Archive for April 2nd, 2011

The Andes and the desert

2nd April

2011

written by Hazel

We left Valparaiso and headed north up the coast. Â It took pretty much a whole day of travel (without many bird sightings) to get to our destination – Pisco Elqui, in the Elqui Valley in the Andes. Â This town was renamed in the early 1900s so that it would have the same name as the alcohol which is produced in the region, Pisco. Â Both in Chile and Peru the pisco sour is a very popular drink and both countries have renamed towns in regions which produce pisco to try and draw tourists. Â We were told that the area around this town was very beautiful and peaceful and we were not disappointed!

We arrived after dark, but quickly found a hotel and a very tasty meal. Â Dad and Justin both tried the Pastel de Choclo (Corn Pie) which is basically a steaming hot bowl of cornmeal pudding/pie with all kinds of meat, egg, and other treats inside. Â People often sprinkle a thin layer of sugar on the top. Â It is really tasty, but didn’t turn out to be the light dinner they were hoping for! Â We also discovered at our meal that there was a very local brewery in the area, and since we liked what we tasted we decided to head there the next day.