Adiós

Tomorrow I leave South America. After three months, six countries, and countless unforgettable experiences. The time has passed unbelievably quickly since the 20th February, when I first touched down in fabulous Rio. This section of my journey ending has kind of sparked a quarter-trip crisis. I certainly didn't think I'd be this sad to be leaving this continent. Not because I didn't like it, because god knows that's not true, but because I didn't think I'd have time to get emotionally attached, having moved about so much. But apparently I can't not get emotionally attached. 

Having said all of this, I am so excited about New Zealand. Travelling there will certainly be easier and less stressful than South America. I wonder if that will make it less exciting. 

My last few days have been here in Santiago. It's a nice city - very modern, with lots of green spaces and an interesting blend of historical buildings and sparkling skyscrapers, one of which is the tallest building in Latin America. This evening I went and watched the sunset from one of Santiago's hills, Cerro Santa Lucia, and had a bit of reflecting time. 

The last few days were made especially nice by staying with my friend who lives here. He very kindly invited me to stay with him, so it's been a comfortable few days. And on Friday night I met up with a couple who were on my salt flat tour, so it was nice to see them again. 

I'm not planning a wild last night, but I think there might be wine involved at least. Chilean wine is so good, and half the price it is in the UK. 

And even though I'm taking a giant step across the Pacific tomorrow night (and losing a day in the process) it's definitely not goodbye to Latin America forever. In the last three months I've just scratched the surface of what this place has to offer, and my head is brimming with ideas for future trips. So I guess it's not adiós, it's more hasta pronto. And I feel better about that.