uncharted territory

As the bus rolls around the corner on Chiles main corrider, ruta 5, the coastal Iquique seemed to appear out of nowhere amongst the looming sand dunes that line Chile´s northern coast. It is really an impressive sight, the city is squeezed between a phenomenal coastline and towers of desert that are actually given the name Cerros Drágons (Dragon Hills). My friend Dana, her 18 year old sister and I arrived yesterday morning to begin what will be a two week travel for me across northern Chile and Bolivia. They will probably travel longer but I cut my time short in order to spend my last week in South America in Valpo and because I´m somewhat short on funds...

Anyway, we came here first to see the Atacama desert, the driest desert in the world and one of Chile´s most amazing treasures. We also came to see the Festival of La Tirana. La Tirana is a tiny town about 1.5 hours outside of Iquique by bus. The town is tiny and quite poor. 800 inhabitants live in box shaped one-homes that line this towns dusty streets. However, every year over 80,000 tourists and religious pilgrims flock for the incredible festival of La Tirana. The festival celebrates the town´s virgin patron saint Carmen with a week long display of dancing, praying and partying.

We went last night out to the town for the final shebang: Imagine the smells of a state fair or music festival (with less drugs and alchol): cigarettes, greasy food being cooked in the streets, sweets, chicken, hotdogs...you name it. The place was jam packed, the kind of crowded where when you walk so feel you are simply being carried by the crowd. People of all ages were there, including families wheeling around babies.

Now imagine: drums, trumpets, tubas blasting all around, on every corner a different traditional dance being performed by people in the most amazing colorful costumes, often with huge light-up, colorful dragon masks. The dancers are of all ages and there are tons of them! Every dance (so every street corner) has its own Virgin Carmen: a light up plastic statute that is carried around on a cart by pious pilgrims.

When I was in high school I went to a festival in a small town in Mexico that honors their patron saint and this was similar in a lot of ways. Yet it was of its own northern chile variety in all its improvisation, costumes, and crowd. It was amazing and worth the trip. The night ended with a two hour outdoor mass in which people lit candles and offered their blessings to the Virgin. Just when I thought the mass had hit the end on a somber note, with the crowd and priest begging for salvation, the drums began sounding while firworks, hot pink flares and dancers seemed to emerge from nowhere. A gorgous firework display ensued (mind you at this point it was about midnight) and the dancing picked right back up again. Whew! The tour bus got us back to our hostel at 4:00am...a night to remember.

Today we ventured into the desert to see the beautiful landscape and check out a ghost mining town called Humberstone. It was gorgeous, the rolling form of the desert is amazing and when the sun started to set on the bus ride home the whole countryside turned pink. Also, today was the first time in a very long time that i felt truly strong sunshine. Tomorrow we head off to Arica, the most northern city of Chile known for warm beaches and mummies? Wednesday first thing in the morning we leave for La Paz Bolivia. Should be an adventure. Keep you posted! besos.