Valley of the Moon

Last stop of the day was the Valley of Moon, to see the sunset.

Our first stop in the park (yep, Chile has its own system of National Parks, but there is no blue book and no stamp at each location) was the Three Marias. These are three stone formations that the Belgian priest thought looked like Maria. I could explain why, but even with an explanation you’d have to be a true believer. And, one of the formations was knocked over by a tourist who got too close, so now there are only 2-1/2 Marias. Honestly, a whole lot of nothing. Although I did enjoy the formation to the left, which is called “Pac-Man,” for obvious reasons.

We then walked through the valley, and saw a formation known as the “amphitheater.” Very beautiful. Of course, the ever present Andes are in the background, with their snow covered peaks.

We then hiked up to the top of a rim, to see the sunset. There were 100s of other people around, camped out on the ledge, anxiously waiting to see the sun fall behind the mountains. It is a funny site to see so many people perched at the edge of a cliff! The sunset was lovely, and the reflection on the hills behind was even prettier. I particularly liked seeing clouds descend on the mountain peaks, like little sombreros.

The end of another long, but lovely day.Read more