Bing Trip: Sunday

Sunday was our free day in the La Serena area, and most of us wanted to take advantage of the nearby coast so we signed up for a wildlife boat trip. About 25 of us took another 2-hour bus ride up the coast where the ocean and land are nearly untouched. On the way we passed through mostly empty desert and mountains, which were beautiful and populated with grazing goats and wild llamas. When we got to the shore, we loaded into two small wooden boats and headed towards the islands. On the way we saw several pairs of dolphins and seals swimming and leaping in the ocean. The first island we came to was very rocky, with only the occasional cactus growing on its cliffs. As we approached, we saw dozens of seals lounging on the rocks. Most of them were females or young seals, but the few males we saw were huge and ugly. They barked at us and bobbed their heads when we got close—at one point, I was nervous that the fat seals would jump onto our boat. We circled the island and saw Humboldt penguins and several species of birds, all of which survive on these rocky islands with fish and cacti to sustain them. At the second island, Isla Dama, we got off the boats for an hour of hiking and relaxing. A few of us climbed up a rocky hill to the lighthouse, from which we could see the entire island and the gorgeous ocean surrounding it. I had never seen such brilliant turquoise water before. After heading back to shore, we had lunch at a small local restaurant (cheese empanadas, fish, veggies and pineapple for dessert). Most of us slept on the drive home as sunburn crept over our faces and I woke up just in time to see a beautiful sunset over the shore at La Serena. We enjoyed a nice dinner at the hotel and spent the night playing games and goofing off in the hotel rooms.

I leave you with one of the cutest things I saw this weekend (other than the wild llama I saw from the bus): a little kid sleeping in the middle of a huge couch in our hotel lobby. He had this peaceful smile on his face and the he was so tiny that the cushions nearly enveloped him. All of us were waiting for the bus in the lobby and couldn’t help but fawn over this cute little kid.