One of the greater gifts of seeing Atacama in the dead of winter is being able to experience a variety of landscapes within just a few hours. From reflective lakes hidden beneath snow-peaked mountains to rugged, pitch-black caverns found in deserts, a trip to Chile’s north lets you experience it all.
This is the second part of my series on the Atacama Desert. To read about Day 1‘s adventures, click here!
In a land devoid of most life, it’s incredible to see Atacama so full of personality and zest. In the few short days that I managed to spend there, I saw more variation in the landscapes I saw than I’ve seen in some people that I’ve met over the years. The towering views of the Andes reflected in the crystal clear lagoons of the desert opened my eyes to a part of the world that felt completely unlike the one I’ve known before.
In this short, three-part series, I’ll be bringing you along on my journey through the land known as the Atacama Desert, sharing with you the sights, sounds, and experiences that I came across throughout these three days.
Valparaíso – you are not my lover, nor are you my dearest friend. You have not held my hand through my first heartbreak, and you have not kept the rebellious secrets of my youth. You have not held me in a warm embrace after a long day’s journey, nor have you heard me sing into the morning’s light. At best, we are nodding acquaintances, acknowledging each other’s presence through the prolonged stares of people passing in the streets.
You open like a book – your buildings popping up, dotting the pages with palettes that only an artist could admire, and yet… I have yet to discover the secrets of the cryptic language that you are written in. The many folds of your city remain a mystery to me, even as I sit in the midst of them, overlooking your people, your sea.