This morning, I reminded myself to appreciate my bath towel. It’s large and plush and warm on a cold morning. But very soon, I’ll be without these simple luxuries, making due with a scratchy hostel towel or my tiny pack towel.
Two weeks from now, we’ll be in Easter Island–the most remote, inhabited island in the world. I’m excited, but nervous. Nervous about all of the things I still need to do to prepare, nervous about all of the flying, and nervous about leaving my dog for a month (though I know, as always, she’ll have a great time at Kevin’s mom’s house).
Our friends and family have been asking exactly what we’ll be doing and when so I prepared this guide to outline our plans. Writing this all down and browsing Flickr for photos has helped to alleviate my fears and renew my excitement on the adventure we have before us.
Our itinerary so far:
March 13: Depart from San Francisco (SFO)
March 14-18: Arrive in Easter Island (IPC) on the morning on the 14th and stay through the morning of the 18th.
Moai on Easter Island (Flickr: Individuo)
March 18: Leave Easter Island, and arrive in Santiago, Chile (SCL) in the early afternoon. Stay one night there.
March 19: Depart from SCL and arrive in Punta Arenas, the gateway to Chilean Patagonia.
March 20: Take a bus to Puerto Natales. Attend an afternoon pre-trek orientation session for our four day hike (the famous “W Circuit”) through Torres del Paine National Park. Stock up on food and any supplies we need for the trek. Stay that night at a hostel in town.
March 21: Depart for Torres del Paine. Spend five days and four nights exploring this amazing place. See this…
Torres del Paine, Chile (Flickr: winkyintheuk)
March 25-27: Leave the park and then our next few days are unplanned so far. We’ll possibly try to find penguins at Magdalena Island or Seno Otway, though we’re a little late in the season.
March 27-April 1: Depart from Punta Arenas on March 27, and return to Santiago, Chile. Spend 5 nights in the Santiago and Valparaiso area.
Valparaiso, Chile (Flickr: Alex Proimos)
April 1: On the evening of April 1, depart from Santiago, and go to Lima, Peru (LIM). Arrive at midnight. Sleep in the airport.
April 2: Leave from Lima first thing in the morning, and fly to Cuzco, Peru. Stay there a few nights, on one day we plan to visit the indigenous villages of the Sacred Valley. Learn to say something in Quechua.
Sacred Valley – Urubamba, Peru (Flickr: chany14)
Approx. April 4: Machu Picchu, stay for two nights. Get up before sunrise to beat the crowds and hopefully get some photos like this…
Machu Picchu, Peru (Flickr: kidumomo)
April 6-10: Take a bus back to Lima for a few days prior to leaving. We’re excited to explore Peruvian food and drink and wander the streets on our last few days before heading home.
Lima, Peru | Flickr: theodorescott
April 10: Depart from Lima and return to SFO at 8:45 in the morning.
Come Along!
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YEA YEA! Hey take a picture of Machu Pichu for me.. OK! Don’t forget. Oh and remember to bring back a giant head from Easter Island. And Kevin, make sure you try the CUY!
Cuy, yes. The head…we’ll see.
Cassie & Kevin,
We are personally SO EXCITED for you both and traveling with you vicariously.
Sophie is quite a wonderful lady and we hope to be very best of her friends this month.
Your Blog is beautiful.
See you soon,
Sophie’s Friends…Marianne & Jim Reynolds
Thanks to you both! We miss our dear kitty, but we know she’s in good hands 🙂
No Colombia!? Best country in South America!
Hehe… be patient, my friend. Colombia was a different trip, no posts up yet 🙂 I was there for a very short time, but I might just agree!