Who loves the sun?

The 22 hour bus journey from Arica to La Serena wasn't as terrible as I thought it would be, though the landscape was. Well it was desert. And desert. And even more desert. Though the night sky was brilliant.

La Serena is a costal town just north of Santiago, kinda small but still pretty. After spending my first day walking around, I spent the second in Valle de Elqui, which involved driving almost the width of the country. Chile, not being very wide and all ment this could be done as a day trip.

The Valley is on the opposite side of the Earth from the Hymalayas so there is a fair bit of mystic about the place. But then that could have something to do with the pisco.

Pisco is the national drink of Peru and Chile and is a liquor made from grapes and some of the more well known factories and vineyards are in Valle de Elqui. It's all irrigated farmland, being a desert and all, and heaps of gum trees as wind breaks. Visited three pisco factories with many taste tests. Pisco is not all that bad.

Had lunch at the solar restaraunt. Being an area with 300+ days of sun a year, solar is the way to go. The restarunt cooks everything using solar ovens, and the fresh bread smells absolutely wonderful as you arrive. I have decided that if I live in the desert I want a solar oven too.

Went out to one of the three observatories in the area that night. The stars and planets are so pretty, I'd never seen saturns rings before.

Bus the next day to Santiago, got taken out by lovely people I am sharing a room with last night. Vodka is evil :P At the last international stop, home soon.