Iquique

LOCATION: CHILE

Yeah, instead of going to La paz and then to Arica, we decided it´ll be shorter and much nicer to visit Iqueque and Arica beach towns in northern Chile, and then go back to Bolivia while visiting the Lauca national park. SO, we have arrived at Iqueque last night at 21:30...half an hour and we found a nice hostel near the center..the following morning was nice and clear skies greated us. Steffan wanted to chill out alone (and also decided 10 min ago he liked it so our paths part..) so i hit the streets alone but to to my backpack...Iqueque is a port city with a rocky beach and lots of 3 meter wing-long Condors shitting all aroundthe beach area...there were also lots of Cormorans to help with the holly and dirty work, and thus most ppl in Iqueque are looking up just checking nobody shit on their head...As im an Israeli, i had to look both up, straight and back so i wont be shitted from any direction...;) In any case, after having nice time at the beach, i went to have lunch at a nice resturant near the market place and afterwards climbed the bus for Humberstone. Humberstone, founded at 18-something, boomed at the 1940's and closed and departed at the 60´s, is a small ghost town 45 km west to Iqueque. I went there at the afternoon for a nicer view of town as the sun isless intense. I knew that i was going for a kind of an adventure as: A)im alone B) i don´t know shit about espanol. but i said what the heck...it was a challange and i took it by both hands...after an half an hour driving i litteraly jump out of the bus and headed through the small gate. Parting from a 1000 peso, and im in...all by myself, but the wind howling all along, like representing a 100 year or so of ppl living and dying...it was a bit friethening to be there all alone, but i focoused on the old and rusty buildings that stand there like after a leathal gas attack...metal junk was strewn here and there, and all the buildings were empty, as expected...Hotel, High school, swimming pool(!), tennis court..u name it, they had it all...they were closed due to the nitrate industry collapse...well, at least the buildings were still standing there for evidence...amazingly, i have stumbled into a couple of german man and a french women touring the city...although the German was more sympathic, the women drawn him away and thus a distance was formed...in any case, i prefered also to survey this city alone, as it added to the atmosphere...few minutes into the sunset, i was on my way to the exit, and also the couple was...we didnt speak even outside, waiting to the bus when the wind strengthens and the skies are colored with wild red, orange and purple mixed with overcasting clouds...the sun kept setting down and we were still there, waiting...finally, the couple have made a move and crossed the road to the other side...at first i didn't understanded why, but not for long. a bus stopped by and i darted like a a man with flames to check what´s happening..there is nothing more serious than being stuck alone in a dark, cold forgotten place. there was somekind of negotiation and the couple got into the bus...with my instincts, i stepped into the bus, not knowing were the hell it is going...the couple,i guessed, was headed toward Iqueque, but they stepped on a bus to Arica, which is in the other direction...after talking with the German guy i understanded that the bus driver was kind enough to drop them in a town that has a bus station to Iqueque...well, not quite, but i sufficed with this answer....as we kept on driving west and then north bound, the sun kept sinking, i was getting agitated...where the hell are we headed?? As much as i tried to keep it cool and think positive things, it was almost impossible...thinking that i should have tried to hitch hike at humberstone, for every vehicle driving east was bound to go to Iqueque...in any case, after 30 min of driving we got to a check point, which every vehicle bound east must pass...nice location to hop on a bus...after 10 min, a commercial mitsubishi stopped by (colectivo) and we headed back north and thenwest toward Iqueque...finally, at 20:30 i got to the center...SO, that´s it...2mmorow me and steffan are heading to Arica, where our paths will part...have a great day and week

Chao from Chile

Chen