Blogs from Uyuni, Potosí Department, Bolivia, South America - page 19

We stayed for one night in La Paz and headed over to RamJam, a local restaurant/bar where RPCV Kory owns the worlds highest oxygen bar. He served with Zach, a crisis corps volunteer in El Sal. The next morning we headed to Oruro on an early bus. From there we had to options: a train or a bus to Uyuni. We chose the train and bought first-class tickets. It was just about the slowest thing Ive ever been on. At one maddening moment we pulled up next to the road as buses flew past us. As for the first-class tickets, they included a movie which ended up being the Olsen twins running around and misbehaving in France. Also the attendant came around about once an hour to Febreeze the red 70´s era carpet aisle. Supper classy. ... read more

So after Salta it was of to Humahuaca for a couple of days, and then into La Quiaca where we met up with some fellow travelers to walk across the Bolivian border. They were to become our traveling partners for the next week and just so happened to be a Kiwi, Craig, an Aussie, Pedro (actually Pete), and a Zimbabwean, Kim. The border formalities were surprisingly easy, and within half an hour we were walking through the cheap markets of Villazon, Bolivia. And I mean absurdly, ridiculously, unbelievable cheap! After arranging lodgings and onward tickets, we decided to go in search of some food. Since we’d been warned against dodgy Bolivian food, we decided to stay away from the market stall food, and amazingly the only suitable food we could find was fried chicken and chips. ... read more

Well, i decided not to say before in the blogs what the train ride i was taking is termed over here. But, yes the train from Calama to Uyuni in Bolivia is one of many train journies in South America called "The Death Train". Why its called this im not sure as there was certainly no actual danger of death during the trip as such. The greatest problem encountered was in fact boredom and frustration at the incompitence of the border officials (both sides) making it seem like ones life was fading away. Anyway, the journey started at 11pm Wednesday (the only train between Calama in Chile and Uyuni in Bolivia) and as we clambered aboard it was immeadiately obvious that luxury it wasnt going to be. Very crowded and the seats were nowhere near big ... read more

The Salt Lakes of Bolivia have definitely been a highlight for the both of us. The scenery is unusually beautiful and the surroundings surreal. The Uyuni Salt Pan is located on the Bolivian high plateau at altitudes of over 3,600 meters above sea level. This salt pan processes a large part of the salt consumed in Bolivia and it is considered a source of national pride. We watched the extraction of salt by traditional methods and visited a hotel made entirely out of salt. The total area is 10,580 km2, it feels like you are surrounded by a brilliant white desert or ginormous ice rink. As the sun sets you can see the hexagon shapes in the salt lakes more clearly. The forming shadows lend themselves to the camera positively and some of the photos we ... read more

Alpha Centauri, in the Southern Cross, is the nearest star to Earth at four light years. The next closest is Vega, at 26 light years distance. With all the stars in all the solar systems in the universe it seems impossible that we’re alone, said our French guide to the stars in San Pedro de Atacama. But at four light years, with current technology, it would take more than 40,000 years to travel to Alpha Centauri. "So, while we are not alone, we are alone," the guide explained to a crowd of tourists gathered in a circle around a candle-lit table in the desert. A few days after my enlightening adventure through the cosmos, I proved my French guide wrong. You don’t need 40,000 years or a $40 billion space ship to visit another world. All ... read more