Category: South America Page 2 of 4

South America Trip Day 30: Santiago, Chile

Today, we took the time to explore everything that Santiago has to offer. From the Plaza de Amas, to some tips of restaurants and hotspots we visited during the Free walking tour.

South America Trip Day 26-29: Easter Island

After waking up on a bench in the airport of Santiago, it was time to check in! After getting some dunking donuts, we entered our 6:00 AM flight for a 5 hours trip to Easter Island!


After landing around 12:00 PM, we straight away got our tickets for the national park. These price for the ticket is 54,000 pesos per person, which is quite expensive (so be aware of that). You usually can pay by card, but the machines were out of order so we had to pay cash (make sure you bring enough cash!). You need the ticket to enter all the sights valid for a period of 10 days, with the sights of Orongo and Rano Raraku only allowed to enter once.

South America Trip Day 25: Morning in Buenos Aires, Afternoon in Santiago

One day, two capitals. We started at 1 am in Buenos Aires, reached from Ushuaia. Tried to get an Uber but they all declined because of the area our hostel was in… so we where forced to take a cab. After waking up we found out that we stayed in the SOHO area of BA, so food hunt! Or, that is what we thought. Restaurants open between 12 and 14, and we planned to head to the airport around 12:30. We ended up in a local pastry shop buying sweets. Such a disappointment!

South America Trip Day 23 & 24: Ushuaia, the most southern city of the world

Day 23

It is 6:00 AM as the alarm wakes us up in a still rainy el Calafate. We packed our stuff, got our breakfast at 6:30 AM and at 6:45 AM the hostel already got us a private taxi to the airport for 600 pesos. Once arrived we checked in, got a window seat, had to rearrange our IKEA back pack because it was a bit overweight and took the flight to Ushuaia, duration: 1 hour and 10 minutes.

South America Trip Day 22: El Calafate, Argentina

Waking up in Hosteria Y Apart Jardin De Los Presentes in a very comfortable bed, where the breakfast was amazing. Brownies, eggs, toasted bread, juices, fresh fruits, the list goes on. Between 8/8:30AM we got picked up to go towards the glacier for our hiking tour!

Today we have a 80 KM drive first, first part is a semi desert/ step landscape, after 30 minutes of forest landscape we had to pay 700 pesos per person entrance fee to the national park to enter the high mountain area of the Los Glaciares National Park in Santa Cruz. There are 48 major glaciers and more than 100 minor glaciers in the 370 KM long and 35 KM wide park located. It is the largest park in Argentina’s protected area system and an UNESCO world heritage site since 1981.

South America Trip Day 21: Travel day from Chile to Argentina

The day of travel for us, taking three flights within 24 hours will make this one of the most exhausting days. Last night we left San Pedro de Atacama around 19:15 with the shuttle to reach Calama airport in Chile for our 22:00 pm departure to the capital Santiago. Both airports being very neat, we first ate some sandwiches in Calama but while entering Santiago there was a McDonald’s right in front of us, only after check in. We had to get some burgers!

After we collected our luggage we had to kill 7 hours for our flight to Buenos Aires, Argentina at 7:25 am. After eating and using the WiFi (which was shit in the morning, better later on) we found a bench for two to make our bed for a few hours.

South America Trip Day 20: Geyser el Tatio

Between 4:30 and 5 we got picked up by Victor, our guide and driver who took us for an hour 45 minutes drive to go back to 4,200 altidute to our destination: Geyser el Tatio. Entrance fee is 10,000 per head, we arrived at 6:30. It was quite cold, -4! After paying the entrance we went to the main geyser to see the sunrise.

10 km2 square big and 5 km deep the Geysers are, with underneath Magma. The underwater that touches the hot stones receive a high temperature and create the boiling water at the geometric field of the geysers.

South America Trip Day 19: Green Lagoon Bolivia and Entering Chile, San Pedro de Atacama

Day 19: Green lagoon and entering Chile

6:30 am early breakfast to leave for a short morning program before we were getting dropped at the border with Chile to enter San Pedro de Atacama.

First stop at 8 AM, dale desert. Here there are fresh water lagoons in the mountains, with lot of minerals in the mountains. The volcanic rocks piled up looks like it is a few hundred meters away, but in reality it is over two kilometers.

South America Trip Day 17-18: Uyuni and the Salt Flats

Day 17: Uyuni salt flats

Early in the morning we headed to the office of our tour operator. After a short walk we met our tour guide for the the trip, Bismath. Bismath took us to the first stop; a train cemetery, with lot of former gold mine trains from the 1930s. Bismath explained about the rich minerals Bolivia had in its grounds and how the rail was created for the rich to go to Sucre, the capital if Bolivia. The tracks go through the desert but in June/July it is -35 degrees the track froze with a lot of accidents with trains. The graveyard was great for some shoots.

After that we stopped at a small refinery, since the area has more enough salt for 5,000 years. He explained how salt is refined step by step. After that it was a tourist stop for souvenirs in the little town.

South America Trip Day 16: La Paz, Bolivia

Woke up early to do the free walking tour of La Paz. The tour started at San Pedro square, located near it is a prison. It is a very unique prison, used to be a monastery for nuns, then a torture chamber, then a prison with a capacity of 400 people and now even over 2,000! Wifes and kids are also allowed to go in whenever they want. Kids walk in and out as well, with a school next to it. It is a very open prison, with just 10 guards the prison is running itself, a la prison break season 3! It has its own ecosystem, renting your own cell block, divided in poor and even richer areas which you pay 1,000 USD per month with hot tub and cable tv! The poor ones 5 USD per month with urinated mattresses and shared with 4 others. The prison also produces cocaine, with labs in the walls to deal it. They can easily smuggle cocoa leaves, gasoline etc in. And corrupt cops make it possible to distribute it in the outside world. They also used to put it in dirty diapers etc to get it outside. The book marching powder is written about the prison. Prison tours are not allowed anymore, so if someone offers you a tour it is a scam.

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