I have to admit, I get anxiety about weird things. Some are rational, others maybe not so much. Our upcoming tour had me nervous for a few reasons. First I get car sick and this is a three day tour in an SUV with other people going who knows where. Second, I always worry about the group that will essentially be my team for days at a time. Third, were we going to freeze to death?! And fourth, how terrifying is the freezing hotel we have to bring sleeping bags for?
Rebecca and I planned on a chill day in Uyuni before the tour to not have to panic about timing. This also gave us a chance to do some additional shopping for warmth. Thank goodness for my scarf and alpaca socks! That night we got a message saying they were switching our days and we needed to be ready at 8:30 instead of 10:00. So much for a relaxed morning! So we packed, went to our freezing beds with all layers on again and tried to sleep. Of course the water froze again that night and we woke to no toilet or sink. But we were excited and didn’t care. At about 8:25 we got a message saying they changed their minds and would now pick us up at 10:00. Thanks for the early notice!
As we pulled up to the office I kept my eyes out for who our group would be. Several people were inside or milling about. One of the workers walked us through our schedule and what we would be seeing. Then we met our guide and group. Now Rebecca and I were definitely the old ladies of the group, but we lucked out with three great travelers. Of course we were also the shortest so we ended up in the way back which had me panicked at first. Luckily the roads were more bumpy than winding so I wasn’t sick. We also got to share our seat with Tina the dinosaur! (Tina is a T-Rex, who loves salt- NaCl, hence why I named her Tina.)
Our first stop was a train graveyard filled with rust and tetanus. We had fun climbing onboard and pretending to be conductors.
Next stop was the whole reason for us going to Bolivia. The salt flats! Our guide, Axel, had us close our eyes a few minutes before arriving to get the full effect. On the count of three we all looked outside and were simultaneously blinded by the brightness of sun reflecting off pure white salt. Just like staring at the snow on a bright Colorado day. It was incredible! The salt went on for miles and crinkled under the tires as we drove on. We visited an old salt hotel that is no longer used to keep the salt flats protected. The tables, chairs and walls were all created from salt blocks. No, I did not lick anything, but it was definitely salt.
The salt flats were created from salt lakes that evaporated many years ago leaving behind a thick salt crust. The flats have several islands scattered about. We visited one filled with cacti that truly seemed out of place. Climbing to the top gave us views for miles. I loved that even the signs and parts of building were made from dried out cacti. I’d never really thought about what they looked like when they died, but the texture with holes all around made for a fun effect. Of course Rebecca and I stopped to practice our cactus poses before moving on.
It was finally time for fun photos! Our guide had great ideas and enjoyed using Tina to her full effect. My whole group got into our photo shoot and we had a blast making a fantastic video, and pictures with fun perspectives. Johnny got in on it too and got to be as tall as me. He was super exited!
The last stop for the day we pulled on boots to be able to stand in a few inches of water. Once again we closer our eyes until we were in the center of the mirror effect. When we opened them you couldn’t tell which way was up or down! I couldn’t believe the beauty surrounding us. We played in the water and took a million photos of the sun setting while Axel set up a table of wine and treats. Not a bad way to wrap up the day.
One last highlight was the hotel they took us to. I don’t know why we didn’t stay there the night before! It had actual indoor heating, hot showers and a great restaurant. And of course salt decorated headboards. The next two days we were heading to the desert and lagoons to find flamingoes and apparently Mars. Man, this place has it all!
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