The Atacama Desert in northern Chile... In this mineral world where everything seems so big, so infinite, and so calm. But some rocks are impatient. They wait for the morning surge of the geysers to warm up from the cold night ! Located about 50 miles north of San...
South America
The highest waterfalls, the highest peaks, the deepest lakes, the most impenetrable jungle… the natural wonders of South America compete in excess. Many of these places are difficult to access because they owe their preserved beauty to the mountains and forests that protect them. But this is part of their attraction: at the edge of a waterfall or in the heart of a wet jungle, everyone can find their way in this lost world…
Discover the countries I have visited:
The Atacama Desert: See Life in Pink (Flamingo)
The Atacama Desert in northern Chile reveals astonishing landscapes at the feet of the Andes Mountains. The Salar de Atacama is about 34 miles south of San Pedro de Atacama. This salt flat covers an area of 1,200 square miles and is roughly 62 miles long and 50 miles...
The Atacama Desert, welcome to Mars !
Lunar landscapes, snow-topped volcanoes, vast salt lakes, bubbling geysers: the landscape of the Atacama is breathtaking. The Atacama Desert lies in the northernmost part of Chile. The region is sometimes called "El Norte Grande" and extends from the Peruvian border...
Easter Island, « The Mysterious Island »
Like the island described in Jules Verne's, "The Mysterious Island", Rapa Nui or Easter Island, lost in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, holds many archaeological and cultural treasures. Indeed, Easter Island could have been an integral part of Verne's series...
Easter Island, Mysterious Rapa Nui
Isolated in the middle of the southeastern Pacific Ocean nearly 2,340 miles from Santiago de Chile, 2,646 miles from Tahiti, 4,650 miles from Honolulu, and 4,245 miles from Los Angeles, Easter Island is one of the world’s most isolated spots. It is about 15,3 miles...
A visit to Valparaiso, the Chile’s Colorful Coastal City
A stop in Valparaíso (Valpo to locals) is a must-do when visiting Chile. Valparaiso is located 70 miles northwest of the capital Santiago and is the second largest metropolitan area in the country. Its name means "Valley of Paradise". In 2003 the historic center of...
Los Lagos Region or Araucania, a Mythical Land
The Los Lagos Region or the Araucania in southern Chile is located 435 miles from Santiago and stretches between the cities of Temuco and Puerto Montt. It is a popular holiday destination for Chileans. The mildness of its climate and the beauty of the landscape...
Chiloé, Patagonia seen from the Sea
The Chiloé archipelago, in southwestern Chile, consists of 40 small islands, 36 of which are inhabited, and lies off the coast of the Los Lagos Region. The main island, Isla Grande Chiloé, is as big as Corsica and separated from the mainland by the Chacao Strait. It...
Torres del Paine, 50 shades of blue
The Aymara people gave this narrow strip of land squeezed between the Andes to the East and the Pacific Ocean to the west the name "Chile", meaning "the land lost in the sea". Full of unusual places, surprises, and contrasts it stretches over 2,670 miles between...
The Ice Age: Drift of Frostwork Beauties
Complete change of scenery... we are in El Calafate, the capital of the province of Santa Cruz and the gateway to majestic glaciers. The town is named for the little indigenous Calafate bush (Berberis buxifolia) with yellow flowers and dark blue berries common in...
Tierra del Fuego
Tierra del Fuego... an odd name for a region located at the southernmost tip of South America across the Strait of Magellan where the average annual temperature is 40 °F and the Summer high never over 63 °F... ¡Mira vos! Tierra del Fuego was the name given the area by...
Journey to the End of the World
Patagonia is located at the southern tip of the American continent and shared between Chile in the West and Argentina in the East. Carved by centuries of geological movement, Patagonia is about 440,362 square miles in size and divided into five provinces, Neuquén, Rio...
The New World
Mmmmmmm ... (etc) / In noreni per ipe / in noreni Cora / tira mine per ito / ne domina, with the music of Vangelis in mind I step into the New World ! Here I am in the footsteps of Christopher Columbus, on my way to The Conquest of Paradise. But am I already there?...
I dreamed of another world…
A last glance at the Laguna Colorada in the early morning: this shallow salty lake has regained its serenity and lost its intense red color, but still offers striking reflections. We head toward the desert of Siloli in Southwestern Bolivia, a desert dominated by...
Across the border
"Should we cross the border / Going Beyond / Without missteps / Discover what is behind..." (Donoré – Passer la Frontière). Let’s cross the border and discover the Bolivian Altiplano, seemingly “the region” to discover. The Altiplano or high plain is located in...