Jan 18-19 San Pedro to Iquique
We promised Charles and Janet that we would stop in before
we left to say Adios and answer any last minute questions they might have. They
are heading south and had a bunch of questions about route options and such.
Matt and Meagan are heading north so they also had a couple of questions about
travel in Bolivia and Colombia. We had seen many other travel bikes in town and
they are like magnets for other bike travellers, so when we are parked talking
to Charles and Janet a couple of other bike riders stroll up and join the conversation.
The common element of course is the motorcycle and where they have taken us. We
all joke that the bikes want to see new things and that we are just along for
the ride, why else would you dress up in full riding gear in 35C weather and
ride around the desert.
That being said it is time to ride out into the desert on
our way to Iquique (eye-kee-kay) which is along the Pacific coast. All we
really know about the place is that it is also a mining based economy and that
the Dakar Rally stayed there for a few days, and we hope to get new rear tires
there. The coast in Northern Chile is what it is, desert rock and sand thrown
together in dynamic configurations that seem unending. On one side of the road
is rugged coastline with blue waves crashing the shore, on the other side is
like the surface of the moon or something similar.
We pass by the location where the Rally crested the bank and
made a dramatic descent down to the
shore. This must have been a major relief for the competitors after riding in
the desert all day, even though the 2-3km descent is daunting and more than a
little intimidating.
We did not know that there is a large duty free shopping
zone in Iquique called Mall Zufa, this explains all the traffic and trucks, but
most of the goods arrive by ship at the port and then are transferred to the
shopping area by truck. We have been in contact with Sonia again at
MotoAventura because she has a workshop here and has promised that they have
the tires we need. Once again, we are not surprised that they do not have the
correct size but we are surprised that they cannot find any in town. They offer
up a slightly larger tire from the same manufacturer that we have to settle
for. Not my preffered tread pattern but there is really no other choice aside
from a very aggressive knobby that would likely wear out in 2000km.
The tire replacement took most of the day, partially because
once we got the tires off we realized that one of the wheel bearings had
completely failed, Raul the mechanic, knew where to get replacement SKF
bearings so it was just a matter of waiting a while for him to return and pop
out the old ones and install the new. What really took time was the swapping
out of the tires, the shop was very busy and we were not first in line. By 5pm we
are finally finished with the tires and bearings, we really enjoyed the
afternoon at SamMoto’s, listening to Sr. Jorge tell stories of his business
ventures and Chilean history.
Our Hostal was only one block from the beach and extensive
Malecon so we decide to stay and extra day to explore the city. It is crazy hot
so we have to be careful not to get sun stroke or sun burn or both while we
walk around. The Malecon is nicely developed with green spaces and exercise
areas in addition to a few restaurants and bars. One section is developed with
tall condo buildings and even a Yacht Club which is a reflection of the strong
economy that Chile has been experiencing for a number of years now. The
downtown area of the city has a large central square and a number of blocks
that are designated as pedestrian streets. A number of street vendors were
selling antiques of all kinds including old money, stamps, postcards(used),
toys, and all kinds of stuff. We find a couple of treasures and for $20 it is
hard to refuse. Then it was time to head back to the Hostal to make a bite to
eat, we stop intermittently to watch the people on the beach and wonder how
they are not burnt to a crisp. In any event it was another great day.
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