La Serena amd Elqui Valley

La Serena is located halfway Iquique and Santiago. As one of Chile's oldest cities it has a lot of old colonial architecture, but still the city didn't look interesting enough to picture it.

But, luckily for Fanny, shopping can be done. Together with Afghanistan, Chile is the only place in the world where Lapis Lazuli can be found

La Serena lighthouse

As in Iquique, La Serena is located in the desert. The Elqui Valley is a kind of oasis. It's famous as a place to grow papayas, avocados, pisco grapes and to observe UFOs. This part of Chile is said to have the clearest skies in the world, hence the presence of many astronomical observatories.

Pisco (grape brandy) factory. The cocktail Pisco Sour is the national drink of both Chile and Peru. They are still arguing about who was first.