The last bit of Chile

Jan 21 Iquique to Arica

About 30km outside of Iquique is a ghost town turned tourist attraction. Humberstone was once a thriving mining town until the mining companies closed and the town was vacated. At the time the residents just took their personal possessions and left everything else. Over the years looting and the climate have taken their toll on the town but in recent years there has been alot of effort  put forth to restore the town. Many of the buildings are filled with artifacts that were found on site and a few things that have been added but are period correct. There is everything from children’s toys to wooden templates for making cast pipes and pumps. The theater has received the most attention and is now functional for special events which helps raise money to assist in the restoration efforts. The town has also received status as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

We meet a nice couple from New Zealand who are travelling on a F800, heading south to Ushuaia then turning North and heading to Alaska. Seems be a common thing, although it is still an exclusive club to belong to, having traveled the Americas from end to end. The conversation is short as they are just leaving as we arrive,  just long enough to offer assistance when they reach Canada if required.

The rest of the day is spent pounding the pavement up the coast to Arica, some areas of the coast are very dramatic in a good way, other areas not so much. It is just so different from anything that we have seen before that it keeps us interested as putt along. I imagine it is a similar experience for people who have never seen the prairies, subtle changes over a long distance is about all I can say.

Once in Arica we find a hotel and then don’t even go for a walk, seems weird but we just didn’t care to see the town even though we were only 1 block from the center square. Not sure why, we just didn’t, maybe it was the cruise ship in the harbor, instead we spent the evening planning the route ahead and catching up on emails due to a lack of internet the last few days.

Maybe it was riding past this all day that made us feel like staying inside.