There’s Something About Deserts, Man…

I enjoyed traveling by myself again and thought about that while sitting on the bus heading north having no idea what my next week will look like. I do enjoy company for long 18hr bus rides but it was good to have time alone. Why people recommended La Serena to me, I’m not sure…A friend I made from Austria put it best, “if you’ve been to other beaches in your life, they were probably better than this one.” I don’t even have photos of the beach because I didn’t feel comfortable taking my camera out and I felt that the image of dead gutted birds on the shore, mixed with trash, and heavy clouds wouldn’t be something I needed to remember. This is important to note because I came to this city for the beaches (supposedly). Let me back track to my first day in La Serena.

After a very long bus ride, I arrived at the terminal and judging the town very quickly, I made the decision to do the 10 minute walk to my hostel in the evening. Always feeling more vulnerable with my bags on me, it was a fast walk but felt good after being on the bus all day. Once I found the hostel, I was stranded outside with the sign that read “reception closes at 4pm.” This is when I met Felix, a kind man from Germany who not only let me in but helped me distinguish my bed for the night and gave me a little tour of the hostel. 

I instantly was reminded once again how kind people are and how you’ll often find a friend while traveling alone. I ended up spending my next few days with him and the Austrian I mentioned above, Raphael. I loved the trio we made: always laughing and having good conversations about the world. They were some of the kindest people I met while traveling and when they left La Serena, my heart sunk again for a bit. 

The funny thing though is that it’s also a small world here in the north of Chile. We all had reservations at the same hostel in San Pedro de Atacama, I was just a day behind them. 

Before I jump to the desert, something I found interesting — from the perspective of a woman — was comparing my day in La Serena where I walked around with Felix to my day alone there. Felix and I walked around town and markets and to the beach. The next day, I was bored in the town and decided to repeat that route because I enjoyed it, however I was alone this time. I walked to the same place we bought fried bread and sat by myself to enjoy it, and was approached by a flirtatious male. I then walked through the market looking for gifts and was asked out by a male vendor. I then walked to buy a smoothie at the same stand and was flirted with by the blender man. It’s funny how different your experience is as a woman by yourself. 

Anyways, once I stepped off the bus in the Atacama, I felt alive! There’s something about deserts, man. I instantly felt excited and ready to explore the driest place on earth. I found the hostel and walked through the doors dripping with sweat, to be greeted by the familiar kind smile of Felix. I was so happy to see my friends again and spend the week with them. 

We walked around the small town, went to salt lagoons, did a star gazing tour, ate delicious food together, drank beer and made friends with the other 50 Germans at the hostel (hah), and just enjoyed the tranquility of the desert. This stop was exactly what I needed.

For a lot of people, their next stop was going to be the salt flats in Bolivia. This was a hard moment for me because I really wanted to join them on that bus up there. We were already so close to the border and I met so many nice people, I was ready to go on that adventure too. But…I had a commitment to follow through with so I just let that feeling of wanting to travel more resonate with me and inspire me for future trips. 

I had a flight back to Santiago on the 27th and woke up that morning to a message from the airline that my flight was cancelled. Being the slightly neurotic person that I am, I had planned an extra day for possible errors such as this one. Still hoping to get back to Santiago, I showed up at the airport to see about other flights and bam, I was put on a flight that left in 10 minutes! This was a good reminder to not stress and have faith in the universe, that something will work out, that someone is looking out for you.