Parque Nacional: Lauca (4/29/2014)

So, after much pushing and prodding from our German dorm-mate, Lisa, I decided to accompany her to the Lauca, which is the national park about 2-3hours outside of Arica in the Andes Mountains. Now, for those of you that are unaware, much of the western coast of South America is desert. In fact, Lauca is home to one of the highest, driest, most arid deserts in the world: Atacama. So, you can imagine I was a smidgen concerned that my great Chilean adventure would consists of mountains, sand, and rocks. I could not have been in for a better surprise.

Not only was the journey up to the park gorgeous (picture massive candelario cacti greater than 3m in height and rolling hills with the sun peaking over the tops), but the actual park was even more breathtaking. There were multiple snow-capped volcanos, perfectly blue Lago Changará, and desert scenery. At the peak of 4500m, there were only the sounds of the birds and the wind to keep you company. No photo can do it justice.

Now, if the scenery was not enough, we were also able to see multiple animals during our Great 

Chilean Safari. We saw loads of vicuñas, which explained why we saw so many "vicuña crossing" signs. A group of friendly alpaca approached our van; I was able to stand so close that it could have spit on me! Absolutely amazing! Of course we also saw llama, another member of the camelid family. We were lucky enough to spot several "viscachas" which are basically a cross between a bunny and a chinchilla; they are apparently very shy and run away at the sound of many startling noises. One member of our group, an older Chilean gentleman, seemed unable to comprehend our guides constant instructions to be quiet. We also saw an Andean deer, which is very rare as they fear human interaction. The Andean goose was quite neat looking with its vibrant orange beak. Such an incredible day!

We also visited some of the smaller villages in the park (population 11) and ate at the local restaurants... Yum! I was also able to drive down a famous international highway, CH-11, which is also pretty cool!

Anywho, I am so stoked I decided to see the national park. I was not only able to learn about the three ecosystems if the Atacame desert, but I was also able to practice my Spanish and try alpaca jerky ("charqui" as the locals call it).

So happy!

EmBoss

P.S. I still have not seen any flamingos!