Hotel Corvatsch San Pedro de Atacama

... cover if a decent photographer was sent up there. The only downside was that with the smell of the bubbling sulfur, people felt they could **** away without anyone noticing. I recalled one of our group in the morning saying that they had been bunged up and now felt something brewing- thanks for that insight.<br><br>Next up were the hot springs, now you may think I´d be bored of these by now, but ...

... br><br>We headed to the Valle de la Luna and Valle del Muerte on the first day - 10 kms of hiking in 37 degree heat but it was amazing. the landscape is incredible - sand dunes, multicoloured rock formations and dried up river beds - it is the Atacama Desert after all!<br><br>The next day we headed to the Lagunas - advertised as a swimming trip/ chance to have a couple of Pisco ...

... wh**e they simply cannot do enough for us. <br><br>The humidity in the area is just 4% which contributes to a clear atmosph**e with wond**ful light and clear night skies. I had imagined that one des**t would be much like any oth** but this place proves me wrong all ends up. It is a centre for activities that we have not yet encount**ed and is growing in popularity ev**y year. The population h**e is a massive 2,000 but the locals are probably matched by the touristas. As ...

... as it was going on forever. The hot searing sun of the early afternoon made the effort involved in dragging myself up that infernal hill an absolute delight! In fairness, the views at the top across the desert were spectacular but there has to be an easier way of getting there.<br><br>In total that day, we cycled 41km across the desert which, I suppose, given it was the "old man's" 41st birthday, is quite apt. I would like to point out for the record however ...

... they exert some effort. Anyway, enough of my griping.<br><br>San Pedro is smack dab in the middle of the Atacama desert in Northern Chile. It is a very remote place. The surrounding area contains a national park with numerous geysers, which is why I suppose it has become a hippie enclave. It´s my best guess anyway. Despite being in the middle of nowhere they have built a quaint little town there. It really is quite beautiful. A giant volcano looms overhead and can be seen ...

... sparse, I was convinced I was in a Star Trek episode! It was amazing to watch as the sun set over the valley, the colours were incrediable!<br> My final day in San Pedro was spent trying to determine which tour company to use to get across the desert and salt flats to Bolivia (none had any good recommendations!), and spending more time relaxing in a hammock!<br> Then it was an early night as the ´dodgy´tour to Bolivia started at 7am.<br>

In San Pedro de Atacama, welches nur von der schönen Landschaft und den Touristen lebt, haben wir uns ein paar Tage ausgeruht. Wüste, Geysire etc. hatten wir in Bolivien schon reichlich gesehen, so dass wir hier nur einen kurzen Nachmittagsausflug zum Valle de la Luna und zum Valle de la Muerte unternommen haben. Im Mondtal (Luna) und im Todestal (Muerte) haben wir dann folgende Bilder aufgenommen:<br> <br>San Pedro de Atacama ...

... almost everything on. I also got to ride shotgun so no more carsickness. I think that the geysers at Yellowstone are more impressive but here at Tatio you can walk really close to the geysers, making for a much more hands on experience. (Literally, I put my hands in some of the geyser pools to warm them up. Try doing that at Yellowstone!) I swam in a geyser-fed swimming pool but it was mostly lukewarm so I didn´t stay long ...

... befo**d**te. Dies** stellte sich als sehr alt** am**ikanisch** Schulbus h**aus - definitiv d** schlechteste Bus den wir bish** in Suedam**ika gesehen haben (und das soll was heissen). Naja, was solls d** Weg ist ja nicht lang (50 km). Jedoch gibt es da noch ein Hind**niss, die chilenische Grenze. Also heisst es mit allem Gepaeck aussteigen und fu** alle and**en hiess es lediglich Reisepass h**zeigen. Ab** wir beide, die einzigen nicht Einheimischen, wurden etwas genau ...

... com and www.explore-atacama.com they had been very good and helpful. The actual package was called 'From the Earth to the Moon' and it worked for us as it got us everywhere we wanted to go and back to the airport at the end in a tight timescale. Ideal! <br> <br>We started off with a drive and a visit to the Flamingo Reserve at Laguna Chaxa. We spent quite a while there and got some really good photos of the flamingos. Then we ...