I was freezing in the car. The border was still closed when we arrived around 6.30am. So why did we have a 5.30am pick up time? I shivered and the driver didn’t turn on the heat in the car. We were joking we got the cheap tour, so heat was not included. We’re the second in line at least, but honestly, the line isn’t that big. Aparently the border can be busy, so all the tour companies do a breakfast while waiting for the border to open. It was delicious! There was avocado on bread, cake, banana, and best of all: hot drinks! The customs office opened at 8am sharp and we had a quick exit of Chile. After a short drive we had to wait for the Bolivian border to open at 8.30am. Again everything went very quickly. But the waiting wasn’t over yet. We had to transfer to a jeep, but it hadn’t arrived yet. Why were we so early then? Once it arrived, our bags were strapped on the roof, wrapped in a yellow tarp. We found our places and headed to an office for a declaration form. The main question was if we are bringing in more than 10.000 USD in cash. Uhm, no. The wifi to fill out the form didn’t work well, so we waited a bunch more. Once everyone had filled out the form, we went through so quickly that it made me wonder if they had even looked at it.
We were finally ready for the adventure: a 3-day tour from San Pedro de Atacama to Uyuni. We didn’t have to wait long for the first stop. Laguna Blanca and laguna Verde lay at the edge of the Reserva Nacional de Fauna Andina Eduardo Abaroa, right on the border, at 4350m. First, we had a toilet break though. The first taste of Bolivian complications. The pipes were frozen, so you flush by taking water from a big bucket. That meant there was also no water to wash hands. Yay for hand sanitizer. At the lagunas we could go for a short walk. It was a beautiful sight. We saw a familiar volcano, but this time from the Bolivian side. There was ice around the sides of the water, which was slowly melting in the sun. The water color was different for both lagoons. We saw shades of green, blue and gray. From a hill I saw many tire tracks. The roads are so bad at times that there are lots of tracks across the dirt. We were comfy in the jeep, regardless of the road conditions.
Salvador Dali’s desert was a bit underwhelming for me. Basically, there is one parking lot from where you can take pictures of a landscape that looks like one of Dali’s paintings. It’s just missing the melting clocks. It’s still beautiful, but I had imagined more than just one “painting”. A little bit further is laguna Chalviri. The Polques thermal pools, with a lovely 35 degrees, are right at its edge. After freezing all morning this was a great break. I squeezed into my bathing suit, still wet from the day before. I tried to ignore the cold and hurried to the hot pool. I defrosted quickly in the water. The view was absolutely to die for. There were kind of yellow-orange rocks in between the blue water. Red sandy mountains stood in the background. It was a shame all jeeps were here at the same time. It wasn’t exactly a calming or relaxing experience. While we were warming up, our guide Fernando prepared lunch. It was at a hospedaje/restaurant up the hill. At nearly 5000m, after coming from the hot pool back into the cold, it was a hard walk. We had plain pasta, salad, avocado, chicken and veggies, so there was plenty of food. The toilet of the hospedaje was way in the back. I passed some rooms and saw beds that were piles of stones with a mattress on it. It made me wonder what our sleeping situation would be.
Next up we walked around the geyser Sol de Mañana. There was not a lot of steam, but the rocks had very nice colors. A strong smell of sulphur hung around the area. Closeby was a thermal energy plant. It was fairly new. Close to the geysers was a smaller hole that let out steam quite high into the air. It was a man-made hole, used as a test for the power plant. Unlike in Chile there were no park rangers, but only some rocks indicating where you were allowed to walk. Despite the risky area, they were widely ignored. I didn’t really feel the need to cross the barrier and get closer to the bubbling mud pits. Although the geysers were cool, the highlight of the day was laguna Colorada. Its water is super pink and filled with hundreds of flamingos. They are accompanied by llamas with ties in their hair and the wild vicuñas. This was the most developped attraction so far. You’d walk uphill to a mirador with toilets and a coffee bar. The wind was making it really chilly. Really, with the wind and the altitude, even the sun couldn’t warm me up. Then the loop went past the edge of the lake and it was a bit more sheltered. The laguna houses 3 types of flamingos, but I really couldn’t tell the difference. Some had bright pink on their tail and when they flap their wings you can see the black on the bottom of them. Such a nice contrast with the pink.
Finally, we had a long drive to a small town where we suddenly had to pay for someone to open a chain that went across the road. Turned out we were sleeping there. The sun was setting and leaving beautiful colors across the sky. But without sun it was sooo cold inside. The hotel seemed new. It was very neat and nicer than some of the hostels I’ve been in. The lady had rushed inside to help us. 4200m. She’d prepared tea and biscuits. Quickly after that we got vegetable soup and a typical Cochabamba dish called pique macho, with meats, potatoes, egg and vegetables. It was a nice mix. Very tasty. At dinner we had a space heater close to the table, to take off the edge of the cold. We didn’t have high expectations of the showers, since the whole building was so cold. But to our surprise, the shower was hot! Really steaming. We did receive a warning that in the morning the pipes would be frozen. Also, the hotel here don’t provide toilet paper. You have to bring tour own.
The second day felt almost like a sleep in. I got up at 6am, which we were told the night before. My roommate asked after a while “you know we’re getting up at 6.30 right?” The departure time had been changed while I was in the shower. We had breakfast in the hotel. It was freezing. The pancakes were really tasty though. Fernando was changing a tire and filling up the petrol. We left a bit late and while we were driving it turned out the tires didn’t have enough air. So while we walked in our intended direction for a bit, Fernando went back to town to fill the tires. After that we were on our way for a relatively long drive to different rock formations. The first stop was camel rock, which I thought looked more like a tea pot. Nearby were more volcanic rock formations where we could walk around for a bit. They were called Italia perdida because some Italians on bikes got lost in there. They were found though. But honestly, I don’t know how people navigate here. There are a dozen tracks that seem to go to the same destination, but hardly any signs.
Today’s lunch was in a small town. It seemed in the middle of nowhere since we approached on a very sandy track. Yet as we left we drove on the asphalt for a minute or two. It was the main road to Chile. We were not done yet with the bumpy roads though. We stopped at another lagoon with some llamas and a couple of ostriches. The llamas gave us quite the show today. As we were approaching a town, a male llama was humping a female, only she wasn’t in the mood and kept walking. They crossed the street right in front of us. During our drives we’ve also seen a fox in the middle of the desert. We stopped and he started circling the car. We even managed to see a couple of chinchillas, a rodent that looks most like a rabbit.
A very nice stop today was the condor canyon. There weren’t any birds, but the landscape was fantastic. We walked over the ridge of rock on the top of the canyon. There were some pretty steep drops. The lookout over the landscape was scary but incredible. The most unexpected stop was Julaca. Once upon a time, this town was quite important, and bigger, since it was the place from where trains left with resources from the mines in the area. It was practicallly abandoned until a few people returned for tourism. As soon as the jeeps arrived, the music volume went up. You can buy interesting beers, such as cactus or quinoa. Besides a few “bars” the wind sweeps over the gigantic square, blowing up the sand. There are still train tracks and remnants of the past operations. I guess it provides a nice break on the way to Chuvica, on the edge of the Uyuni salt flat.
And that was what it was all about: visiting the salt flat. We first checked in to our salt hotel. It seemed a fraction warmer than the previous hotel. In the dining area the table was made of salt. We sat on salt stools with a little pillow on top. The floor in our rooms was made of salt and the mattress lay on a salt bedframe. Even the walls had salt on them. After a pile of cookies with tea, we dressed up to watch the sunset. I felt like a millefeuille in all my layers. But it was necessary. We droved on a road surrounded by wet salt flat. There was a very strong wind and the salt lake had waves on it. For us it meant it was freezing, but the colors of the sunset more than made up for it. And luckily there was a hot meal when we got back to the hotel. And a shower so hot I couldn’t really stand under it.
On the last day we had a 5am wake up for a 5.30 start. This time, we really had to be on time. And dressed for cold. I put my thermals under my thights and hiking skirt. Just like the last few days, I had my t-shirt, fleece, llama sweater and puffer jacket. We drove out to the salt flats again, towards the part where the water disappears and the dry salt flat is left over. We were still in the wet part because the reflections would give us good photos. So I was hopping over the slightly higher piles of salt, trying to keep my feet dry. It sort of worked out. My boots are covered in salt though, and my thights are full of salty water drops. Fernando had some photo suggestions, so we walked through the water to get the nice shots. For a video he had us do 5 different poses as a group while he drove around us in the jeep. The sun was slowly rising and lighting up the scene. Today the water was still because there was no wind. The mountains were reflected in the water. It was beautiful.
After this first stop we continued to Incahuasi island. It’s called the camp of the Incas because they used it as a place to rest when they crossed the salt flats. For me it was one of the two most beautiful stops on the tour. The little island was formed by coral and is surrounded by a sea of white. The salar de Uyuni is about 12.000 km2, bigger in the rainy season and smaller in the dry season. The cacti on the island form an amazing contrast to the empty salt flats. We could walk around the little island in a loop that took us to the top, past a cave and back down to a picnic area. They’d made picnic tables and stools out of salt. While we were walking, Fernando prepared our breakfast table. We even had yoghurt today! The little birds with bright yellow bellies seemed to know all the tours arrived at this time. More and more came out to pick up our crumbs. With full bellies we hopped in the car again for a photo stop on the salt.
“We don’t have petrol anymore”, says Fernando. I look at the others, not sure what to do with this information. The car drives slower a few times and then it really stops. We’re in the middle of the world’s largest salt flat. I guess the cheap tour doesn’t include enough petrol. We don’t even see other cars because they all try to spread out for the photos. So we start with some perspective photos. We’re fake-kicking each other, crushing each other and form a giant scorpion with our shadows. When we see a car we run over the salt, our hands waving. The first car drives by at full speed, but then another car notices us, slows down, drives our way and provides us with some petrol. We’re saved! So we get back in the car to drive further onto the plain for more photos. Our highlight is a video of us dancing out of a pringles can. Then we have a stop at the oldest salt hotel, really located on the salt. It’s not operating as a hotel anymore, because it can’t offer sanitary facilities. Now there is a shop, some salt statues and a bunch of flags. Outside are people with plastic dinosaurs and other puppets you can rent to take funny perspective photos.
We’re nearly at the end of the salt flat. As we drive further there are more puddles in the salt. Then suddenly we drive on asphalt. We drive to the nearest town to browse the souvenir shops and market. You can buy salt to eat, but also salt sculptures. All that’s left after that is the trip to Uyuni. We drive past a petrol station with huge lines. For momths Bolivia has had a problem with petrol now. People stand in line for days sometimes, waiting for the truck with petrol to arrive. In Uyuni we visit the train cemetery. In the 70s all the locomotives were replaced and the old ones still stand there. They’ve added some swings. It’s like a big playground and some kids are high up on the train carriages. We’re all hungry and are happy lunch is just around the corner. Today it’s mystery meat with quinoa and vegetables. We’re also happy to see the standard vegetables soup. Unfortunately it’s our last meal together. We leave each other in the center of town. Fernando mentions there are no buses. Wait. What? I walk to the bus office, but it’s still closed. So I decide to get a sim card first. I buy it from a lively lady who has a small stand in front of the Entel (provider) office. In the middle of the street she helps me install and activate the sim. Afterwards I feel more secure. The bus company confirms via what’s app that the bus to la Paz goes, but with some changes. I can drop my luggage at their office. Once I get there they explain we have to change buses in the middle of the night. Online I read that there are bloquades of protestors. They protest for more petrol. Bolivia certainly starts as an adventure!
