San Pedro de Atacama: The Not So Wild West

After 10.5 hours of being compacted between baggage, seat and skin.... and one very expensive stop over in Calama.... we finally arrived in San Pedro. I literally let out a sigh of relief as our slightly rickety bus trundled over the crest of a rather large sand dune to reveal a small stream carving its way through the otherwise desolate landscape. Being the only water source for miles, the sides of this stream were flushed with green as large trees, constructing a visual barrier that separates the town of San Pedro from the desert in which it exists. To add even more contrast, beyond the edge of the oasis towns distant borders, a volcanic range of snow capped mountains mark the horizon.

As we enter the town its self I am reminded of the images of the wild west portrayed by Hollywood. Along the dusty streets stand mudbrick walls that surround mudbrick buildings which are littered with makeshift security barriers such as broken glass or sharp tree branches. A man riding past our bus on a horse assists in this comparison.

Beyond our initial impressions of the town, as we crawl closer to the centre, we begin to see signs of the touristic nature of modern San Pedro. Hawkers line the streets spouting the wonders of  their tours or restaurants to anyone that they don't recognise as local........ which equates to about 3/4s of the people in the main street.

This being said, the town is beautiful.... a perfect little oasis town. Hence the tourist population. The town acts as a bit of a bottle neck between Chile and Bolivia with each person we have met to date on the trip making an appearance here at some point. The atmosphere of the town and its many attractions meant we had to spend a few days here and it was by far the nicest town we had seen.

Niki's bits: Legs! its the first place i have legs in Chile, and arms! exposed flesh and warm sun!!