El TATIO HOT POOLS
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De ATACAMA
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Monday, July 26, 2010
Uyuni Salt Flats Tour
This qualifies as one of the highlights of my trip. Uyuni itself is a small town on the flats surrounded by plastic covered scrub that deals with salt harvesting and tourism. But when you go out onto the flats and high country your senses are taken over by the amazing variety of scenes. My photos give some examples but I could have included another 20 without diminishing the quality.
The fantastic tour ended for me on the 2nd night when I got crook and the last day started late and I held them up a few times having to 'go both ends' again. When we reached the hot pools our tour guide took me and 2 other Aussies to the Chilian border while the others bathed away!! So missed a few things at the end but I would have to say---DO this one if you ever go to South America!!!
The fantastic tour ended for me on the 2nd night when I got crook and the last day started late and I held them up a few times having to 'go both ends' again. When we reached the hot pools our tour guide took me and 2 other Aussies to the Chilian border while the others bathed away!! So missed a few things at the end but I would have to say---DO this one if you ever go to South America!!!
Uyuni Salt Flats Tour---sick and on way to Chile
I was really crook
got out to pose at the geysers
we left the others at the hot springs and ran to the Chile border
Uyuni Salt Flats Tour
dinner before illness --20 overnight!!!!!
ducks on ice at San Juan
old limesone burial chambers San Juan
active volcano
some wildlife at the lake we had lunch at--hence the fox??
Stone Tree at Pampa Siloli
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Uyuni Salt Flats Tour
different coloured water at Uyuni 'eye of the salt flats'
the original Salt Hotel--sort of closed for sanitary reasons
nice ride around the Ilsa Incahausi
Ilsa Incahausi covered in cactus
filigree stalactites in cave only our tour did
Everybody does it!!! haha
PLASTIC GONE MAD OUTSKIRTS OF UYUNI
I have never seen anything like the small shrubs clogged with plastic approaching Uyuni
Potosi to Uyuni
Such a pretty trip this bus trip deserves a post of its own. It didn't start out that great with the bus company trying to put us on a 'chicken bus' for what we'd been told was a scenic 'don't miss'. So Ben and I got off and he went to a different bus company and I held out for the Noon bus with the same company which was a panoramic bus. Ben was right --they did try to make me pay again, but I waited it out and dealt with it through the cops and eventually just walked on to that bus when it came and they backed off.
I scored a front seat upstairs--it couldn't have been better for what proved to be a fabulous variety of views in the high desert
I scored a front seat upstairs--it couldn't have been better for what proved to be a fabulous variety of views in the high desert
POTOSI and Silver mine tour---Bolivia
Nice 3 and a half hour trip to Potosi from Sucre and the bus station at Potosi was brand new.Stayed at the best hostel so far. The Koala Den was run by a lovely lady and everything worked and the showers were hot and the free breakfast was awesome. Lots of travellers so the word has got around. The Germany-England game was on while I was here and it was sad for the 40 odd Brits but bliss for the 2 Germans!!!
The main thing to do in Potosi is the Silver mine tour. As long as you are not claustrophobic and are quick on your feet you can survive. We nearly got run down by a runaway ore truck in a part of the shaft where there was no shelter point. Our guide stuffed up and we just managed to flatten ourselves against the wall enough to avoid the impact that just caught the hip of one of the guys in our 4 man group. You have to do some crawling through parts and its no wonder that the annual average of fatalities of miners is 35!!! Its like I'd imagine the mines of the 18th and 19th Century were in the developed countries. I t was a near thing and a not to be forgotten experience.
The main thing to do in Potosi is the Silver mine tour. As long as you are not claustrophobic and are quick on your feet you can survive. We nearly got run down by a runaway ore truck in a part of the shaft where there was no shelter point. Our guide stuffed up and we just managed to flatten ourselves against the wall enough to avoid the impact that just caught the hip of one of the guys in our 4 man group. You have to do some crawling through parts and its no wonder that the annual average of fatalities of miners is 35!!! Its like I'd imagine the mines of the 18th and 19th Century were in the developed countries. I t was a near thing and a not to be forgotten experience.
Potosi Silver mine tour
Exit from mine
safe point from ore trucks
Gods of the underground--pray!!
Ready for the tour
Ore trucks that nearly killed us
Dynamite outside
POTOSI--Bolivia
Potosi main square
The mountain that's been producing ore for 500 years
Approaches to Potosi from Sucre side
SUCRE BOLIVIA
Great seats on this overnighter from La Paz to Sucre. They nearly reclined to horizontal so it was really comfortable to get some sleep. This bus trip was 12 hours and after leaving at 7.30pm it was a good time to arrive in Sucre. The Lonely Planet recommended hostel didn't have WiFi so I left my backpack there while I checked around and found a great room for $18 US.
The laundry really needed to be done and with Australia playing its last game in the World Cup it seemed like a good day to take it easy in the room and catch up with some email and blogs.
Sucre is the former capital of Bolivia and at 2600m I found it much easier to handle than La Paz. It had some really nice buildings and streetscapes and the next day I walked up to the lookout on an old square. Great views from up there and a nice restaurant on the way up where I was able to watch NZ draw their 3rd game --but not qualify!
Well I asked about some tours and walks but the prices were high for what they were offering and they didn't get enough numbers to go. Places have to realise that our pockets aren't bottomless and they still have to give value for money. I did enjoy the cruisy couple of days I spent here--it had a nice vibe.
The laundry really needed to be done and with Australia playing its last game in the World Cup it seemed like a good day to take it easy in the room and catch up with some email and blogs.
Sucre is the former capital of Bolivia and at 2600m I found it much easier to handle than La Paz. It had some really nice buildings and streetscapes and the next day I walked up to the lookout on an old square. Great views from up there and a nice restaurant on the way up where I was able to watch NZ draw their 3rd game --but not qualify!
Well I asked about some tours and walks but the prices were high for what they were offering and they didn't get enough numbers to go. Places have to realise that our pockets aren't bottomless and they still have to give value for money. I did enjoy the cruisy couple of days I spent here--it had a nice vibe.
Saturday, July 17, 2010
LA PAZ--highest capital City in the world
Another big overnight bus trip left Arequipa 2 hours late at 3.30 am. so I was pretty shattered after the early start to the Colca Valley tour the day before. This trip went via Puno and around Lake Titicaca to the border town of Yumguyo where we saw a wedding procession that made a nice change from funerals. Walked through the Peru exit and Bolivian entry areas either side of a bridge and then back into the bus and onto La Paz. Its quite a spectacular sight as you arrive at the edge of the high plain and gaze over into the city in the valley below.
La Paz was were I met up with Sean and Tanja, my South African friends from Bogata, Columbia. Remember that they helped me out after I was pick pocketed by lending me some money so I could get to New Orleans. Great to see them again and be able to pay them back that loan. Sean did the Road of Death bike ride the next day and Tanja and I had lunch at a nice Dutch restaurant and walked around a couple of nice squares. The next day I did some more walking around the city and I was ready to move on south to the very nice city of Sucre.
La Paz was were I met up with Sean and Tanja, my South African friends from Bogata, Columbia. Remember that they helped me out after I was pick pocketed by lending me some money so I could get to New Orleans. Great to see them again and be able to pay them back that loan. Sean did the Road of Death bike ride the next day and Tanja and I had lunch at a nice Dutch restaurant and walked around a couple of nice squares. The next day I did some more walking around the city and I was ready to move on south to the very nice city of Sucre.
LA PAZ--highest capital City in the world
La Paz down below the Altiplano
San Francisco Church
Witches Markets
San Francisco's rooftop
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