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Chile -San Pedro
View over San Pedro from the fortHi everyone, its us again, hope you´re all ok. We´re both really well and have had a great time in Bolivia for the past month or so.
Our last destination in Argentina was Salta and from here we caught an early morning bus to San Pedro de Atacama in Chile. At the bus terminal, we had a lucky escape as a thief grabbed Andrew´s bag and did a runner. Fortunately another traveller (who was more on the ball than us) spotted him and alerted us. Andrew set off in hot pursuit (with help from another lad), although by this stage the thief realised he´d been spotted, dropped the bag and pretended to be having an in-depth conversation on his mobile. Salta was nice and Argentina felt so safe that we´d dropped our guard, this was a reminder to sharpen up (or go back to the paranoid, suspicious travellers we´d been in India!).
Minor drama aside, we got on the bus and departed for San Pedro. The bus crosses the Andes´and reaches altitudes of over 4000m above sea level. Unfortunately this triggered familiar nausea and headaches for Kim. We´ve come to the conclusion that Kim and altitude go together about
Chile - San Pedro
Kim below sitting on the fort as well as Andrew and Thierry Henry! She wasn´t the only one suffering though, as there were plenty of people feeling the effects. One old lady was sick but miraculously managed to get it all into a tiny coffee cup, the accuracy was amazing - something to aspire to in future! Fortunately San Pedro is at 2500m so the effects of altitude had worn off by the time we arrived in town.
We chatted to a Dutch couple staying at our hostel. They were really kind and offered Kim some of their diamox to help with the altitude. Kim was really grateful as over the next five days we would be hitting altitudes of over 4000m.
San Pedro was a funny town, in the middle of nowhere with dusty streets and traditional buildings built from adobe. It felt very isolated, but the whole place catered for tourists and every building was a hostel, shop, agency, restaurant or bar. Still it was a cool place to spend a couple of days and there was lots to do.
We spent a very busy day climbing up an old fort near town and visiting the Valle de la Luna in
Chile - San Pedro
View of Devil's Gorge the Atacama Desert. The Atacama is the driest place on earth and as stark and barren a landscape as we´ve seen. We enjoyed some spectacular views.
The Atacama is also one of the best places in the world to view the stars, so in the evening we went to an observatory for a star gazing tour conducted by a knowledgeable French cosmologist. We were given lots of information on constellations and cosmology and had the opportunity to view Jupiter and Saturn through powerful telescopes (you could actually see the rings on Saturn). The guide also had an amazing laser which he used to point out the stars and formations. It reached right up into the sky, and everyone on the tour wanted to get their hands on one! Kim was also massively impressed with the bathroom which had a skylight so that you could look at the stars while sitting in the jacuzzi!
San Pedro is a launching point to see the amazing scenery of South-Western Bolivia and we arranged a 3 day tour to see the saltflats of Salar de Uyuni, lagunas, volcanoes and bubbling geysers. A few days before we´d met two really lovely English couples
so the six of us hired a jeep for the trip.
On day one, we crossed the border into Bolivia and saw multi-coloured lakes, flamingoes and stopped to take a dip in some thermal baths. On the first night we stayed in basic accommodation and the 6 of us shared a room. It was pretty cold - we were told that the temperature outside was -25C - and we spent the evening wrapped in blankets in a scene reminiscent of the Life of Brian. A Dutch chap had left his swimming gear outside and the next morning he told us that his "schwimming panschs" had frozen solid!
On the second day it was more stunning lakes and flamingoes, as well as some volcanoes and by the end of the day we had reached the edge of the Salar de Uyuni.
On the third morning we were up at 4:30am to see the sunrise on the saltflats. It is a very unique place, a huge expanse of flat, featureless, white ground stretching away to distant mountains. The extent of the featureless plain meant we were able to have some fun taking perspective photos and trying out new poses.
That morning we also visited a cactus island in the middle of the Salar. Whilst the views were spectacular it was absolutely freezing (-15) and we all felt like our fingers and toes were going to drop off.
We finished the tour in Uyuni that afternnoon. It had been a brilliant few days, definitely another highlight of the trip. We were lucky because we got on really well with the people in our group and that evening we all went out for pizza and beers.
It was immediately obvious that Bolivia was different from Chile & Argentina. The majority of people were of indigenous and mixed descent, and the women wore distinctive clothing - often full layered skirts (almost like crennaline dresses) and bowler hats! People were shorter here as well, Andrew spent the afternoon in the market walking around bent double trying to avoid banging his head on the awnings.
The next day we separated from our friends and caught a bus to Potosi, the worlds highest town. Potosi is famous for the silver mined from Cerro Rico, the mountain overlooking the town. Mining started in the mid-16th century and it is estimated that 8 million
Chile - San Pedro
Sunset on the Valle de la Luna men have died working in the mines (mainly indigenous and african slaves exploited by the Spanish colonialists). Apparently in its prime, the silver made Potosi richer than both London and Paris and the wealth is evident from the beautiful colonial buildings and streets in the centre of town.
The mines are still working today, although the silver has almost been exhausted, and agencies offer tours into the mines. Andrew decided to take the opportunity, Kim didn´t! Before going into the mine we bought some dynamite and gifts for the miners. We also chewed some coca leaves (the miners chew these to relieve fatigue and hunger). I found they numbed my mouth, the feeling reminded me of having teeth removed at the dentists.
We soon got kitted out with our gear and headed into the mine entrance. It didn´t take long to realise that working conditions were pretty grim, there is no way people would be allowed to work like this in England (let alone allowing tourists down!). The first few hundred yards in the tunnel were very cold and wet and we often had to move to the edge of the tunnel to allow trolleys carrying waste materials
Bolivia - Salar de Uyuni
Day 1 of our trip, crossing the border into Bolivia to pass. We descended further into the mine where the heat became stifling. Here the air quality was dire, I don´t think our respiratory systems were enjoying the experience. Health and Safety was non-existent, as evidenced by our guide pointing out (almost cheerfully) substances such as asbestos and arsenic with seeming ignorance of the potential harmful consequences. Apparently the life expectancy for miners on entering the mine is 10 years. Most die of Silicosis, a lung disease caused by breathing in the air over a protracted period of time (coca leaves are supposed to act as a filter although the merits of this are dubious).
For the rest of the trip we crawled through the mines, chatted to some of the miners (some are as young as 12), and visited the miners Tio (a god they worship to keep them safe in the mine, although as one lad on our trip mentioned - maybe improved health and safety would be more helpful?!).
At the end of the trip it was a huge relief to get back out into the fresh air, I don´t think I´ll ever complain about an office job again (actually, to be honest thats a
Salar de Uyuni
Beautiful lake lie!). The final part of the tour was a dynamite demonstration. The guide showed us the compound explosive and then offered it to a member of the tour to touch, fortunately he politely declined on the grounds he was smoking a cigarette!! Our guide lit the fuse and ran away, it was quite funny because she had her hands over her ears while the rest of us were standing around idly chatting, expecting something akin to a firework. Everyone was slightly surprised then by the huge explosion and all I could hear were numerous "f##kin hells, f*$ks" and "sh&#s!"
It was a great experience but maybe something to do only once in a lifetime. I must admit I had a bit of a panic attack when we got back to town because of the potential exposure to harmful substances and decided to throw all my clothes away and log onto the NHS Direct website! What a tart!
After the altitude and freezing nights of Potosi our next destination, Sucre was a welcome relief. Sucre is at 2800m with a relatively mild climate, so we ended staying for a week giving our bodies a chance to thaw out. We
Salar de Uyuni
Our group by the lake had a relaxed week with 2 hours of Spanish lessons in the morning and 4 hours of football in the afternoon. The city itself was beautiful with a lovely plaza and attractive colonial style streets which made it a good place to hang out.
We had our first taste of Pique a la Macho (recommended by Phillo!), a Bolivian speciality consisting of meat, chips, egg, vegetables and lots of onions stacked up into a pile. It was just as good as it sounds!
Sucre felt very safe, although we had another lucky escape as Andrew caught a pickpocket redhanded trying to pinch his wallet on a micro. The only response Andrew could muster was "nice try!" Fortunately the thief sheepishly stepped of the bus without any drama, we really do need to sharpen up!!
From Sucre, we headed to a small village called Samaipata. However the bus journey was a right mission, not only did it take 20 hours, the road was one of the worst we´d experienced (you could hardly call it a road it was more a dirt track). This meant that we had to stop four times whilst the drivers changed the wheels due
Salar de Uyuni
Stunning scenery to various punctures. As if matters couldn´t get any worse there was water constantly pouring out of the engine resulting in the bus finally breaking down 30 minutes from Samaipata. We got a taxi for the rest of the way.
However the pain of the journey was all worth it beacuse we had booked a room in a retreat run by a Dutch couple that had moved there 25 years ago. It was called Finca La Vispera (recommended by Tanya and Math) and was very picturesque. It was set in a valley overlooking the village, amongst beautiful gardens where they grew herbs and vegetables. Luckily it was quiet when we there so we made the most of the shared kitchen and cooked our own healthy meals. It was wonderful hanging out here in the sun for a few days and we did not want to leave. We chatted with Pieter, the owner, and it was obvious he loved living there. As we left we mentioned that we may be back, his reply of "please do, paradise is always open" said it all!
After leaving the retreat we got a shared taxi to Santa Cruz where there were more
Salar de Uyuni
Taking a dip in the thermal baths transport connections. Santa Cruz is Bolivia´s largest and richest city - we stayed for a night before catching a bus to Cochabamba.
In Cochabamba we hung out in the square, people watched and climbed a hill where there was a statue of christ overlooking the city. It was a nice place but nothing too exciting so we decided to head to La Paz, Bolivia´s capital city.
La Paz is the highest capital city in the world at 3660m above sea level. So it was back to being short of breath and lightheaded. The city is set in a valley, with houses rising up the mountainside in spectacular fashion. In the background rise the snowtopped mountains of the Cordillera Real. Its unique, certainly like no other city we have visited.
Although smaller in terms of population than Santa Cruz it definitely feels like the capital city. It has a great vibe with a real mixture of people, from office workers to women in traditional dress. The city caters for all a travellers needs - you could even get a falafel (although not as good as the ones in Kingston)!
We spent a few days enjoying the markets
Salar de Uyuni
More stunning scenery and wandering around the city, although our lungs took a battering as La Paz must be one of the most polluted cities we´ve been to.
The Cordillera Real mountain range is close to the city, so we decided to hire a guide and porter and do a 3 day trek along an old Inca route called El Choro. This trek is unique because you start at 4800m in the mountains and drop down and finish in jungle at 1300m above sea level. Obviously the majority of the trek was downhill which was ideal for us! It was a brilliant 3 days, we saw a variety of landscapes, passed pre-inca and inca ruins and saw a few llamas. Our guides were excellent and spoke good English which made the trip very informative.
We finished the trek in Coroico where we got the bus back to La Paz. They used to be connected by the worlds most dangerous road (100+ deaths annually) but there is now a new 2 lane asphalt road which is "supposed" to make the trip safer. We can´t say it felt very safe though. The driver can´t have been older than 18 and spent the majority
Salar de Uyuni
Another group photo by the lake of the journey arranging his hair in the rear view mirror. Speed was his priority, not safety and he kept trying to overtake faster vehicles, uphill, around blind bends. We were worried and knew we weren´t being drama queens, as the locals look concerned and asked him to be careful. Our guide also kissed her cross a few times for luck! We´ve reached our tolerance threshold for these bus journeys, it wasn´t pleasant, and Kim turned to Andrew in despair and said "What are we doing here I just want to go home!!" Enough is enough no more scary bus rides for us!
Anyway we arrived in La Paz in one piece and had a much needed hot shower and early night.
We briefly headed over to Copacabana on Lake Titicaca and we are now in Puno, Peru.
We loved Bolivia, the people were really friendly and so colourful, the scenery was amazing and had incredible diversity. We´ll really miss it, luckily we get to revisit for a few days on our way to the Brazilian border.
Take care everyone
Lots of love
Kim & Andrew
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