On arriving in Calama in the north of Chile, I found out that the train to Bolivia was fully booked and was forced instead to go to San Pedro to start the tour of the salt flats. The population of tourists in San Pedro seems to greatly outnumber that of the locals and every other building is either an internet cafe, a tour operator or a resturant. Other than that, the town is a very traditional South American village in its architecture and facilities (temprament...

Headed off to Valparaiso with some people I met in Santiago after a fun Saturday night despite all of us attracting the attention of a bisexual Chilean pimp wearing a beige jumper. Thankfully we mangaged to lose him after the club and returned safely. Valparaiso felt very homely, being the first time I have seen the ocean in South America. It is full of painted houses somehow built into the steep hills and long winding roads making it very easy to get lost. On ...

Catching the night bus from Mendoza to Santiago, I remembered to take on board my travel pillow, ear plugs and wine. However, while getting my first good sleep on a bus for a while, I forgot the slight disturbance caused by crossing the Chilean border. Because it was situated at a high altitude, I had to stand in a freezing que for hours, with only a light jumper to keep me warm. Things got worse when I arrived in Santiago early in the morning, after being rudely...