Out of Peru!

The second of week of January we finally crossed the border into Chile and out of Peru. We had spent over 1.5 months in Peru and were ready for some fresh faces.

We landed in Iquique, a coastal town in northern Chile's Atacama Desert. I immediately was in love. The first public bathroom I went into had not only a toilet seat but toilet paper and handsoap as well. I couldn't believe my eyes when I could buy diet coke= coca light almost everywhere! And guess what, the Chileans didn't bat an eye if you handed them a 10,000 peso, the equivalent of $20. If you handed that large of a bill to anyone in Peru they'd 1.) glare 2.) ask for a smaller bill 3.) Declare that they have no change and refuse to sell you whatever you were buying. 4.) Run down the street to get change. We never figured out where all the change went in that country.

Besides the conveniences of a modernized country, Iquique stood alone as a nice place to lose time in. The beach didn't have the white sand or clear waters of the carribean, but hot just the same with plenty of beach bunnies in the afternoon. We spent a few hours each day soaking up the sun and taking quick dips in the icy water to cool down.

We ventured over toward the dock and to see the older part of town. The old town's building are colorful, constructed of wood with high ceilings and wooden verandas. The street has a feel of an old mining town perhaps seen out west, maybe Colorado. Not far from the town is the port. We headed over one afternoon to check out the dock. We were pleasantly surprised by a harem of sea lions. The animals were adorable and huge! On occasion visitors would approach the lions a bit too closely and the sea lions would bark and jump toward the tourists to declare their territory. What a highlight it was to see those creatures one afternoon out of the blue!