Teno, Chile - Polarsteps

With fresh legs, we want back on the route 5 for one last time. As expected, the traffic got increasingly worse the closer we got to Santiago. Following the recommendation of another cyclists, we left the highway after passing Curicó to enter Santiago on side roads. We stopped in the little town called Teno. For the first time, finding a place to sleep turned into a big challenge! After being rejected from the fire station, we asked at the local police station who sent us to the church. We weren't allowed to stay there as we were two women!!! We were then sent to four other places, but no one could provide us with a place for our tent. Since it was getting dark, blood-sugar was really low and Laura had to explain our situation for the seventh time in Spanish, she all of the sudden had to start crying (and also laughing at the same time) - bike touring can be exhausting!!! Suddenly, a woman saved our night. She offered us to stay in her hostel (for free!) and invited us to dinner at her already closed restaurant. She introduced us to her family and even got us on his brother's local radio station 😂