We
had hoped coming down to 2,600m would bring less pressure on our lungs,
a bit more temperate weather (warmer, a bit of humidity perhaps) to
recover our head and chest colds. Not in San Pedro de Atacama. This
place is a barren desert, aside from the few streets of adobe mud
buildings stocked with all the traveler essentials: agencies,
overpriced restaurants and convenience stores. It's like being in New
Mexico or Arizona during the prime heat of summer - hot and dry.
Picture swirling dirt devils throughout the unpaved roads, scorching
sun beating down during the very long summer hours of sun, the constant
sting of hot wind and dirt particles upon skin, a perfect situation for
dehydration - and water here comes at a premium price. It costs $15 to
do a tiny load of laundry, and there are signs in all hostels and
hotels, "it is strictly forbidden to clean the clothes in the sink."
Great, we've just come off 4 days of no showers, and all our clothes
are filthy. We have our method down, though, we'll wear all our dirty
clothes into the shower (which is really just a trickle of water), wash
them all out with our secret packet of detergent, and stash them
secretly in the corners of our room - it's so dry here, they'll crisp
up in no time.
Despite
being at an altitude where we finally get some oxygen into our blood
stream, breathing isn't any easier, as the air is thick with "pulvo" or
dust. We're both a hacking mess and our sinuses are killing us. Also,
no good hit of psudenopherine exists for purchase here, it's all weak
concentrations in pills and does nothing to clear out the sinuses. We
buy big 5 liter jugs of water, wondering why it's so available in large
quantity versus the only other smaller size - 1 liter bottles... it's
because our bodies will be screaming for 5 liters a day of water here.
With
only a few streets in this town, and after just an hour cruising
through the dusty streets, we now know all the shops and touts trying
to reel us into their restaurants with "pisco sour" as a "regalo"
(gift). The town central plaza has a huge Christmas tree all decked
out and lit up, and a nearly life-size nativity structure ready to host
Mary, Joseph, baby Jesus and their slew of camellids (vicunas, llamas
and alpacas). I imagine they must have a big festival here where they
first parade all the statues through the street, bless them and then
hoist them into the nativity.
While
San Pedro is a cute enough desert oasis town, we can't afford to stay
here too long. Prices are higher than US prices. The cost for
accommodation and food quoted in the Lonely Planet guide for Chile,
just published in 2006, are already all sorely out of date. The
current prices are easily 50 - 100% higher than the book rates. Thanks
to the depreciation of the good 'ol greenback, we can't even afford two
meals a day here. A coffee, half the size of a small cup 'o Starbucks
(you know we've been removed from the US for so long, when I can't even
remember what a small cup of Starbucks is called) is $3.50 - $4.00, and
it's not even real coffee, it's Nescafe! Although this is an region
where products must be carried in from afar and hence, a higher price
tag may be justified for some things... the outrageous prices to see
the sights of the desert have also doubled since the book was
published. Compared to Bolivia, where we saw similar landscapes, the
prices here are unjustifiably high, and we are so glad we saw all that
we could in Bolivia for a fraction of the price. They are definitely
taking advantage of the wealthy Europeans crawling the streets here.
This
said, we have a rather odd, safe and secure feeling in this town. It's
highly unlikely we'll be mugged walking down the couple of streets
here, so I think we'll hang out a few days and try to recover our
tortured bodies from the intense 4 days over overland journey through
Bolivia.
