Travels North

Santiago might not have much to offer by way of stunning architecture but what it does have is the most spectacularly located swimming pool I've ever seen! Morning spent wine tasting in the Maipo valley, afternoon spent lazing by the pool with a view over the Andes (albeit through the smog!), can't think of a better way to enjoy a city.

Quite a contrast arriving in San Pedro de Atacama a couple of days later. A small white-washed, adobe village in the heart of the Atacama desert, in northern Chile. Stunning backdrop of snow-capped volcanoes rising to the staggering height of 6500 m, some with smoke rising although not actually erupting. Visited Valle de la Luna and clambered up a huge sand dune to watch the sunset, the volcanic rocks of the valley and Andes in the background changed from pink, to orange to red. Close to San Pedro you have the huge salt lakes of the Salar de Atacama, amazingly full of life with flamingos, lizards, foxes. The air is pure and clear up here but it's literally breathtaking at over 4000m altitude. We visited small traditional villages nestled high in the mountains or deep down in the gorges where life doesn't seem to have changed for thousands of years. People live from subsistence crop farming and llama rearing. The plains are dotted with vicunas, guanacos, llamas and amusing green, long-whiskered rabbit-like creatures.

Our last day here we got up at the ungodly hour of 3.30 (hardly worth going to bed in the first place), to travel to El Tatio close to the Bolivian border. What a sight to behold, almost 100 geysers spurting out water jets rising in columns of up to 20m. An eery effect of swirling steam and bubbling pools as the early morning rays broke through. By 8.30, the sun was up and the show was over but before leaving had to take a plunge into one of the thermal pools. Great way to warm up after over an hour of standing around in temperatures of minus 10.

I thought that living in bureaucratic Belgium and having had a lot of experience of southern countries, I would be immune to excessive, unecessary paperwork. However, the Chileans beat the rest of the world hands down. Lists, vouchers, queues upon queues and brick walls have unfortunately been the only real downside to the trip. And getting the bus from San Pedro to Salta in Argentina has to have been our worst experience of rudeness and inefficiency on this whole trip. Will spare the details but at last we made it on to the bus. Although relations between the two countries seem to have improved, crossing by land is still a long, painstaking process. Two hours wasted on the Chilean side, then a two hour drive through what seemed like a sort of no man's land, followed by two hours at the Argentinian border.

The bus is so chronically slow that at least you have ample time to appreciate your surroundings. And have to say makes the whole frustrating business worth every second. Travel to a height of almost 5000m passing the foot of volcanoes, sparkling salt lakes, multicoloured gorges. Quite simply, beautiful.

Only one week to go, but still Salta to discover and Iguazu falls to round off our trip.