Another Travel Blog

The saltflats were wonderful, with clear blue sky and just white salt as far as one can see, so white that I got the snowblindness, with the sun burning down in the noon.. The saltlake developed from a prehistoric lake which dried out and resulted in the gigantic white salt desert. We visited an island, which had all kinds of different cactus formations and a salt hotel in the middle of nowhere, which was supposed to be illegal, but nevertheless, tolerated. Another, newer salt hotel has been built to the edge of the lake. The climate at 4000 meters above sea level is rough, dry (during that time of the year) hot during the day, but ice cold during the night. The saltlake is very touristy, and so is the village (Uyuni) which is the starting point for most of the tours, except if crossing from Chile (San Pedro de Atacama). Every tourist in Uyuni seems either seeking a tour operator or buying tickets for the onward journey. It is advisable to get recommendations from fellow travellers if choosing a tour operator (Lonely Planet doesn’t recommend one in particular) but in the end it seemed that they don’t differ that much (except in food quality). At least a little comparison is necessary in order to not get ripped off (the prices can range from $80-$150 for a 3-day trip, and I am sure that there have been people who paid even more) The tour was supposed to start at 1030, but none of the groups left before 1200 noon. And so far, I haven’t met anyone who actually had an english speaking tour guide.. Which was ok with me, as I have started to understand basic spanish, if spoken slowly.

The dark stripe on the photo is a road (even on a such a plain, roads seem to exist)

I wanted to head straight to Sucre after the trip but all the buses were booked out for the evening. It didn’t seem to be easy to get out of this remote village. I opted for a cheapie hostel ($3) this time, for a quick night’s sleep, having no idea how cold it could get. After sunset, the cold started to bite.. I had 6 layers of clothing on for sleeping (including the jacket!), gloves and two pairs of socks (wool socks) and was still freezing. Not to forget the 4 additional layers of thick covers which were provided by the hostel. The bus towards Potosi (highest town in the world, at around 4800 meters above sea level) left in the morning at 10pm (and was supposed to take 7 hrs) and the journey was by no means driving. I could call it bumping, jumping hopping or crusing as the road was horrible and I was again all covered in dust. But I was glad not having taken the nightbus as the landscapes in the central highlands of Bolivia are incredible. After every hour, a different setting of landscapes appeared, mountains in yellow, dark brown or white, occasionally a small settlement passing by with the light brown houses surrounded by walls built from rough stones which is a typical style for the highlands and the only animals I spotted were lamas, as they seem to be the few ones who can handle those extreme weather conditions.

I stayed one hour in Potosi and didn’t plan to stay there overnight as the experience of the night’s cold in Uyuni was enough and I didn’t want to retry.. Sucre in the lowlands of Bolivia was only a 3 hrs additional bus drive away. Sigh! Only 3 hrs (this is an exeptionally short amount of time for a bus ride in South America) At my arrival, the town just seemed to go mad – carnival time! Fireworks and the streets were full of people. I found my way through the people to the hostel which was in the middle of the happening. The hostel is wonderful, $5 per night for a nice colonial room with an inviting courtyard. As we weren’t that high up anymore, the weather was comfortably warm, and heaters were’t a topic either. Also, the people changed dramatically. In the highlands, a lot of traditional dress is worn by the women and most the people seem to be of homogenous, of indian descent, whereas In Sucre, I felt almost underdressed in my travellers gear and I also encoutered many mestizos.