Blogs from Potosí Department, Bolivia, South America - page 138

Alors les post de mon blog paraissent longtemps après mon passage dans le lieu indiqué, le temps de faire site.... donc là je suis déja de retour a Arequipa au Pérou mais vous allez recevoir les pages de toutes les étapes précédentes en fait. Potosí. légendaire ville de Bolivie pour ses mines d'argent (ancienne plus grande ville d'amérique du Sud). Graeme a prit toutes les photos dans la mine, donc pas de photos. Nous avons vu des mineurs travaillant à la méthode encestrale avec leur marteau et piolet pour faire le trou dans lequel ils mettent le baton de dynamite. C'est impressionant, l'atmosphère est pleine de poussière de roches et métaux. On s'est cru dans "Indiana Jones et le temple maudit" quand les vagons passaient à coté de nous a pleine vitesse pour sortir de la ... read more

Travelling to Uyunni ... read more

28 Mayo - Salar de Uyuni Well, made the overnight trip to Uyuni. Cold. Long. Uncomfortable. I didn't sleep much and Nikki was still ill. But we are all looking forward to this escape from reality. I am in yet another ancient place, this one more of a dreamscape. These salt flats are so extensive, they go on for days. I saw the name Salvador Dali on a map and I can completely see him here, “The Persistence of Time” and other surrealist pieces could easily be set here. Throw in some San Pedro and there you have it. We are in the middle of nowhere, in a cold-ass part of the world where not much lives or grows. The people who do live here are only here for the salt. It is their life, and ... read more

I left and Uyuni and took a bus to Potosi, which was about 6 hours away. This was how I imagined travelling in Bolivia to be. My backpack got strapped to the top and the passengers crammed into an old, beat up heap of metal. The gangways were filled with bags and extra passengers, who had been a sold a seat, as had everyone else. It was hot and dust filled our lungs for the entire trip. There was no toilet on board but luckily we stopped after about 3 hours. The only baño was what appeared to be a hole in someone's back yard. Back on the road we eventually arrived to Potosi, which is the highest city in the world at over 4,000m. I grew immediately fond of the place, with its narrow streets, ... read more

Arrived in Potosi at 1am after a very cold, cramped and stinky bus journey. Got a cab with 2 brits to the nearest hostel and was alseep in seconds. Awoken at 6am though to the city church bells, the government of bolivia should pay for everyone to have their own alarm clock!! Finally got up at 9 and decided to try and see all the sights in one day. Checked out had beakfast then wandered around town (very slowly as this is the higest town in Bolivia) until time for my mines trip. Boarded the truck at 12 with only one other passenger, a journalist. But saw my friend Simone in the street so she ran after us and came along too. We were given wellies, overalls and helmets and then started the rickety ride up ... read more