This morning, I had to get up at 3:30, because my tour to the El Tatio geysers left at 4 in order to get to the geysers in time for the sunrise. The morning didn't start very well: the heating in the bus didn't really heat, and the windows kept opening themselves because of the vibrations on the rough street. So I was cold all through the bus ride - and then, at the geysers at 4200m above sea level, we were kicked out of the bus to have breakfast... outside! By that time, I was pretty grumpy - the way I always get when I'm cold and tired.
Luckily, the geysers were very nice and kinda made up for the early time and cold weather. The El Tatio geyser field consists of more than 80 geysers - small ones, big ones, bubbling ones, and steaming ones:
The steam plumes are another reason the geysers are usually visited early in the morning. As soon as the air warms up, the plumes disappear.
Like most countries with geothermal activity, Chile also tried exploiting it. These are the remains of a previous attempt - but apparently, they discontinued geothermal exploitation in favor of the touristic one.
El Tatio has not only geysers, but also steaming hot rivers:
On the way back, we got to enjoy some beautiful mountain scenery:
My mood improved back in San Pedro, relaxing in a hammock under the warm midday sun. In the evening, I was ready for a real highlight: an astronomy tour in the atacama desert, under a perfectly clear sky and far from any major settlement. This was easily the best tour I've done in San Pedro, probably because the guide was really passionate about astronomy and explained everything in a brilliant and funny way.
To point out constellations in the sky, he used a strong green laser pointer - the perfect method to make sure that even the unimaginative and blind could see what he was talking about.
He also explained details for a few stars. Among them: Pollux. Pollux happens to be 33 light years away, which means that the light we see today was emitted when I was born. An entirely new and great way to relate to distances in space!
Another thing the guide explained was that the southern hemisphere is the best place to see the center of our galaxy, the milky way, while the northern hemisphere is better for looking beyond our galaxy because the dense center of the milky way doesn't get in the way.
Finally, they also had ten telescopes pointing to various objects in the sky. We could see Mars and Saturn, complete with its rings and moons, Sirius, the jewel box, the tarantula nebula, and a few other far-out objects.
Having professionals point the telescopes at interesting objects for you removed all the hassle from stargazing and left only fascination. What a wonderful experience!
Luckily, the geysers were very nice and kinda made up for the early time and cold weather. The El Tatio geyser field consists of more than 80 geysers - small ones, big ones, bubbling ones, and steaming ones:
The steam plumes are another reason the geysers are usually visited early in the morning. As soon as the air warms up, the plumes disappear.
Like most countries with geothermal activity, Chile also tried exploiting it. These are the remains of a previous attempt - but apparently, they discontinued geothermal exploitation in favor of the touristic one.
El Tatio has not only geysers, but also steaming hot rivers:
On the way back, we got to enjoy some beautiful mountain scenery:
My mood improved back in San Pedro, relaxing in a hammock under the warm midday sun. In the evening, I was ready for a real highlight: an astronomy tour in the atacama desert, under a perfectly clear sky and far from any major settlement. This was easily the best tour I've done in San Pedro, probably because the guide was really passionate about astronomy and explained everything in a brilliant and funny way.
To point out constellations in the sky, he used a strong green laser pointer - the perfect method to make sure that even the unimaginative and blind could see what he was talking about.
He also explained details for a few stars. Among them: Pollux. Pollux happens to be 33 light years away, which means that the light we see today was emitted when I was born. An entirely new and great way to relate to distances in space!
Another thing the guide explained was that the southern hemisphere is the best place to see the center of our galaxy, the milky way, while the northern hemisphere is better for looking beyond our galaxy because the dense center of the milky way doesn't get in the way.
Finally, they also had ten telescopes pointing to various objects in the sky. We could see Mars and Saturn, complete with its rings and moons, Sirius, the jewel box, the tarantula nebula, and a few other far-out objects.
Having professionals point the telescopes at interesting objects for you removed all the hassle from stargazing and left only fascination. What a wonderful experience!
