Potosi, Uyuni and the Salt Flats: February 2016
Potosi. Bolivia..
We miscalculated the travel times, and therefore had to stay a night in Potosi. For some reason, the information online said the travel times were much longer. We could have made it all the way to Uyuni from Sucre and saved ourselves some time and effort, but it is what it is. We were in Potosi for one night, and let’s just say, that was enough. Potosi is high- 4.090 meters (13,420ft), and we felt it carrying our backpacks up three flights of stairs. There are a couple of things to do in Potosi, we did none of them, instead, we bought tickets to Uyuni for the next day, walked around, and took some pictures. The end.
Uyuni, Bolivia.
Uyuni isn’t much better than Potosi. It is from Uyuni that you take a tour of the salt flats. Outside of that, there is no reason to visit. But we, like everyone else there, wanted to see the salt flats. After settling into our hotel, we were in search of a tour. Javier had done some research, and found a couple of reliable companies. After visiting the first, we decided to check out the second. On the way there, we were trapped in the middle of a wind/dust storm. It was pretty bad, and we quickly returned to the first place and booked our tour. We opted to take the Spanish tour instead of paying 50% more for the English. We figured, whatever I couldn’t understand on my own, Javier could fill in the blanks. When we showed up for our tour the following day, I was pleasantly surprised to learn that just about everyone in our group spoke English, and one German guy didn’t speak a word of Spanish. I wasn’t alone! We had a good group. Two German guys and two Brazilian girls. One of the Brazilians was antisocial, but the rest of us got along splendidly.
Train Cemetery. Uyuni.
We started our tour at the train cemetery. There were several old trains both on the tracks and off. They were all rusted and in various states of deterioration. We climbed on top of some of the cars and took pictures. As we were climbing, I thought…I wonder when Javier had his last tetanus booster? Thankfully, we didn’t need to know. Our second stop was the first salt flat. There were patches of water here and there, as well as many cars and buildings in the background. It was our first glimpse, and even though there were many distractions around, it was still really amazing. Our driver, Carlos, took us a little bit further out.
Uyuni Salt Flats, Bolivia
The Germans and one of the Brazilians took off their shoes and talked about how great it felt on their feet. We figured we’d take their word. Sure enough, on the walk back, they were tip-toeing back to the car. The salt and water had made the bottoms of their feet soft and tender. Ha! Our next stop was lunch. Before we arrived in the small salt structure, we were dropped off a bit away, in front of the large, salt, Dakar sculpture.
Uyuni Salt Flats, Bolivia
After lunch, we went to the open salt flat. The flats stretch are as far as the eye can see, and because of the rainy season, there was a thin layer of water on top. There were a few mountains and trucks in the distance, but for the most part, everywhere you looked was white and mirrors. The clouds, the mountains, and our own reflections made for amazing pictures. We took some fun pictures that required Javier to jump, causing him to have salt splatters all over. We were a mess when it was all said and done, but the views were incredible. This was the second time I had been to the salt flats, and I thought maybe I had romanticized the whole place a bit. But no, it is still one of, if not thee most beautiful landscapes I have ever seen.
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Uyuni Salt Flats, Bolivia
We drove a couple hours to get to our hotel for the night. The rooms and bed frame are made of salt, and the floor is covered in rock salt. It all felt so clean. After splashing around in the salt water all day, it was especially nice to have a hot shower. We had dinner with our group before heading to bed.
The next morning we set off to various lagoons. We saw flamingos! It is always so weird to see flamingos in a non-tropical area. At one of the places, the Brazilians told us that these were the mountains used in the ‘Paramount Pictures’ logo. Interesting… One of the lagoons was pink. Really pink. It was cool. And again, more flamingos. We ended the day at the rock tree, which is a big rock left over from the volcano, that has been shaped by wind and dirt for…well, a long time. It was actually really cool to see in person.
Laguna Colorada, Bolivia.
Our lodging for the night was a most interesting and disturbing experience…at least for me. We arrived to a guesthouse that would probably be classified as 0.5 stars. It was dorm style, so our group had one room and lucky for me, I got the worst bed, and had to sleep the opposite direction so that the blood wouldn’t rush to my brain all night long. There was a young group that I didn’t remember encountering earlier. They were already drunk by the time we arrived, and were really, REALLY loud. Some of our group were excited at the prospect of staying up all night and partying, so they took a nap. I went out to sit and have some tea and crackers.
The Tree Rock, Bolivia.
In the 10 minutes I was in the common area, I felt my intelligence decrease significantly. Two members of the group ran off to have sex, and let everyone around know to stay out of the room for the next 10 minutes…while the rest of the table had loud drunken conversation about sex- best, worst, where, how, with whom…I had to walk away. I could go on about what took place, but I feel like I’ve been vulgar enough. It was like a bad movie, and one I had no interest in watching. I returned to our dark quiet room to blog since I didn’t feel like napping. When it was time for dinner, we all sat at our table. There was a group of girls we had seen the previous days on one side, and the children’s table on the other side. After dinner, all of the tables were talking amongst themselves, and I guess the children’s table had run out of stimulating conversation and insisted that we push all the tables together and mixed themselves with the two groups. Then the weirdest thing happened…our table was in deep conversation about US politics. With the rise of Trump and Hillary, the world has much to talk about, and who better with than a couple of Americans. We were having an intense conversation, when one of the children chimed in. She asked very politely if she could join our conversation because she is studying political science and the US election is a big topic of conversation in her class (she’s Australian). I was a little shocked. We talked a bit more about American politics with a couple of her friends chiming in before taking a break and talking Australia and Christmas Island. It turned out to be a very informative and stimulating conversation. There were several countries represented, and each had their take on the US as well as their own countries. Javier and I talked about how we are the old people now, and raise the bar on conversation, which we decided, the young people actually like. The wine was flowing, and we became friendly with the other groups as well. Here’s the kicker of the night. At some point, we’re all still at the table talking, drinking, and having an all around good time, when one of the kids, looking like death, was being helped to the restroom by two of her friends. According to our friends, she decided that Bolivia, in the middle of nowhere, was a good time to try cocaine. Oh. My. God. There were only two toilets for all 30 of us, and after her innards were expelled from her body from both ends, all the while wailing for her friends, her mom, and to god, there was only one functional toilet. It was bad, and an eye-opening experience for me. I’m such an advocate of traveling young and experiencing the world. I know there is a stigma, at least in America, that the world is dangerous- moreso than at home, which isn’t true. But after seeing this girl, something in my brain went off. The ACTUAL dangers of traveling (not to be confused with those we conjur up, but aren’t real) are often times, completely avoidable. Note to self: If the time comes…raise smart children.
Playing with the Geysers.
Back to the tour… We woke up before the sun to see the steam geysers. There are several open pits with volcanic water and a manmade pipe that pressurizes the steam, allowing for fun pictures and a nice way to warm up on a freezing cold morning. We drove to the thermal baths and took a dip before heading to the Chile boarder. Our visit to the salt flats and beyond was quite an adventure, and after being in Bolivia for a couple weeks, we were happy to be back in Chile.
To see more pictures of Bolivia, click HERE.
A quick video of the Uyuni Salt Flat: