Just Maya and the World: Halloween in La Serena

     Halloween weekend happened to be extra long because we got Monday and Tuesday off, that meant one thing: It was time to back up and explore another region of Chile. This time, La Serena was up. Situated in the north of Chile, we were ready for some beach and weather finally nice enough to tan in. Missing halloween in Santa Barbara was bitter-sweet. I did not miss the hourds of people that cram into the streets of IV, but I did miss dressing up in coustumes 3 times in one week with some of the coolest people I know. Regardless, La Serena proved to be worth the trip.
     To start, the bus ride is about 6 hours long. Not bad at all! Since Chile is so long and skinny, traveling north and south can take a while. We arrived in La Serena around 10:30, just in time to catch the last couple innings of the World Series! Even though it wasn't the Giants playing it was still fun to watch. The best part: the commentary in Spanish, absolutely hilarious. Surprisingly bus rides make you incredibly tired, even though all you do is sit there, stare out the window, and nap occasionally so I was ready for bed soon after the game ended. The bunkbeds in our rooms were quite precarious looking, a comparison could be made to lincoln logs and superglue. Well, the entire time we were there they never fell apart, so they were stabler than they appeared.
     The next day was time for the beach and to get my tan on! Or so I thought, I was thinking tan but the sun was thinking burn. I have never been sun burned before in my life! With the exception of my face and rarely my shoulders. I guess there is a first time for everything, my legs were BRIGHT red. They hurt to touch, my pants irritated them, then they got itchy. Terrible. I now have so much more sympathy for people who get burned on the regular, it's not a fun experience. The beach was amazing thought, clear skies and blue water, I was in my element. The rest of the trip thought I was really careful to apply sunscreen. I swear the sun is stronger down here!Another night in the lincoln log bunk beds and we setting off for Vicuña and the Valle de Elqui the next day.
     That night, I forgot all about my sunburn though when we went stargazing. We took a tour to the Mamalluca, I really like that name/word, Observatory to take a look at the clear night sky. Using a high power telescope, our guide showed us Jupiter! Like the actual planet! I could see the stratified lines on it's surface and everything, it made me feel absolutely tiny and insignificant in the most amazing way possible. Our guide also pointed out Orion and how he was upside down because we are in the southern hemisphere and the magellean clouds that you see instead of the north star. It was so cool! I loved it, not to mention I think I saw 10 shooting stars that night. Then next day we explored Vicuña and the valley a little more. It is the most adorable town, super quaint and peaceful. It was such a nice getaway from the city and it's busy lifestyle. Fresh, non polluted air was also quite welcome.
     Our last day was back in La Serena and was really relaxing, unfortunately a cloud cover had rolled in so beach was out of the question. It was another day of exploring the city streets with it's fish markets, hidden castels, and THE most amazing shrimp and crab empanadas (yup they were fried). Could not have asked for a better weekend, such a welcome break from school. Another region of Chile that I get to check off my list: La Serena, you didn't disappoint.