Earthquake

Arrived back in Santiago from Valparaiso yesterday evening, staying with 2 sisters, Vivi and Ceci, whom I met on the bus from San Pedro, who live together and kindly offered me a bed for a couple of nights in their flat.

At about 3.30am last night, I awoke to the sound of them both calling my name. I'm not easily scared but I must admit to feeling instantly gripped with fear as I awoke to the bed, the room and the whole building shaking violently. "Un terremoto?!" I remembered the word for earthquake. Even during all my years in California I had never experienced one this big.

I jumped out of bed and Ceci and I held each other while we stood under the frame of a door, Vivi under the front door. Books were falling off the shelves, pictures off the walls, crockery breaking on the kitchen floor and we found out later that an antique teapot from their grandmother had also fallen off the sideboard and smashed to pieces. It really felt as if the roof was going to cave in as cracks started to form in the walls.

I heard shouts and screams outside and felt the earth beneath my feet rumbling and roaring and moving back and forth like one of those fairground attractions I used to love. I think I was shaking as much as the building which in that moment felt so fragile. "I am not ready to die under a heap of rubble", I thought to myself, "this too shall pass."

After a few long minutes the quake started to subside and we all gathered outside the apartment building in our pyjamas with other neighbours bearing torches as the electricity had gone off, as well as the phones. I don't know how long we were outside, about an hour, after which time I was ready to go back to bed. Everyone else stayed outside but I went back in and fell straight to sleep again. Apparently there were tremors all through the night but I slept peacefully through them all, preferring to be in a warm, cosy bed than outside in the cold. When my body wants slumber, there's not much that will stop it.

The earthquake measured 9.6 on the Richter scale, the strongest in 50 years. Many homes in Santiago have been destroyed as well as elsewhere in the country, and about 214 deaths have been reported.

I was supposed to be on the night bus for the Lake District now, I'd already bought my ticket, but I ain't goin' nowhere. There are no buses running, no metro, no trains and the airport is closed for at least 72 hours because the roof caved in. Many of the roads south of here have been damaged and that's the direction I was headed. All the shops are closed, even the supermarkets so we can't even stock up on beer or wine, or better still, pisco sour (a delicious Chilean cocktail).

I'm grateful that no-one here got hurt and that the sisters' property is still intact with just a few cracks in the wall. I'm lucky to be in someone's home and not stuck on my own in a dingy hostel. The electricity and phone lines have come back on so at least I can play on the computer. Things could be a lot worse.

Went for a drive this evening looking for somewhere open but everything was closed. Realised how lucky we are because most of the areas we drove through were in total darkness with no electricity or water.

I have become a source of great amusement in the neighbourhood as the sisters tell their friends that not only did I not wake up when the earthquake started, but that they had to shout at me a few times to rouse me and that I slept through the aftershocks. People look at me like in complete disbelief as if I'm some sort of freak. I try to explain that I sleep very deeply and that I'm a litte "sorda" (deaf) but mistakenly say "serda" (means 'sow', spelt 'cerda') which makes everyone laugh. "Cerdita", meaning piglet, has now become my nickname as they're amazed at how much food I eat.

Hope to find out tomorrow about the transport situation and when and how I'm going to get out of here. As I type this, I can feel the ground shaking slightly and the ceiling light is swaying. All part of the adventure but I can think of more fun ways to feel the earth move and will be happy to distance myself from fault lines and volcanoes. But for now, I'm chillin' in Chile.

Ceci posted her version of what happened last for those who understand Spanish - it's under the 1st title 'Earthquake in Chile' that Andy posted.

Casa de Lukas

In a lovely villa dedicated to one of Chile's most famous caricaturists, 'Lukas', here are two of his drawings that made me smile. The 1st caption reads : "Comrades?"

and the 2nd : "Female Power" (the shoe-shiner is painting her toenails).

Valparaiso Street

The residential areas comprise a fantastic, multicoloured agglomeration of fine mansions, tattered houses, shacks and slums all scrambled in oriental confusion along narrow back streets. There's a bohemian, slightly anarchic atmosphere here and many legends of ghosts and spirits.

Funicular Railways

Above the business centre along the edge of the water rises a series of hills ('cerros') that offer superb views over the bay. The lower and upper cities are connected by steep, winding roads, flights of steps and 15 of these funicular railways ('ascensores') dating from 1883-1914. Reaching the top you find a warren of streets, brightly painted houses and fabulous old bars.

Valparaiso

Valparaíso, situated on the coast one and a half hours away from Santiago by bus, has been described as "a Venice waiting to be discovered". The city prospered in the 19th century when it was used by commercial agents from Europe and the US as their trading base in the southern Pacific and became a major international banking centre as well as the key port for US shipping between the East Coast and California (especially during the gold rush). It underwent a decline due to the development of steam ships, the opening of the US trans-continental raliway and then the Panama Canal in 1914 and finally the shift of banks to Santiago. The city is now being revived and work is underway to renovate the historical centre and museums and to build new galleries - it is officially the Cultural Capital of Chile, an important naval base and also the seat of the Chilean parliament. Being so close, I decided to come here for a couple of days.

Earthquake in Chile

For anyone concerned after hearing the news:

Fiona is safe and well and will be sharing her earthquake experience on this blog soon

Santiago

I do love a place where people dance in the streets! This dance is called the 'cueca brava' and is a bohemian and more sensual version of the 'cueca', one of the national dances of Chile. The man and woman represent a cockrel

and a hen doing a mating dance and they both twirl handkerchiefs round their own and each other's heads - most entertaining!

Bus Jouneys

Boarded this comfortable green bus and did a 23-hour bus journey
from San Pedro to Santiago, the capital of Chile. The seats were very comfortable and I slept through the night.


My Swiss friend, Myriam, however wasn't so lucky travelling to La Paz on a poorly maintained Bolivian road - it got stuck in mud and her journey took an extra 11 hours.

Meñiques Lagoon

This beautiful turquoise lagoon with its intense blue water and white banks lies at 4,000m above sea level and is surrounded by high summits with a spectacular view towards the Atacama Salt Flats. Took a lovely morning walk along its shores, whetting our apetite for another picnic lunch.

Tebinquiche Lagoon

This lagoon is prominent for its salt crust, white as snow, strong and resistant, surrounded by vast pasture and wetlands.

Lagoon Tour

Went on an all-day tour of the different lagoons in this area - what a lovely landscape. At several archeological sites, ceramic fragments, arrow heads and circular stone constructions have been unearthed , evidence of an existing population around 3,000-4,000 B.C.

Salt Lake

The Chilean salt lake is very different from the Bolivian one which is smoother - here the chloride crusts can reach up to 70 cms high. They have been formed by the accumulation of crystals produced by evaporation of underground saline waters. Minerals are extracted and exported from these salt flats : magnesium, borax and 50% of the world's supply of lithium.

Atacama Salt Lake

This is the Salar de Atacama, the Chilean Salt Lake at 2,300m above sea level. The air is so dry you can see all the way across it. There are 3 types of flamingoes here : the Andean, Chilean and the James which feed on single-celled algae and micro invertebrates.

Mountains and Volcanoes

There are 150 active volcanoes in Chile's Andes Mountain Range equal to 10% of the planet's active peaks. I experienced the frequent seismic activity here while on the computer - the whole internet café started to vibrate and I thought it was just some of the guys shaking the furniture. Found out later it measured 5.5 on the Richter scale, a mild earthquake for this area. In Chilean mythology, volcanoes are masculine (prone to exploding) and mountains are feminine (water flows down from them) and they are highly revered.

Sunset in the Valley of the Moon

Dazzling light bounced off shimmering salt, constantly changing the colour of ruckled hills of rust-red rock. Watching these changing colours on distant mountains as the sun set was a magical time. It's said that the night skies here are so clear that astronomers can watch early galaxies forming.

Valley of the Moon

This valley resembles the surface of the moon - the wind and atmospheric conditions have carved sculptured shapes with sharp crests, hilltops and waves into this extraordinary landscape. The absence of animal and vegetable life, as well as the lack of humidity, make this one of the most inhospitable places on earth.

Las Tres Marias

These formations, composed of gravel, clay, salt, gems and quartz, are the result of intense erosion and are about a million years old.

Death Valley

Looks like the rock I'm sitting on could break off any minute! The views were breathtaking - arid and barren but beautiful. The Atacama Desert stretches 1,000k from the Peruvian border down here into Chile and has been described as "one of the most extraordinarily beautiful expanses of wilderness on the planet." It does feel like somewhat other-worldly.

Death Valley

This used to be a submerged lake about 23 million years ago, when ancient horizontal layers of sediment and rock were pushed and folded by the movement of the earth's crust, lifting the Andes mountain range and leaving some layers in a vertical position. It has been shaped throughout time by wind and rain, giving rise to spectacular natural sculptures of various colours due to the minerals here, mainly salt, gypsum and clay.

Death Valley, Atacama Desert

Just outside San Pedro, this Death Valley, like the one in California, is one of the driest places on earth with just a few millimetres of rain a year. You can go sandboarding here (just like snowboarding but on sand), but I preferred to get my mix of pleasure and adrenaline by taking my shoes off and running barefoot down this sandy slope as fast as a I could. Had to put the shoes straight back on 'cause the sand was scorching.

San Pedro Plaza and Church

This pretty shady plaza was a great place to enjoy an icecream - it's HOT here! The church dates back to the 17th century and is supposedly the 2nd oldest church in the country. The tower was added

in 1964 and the roof is made of cactus.

San Pedro de Atacama

This is the main street of San Pedro, a bohemian oasis, comprising cafés, restaurants, shops and tour agencies. Its dirt streets have been treated with vichufita, a product derived from salt which allows them to retain the original look causing less pollution. In the evening this street filled with strolling musicians and 'hippies' selling jewellery and artefacts.

San Pedro de Atacama, Chile

San Pedro de Atacama in northern Chile is a lovely little town with a Spanish-Indian look. Long before the arrival of the Spanish, this area was the centre of the Atacameño culture. The town still preserves the structure and construction of the Spanish colonial influence, antique adobe houses with interior yards and roofs made of clay and hay. There is a definite sense of history in the shady streets and crumbling ancient walls which drift away from the town into the fields and then into the dust.

Last Day in Bolivia

Near the border with Chile, I said 'goodbye' to Bolivia and prepared to cross over into Chile.

Thermal Pool

We all put on our bathing suits and submerged our chilled bones into this natural hot spring which was almost boiling. I just lay back, thawed out and soaked up the views - it was bliss!

Guys and Geysers

I kept my distance from these gaping holes of boiling, bubbling mud and steaming spouts but the guys were jumping over them and trying to push each other into them. People have been killed or seriously injured falling into the geysers or through the thin crust of mud and there's no Health and Safety here (thank goodness).

Geysers at Sunrise

Up at 5am, we drove to these geysers for sunrise. It was bitterly cold but I knew that in about an hour it would start to warm up. We walked around the bubblng craters smelling the sulphur.

Desert Lodge

This was our 2nd night's accommodation, even more remote than the 1st night. There was nothing but desert and hills all around us and the stars that night were so bright and spectacular. We were all pleased to find one of the little barracks sold beer and wine so we stocked up and stayed up playing cards. I think alcohol goes to your head more quickly at altitude!

Vicuña

The vicuña is smaller than the llama and its fur even warmer than alpaca. They're more shy than the llamas and I was lucky to get this close.

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Dining al Fresco

It was a bit surreal sitting under an umbrella in the middle of the desert eating lunch with nothing around for miles. Up above, however, were big birds of prey eyeing our llama steaks.

Tree Rock

Extraordinary rock formation protruding out of miles of flat, hot, desert sand.

On the road

Hurtling along this dirt road, the car started to wobble as black rubber flew into the air and we blew a tyre. While the driver replaced it with a spare, I wandered off and found a


place with a pleasant view to observe the proceedings while 'watering' a plant.

Flamingos on Lagoon

One of the many lagoons we passed on our way south. The flamingos live on tiny brown shrimp in the water and spend most of their time with their heads down searching for food. It was so quiet we could hear them sipping water from the lake.

View from Lodge

The accommodation (of lack thereof) was more than compensated for by the views during the day and the skyscape at night - trillions of stars which only seem to be visible like this in the desert or on the top of a mountain.

First night´s accommodation

This 'villa' was in the middle of nowhere with nothing around for miles which was the best part about it. To say the accommodation was 'basic and rustic' is an understatement but I had my own silk sleeping bag liner and pillow-case so I didn't worry about bedbugs - too cold at night for them anyway.

Lunch on the Salt Lake

Our cook prepared llama steak for lunch which was delicious. Again, I was the only girl on an all-boy tour, fortunately all English speaking so the 'craic' was good.

Salt Hotel

This hotel inthe middle of the salt flat is made entirely of salt - we stopped here for a picnic lunch outside.

Salar de Uyuni

Everyone else was doing silly pictures so thought I may as well join in!

Salar de Uyuni

Driving across the Salar de Uyuni, the largest and highest salt lake in the world, is one of the great Bolivian trips and it was a fantastic experience, especially as recent rainfall made the whole area shine like glass.

Railway Cemetery

There is one thing to see here - for much of the 20th century, Uyuni was an important major railway junction but now it's turned into a railway cemetery with engines dating from 1907 to the 1950's, now rusting hulks.