The Traveling Idiots-Where The Tuck Are They Now?: San Pedro de Atacama and the Moon Valley

Howdy from the Moon!

Hola from San Pedro de Atacama, Chile! We'd like to say a special hello to our favorite person of Chilean descent, Alonzo, who is a very close friend of Sarah. Hopefully that makes him our friend too.
We arrived in San Pedro de Atacama yesterday (Wednesday) afternoon around 3:30 PM. The journey included a flight from Tampa to Miami, then Miami to Santiago, followed by one more flight, Santiago to Calama. From Calama it was a short and easy hour and a half drive to our first destination on this adventure.
San Pedro de Atacama is a town of around 4,000 people, located in Northeastern Chile. It sits on a plateau in the Andes Mountains and is an oasis in the desert, complete with trees and shrubs. The areas surrounding the town have volcanos, salt flats, geysers and hot springs. It has become a popular destination in recent years for travelers that enjoy hiking, biking, stargazing and outdoor activities. Last year the city played host to around 180,000 visitors. Of course I learned about it from my source of all things travel related, Beth!
We are staying at the Planeta Atacama, which is a really cool 5 room lodge on the outskirts of the city. When we arrived we were greeted by Kate, who is originally from France. She was incredibly helpful in getting us oriented, not only to the lodge, but also to some of the activities that we might be interested in during our five night stay. Even though it's early in our stay, we've already taken advantage of a couple of her recommendations and they have been excellent!

The Planeta Atacama-The "Community/Breakfast Room" is on the right. Our room is the first one on the other side of it.

The view from our room. Across the plateau is the Licancabur Volcano

My blogging office for the day...……….

also our picnic table.

Our very traditional picnic feast. Peanut Butter Sandwich, Chips and Banana

One other thing that is important to point out about San Pedro de Atacama is the elevation. As I mentioned earlier, it is located on a plateau in the Andes Mountains and is 7900 feet above sea level. While this certainly isn't real high, it's about 7895 feet higher than we're accustomed. We knew we'd be taking it easy the first 24 hours while getting acclimated.
Once we were settled in we did drive into town around sunset for a leisurely stroll around and to get a bite to eat. At Kate's recommendation, we enjoyed sharing a meal at a local traditional restaurant called Las Delicias de Carmen. She had warned us that the portions were huge, so we shared one meal of pork chops, sautéed potatoes, salad and bread, which was plenty.

Downtown San Pedro de Atacama at sunset

We both slept well, however, we both woke up this morning with slight headaches. You may be thinking too much wine, but that's not the case. No wine was consumed. It was most likely a result of too little oxygen. The lodge anticipates that some folks might have issues with the altitude so they provide the local remedy, coca tea. After a cup we were both feeling better. We were the only ones staying at the lodge last night (other guests will be here today) but the breakfast was large enough that it could have accommodated a "full house".
After eating we headed out for our first bit of exploring the area. Although it was only a fifteen minute drive, it was like we were suddenly transported to another planet, the moon! The Valle De La Luna (Valley of the Moon) is a collection of colorful rock formations that could easily be used as the backdrop for any movie requiring a setting on the surface of the moon. The small admission price of around $3.00 US that was well worth it. We enjoyed several hours of driving the unpaved road, as well as exploring several of the numerous trails that wound up, over and around the formations.
Here are some pictures from our morning adventure...……….