Spanish is the main language spoken throughout most of Chile and Argentina, but people in smaller villages still speak some Quechua—an indigenous language that was spoken during the Incan Empire.
In Chile, we used Chilean pesos. One U.S. dollar is about 850 Chilean pesos. In Argentina, we use Argentine pesos. One U.S. dollar is about 60 Argentine pesos. One Argentine peso is equal to about 13 Chilean pesos.
In Chile, a large bottle of water costs about 1,200 pesos, or $1.40 USD. In Argentina, a large bottle of water costs about 75 pesos, or $1.25 USD.
On our last day in San Pedro de Atacama, Abby and I decided to treat ourselves to a nice dinner. We decided to go to a more Western-style restaurant in the touristic part of town. Abby had sesame-seared salmon and I had roasted pork tenderloin, both with mixed vegetables. We also sampled some of the local beer. After years of travel, we have both come to realize the importance of treating ourselves every once in a while—especially to delicious comfort food and meals just like this one!
