Hotel Geiser del Tatio San Pedro de Atacama

... made out of stone and the last night we slept in a hotel made from salt - I mean everything, beds, tables, walls etc. Most of these accommodations have been set up in remote towns especially for tourists.<br><br>This trip was amazing, amazing, amazing! I will never forget it and really, I think I have been pretty loose with my recommendations, but think everyone should experience this! I know this may sound dramatic - but mother nature is spectacular! <br>

... and suddenly the tyre sinks in and throws you sideways (even at low speed on a mountain bike). Even in a straight line you can suddenly sink in and it{s like applying the front brake quite hard. I need a moto, methinks...<br><br>So that's all for now. In a few hours I go to some observatory to do some star and planet watching (zero clouds and a reasonable altitude = very good views). Then tomorrow I lie in until about 06:45 before my three day crossing to Bolkivia via Salar de Uyuni.

... re walking on water, a beautiful sunset and dancing bolivian jungle dances with the guides and sharing a pisco sour with the group. <br>When we finally got back to the hostal, there was a little intimate show going on that happened to be played be the founder of Illapu (a really well-known chilean protest group that got exiled during the dictatorship. they play a lot of political songs and often sing in mapadungun or quechua) it was the perfect way to end the trip<br>

... or "at least these Marie´s don't answer back". I would like to point out that he thinks the world of his sister........ !!<br><br>Apparently, there used to be "Four Maries" but a tourist had a rather unfortunate accident whilst leaning against one of them, trying to get that all important photo - just think, it took thousands of years to form and some kodak-fuelled idiot finished it off in seconds! I suppose it's no surprise really as we've noted on our ...

... thick and the slang so thorough, even native Spanish speakers from other South American countries struggle (I actually asked several of them and they all told me I wasn´t crazy, the Chileans just have their own lengua). People would ask me simple things like, "What´s your name", or "How are you", and I had no clue what they were going on about. I don´t know of anywhere in the world where there is a similar issue with English. Even the Scots can make themselves understood ...

... us up a dusty track to the hostel, which also appeared to be in the middle of nowhere.<br> But it got much better, we took a wander in the supposed direction of town and actually found a really cute little town, with shops and offices made from adobe, loads of tour companies, and even two ATMs! We then had a great meal, which cost us $5000 each (about 6GBP) and we relaxed into our surroundings.<br> The next day I met Julie and Ian, a ...

... did as it's so much fun and actually quite easy (for a **** person like me anyway!) - the instructor even called me a good student! In the night we then went to a nearyby observatory and gazed at the stars! The place is owned by a French astronomoer who is hilarious and makes it really entertaining. He points out constellations, what to look for etc and then they set up telescopes focused on various things ...

... back and enjoyed an amazing few kilometers of downhill biking. We reached Valle de la Muerte (death valley) and locked our bikes up to climb up the sand dune - this was ridiculously hard work, Celia only managed it three times and Lee five. Sand boarding was fun but difficult and very tiring!! That evening we went out for some dinner, collected our laundry and had an early night in preparation for our trip across to Bolivia the following day.

Yesterday wasn´t a lot of fun. I had to get up early for a tour after staying out late with friends. The tour was mostly older people and then this one really young couple that I was smushed in the very back seat with. The road was long and mostly unpaved. Between carsickness and the couple next to me kissing I wanted to barf. But to not whine too much I did get to see flamingoes at sunrise on the Laguna Chaxa salt lake. We ...

... Valley of the Moon/Death Valley tour. At sunset all the tour parties converged on the giant sand dune to watch the sun go down. No chance of a peaceful sunset! However it was still spectacular as the sun went down by Licanabur. The volcano dominates the skyline wherever you look in San Pedro and the surrounding area and it's easy to see why it was worshipped.<br><br>After the sunset we went back to the town and went straight out ...