It was a perfect opportunity for me to practice my conversational Spanish and it turns out I had learned a lot more than I had thought. One of the most difficult things for me was thinking of a new way to say something when I didn't know the words. I had to learn to be creative in how I spoke, using the words I knew to communicate my meaning. I thoroughly enjoyed conversing and I was told by each of the three men that they could understand me well. I know much of it was encouragement, but it was welcome nonetheless.
I slept on the beach that night in Chanral. The deep, fine sand felt good to sleep on and I spent the morning walking around barefoot, enjoying the feeling of no boots. Today would be different from yesterday. My first ride was a private vehicle: a brand spanking new MG sedan with the plastic still on the armrests. The driver was named Andres and we immediately hit it off. The drive to Copiapo was down the West coast of Chile, a beautiful coast with the desert terminating at the rocky coast. The Pacific Ocean stretched to the horizon and we made terrific time down Ruta 5. Andres was on his was to the bank to sign some papers for his new car and we had the best conversation that my limited Spanish would allow. In Copiapo he treated me to lunch and we traded Facebook info.
My next ride took me all the way to La Serena, another few hundred kilometers South and home to a bustling colonial city situated on several miles of broad beach. Again, another private vehicle, we made amazing time and I got to La Serena that day with enough light to find a hostel and explore the city. La Serena is one of the oldest cities in Chile and the architecture was beautiful. The shower was most welcome though, it had been almost a week! After a fitful night's sleep, I walked down to the beaches and walked several miles until I was out of town. The weather was overcast but warm and the surf was relaxing to listen to.
Getting out of La Serena proved to be the most difficult task yet. It was a large, busy city and there were not many places to catch a ride. My first ride took me to the outskirts of the city, but I stood there for 3 hours as I tried to find a ride further. Finally, after walking a few miles, a baker picked me up on his way to deliver bread to a small suburb of La Serena. He told me I would have much better luck in that area then in the city and I agreed. He left me on the freeway and I was thankful for Chile's relaxed road rules. I stood there, on the shoulder of a two lane freeway thumbing down a ride. After about an hour, a pickup truck with two men in it stopped and told me they were driving the rest of the way to Santiago! It was an 8 hour drive and I was stoked.
The two men were once again beyond nice, buying me dinner at a roadside restaurant that made their own cheese. The queso empanadas were delicious and we set out again. The drive was beautiful! We drove through the semi-desert, North of Santiago and we passed near the ocean through a twisty, turny road which we took at great speed. At times we hit 170kmh (100mph) on the straights. The 8 hour drive turned into 6 and they dropped me off at the nearest metro. In 20 minutes I was back at the hostel, with plenty of time for Free Wine and Pasta Night.
At the hostel I struck a bargain with management. I fixed the computers for two nights of lodging and breakfast. One evening I went out with the staff and we didn't return until early morning - I was not in bed until 6 am! The next day I took the taxi to the airport with some new friends who were from Canada. I spent that night in the airport and the next day I was off!
I laugh to myself when I think about my route home. I was flying into Greensboro, 2+ hours from my home, Boone. I would stay a couple nights with Janna and some new friends there, then take a train to Charlotte to meet Paige. From there we drove an hour and a half south-west to Greenville, SC to see my long lost friend Alyssa and finally I met my mom two more hours north in Johnson City, TN for the final hour and a half home. Not many people could take a 2 hour drive and turn it into 7 more hours of traveling over the course of 4 days. Now, however, I am home.
For the time being, anyway.
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