I was out until 4 and up at 6 to catch a 10 hour Bus back into Chile. I was exhausted, but the ride was - as I’ve come to expect and you’re probably tired of hearing - gorgeous. Patrick and I arrived in San Pedro with a head start - Frank had found us a hostel and a pair of British roommates that were fast friends. The five of us had an awesome time wandering the mellow streets of San Pedro, exploring the surrounding desert, and being too loud in our shared dorm. It’s a good thing we got along so well, because I didn't make any friends by destroying people at the hostel’s ping pong table.

The other highlights: Sandboarding - a ton of fun, but very different from snowboarding, and it gave me a new appreciation for chairlifts. Salt Lakes - beautiful, and surprisingly entertaining; floating in water with seven times the salinity of the ocean feels funny. Star Gazing - We got a bit unlucky with some clouds and bright moonlight, but we had a memorable astronomy lesson and some breathtaking telescopic views of saturn, the jewel box, and omega centauri.