold regular elections to get representatives for themselves. The prisoners also pay rent for their cells which keep the elected officials maintaining law and order inside the prison. The prisoners have various jobs that allow them to make money in order to pay “rent”. The families of prisoners also live in the cells but the wives and kids are allowed to leave for school and work daily. There are around 1,600 prisoners that reside in San Pedro along with their families so as you can imagine the prison is very overpopulated. Politicians and drug lords can afford luxury cells while the majority live in basic single cells. Many think the prison is a better democracy than the country of Bolivia. Also another fun fact of the prison is that they have a contract with Coca-Cola. Coca-Cola send the prison tables, chairs, umbrellas for the exclusive right to advertise and sell Coca-Cola brand drinks within the prison. I was content with just observing this prison from the outside and moving away from it as soon as possible in order to not somehow end up walking inside it and getting stuck which has happened to other tourists.

Hostels:

The three most popular hostels are: Wild Rover, Loki, and Adventure Brew. We stayed at Wild Rover Hostel and it was a blast. Known as a party hostel, it definitely did not disappoint.

We were there during Australia Day so the fun was at an all time high every day. Australian passport holders stay for free at Wild Rover on Australia Day which in turn packed the premises with ‘Stralyans. The staff was very nice and accommodating and the bar/restaurant featured plenty of drinks and food (check out the beef stir fry on the menu). Be advised this is a party hostel and it does live up to it nightly. The hostel also offers a “free” city walking tour.

“Free” City Walking Tour:

The term free can be considered an alternative fact. While it was at one point free, the government put a ban on free tourism events so they do charge a very minimal fee and it is aboslutely worth it! Red Cap City Tours do a fantastic job explaining the culture and historical landmarks of La Paz that I will further explain. A guide from the walking tour will meet you at the hostel and then take you to the main sights and explain local culture.

Witches Market:

Referred to as “El Mercado de las Brujas”, the witches market is a popular attraction to many tourists. Local witch doctors sell potions for every possible ache you can think of. Many of the powders ensure luck, beauty, and fertility. They also sell dead llama fetus’. According to old Bolivian native religion, which has a focus on the Earth, for every construction of home or building the builders need to give back to the Earth since they are digging up the ground. When they take a part of the Earth away many people will bury a dead llama fetus to give back. They do not kill any llamas for this, they all die from natural causes. It is definitely a great experience to walk through the witches market. Walking through the witches market, you are not hassled to purchase items. The shop owners/workers simply engage into conversation about how your life is going and what could be better. They help explain absolutely everything from the miniature statues to certain remedies they have that could help you get whatever it is you are seeking. I did not purchase anything as I was just happy to be traveling and did not think I needed any remedies. However, if you do have your eye on a special someone, I suggest purchasing the “Follow Me” dust. Simply follow behind the person you wish to notice you and sprinkle them with your best salt bae impersonation and the dust will attract the person to you. I did not try it as I was confident enough in my alpaca sweater and headband look so I’ll let you be the judge to see if it works or not.

San Francisco Church:

Located in La Paz’ city center, the Basilica of San Francisco is the main catholic church. Originally built in the 1500s, it collapsed in 1610 and was again rebuilt in 1784. The most important part of this church is that it blends native and Catholic art. The street in front of the church was the divide between the Spanish explorers and the native people of the region when this area was being explored. One side features more Spanish architecture while the other side maintains native culture. When the church collapsed, the rebuilding featured natives and the Spanish working collectively; bringing the area together and creating a beautiful church featuring amazing art. This is a large gathering area in town for locals with many markets and shops around the church.

Mi Teleferico:

This is the La Paz-El Alto cable car system. Opened in 2014, it helped lower massive bus traffic between the two cities. Currently it has three lines in operation with several more in the planning stage. It is a very fast and clean energy way to get between La Paz and El Alto. Hop on once and receive amazing view of La Paz from above. A one way ticket will cost you three bolivianos ($0.43 USD). I went on the red line with a group from the hostel just to check out the views of the city and it was a very fun trip. A short taxi ride from Wild Rover Hostel, it is worth it to live the local lifestyle and commute inside one of the cable cars. It takes just a few minutes to get to the top of El Alto and can be an enjoyable sight to see as a tourist.

For the true adventurers: BIKE THE DEATH ROAD

The Death Road, also known as Yungas Road, is a 64km stretch of road from La Paz to Coroico. In 1995, the road earned the title “world’s most dangerous road”. The single lane 3m (10ft) wide road has very few guard rails with cliffs up to 600m (2000ft) that drop straight down. The road has not been used for vehicle traffic since 2006, because there was a newer, safer, and paved road built from La Paz to Coroico. Many backpackers and thrill seekers sign up with a travel agency to mountain bike down this road nowadays. I did it and it was an amazing mountain bike ride. The first 20km is on the newer paved road which is easy to ride down on. After the 20km paved section comes a short bus ride up a hill to begin the remainder of the old gravel road down. The cliffs, curvy roads, and views are breathtaking. A must do! This was so much fun riding alongside all my hostel mates. Separating from the pack with other guys, since of course we had to turn everything into a race. I still look back on it and agree it was one of the most fun tours that I’ve done in my life. Careful doing this in rainy season as landslides are common. Once we finished biking, we were taken to a hotel for a nice lunch/dinner before driving back to La Paz. On our way back, we were stuck overnight due to a landslide and cleanup efforts under way. Aside from the overnight delay, the bike ride was amazing!

With its many options for tourists and backpackers alike, La Paz is a very vibrant and cultural city that you can spend a few days in before you head down to the Salar de Uyuni and see the salt flats. Also, as a personal favorite go have a cup of coffee with cake at “The Writer’s Coffee” in La Paz. It’s only a couple blocks away from Wild Rover and it will not disappoint you!

P.S. Americans – be prepared so you do not have a difficult time at Bolivian customs. Print off hostel reservations, flight/ bus information out of Bolivia, itineraries, and make sure you have $160 USD in cash with no cuts in the bills for the visa you obtain on arrival (bring back up $20 just in case, they are quite particular), extra copies of your passport photo and yellow fever vaccination proof.

More to read about Bolivia, check out our other blogs

Way Too Wanderlust

Way Too Wanderlust

south america

Patagonia, Part one: Santiago

Bolivia: The “road” less traveled

La Paz, Bolivia