San Pedro-Antofagasta, Sand, Stars and Graffitis

Wow it's already been 10 days since my last news, time flies... As I mentioned in my last itinerary update, I left San Pedro and cycled 100 km to Calama in the middle of a blooming desert (which started by a pretty long mountain climb); when I got up in the middle of the night while camping at the top of the mountain, I couldn't believe what I was seeing, it was as if I was looking at the sky for the first time! So many stars, everywhere... And I am used to pretty clear skies in the Yukon and Alaska, without light pollution, but this was way more intense, it seemed like there were 100 times more stars than I had never seen. Well, I finally understood why there were so many astronomy observatories installed in the country, duh...

As soon as I arrived in Calama I felt like I was back in the "civilized" world, and not the best of it: industrial zone, traffic... nothing that attracted me, plus I realized that the road from here to Antofagasta, my destination, was a 4-way highway, so I decided to escape from here by bus, and an hour later I was on my way.

One awesome thing I noticed though: the windmills, the solar panels on the highway lights (and later in Antofagasta a building with solar energy... way to go Chile!

I was really excited to get to Antofagasta and see, smell and feel the ocean; as I arrived by dusk, it was beautiful, people hanging out, kids playing... sweet life on the ocean side. My friends Karina and Albert had been here a few days before; they had given me the address of their pension, and told the owners that I'd arrive, it was very pleasant to be waited for! I spent two nights there, including the second one in the owner's own bedroom in a spare bed as they were full and didn't want to kick me out, which was really thoughtful. It was funny, I was the only woman in the pension, surrounded by men working for the mines around.

I have to say that I've been nicely surprised by Chilean men; so far many have been full of little attentions, giving me a hand when I don't even expect it, calling me "mi amor", touching gently my arm, winking without making me feel uncomfortable (which is not common for me), because I can tell that it's not pushy, just gently flirtatious and kind. I saw many men holding their babies in the streets in Bolivia and Chile, and looking comfortable to show their emotions towards their little ones, which is very far from the macho man stereotype we sometimes have in mind when thinking about southern cultures.

Back to Antofagasta: it is not what we'd call a "pretty" city, but it has some personality, it has a vibrant feel; I enjoyed hunting for the many graffitis that color the city. Dogs are weird around here, they seem to be what cows are for India, sacred animals that just nap wherever they feel like it, even in the middle of the streets and people just move around them.

I had a contact for a surfing school here but the city is pretty expensive, and very urban, which was not the kind of area I imagined sticking in for a week so I moved on to see what the coast had to show me.

I feel like I came back to the occidental world in Chile, leaving behind the strong Bolivian indigenous culture. It's comfortable here, not so different from many North American or European cities in many ways, but I'm a bit sad to have left a place that had a different feel, I went back to a more consumerist world (the first thing I did in Antofagasta was to go shopping...).
One of the positive aspects of travelling in a country with a more similar culture to mine though is that I can have easier connections with people I meet along the way; I got two invitations to stay at new friends' places further south, which is great because it'll be a fun occasion to share their everyday life, and I prefer spending money in food to share rather than in lodging when it's possible.

I felt like my trip took the same pace as my environment: faster; not only because time is flying and I had to be in Santiago in a month, but also because people, cars and the society in general all move faster here than in Bolivia, I almost remembered what stress felt like...

Comments

[Michel]

Cuando sali a Burma, estabas solamente en La Paz, y durante mis vacaciones fue dificil de leer tu blog. (cada albergue tiene Wi Fi, pero el signal es tan debil, que es imposible conectarse...) Ahora estoy de vuelva a mi casa, y acabo de leer tus aventuras estupendas por America del Sur ! Estoy realmente orgulloso leyendo que todo se pasa bien y que tu puedes hacer exactamente lo que sonaste cuando estabas en el lejos Yukon ! Gracias por el blog. Claro que es mucho trabajo cada semana, pero para nosotros es un gran placer de compartir contigo tus aventuras. Besos

[Stephanie Chevalier]

Holà Miguel,
Pardon dr no responder mas temprano perro esta difficil de escribir en espanol para mi, porque yo sé que mi gramatica no esta buena... Yo espero que tu commencas un bueno nuevo ano, que te vaya bien!
Un beso,

[jason VAN GULICK]

Ahhhh! Stef', you"re so lucky!!!! here the winter's comming :( but belgium beer and french fries keep me warm :)
It's a pleasure to read you each time! keep going make me dream about better moment :)))
I'm still thinking about a bike trip trought Canada on 2015 ........ ;)

[Stephanie Chevalier]

Thanks Jason, aaahhh Belgian beer... At least I can find french fries here :-) Keep on thinking about your bike trip/tour, it's a good one! And I'll be more than happy to welcome you at home!
Happy winter,