Chillan

Chillan is a small city, 5 hours driving south of Santiago. We went there with friends for the fiestas patrias, a long bank holiday in September. We could enjoy the local hot springs and the quiet mountain landscape.

The warm water of the hot spring felt really good after the cold weather!

We enjoyed a typical "cabaña" in the country side, with the usual asado (barbeque).

Walking with friends in the countryside.

Cañon del Colca

The Colca Canyon is 4 hours from Arequipa and is the deepest canyon in the world with 4160 meters. It is famous for its many condors who like to play with tourists and fly around us. These birds are huge with a width of nearly 3 meters.

Two condors flying above us.

The entrance of the canyon.

Arequipa

Arequipa is the second city of Peru, as Cusco it is a strong Spanish background and a lot of colonial buildings.

The catherdal of Arequipa.

The Plaza de Armas of Arequipa.

Machu Picchu

After an early wake up we finally reached the Machu Picchu via train and buses. The place is like a city in the clouds and when the mist goes away we could see how high we where in the jungle.

View from above the Machu Picchu.

The Incas created levels of fields in the jungle to feed habitants of the city.

Machu Picchu with the face of the Inca in the background.
The green mountain was seen as a god looking towards the skies.

Cusco

Cusco is and old Inca city with a lot of Spanish colonial buildings. It really looks like Santiago de Compostela in Galicia.

The Plaza de Armas, main square of Cusco.

The main street of Cusco with the hills in the background.

The market is full of local products, the fruits are delicious, we didn't know half of them.

The Cholas are the women dressed in traditional clothes, they are everywhere in Bolivia and Peru.

The cathedral of Cusco.

The Ceviche is a famous Peruvian dish, made of marinated fish with spices and lemon, delicious!

Copacabana

Copacabana is a little town in the shores of the Titicaca lake. The lake is gigantic and could be compared to a see as we couldn't see the other side.

The little boats our bus used to cross the lake.

The Titicaca is located at 3600 meters above sea level, only a little part of the lake is visible on the above picture.

The church of Copacabana and the local market.

The island of the sun with pre-Inca ruins, in the middle of the lake.

La Paz

After a bumpy ride in a night bus we arrived in La Paz, capital of Bolivia. The city is located in a valley and houses are everywhere around us. The city seems to be from the 60´s with its cars and buses from another time.

The parliament of Bolivia with the local buses.

La Paz seen from the bottom of the valley. The centre is the touristic and formal city, then the hills are house of parallel business and dodgy places.

Uyuni

We crossed the border with Bolivia to reach Uyuni. The trip took a full day in 4x4 with highest points at 5300 meters. The landscapes are beautiful with lakes, animals, dried lava, volcanoes and desert.

When crossing the border to Bolivia.

On the way we had the chance to see lamas, vicuñas and flamingos.

The Salar of Uyuni is a huge, 120km long, desert of salt. Few islands covered with cactus rise from this lunar landscape. 

The island of the fish in the salar with the Bolivian flag.

Nothing but salt until the horizon...

San Pedro de Atacama

1600km north of Santiago is San Pedro de Atacama, a little village in the Atacama desert, the dryest place on earth. From there we visited Geysers, valleys, deserts and lagunas with landscapes out of this world.

The Vicuñas are a kind of wild Lamas, they are protected and have the most expensive (and warm) wool in the world.

The Geysers of the Tatio at 4800 meters, we had to get there very early as they disappear when the sun shows up. There water is at 85 degrees.

The Atacama desert with Pili riding on its endless roads.

The valley of the moon, with a lot of dunes, rocks and salt fields in a perfect silence.

Valparaiso

One hour away from Santiago on the Pacific coast is Valparaiso, one of the main ports of Chile surrounded by hills and their famous funiculars. The city is popular for its bohemian and artistic side.

The tramway of Valparaiso, it cannot be modernized as the city is listed as world heritage.

The city hall.

Santiago

We are now in Santiago, Chile´s capital. The city is quite big and surrounded with the Andes.

Santiago de Chile with the cordillera and its infamous smog cloud.

We also visited the surroundings of the city and the famous Cajon del Maipo, a valley praised by trekkers for its stunning views.

The walk takes 3 hours to the top where stands a frozen lake.

There are several sources of water on the way they seem to carry minerals as the paint the surrounding grass in red or green, 

Kathmandu

After our trekking and before to come back to Europe we had some time to spend in Kathmandu the Nepalese capital. We could visit the surroundings of the city, full of temples and crowded squares.

Patan is a town near Kathmandu, its Durbar Square is one of the nicest.

Farmers drying wheat in the sun in Chungunrayan a village overlooking Kathmandu.

A float after the festival in Durbar Square in Bakhtapur.

A temple in Durbar Square.

Pashupatinath, a holy part of the city where bodies are cremated and with many little temples.

A place for offerings with butter candles at Kathmandu Durbar Square.

Stupa of the Monkey Temple on top of a hill in Kathmandu.

Nepalese spinning prayers wheels at the monkey temple.

Annapurna Sanctuary Trekking

After the noise of India we were so relaxed to arrive in Nepal, such a quiet country! From Pokhara we made a 7 day trek to reach the base camp of the Annapurna, a great experience. It is a famous trekking that takes you from the sub-tropical climate with monkeys and jungle to high altitudes with pristine snows.

We had to share the path with many animals, here two yaks enjoy some fresh grass on the stairs.

At low altitude we walked through rice fields. The main menu for trekkers is the Dal Bhat, local rice with beans and vegs,  refills are free and it is delicious!

These kinds of bridges are typical in the Himalayas, they are more resistant than they look! 

The Annapurna I and its 8091 meters on our way to the base camp.

Finally at the base camp, at 4170 meters we needed warm clothes!

Varanasi

Varanasi is THE holy city of Hinduism. Every Hindu has to go there once in his lifetime to purify his body in the Ganga river. To die there would free yourself from the cycle of reincarnation. This city was the most impressive for us, the ghats (stairs) go down into the river all along the city. Each ghat has its functionality, from cleaning yourself to burning bodies of dead people. Behind the river, the little streets are very crowded, with a lot of traffic. It is a special city different of anything else in India!

The famous ghats and the Ganga.

In the evening many people gather on the gaths for ceremonies and others rents boats to admire the city.

The "burning" ghats have stock piles of wood to cremate about 200 people every day.

Nearby, people are taking a holy bath in the Ganga.