Tercera parte: San Pedro de Atacama

The Atacama Desert. It's like another world. An alien world and certainly somewhere like I've never seen before. I loved the town of San Pedro so much I kinda secretly wish I was still there. It's a magical place and it grabs you and makes you fall in love with it, despite the copious amounts of dust. No wonder that 11,000 years ago it was founded by hunters and collectors searching for water in the arid desert, then the Inca's found it and dominated until the first Spanish explorers of Chile settled there and made a town which feels hardly changed since the 17th century...it's an oasis in the middle of nowhere. There is nothing but salt and rocks and volcanoes all around. These days its a tourist haven and a place for miners to grab some supplies. So I'll leave you with our experiences, which really can be summed up very easily in photo form.

These are actual salt lakes that you can float in. The salt and mineral content is so strong you only float like you would in the Dead Sea. They are SO deep even the kids could go in, its impossible to sink!!

But you do get left with a crusty layer of salt afterwards...

 

I have more because this place is so magical. The Valle de la Luna has to have its own post.