FINALLY SANTIAGO! 🇨🇱1000 KM Ke Baad Jo Hua UNBELIEVABLE . Ep 30

I am doing a PhD in Germany.
Tan tana tan tan tan tara… the police are going by. They pushed me off the highway, brother.

“The motherland be ever honoured. Jai Hind. Vande Mataram.”

Anyway, we’ll handle all this. I’m used to it now. I’ve already travelled through 130 countries… actually 132 now! Namaskar, Salaam, Sat Sri Akal, Ram Ram ji to everyone.

Right now, I am on Route 5 in Chile. There is a town called Talca. In the last video, you saw that in the previous five days I rode very fast and covered 750 km. Now Santiago, the capital city of Chile, is about 250 km away.

We reached here the night before last. Yesterday I didn’t even have the strength to get up. I slept the whole day. My body was completely exhausted. I had crossed my limits, which I shouldn’t have done. But I wanted to test myself – to see how much I could push, especially in 40°C heat with forest fires all around. Around 20–25 people have already died in these fires.

Today we’re leaving from here. Dhanno (my cycle) is ready. This was my hotel – I was paying around ₹3000 per day. Let me show you the room. There’s a swimming pool at the back. It was just a simple room with one fan. I rested properly. Now my body feels set again.

From here, about 120 km ahead, there’s a place called San Fernando. A friend named Karan – he’s from Gujarat and currently in India – told me about a friend of his called Happy bhai who has a shop there. So I’ll go there and stay tonight. Tomorrow morning, I’ll head towards Santiago. After that, I might take a bus.

I’m not sure yet because in the next 100 km, about 60–70 km is on an expressway where bicycles are not allowed. I don’t want to take complicated detours. Entering any capital city needs planning. Like entering Delhi – you must be careful. There’s heavy traffic and often more crime in the outer industrial areas.

Anyway, we’ll manage. After 132 countries, you get used to handling things.

There’s a water cooler here, so I’ll refill my bottles and leave. There’s a railway station nearby, but I haven’t seen a single train running.

Let’s pull hard for 120 km.

As soon as I came out of the city and onto the highway, the traffic increased massively. I won’t be able to talk much today. Should I focus on the road or keep chatting? It’s better to stay silent and focus. The road is never empty even for a minute.

I’ve already covered about 60 km. It’s 1 pm now. I should reach by 5 or 6 pm. I started at 8 am, so that’s helping. By 5 pm, I should complete 120 km.

But there’s a problem – my phone got blocked. Here, if you stay more than a month, you must register your device with your number. I didn’t do that. So they blocked my phone. I’ll try to fix it in San Fernando by contacting the company.

I’ve reached a place called Curicó. Halfway done – around 60–70 km completed. I think I’ll reach by 5 or 6 pm. Let’s see.

There’s a huge craze for buses here. People say the railway system declined because bus operators created a monopoly. Now they are rebuilding the railway. Before 1980, trains were very popular here. On the roads, you see more buses than trucks – the opposite of most countries.

I think something is wrong with my camera. It keeps shutting off automatically. Maybe I’ll need to reinstall the software once I reach Santiago. A lot of footage is getting ruined.

I’m avoiding entering the town centre. I’ll stay on the outer roads. San Fernando shows 51 km from here, though my map shows 57 km. If it’s really 51, that’s good news. Three to four hours more.

They say the first step is the hardest. I took that step six or seven days ago, and now I’m here.

I got tired of the highway traffic and shifted to the service road. It’s not smooth – sometimes up, sometimes down – but better than the main highway. However, the service road ends again, and you must rejoin the highway.

Ahead, bicycles are not allowed on the highway. There’s a sign. Now I don’t know how to proceed. I’ll somehow reach San Fernando and then decide.

This whole region is famous for wine and dry fruits, especially walnuts. There are many wineries here.

I stopped at a petrol pump. The noise from the road is so irritating that I can’t even tell how many kilometres are left. Police passed by and told me to get off the highway. So now I’ll have to find a local route.

I bought a muffin and coffee and rested. I’ve been pushing hard since morning. If the police hadn’t stopped me, I probably wouldn’t have taken a break.

I asked some people if there’s a way to reach San Fernando without the highway. They told me to go back 15 km and take a bus. But I won’t go back 15 km. Better to ride 30 km forward than go backwards.

Let’s see what happens.

It’s getting difficult. There’s no proper shoulder on the bridge. If a truck comes from behind, it’s risky. Bridges without shoulders are dangerous.

40 km left now.
Tan tana tan tan tan tara…

You have to stay alert for safety. I even put my helmet back on. The traffic is extremely heavy – like between Delhi and Gurgaon.

I can’t go inside the city either because traffic is too much there as well. So I’m just continuing forward. If the police stop me again, maybe they’ll guide me to a safer side road. I’ve crossed two rivers now.

San Fernando – 35 km left. I’m just going steadily ahead. Let’s see how it goes.

Now even on the service road, I will have to take a few small detours of about 2–4 km to move ahead. On my left side there is a cement factory. This region is called the Bio-Bio area (or something similar). It is quite a famous area, especially for dry fruits, rivers and national parks. We are still within the Bio-Bio region – you can call it a large district.

Look at how they are cleaning the road. They are removing all the debris and doing proper maintenance.

Now San Fernando is 25 km away. Before that I reached a petrol pump. The time is 2:30 pm, so I should reach by 5 pm, provided the police don’t stop me again. If they do stop me, then we will deal with it. I can always take a few detours here and there.

So, on that note, I’ll have some coffee. Especially the Nescafé coffee here – it’s really good. It’s strong and wakes you up instantly. I’ve become used to drinking it.

There are 27.8 km left now. I didn’t find anything to eat here. But for just 25–30 km more, I won’t cook anything. I’ll go straight to Happy bhai’s shop in San Fernando. We’ll talk there, stay the night, and tomorrow morning I’ll move ahead.

Hopefully, the police won’t stop me.

This area is called Ruta del Vino – the Wine Route. On both sides you can see vineyards everywhere.

Now 18 km remain. I’ve been pushing hard. On the roadside you can also see wooden furniture – small stools and benches – that people make and sell.

If you exit the highway here, you must pay an entry toll to get back inside. The expressway system is very structured here.

Oh, the police are coming…
If they stop me again, I might have to leave the highway. But no, they are not police – just workers unloading goods. I’m safe.

I don’t need to ride much now. Just 5–10 km more. After that, the route will become normal and there won’t be many issues.

Today’s total target is about 145 km, and only 10–15 km remain. Tomorrow around 130 km will remain, and if bicycles are allowed, I’ll reach Santiago in that distance.

There is road construction ahead, so I have to leave the highway. The road becomes a single lane. You can see thorny acacia trees here. Usually these grow in desert regions, so maybe the desert area is starting.

Look at this – this is the highway under construction. I came from that side, and I need to cross this hill and go towards San Fernando, which is about 10 km away now.

Now that I’ve moved away from the highway, I’m on a local route. There are two small villages here that connect to the city. Because of that, there is a proper cycling path as well. San Fernando is a medium-sized town, and they’ve built a proper cycling route leading to it.

Look, here it is. I’ll ride on this cycling path. It’s clean, peaceful and away from traffic.

There’s also a railway line running alongside, but I haven’t seen any trains yet. It looks active though – there are electric lines above it. Maybe the railway has started operating again.

On one side there are seed fields, and on the other side there are apple plantations. It’s beautiful, but everything is fenced.

There are so many birds here. On the highway you don’t see them, but as soon as you leave the highway, nature appears again. The atmosphere feels peaceful and enjoyable.

Come on Dhanno, let’s keep riding.

Now another highway has merged here. I’ve entered the city. As soon as you enter, the first thing you see is a China Mall. Chinese businesses have opened many small malls here in every city.

There’s also McDonald’s and Lidl. That means it’s a big town. Lidl is a large supermarket chain.

As soon as you enter the city, there’s a pleasant fragrance in the air. The traffic also becomes calmer.

We’ve almost reached – only half a kilometre left. The shop is somewhere near Vivo Mall. I don’t even know exactly what kind of shop it is.

I think this is the one. It looks like an Indian-style shop.

So guys, I’ve reached San Fernando and I’m at my friend’s shop.

“How are you, brother?”
“All good, brother.”

Happy bhai has opened an Indian shop here.

I asked him what he sells. He said mainly silver perfumes from Dubai and Indian clothes. He imports Indian clothes and products and sells them here.

He introduced himself:
“I’m from Amritsar. I’ve been here for about three years, but my younger brother has had this shop for 11 years. When we first opened, there were no Indians here – just the two of us.”

It’s amazing how far Punjabis reach across the world. I even met someone from Punjab in Los Angeles earlier. Punjabis can be found everywhere.

Last night I stayed at his place. We talked until 1 or 2 am, sharing stories and experiences from life.

Right now he is alone in the city because his brother is in India. He said he hasn’t spoken Punjabi with anyone here for a long time except on phone calls with family.

I thanked him for his love and hospitality in a foreign land.

Now from here I will go to Santiago. Earlier the police stopped me about 40 km before the city because bicycles are not allowed on the expressway section of Route 5 near the capital.

Even then I somehow managed to ride 30–40 km, but now from this city I will take a bus. Santiago is about 100–125 km away, which is roughly a 2-hour journey by bus.

So I’ll take the bus, relax, and we’ll meet again in Santiago.

Before leaving, I asked him:
“Do you import all these goods from India?”

He replied:
“Yes, everything comes from India.”

Sir, everything inside the shop mostly comes from India. Yes, I can see that. The perfumes are from Dubai. I was also looking at the incense sticks here.

Look at these incense sticks. You will not find this type easily in India. The brand is Indian and it is made in India, but it is specially manufactured for export. These products are not even sold in the Indian market.

One incense stick burns for three to four hours. They are handcrafted incense sticks. I was reading the information written on the packet: it says environment-friendly, no child labour used, no animal by-products, non-toxic, and made in Bangalore. That is really amazing.

All these clothes here are also made in India. Most of them come from Jaipur. Just imagine, some mother in a small village might have made these items, and now they are being sold in some corner of the world. It is incredible.

People here really like Indian culture. I have noticed that many locals respect Indian traditions and gods like Lord Ganesha and Lord Shiva. My friend told me that his friend also does yoga.

Yes, there is someone called Baba Aloknath who has a yoga institution here. Many foreigners learn yoga there. Later they receive certificates and can even become yoga instructors. There is a 200-hour certified yoga course, after which they teach yoga classes themselves.

One thing I have noticed in the last 8–10 years is that yoga has greatly improved India’s reputation across the world. People really like yoga and practise it regularly. Sometimes it feels like people outside India practise yoga more than we do in India.

Even foreigners ask us, “Do you practise yoga?”
I usually say, “No, I don’t get time because of cycling.”

But yoga has many benefits. It improves flexibility and calmness in the body and mind. I would also suggest my bodybuilder friends to practise a little yoga along with their workouts. It helps a lot with flexibility and balance. I will also try to start practising it myself.

Soon you will see a big surprise coming.

Now I have taken out Dhanno (my bicycle), and my friend is dropping me at the bus station. On the way I noticed some graffiti art on the walls. Look at these paintings — there is Buddha on one side and Goddess Kali on the other. These people are really talented artists.

Now I have boarded the bus. My luggage has been placed in the storage area below. My friend has left after dropping me. I almost forgot to record a video because everything was happening quickly. Putting the bicycle in the bus storage is actually quite difficult.

The journey from here to Santiago is about one and a half hours, roughly 100 km. I will always remember this lift.

We say goodbye to this city now. The buses here are double-decker buses, and they are very comfortable with air-conditioning.

We have now left the bus terminal. The place where I need to go is 12 km away from here. So I will ride the remaining 12 km with Dhanno. There is a cycle path for the first 2–3 km, but after that there is no cycle path. We will see how to manage and ride slowly.

Now I can see the tallest building of this city. The area where I am right now looks very beautiful. Look at the roads and cycling paths — everything is well planned. They have even built a footrest for cyclists at signals so that riders can rest their foot while waiting.

Now I have reached the Embassy of India.

“Hello, how are you?”
“I am Dr Raj. I have an appointment with the Ambassador, ma’am.”

Inside the embassy, the Republic Day celebration (26 January) is taking place.

Here with me are Deepanshu and Vinod bhai, and these are their daughters.

“What is your name?”
“My name is Aradhya Bhatt.”
“Which class do you study in?”
“I am in Class 4, and soon I will go to Class 5.”

We had also visited a friend’s restaurant, but we did not record a video there. If we go again, maybe we will record it next time.

Today is 26 January, so on this occasion we wish everyone a Happy Republic Day.

The programme is now finished. We are going back to our Airbnb room. We will rest, eat and relax because for the next three to four days we cannot travel, until the Bolivia visa issue gets sorted out.

So for now, rest mode is on.

This is the room where we are staying. Here is Deepanshu’s room, and we have parked Dhanno here as well.

Deepanshu is doing his PhD in Germany. He has come to Chile for one month for research work at the Catholic University.

His research field is Climate Science, mainly Remote Sensing, focusing on fog and low clouds.

In desert areas like this, there is almost no water. So scientists are building fog collectors that capture moisture from fog and convert it into water.

There is a research centre in the Atacama Desert, where these fog collectors are already working. They collect about 400–500 litres of water just from fog.

So basically, they are creating water from air. That is what his research is about.

Deepanshu had booked this Airbnb, and since he was here alone, I joined him. Now we cook food together and relax.

We are about to go out to the market. Another friend, Harish Setia, will join us. We need to buy a camera.

Soon Harish arrived in his red car and picked us up.

We reached a DJI showroom because I wanted to buy a DJI Osmo camera. My friend helped me with the payment. Later I will transfer the money to his Indian bank account.

The camera costs around ₹43,000–₹45,000.

We also needed another camera and an SSD, so we went to another store to buy them.

This shopping mall is inside the tallest building in Latin America. I showed you this building earlier from outside. It is the tallest tower in Chile.

Most of the upper floors are offices. From the top you can see the entire Andes mountain range, but today there is too much dust in the air.

In summer there is more dust because forest fires increase. Earlier the temperature in Santiago used to be around 20–25°C, but now it sometimes reaches 40°C, which is quite difficult to tolerate.

Many houses here are made of wood, so when temperatures rise, the risk of fire increases.

This area looks like a first-world country because everything is so clean. The city does cleaning three times a day.

Finally, after searching several stores, we found the second camera as well. Now I have two cameras.

Earlier I did not even have a proper camera, but now I have two. From now on, I will try to make better quality videos.

Thank you so much to my friends who helped me.

Now finally I have a proper camera, and from now on I will create much better videos. Until now I was struggling without the right equipment.