Day 268, 269 - Pucon & the chilly Chile Sum up - Tuesday 10th, Wednesday 11th July 2012 We arrived into Pucon early morning and once off the bus headed towards our hostel, along the way checking out the huge huffing and snow-capped Volcano Villarrica which serves as the backdrop to the town. It was freezing and as we passed a little restaurant that looked cosy and warm we realised it was in fact our hostel - result! It was early so we settled down for a bi...

Day 263, 264, 265, 266, 267 - Santiago - Thursday 5th, Friday 6th Saturday 7th, Sunday 8th, Monday 9th July 2012 Come midday we made our way to the bus station and boarded our bus bound for Santiago. The journey only took a couple of hours but it couldn't have been a worse day to arrive into Santiago - it was completely grey, raining and dull and the kind of weather that makes everyone and everything also look grey. But alas, all was not lost as, once we'd mad...

Day 260, 261, 262 - Valparaiso - Monday 2nd, Tuesday 3rd, Wednesday 4th July 2012 Isn't it funny that Chile reads as one of the safest countries in South America but yet Valparaiso is probably one of the edgiest cities we've visited in our travels thus far?! Saying that, maybe it's the edge that gives the city its character and it's true to say that there is something unique about Valparaiso and it seems to us the longer you stay the more you see of the city a...

Day 258, 259 - La Serena - Saturday 30th June, Sunday 1st July 2012 This morning we arrived in the "supposedly" beautiful seaside town of La Serena. After a pretty good night sleep on the bus we pulled up to the terminal, collected our bags and made our way on foot to El Punto hostel. The hostel had loads of great reviews on tripadvisor and was just outside the main square and ten minutes from the beach. So, with a skip in our step we arrived to the hostel, o...

Day 257 - San Pedro de Atacama - Friday 29th June 2012 We woke up pretty cold, with furry mouths, red stained teeth and feeling a little worse of wear - the hangover was setting in! After a leisurely wake up and a not so lovely breakfast (free in the hostel but consisted of a stale piece of bed and one, yes just one, measly cup of coffee) we were ready to go on our planned bike ride. We walked down to the main square and watched the festivities for a while, it...