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Ahhh, back again from another quick getaway.  This time we went to Chile for a long weekend tacked onto the end of a work week for Mike in Calama.  After the first few days of adjusting to the climate in Calama we headed out to San Pedro de Atacama, a small town of approx 1,500 people.  Now the thing about San Pedro de Atacama is that it’s known for a few breath taking expeditions (little or big).

To start we went to bed really early ……… only because we had to be up at 3:30am for a tour of the geysers!  Sure you’d think we’d sleep on the bus but I have never been on a road hat bumpy in my life, it was crazy!  The geysers were about 2 1/2 hours away and at 4,321 meters above sea level.  It was so cold (-15), I think we were wearing almost everything in our suitcases to keep warm.  Now we know for next time to bring the right gear.  At least we remembered to bring our bathing suits for the geyser fed pool!  You’d think the water would have been hot but not really, only tiny gusts of boiling water coming through the ground.  It was just enough to prevent the pool from freezing (us too!).  The sun was finally rising by then and we slowly regained the feeling in our fingers and toes.

The drive back was like our own ‘planet earth’ desert edition.  We saw lots of animals: pheasants, birds, ducks, a strange rabbit/squirrel combo, guanaco llamas, alpaca llamas, and llama llamas.  We were also shown a large plant (looks more like a rock) that is used for diabetic medication.  The plant only grows 5mm each year so I think it’s safe to say that the one we saw was approx 500 years old.  Best part about the drive back was stopping for food, mmmmm who would’ve known that llama (llama llama that is) would taste so delicious!

Boy were we tired when we got back but there was no time to rest, we had arranged for a three hour horse back ride.  This was now 3 in the afternoon and 30 degrees outside.  I was so relieved to see that they provided us with hats, and not just for the style!  It was such wonderful ride (beside the dust and allergies).  The scenery was amazing, the sun was hot, the horses were entertaining and we had great company!