Dec 10, 2007
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What a day! (and it is hardly 2 PM) As my flight to Santiago from La Serena was at 11 AM, I had requested Hector to arrange an airport transfer at 9:15 am which would put be at the airport around 9:35 am giving me enough time. I woke up on time and was packed and ready by 8:30 AM. I had breakfast and was at the lobby by 9:15 AM. I placed the larger bag close to the door and kept the smaller backpack (containing travel essentials) and some guide books next to me while I waited in the Lobby.
Hector received a Phone call and informed me that the transfer vehicle would be 20 minutes late thereby putting me at the airport close to 10 AM. This was outside my comfort zone (I´d
rather be early than late) but not too bad. As the TV was turned on in the lobby, I started watching a morning TV as I thought it might help improve my Spanish.
The show was called ´Buenos dias Todos´and was on TVN channel. The female host of the program (Tomka Tomicic) was a stunner. I was left gaping! Hector concurred with me and he wrote down her name so I could replicate it here!
I kept looking outside the window from time to time to monitor the arrival of the transfer van. 9:40 came by and went. Hector called them again and was told that they would be here in the next 3-5 mins. Around 9:50 AM, I was getting quite concerned. I walked out the main door and looked outside to see if I could spot the transfer van anywhere. When I returned inside, I found that my larger bag (that was kept by the door) had disappeared.
I panicked and told Hector what had happened. Hector hollered at Kathy. We figured that when one of the guests was picked up a few minutes ago in a white van, the driver must had loaded my bag into the vehicle (thinking it belonged to the Guest he was picking up). Even if my (extremely delayed) transfer service arrived now, I could not leave!
Hector kept loudly uttering ´Puta Madre´! Since the Guest had come for work, Hector or Kathy did not know where to call meaning which firm he had come to work for). They pored over the Phone book and supposedly called the company that had sent the pickup van. The company knew where the van was headed, but that would not help us. (Being late as it is, we would not have time to go around god knows where to pick the bag up). Hector and Kathy explained the situation to the person on the other end of the line and obtained the mobile number of the driver of the van. As I had mentioned earlier, everyone´s mobile phone works but mine!
They called Claudio (the drive of the Van) and he informed them saying that he was close to the hotel (after dropping his guest). The three of us ran onto the street and we spotted the van about 30 metres away. After seeing my blue bag being unloaded from the van, I returned to half-normal. I still had to make the flight and my transfer showed no signs of arriving. I told hector to get me a regular taxi. Kathy found me a cab right away and the cost was CLP 3000 (US$7.5 - double of what the transfer company would have charged me). I did not care. I thanked Hector and Kathy profusely and jumped into the taxi. I told the driver that my flight time was at 11 AM (in less than 50 mins) and he told me not to worry! I guess Chileans usually check-in seconds before take-off!
We reached the airport around 10:30 AM. There was a lot of folks just pulling in at the kerb. The lady at the LAN Airlines counter decided to play it by the book and charged me CLP 12,000 (US$25) because I was carrying an extra 4 Kilos over the permitted 20 Kilos (around 9 extra pounds). After my near miss, I was in no mood to argue. I paid up using my credit card and boarded my flight. The bag was checked all the way to Calama.
I was flying to Santiago and changing planes there to fly to Calama. Even though Calama is North of La Serena, I was flying South to Santiago and then flying North to Calama as there are no direct flights from La Serena to Calama. The flight to Santiago was 50 minutes. I had a 2 1/2 hour layover at Santiago. On reaching Santiago, I purchased a Phone card for CLP 5000 to call home. This Phone card was to be used on landline Phones to call family and friends in the US and elsewhere.
After finishing my calls, I headed to the Movistar office at the Airport. After explaining my need to call and text internationally, I obtained a Phone card for CLP 20000 (US$ 42). Of course, I was given a new number now!
I exchanged another US$500 at the airport. In the 4-days since my arrival, the Chilean peso had devalued a bit and I received a better exchange rate. I visited the TAM (Brazilian) Airlines counter at the airport to ensure my reservations were all in order. I also visited the Aerolineas Argentinas airline counter and I was told that I would need to re-confirm each flight 48-hours before! Those Primitives! LAN Chile does not require any reconfirmation at all. I also noticed that Santiago Airport has free Wi-Fi. The Hotel at La Serena also has free Wi-Fi.
I had a brief nap from Santiago to Antofagasta. The flight to Calama was to have a stop at Antofagasta before proceeding to Calama. Ludwig and Wilhelm accompanied me for most of this flight. I wish I had invested in a SHURE!
I spotted (at least I think so) the VLT (Very Large Telescope) observatory at Paranal (south of Antofagasta). Between the pacific Ocean and the Airport is sheer desert. It looked like
there was quite a bit of off-roading activity being done in this area. We stopped at Antofagasta for 40 mins while the plane refuelled. Most of the passengers disembarked and the plane was 25% occupied for the flight to Calama.
The landscape changed from Mountainous to flat desert. The flight hardly took 30 minutes. At Calama, I met the representative of the transfer company (LICANCABUR transfer) and paid CLP 7000 (US$15) in cash for the 75-minute ride to San Pedro de Atacama. I picked my bag and waited in the Minivan for some passengers who were arriving on another flight (SKY Airlines). After a 30-min wait we set forth for San Pedro. Very dramatic landscape especially when observed from the ground level.
Chatted with an American Engineer (who was here on work) and 2 other English speakers during the 75-min drive to San Pedro. The engineer works for NSF (National Science Foundation) and was heading to a place 20 KMs from San Pedro. The project he is working on is called ALMA (Atacama Large Millimetre Array) and involves participation from the US (40%), Europe (40%) and Japan (20%). Canada and Taiwan also participate in this project to build 66 RADIO telescopes each with a 12 Metre diameter antenna. The project completion date is 2011.The telescopes I saw at La Serena were OPTICAL telescopes used for seeing things, while these RADIO telescopes will be used to monitor ET speak! Seemed quite fascinating. The engineer travels to San Pedro each month for 2 weeks at a time. He hates it. Then again I may too. I however think he finds his work interesting.
The other 2 participants in the conversation were a Swiss Blonde (Yes, tall and good looking as well) and a 60+ Yankee peacenik lady who thought that that the NSF was promoting WAR! Oh well, to each their own.
San Pedro is an OASIS in the Atacama desert. Many trees abound and the San Pedro river has been diverted into small canals to provide water for the town. I was the first person to be dropped at my Hostel (Inti & Killa). A very pregnant Cristina Cereceda (with whom I had corresponded) greeted me along with her Nino and a furry perro (Dog to you English speakers). The hostel is a very nice quiet place set away from the main centre of town and costs CLP 25000 (US$ 52) per night. The hostel accepts US$ or Chilean Pesos as payment. The payment is CASH Only.
I asked Cristina whether I could use her computer to transfer my Images from my Memory cards to my portable hard drive. I had a nice room with a double bed. The Mosaic floor was smooth and cool. The room was clean. The hostel is set inside a gated (adobe walled) compound.
After transferring my Images from the memory cards to my portable hard drive, I set out for dinner at 9 PM. The hotel provides a torch to every guest (for their use during their stay here). This is because there are no street lamps for 300 metres or so on the way to the centre of San Pedro. I declined, as I always carry a small Maglite with me on trips. I found a decent restaurant (Cafe Export - also recommended in my guide book) and had a vegetarian empanada with an excellent Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon - CANDELARIA, 2005, Central Valley - Full bodied, light nose, fleshy, smooth with a medium finish. I had just enjoyed my FIRST good dinner in Chile!
I spoke to everyone in Spanish despite the mistakes. I will perhaps do some local exploring and find out about the various tours on offer here. A GOOD torch is definitely required if you are walking back after 9 PM. On the walk back I enjoyed watching and identifying the glorious starry sky.
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