One of our goals of this trip was to make the most of our time in South America, and as of a couple of weeks ago we had accounted for every remaining day in Peru. Of course, it would be a shame to spend every day in Peru, and we planned to visit a beach-side town called Arica, in Chile.
Up until a few days prior, we weren't sure if we were going to go. We believed the cost of flights to be prohibitive for such a short trip, and I wasn't sure that a visit to the beach justified 6 hours (each way) on a bus. As it turned out, the flights were entirely reasonable, and we assembled a group of 6 volunteers to take the 21 minute flight.
So following the Inicial Olympics on Friday, we darted for the airport in a taxi. The flight was mostly pain-free, except for the landing! I'd barely turned on my iPod when the announcement came that we were descending to land. The next clue that we were landing was a giant thud on the tarmac. Apparently, because the flights were so cheap, they didn't bother to put wings on the airplane! But no harm done, except for a few innocent passengers abruptly torn from their dreams.
We were in Arica! We dropped off our things at our hostel, then headed out to see the sights. We weren't exactly sure what to expect from Arica, other than beautiful beaches, but even they didn't seem to want to show themselves. Our first attempt at finding a beach yielded a shipyard, after which we wandered for 30 minutes in the wrong direction on the drunken advice of some German locals.
Ordinarily, this would have made for a pretty disappointing evening, but something happened next that put a smile on all our faces. Or perhaps I should say someone. Let me introduce Francesca. She is a fellow volunteer with a passion and a flair for language. She speaks fluent Italian, which pretty much means she speaks fluent Spanish too! Anyway, Franny decided to approach a woman to ask for directions, and to track down a mythical restaurant that had been recommended to us. What transpired next is a mystery, but their conversation ended with the 6 of us squeezing into a car the size of a Mazda 1 and driving to our restaurant.
We were greeted by 2 guard dogs stalking the entrance to the restaurant, which appeared closed. We retreated to the street, disappointed and hungry. At this point, Debra, who recently arrived in Arequipa but has spent the last 6 months volunteering with GVI throughout South America, warned us that she would transform into a monster if not fed before 9pm. Then Franny stepped up again. This time she approach a couple of guys with a Ute, and we applauded the choice because we'd have more room to sit if they were to offer us a lift. And they did, but this time we declined. There were more than a few jokes flying around about approaching a bus driver next time. We ended up finding a walkway with a bunch of nice restaurants, and enjoyed a great night that also featured an outdoor performance from a local jazz band.
Saturday was our only full day in Arica, and we planned to spend it on the beach. This time we walked the other way, and soon we spied the beach in the distance. The morning was overcast and gloomy, but we'd been told by the hostel owner that it gets nice at 12pm. As we walked, we joked that the clouds would part at 12pm, that the trees that seemed so lifeless would stand up straight, and that the city would miraculously transform into a wonderland. As funny as it seemed, it pretty much happened.
But before that, I have one visual that I must share with you. As we headed for the beach, we followed an old railway track. The track passed over a bridge, and in a classic Stand By Me moment we walked on the railway tracks over the bridge. Then looking down through the track, we saw a dead bird (that's not the funny bit). So the bridge came and went, and there were jokes about the bird coming to life at 12pm. Then we approached a fence, with 5 posts. On 4 of the posts were birds, but one was eerily empty. Needless to say there was lots of laughter and a mock conversation between the birds pondering why their friend hadn't returned from the bridge yet.
So 12pm came and went, and the surroundings came to life. The beach was quiet, but we had a nice relaxing day doing nothing.
Arica has a huge hill from which a lookout provides beautiful views of the city. We had planned to go there, but in the late afternoon we were running out of time before sunset. So out of desparation, we walked up to the freeway to survey our options. What time is it? Franny time! That's right - she was able to get a bus to stop in the middle of the freeway to give us a lift back into town so we could get to the lookout. At this point, we decided that Arica might be home to the most friendly people in the world.
The views from the lookout were great. As is customary in most South American towns and cities, there was a large statue of Jesus watching over... the ocean! I should mention that Peru and Chile are not the best of friends. So much so that, when erecting a giant statue of Jesus, the Chilenos opted to face it out towards the ocean rather than into their city (and Peru).
On Sunday morning, we checked out the local church, constructed completely from iron. Having been painted, its style was not as unique and endearing as the name might suggest, but we had to see it for ourselves. After that, we headed back to the airport, recharged and ready for another week.
And here is Debra's perspective on the weekend, complete with Churros and Jordan references:
Chris
1 comment:
Very adventurous ... and exciting. Good pics ... Happy to see that you'll are enjoying every bit ... make the best of it ... its a once a lifetime opportunity!
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