San Pedro de Atacama

Well, I just got back from San Pedro de Atacama for the weekend, and I have to say it was one of the most unique parts of Chile I have visited so far. Located waaaay up north close to the border of Bolivia, San Pedro is pure desert. Instead of a landscape characterized by mountains in the background, San Pedro de Atacama is surrounded by volcanoes. It is home to one of the most important astronomical observatories in the world—apparently SPA is one of the best places to see the southern hemisphere’s night sky. The area is also rich in minerals, housing the world’s largest copper mine, Chuquicamata. On top of all this, there are also large salt flats, a flamingo reserve, and the famous Valle de la Luna. We visited all of these!

We started our trip by leaving Santiago at 3 a.m. Friday morning. I stupidly decided that since I probably wouldn’t fall asleep until midnight anyway, and had to leave for the airport at 2 a.m., it wasn’t worth going to sleep. So Thursday night was spent watching a movie with friends, and we went straight from their house to the airport. I was so so tired! After arriving at the airport in Calama around 7:30 and quickly downing insanely unhealthy amounts of caffeine, we set off for Chuquicamata. I have to say, I was not particularly stoked to visit a giant copper mine, but then I found out we got to wear hard hats and I jumped on board. Chuquicamata was interesting for a number of reasons. For one, copper is basically the key to Chile’s riches. The copper industry has been nationalized since the early 1970’s, and this nationalization actually seems to really be working for the country. Chile produces around 35% percent of the world’s copper (if I remember correctly) and Chuquicamata mines about 50% of the copper en Chile. Pretty amazing, huh? The first picture below is of our group in front of one of the trucks they use to haul the copper. One of those trucks costs 4 million dollars, and they last about 10 years.



The next picture is of one of the giant holes from which they mine. There is probably more technical language for this...anyway, it was HUGE, and there are like 5 of these from which they are currently digging.



Friday night part of the group went on an astrological tour. San Pedro is so far away from any semblance of civilization, that the stars are incredibly bright. I had never seen anything like it before. The star tour cost about $24 so since my bank account is so sad these days I decided not to go. However, our group’s guide ended up knowing a lot about the stars and constellations, so we did our own unofficial tour, and he pointed out the constellations that are the biggest deal in the Southern Hemisphere like the Southern Cross and the Tres Marias.

Saturday I started the day by giving thanks to God for a full night’s sleep (haha), and then headed out to do a bike tour of Incan ruins in the area. Since San Pedro de Atacama is so much farther north (read: closer to the equator) than Santiago, it was really warm during the days, and so it was really nice to be out in the sun riding along the beautiful desert landscape. Below is a picture from our bike ride (we had to carry our bikes across that river!):



Later that same day, we went to La Valle de La Luna (The Valley of the Moon) and watched an incredible sunset play out over the peaks and craters of the valley. As you might have guessed, it is called La Valle de La Luna because it looks like the surface of the moon. Yesterday morning, we were up and at ‘em by 8 a.m. to see the Salar de Atacama—the largest salt deposit in Chile, and home to three different species of flamingos. The landscape of the salt surrounded by volcanoes was incredible, but with flamingoes added it was even more beautiful. The flamingoes were not as pink as they are at the zoo. We learned that this is because in zoos they feed flamingoes huge amounts of beta carotene to make them that color. Usually in nature they are not actually that bright pink—interesting huh? Anyway, here is a picture from Valle de la Luna:



I think the thing that impacted me the most this weekend was the realization that this is a living and breathing earth we live on. The impact of realizing how small I am in comparison to the stars was the beginning Friday night, and the rest of the weekend continued with information on and visits to natural and geological processes and places. We visited a huge deposit of copper and other minerals, learned that the crazy red hills we saw on our bike tour were created by pressure and plates pushing up against each other, visited a valley with craters like the surface of the moon, saw smoke coming out of an active volcano, drove through miles and miles of desert without any plant or animal life, saw Saturn without the aid of a telescope, and visited the most expansive salt flats in Chile. I was struck by how ALIVE the earth is—it is constantly changing, and it is so diverse! This is especially evident in a long, skinny country like Chile, which is made up of desert in the north, ocean to the west, the Andes Mountains to the east, and the forested, unique landscapes of Patagonia to the south.

I am truly blessed to be in a country so vibrant and unique not only in its landscape, but also in its language, culture, and history. Next adventure? Finishing this 20-page boar of a paper I’ve been whining about for the last two weeks. That's due on Wednesday, and then I have a midterm on Friday worth 50% of my Conflicto Armado grade (no pressure). However, if I make it through this next week I get a big reward at the end—my Mom, Aunt, and close family friend Natalie are all arriving Sunday! I can’t wait to show them all around my new home.

Until next time,
Amy