TRAVELLIVE 3 - 2018

As soon as we landed, I was overwhelmed with the hot and dry temperature
of Atacama. It was difficult to breathe under such arid conditions. Atacama
has not seen any significant rainfall for over 400 years.
Overwhelming Mars-like desert
Having never been to any desert before this trip, I
was overwhelmed with the hot and dry temperature
of Atacama from the moment I stepped off the plane.
It was difficult to breathe under such arid conditions,
especially for someone coming from the tropics. I
began to get a quick glimpse of what it is like to live in
an extreme and barren place like Atacama.
I was definitely not used to traveling to places with
such harsh conditions, and at the same time, found a
new respect for people who can adapt and live in those
environments.
Located in northern Chile, Atacama is the driest desert
in the world, and is considered the Mars on Earth.
The low annual precipitation combined with high air
pressure from the mountain range at the altitude of
over 3,200m above sea level make the sky in the area
extremely clear, and Atacama an ideal spot for some
of the world's best telescopes. I was told that this is
the world's most beautiful place for astronomical
observatory.
One of the highlights during my trip was to catch sight
of a guy cycling under the scorching sun and heat of
Atacama, where no significant rainfall had been seen
for over 400 years from 1570 to 1971. It took him
tremendous strength to push the bike up the steep
while I was sitting comfortably in a car. I quickly took
my camera out to snap a picture of the guy in his glory.
Later, I saw a father taking his child on a bike ride
around town with bright smiles on their faces. The
brightest I have ever seen in my life.
Before traveling to Atacama, I went to find inspiration
from the book "Nµo, m◊nh cÔng Æπp xe Æ’n Paris" (Come
on, let's cycle to Paris) by Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan. The
story is an incredible journey of Ngan and her amazing
courage to overcome a great deal of challenges to
eventually make it to Paris.
TRAVELLIVE 119