Tilcara, and into Bolivia.. and did I mention I´m married?

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So I´ve had the good fortune to meet up with a very nice girl from Chicago (named Sarah) who is heading in the same direction as me: Cochabamba, Bolivia. I´m planning to do some volunteer work there, with a cultural agency, through a contact who was recommended by one of my dad´s colleagues.

Last night, I joined Sarah in Tilcara, an unbelievably picturesque village just a few hours south of the Bolivian border. We are staying here one more night, and then tomorrow we´ll spend the day and night Humahuaca, before taking the bus up the to La Quiaca (at the limit of Argentina), crossing over into Bolivia, and taking a train from Villazon to Uyuni in Bolivia.

Sarah and I are both overjoyed to have found one another, as we were both nervous about travelling alone to Bolivia! Plus, we now have the advantage of being able to book a room together with 2 twin beds, which is inexpensive and much more pleasant than sleeping in dorms. Sarah and I have a lot in common including a love of art, vegetarian food (although not very practical here in Argentina!), yoga, learning Spanish, and the ability to appreciate a bit of "alone time"! Plus, we are both at the same level of Spanish, so we plan to help one another do some reviewing over the next week or so.

Last night we went out for dinner here in Tilcara at a local restaurant with live folk music and folk dance. At one point one of the musicians started playing an unbelievably long wind instrument - almost half the length of the entire room! I´ll have to look up the name on the internet. Part of the art of playing the instrument is to move around the room while playing, swinging the instrument back and forth without hitting anyone or anything! I finally tried the traditionnal local dish here, "locro", a thick hearty bean stew with different types of meat.

Today we explored a bit around Tilcara, including some prehistoric ruins called Pukara. The sunlight is unbelievable here - maybe because we are so high up, and closer to the sun! Everything seems to be bathed in light, as if the sun were turned up by 50 %, making photography addictive.

Before coming to the internet cafe, I sat in the main square watching the artisans selling their wares, and ate a lunch of 3 freshly-cooked empanadas which were made on the spot by a woman who had a little deep-fryer by her side. Delicious! It was one of those moments where everything seemed unebelievably right.

Oh yes, and I went shopping for a wedding ring the other day! Before you jump to any conclusions, no, I didn´t have a whirlwind romance... but I decided that I needed a wedding ring for good measure, in order to make my way through Bolivia as a single woman ("solita")! I managed to buy a convincing-looking silver band for about $9, which I am keeping on my middle finger, but whenever needed I can slip it onto my ring finger. A great tool for keeping unwanted suitors at bay!

Tonight, the man who owns our hostel has organized a big "asado" (outdoor bbq with lots of meat) for the hostellers and others in the neighbourhood.

On Monday night, Sarah and I will arrive in Uyuni, Bolivia, and will spend a few days there taking a tour of the famous salt flats. After which time, we will take a train up to Oruro, and then the bus to Cochabamba.

I´m not sure how much internet access I will have, so this might be my last posting for awhile, and I probably won´t be able to post any more photos (note: I posted a bunch of photos yesterday to my previous 7 or 8 blog entries.)

So, into Bolivia I go! I will try to send an update once I reach Cochabamba...

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