Stepping into nature
Geetika Jain, Client
Chile’s staggeringly beautiful landscapes are relatively unknown and unsung. I spent ten deeply satisfying days there, exploring landscapes I never knew existed.
At Torres del Paine National Park in the south, Prickly “Mother-in-law’s cushion” shrubs bundle together on hillsides. Animated clouds cover and reveal strongly sculpted mountains. Turquoise glacial lakes contrast with adjoining royal-blue rain-filled ones. I went on all-day treks where the scenery changed constantly.
On the first day I walked up to the wall of Grey glacier, then sailed past its façade, glowing with an ethereal blue light. On other days I photographed lively guanacos, Grey foxes and rakish gauchos thundering across the grasslands on their steeds.
The Atacama Desert landscape was a stark contrast with its red, threadbare mountains and jagged forms. At Tara salt flats I photographed other-worldly rock-formations and stumbled upon a shepherd family and their corral of beautifully decked llamas.
The Explora hotels felt like home away from home, and I enjoyed their bent on education with nightly talks on flora and fauna, geology and indigenous tribes.
What made Santiago and Valparaiso come alive for me were the people I met through Caz Loyd. They are always engaging, knowledgeable and of high calibre.
Thanks, Caz Loyd for enabling me. Time and again I step out into the unknown assured that I’ll be in excellent hands, and come away with the fondest memories.
