More Jet Fuel Burning

This October we're back down to South America... Buenos Aires (BsAs), Rio de Janeiro (Rio) and Easter Island (Rapa Nui) as the diversion. A triple decker trip to the Austral Americas in just over 13 days...

I am flying the newly merged LatAm (LAN and TAM) whilst down there in a big diamond shape across the continent... LAN is the only commercial carrier to Easter Island and United is the carrier down from Newark. Newark, New Jersey (Noo Joisey) always makes me laugh as I imagine the state bird is a rather flightless 'Snookie' and the state flower is a smoke stack. Not really famous for much else is it? Well now it's famous for sending me down in another big bird.

Unfortunately I don't get Star Alliance miles on the LAN routes, LAN is aligned with OneWorld, and those are nearing 30 hours of flying :( The whole trip is just over 58 hours in the air - add time for hanging around airports and that's going to be tough. In retrospect, I should have made a change, adding 2-3 days and flying Santiago to Port Stanley for a visit to the Falklands, which is offered by LAN but not by Aerolineas Argentinas as you can imagine... I think that would have been interesting to say the least. Next time maybe... I do have to return as San Pedro d'Atacama and Salar de Uyuni in Bolivia are on the bucket list.







The iPad pic below shows the loop around the Atacama and Andes.

The coastal desert city of Lima looks a long way out - and it is, but it saves a hotel night if nothing else and was the only way to get a spectacular price on the ticket. I always balance what is available on a route with time and cost, so some of the odder choices do have reason. They do!

The planes change in Sao Paulo, Santiago and Lima, but no time to visit any of those, although I did visit Lima a few years back. Too much flying? Perhaps. But some very cool places!
Anyway, Rio and BsAs are both beautiful and Rapa Nui is just plain mystical - well, that is what I hope. In Rio, the locals maintain that God made the Earth in 7 days, and the 8th he devoted to Rio. The story of the Rapa Nui people is an allegory for the times we live in... When you realize you ruined it all, it's always too damn late... It promises to be interesting, scenic and heavily sedated with all that flying - all at the same time! 

See you in October. Bring your own popcorn.
NEXT STOP: SHANGHAI via North Pole, NOV.2012.

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Location:October 2012