THE BOMB, THE BOMB, THE BOMB!!!!!!!!!!!

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WOW!!!

How can I describe the last five days... driving all day by jeep across the most remote parts of southern Bolivia... Mountains, canyons, volcanoes, snow, ice, desert, aqua, yellow, white, green, red lakes and lagoons, flamingos, sleeping in small villages, playing with local children, visiting the worlds largest salt flats where you see an endless endless sheet of white.... sunrises, sunsets, and the milky way clear as milk!!

Let´s begin at the beginning....

My posse, Eric, Pedro, and Tanya were led by our awesome guide, Sebastian, and fantastic cook, Simona, by jeep into the depths of Bolivia. Our departure was TRICKY and hilariously scary!!!! Leaving the city of tupiza was not easy as the city was shut down by a protest and everyone was forbidden to leave. Grabbing our packs early in the morning, we rushed by foot to beat the angry crowds. We walked nealy 5 km just out of the city, and had to remove our shoes to cross a freezing river, we then hitch hiked by a jeep to get to the valley where the other jeeps were waiting in secret to take us for our tour. I thought all was good when I hiked around some bushes up the valley to go to the bathroom. As I retured I saw my posse screaming and waiving for me to hurry. As i began to run towards the jeep which was actually already in motion I noticed the line of angry protesters that had crossed the river and were chasing us. HOLY CRAPPERS!!!! I ran, jumped into to the jeep and we raced off leaving the mob in our dust. 4 other jeeps were not so lucky and didnt make it. LOL, unreal fun!!!

And so the tour began. Before we knew it our four by four was climbing over 4000 m on a windy bumpy dirt road high along the mountains. The views were to die for and the landscape changed dramatically from red canyons, to cactuses, to expansive green valleys, and to who can remember all this wonder and beauty...

After an easy, bumpy, and awesome 8 hours we finally reached our remote destination town. (we did stop for lunch, which simona always prepared on a make shift table consisting of the trunk/back of the jeep, and a small pueblito to take pics). Ariving late afternoon, we had our typical tea time and met the local characters, of which this village had several.... The first we met was a teenage boy, we sensitively nicknamed vampire boy because of his teeth. I know it sounds mean, but the only thing meaner would have been to take a picture to show you and then you´d know what I´m talking about. Sadly, I believe he was mentally challenged, as he grabbed our camaras and pulled slowly as he smiled with a blank stare. We believe he was fathered by snotman, an extremely intoxicated individual frothing flourecent green foam... no i´m not exagerating, in fact i could not be emphatic enough... he shook pedro´s hand leaving a mound of snot, which made for a good chuckle for the rest of us... hehehe

So before dinner Eric and i went to play volley ball, then soccer, with the local school children, who despite living in the middle of nowhere had excellent outdoor facilities. We had a lot of fun but breathing at this altitude was STILL a CHALLENGE!! As the game winded down, one of the 8 yr olds approached me and asked if I have sexual relations. Being the spanish translator for the trip between us, the locals, and our guides, i basically told him to wash his mouth with soap. Then Eric came over and pretended to be my husband and grabbed my hand as we walked away... It was all good fun though.

mmmmm tasty dinner, followed by disgusting grape moonshine, as best as it could be described, a few games of cards, some star gazing, and then an agonizing night of freezing within my sleeping bag. However staying at this ¨hostel¨ was cute cause i think we were the family´s first guests. They put materesses in the rooms just for us and even made a door with a curtain!! Plus there was a toilet!! BONUS! OH, I almost forgot to mention the museum, which dubbed as our dinning room in the evening!! They had dinasaur fossils!! i asked if they were really real, and the response was, well sure they are.. i guess.. i mean they are too big to be llamas so what else could they be???... LOL, one of the fossils was a human skull... creepy... lol

Next day, off to a lax start, as we got the bonus 5 day tour, yuppi!! Worth every penny! (total tour price 200 dollars for 5 days all inclusive).

So hmmm.... where did we go... mountains and ice tip volcanoes towering around 6000m were the usual. we visited the magical laguana celeste, a beautiful light aqua colour, hot sun, you could take your shirt off, and we did. peaceful beauty. As usual i did some stretches, then had a delicious lunch on a table and chairs built up of rocks from the shore.

we later arrived at another small town. eric and i climbed a small moutain/hill to watch the sunset. we had to cross a few streams that proved difficult returning in the night, but the stars..... wow. the night was warm, the shower not so. lol. met some volcanic scientists in the town, we spoke. they said they are due for some activity in 6 months.


despertamos temprano!! where did we go.....?? oh ya!! laguana verde para ver el cambio de color, estuvo muy lindo... the water was blue, light and creamy and over the hour it turned a murky green. i practiced yoga, headstands included, to accentuate the experience. lol. we danced to 80s (sabastians fav) and cumbia, and salsa, and whatever else by the jeep as the water turned colour. great fun. then off to the hot hot hot springs. yay!! pool with view!! looking on streams of green moss, white salt and ice, red and orange mountains and blue skies. the view was soooo incredible it almost lost meaning. like a cartoon. the warm water tricled all around out of the pool and into the streams. could life be cooler??? no way!!!

then we got our spot at the hostel where i would win the connect four championship, damn straight pedro!! next the windy hill overlooking la laguna rojo. wow. really red lake filled with pink flamingos, white salt islands, and not to forget the moutains... spectacular!!

nest day was mostly lakes and volcanoes, no biggy. kidding!! we came accross the train tracks, less than 100k to chile. awesome view, fun. mis amigos, muy sympticos, divertidos. well look at the pics.

driving across such expansive beauty, raw nature, a land so full, so pure, so cold, so hot. farmers. llama herders. emptiness left for tourists.

finnally approached the town with our hotel built entirely of salt... well almost. beautiful digs. after our typical afternoon tea i decided i really needed a workout so i went to practice karate in the soccer field. at first no one was there. 10 minutes i had the whole town looking, including a one legged man in crutches who left his home to watch me. i suppose this town doesn´t get much action. but to toot my own horm my karate has really improved since i left with all the practice. lol. anyways soon all the towns children surrounded me, trying to mimic my movements, so i figured what the hell. within 5 minutes i had them all in a row and for the next 1.5 hours i had 15 pupils. i instucted them in four basic kicks and 2 punches. three girls and 1 boy showed real talent. i tried in that brief moment to instruct them principal basics to practice at home and potentially gain some practical value. particularly the girls. i tried to emphasize the most important key elements and i had them review and review and review until the 5 yr old had it down pat. it was tremendously wonderful. as i left for dinner i had 15 kids hug me, wave, and kiss goodbye. but i forgot to mention the 15 helicoptor trips i gave them. i spun each one, even the 12 yr old!! crazy...

it was great fun.

Next morning we woke around 4 am to catch the magical sun rise on the salt flats... wow. we had breakfast on a strange cactus island, then made cool pics on the salt flats.

after lunch i said a sad goodbye to my new friends in uyuni and went back with the jeep to tupiza. the trip back was not without adventure (never!!). We stopped in a cool mining town, and also simona and i had to climb down a small escapment to fetch water from a river after sunset because we had a coolent leak. according to her she saw scorpions near me and checked my pants and shoes afterwards to make sure they were not any still there, she also asked if i had been bit. but alas i escaped death once again!! yay

back to wonderful tupiza, my new home.... ahhh... sunbathing days filled with yoga and situps...


Just a last note in case i forgot to mention, I´m falling in love with Bolivia. It has true natural beauty, good people, is NOT dangerous, and dirt, dirt, dirt, cheap!!! All is possible here.

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