2nd Leg Retirement Trip
Dec 12th, 2014, 05:07 PM
#22
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That was some bus ride in the dry mlgb. I dread to think what it would be like with even a light drizzle of rain!! I was never quite sure whether the miles of roadworks on the Peru side where road improvements or just permanently clearing the landslides...
Dec 15th, 2014, 02:35 PM
#23
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The bus ride on O Globo from Potosi to Tupiza was surprisingly easy. I had read nightmare scenerios about gravel roads, shear drop offs and drunk drivers but we experienced none of this. We may have been lucky as the substitute bus we were in after the breakdown of our original bus was barely capable of a slow jog and the driver ground the gears with every shift. The good news is that the road is almost entirely newly paved. There were several sections that were only 1/2 paved in the opposite direction but all paved toward Tupiza. The scenery was beautiful although much the same until we got nearer to the red rock of Tupiza. We stopped at a town midway for bathroom break (no BR on bus) and lunch. The trip was about 8 hours.
We arrived at the bus station and took a taxi to Hotel Mitru. We did not know it was only a 6 block walk from the station or would have walked. The hotel room the first night was quite small and a bit musty (better room in subsequent nights) but the public spaces were comfortable and large including a nice pool with plenty of seating. We swam almost every day we were there and usually were the only ones in the pool. Wi fi was not great and it was necessary to sit in certain areas of the lounge to maximize reception. The upside was the relationship that evolved with our "wi fi buddies". We did note 1 curiosity at the hotel. There was music, quite loud, emanating from surrounding buildings. Mostly horns and sounding like a high school band practice. It also sounded like the same song over and over. When we returned from the tour after 3 days, the music continued. We laughed about starting our trip with all night Barbershop Quartet serenades and now here so far from home being kept awake by a multitude of horns. The song was catchy and stuck in our heads (think "It's A Small Small World" with a Bolivian slant). More on this later.....
We got settled in our room and then met with Gloria of Tupiza Tours (great by the way) whom I had been communicating with off and on for months trying to finalize our tour. We had decided on a private tour to the Lipez and Salar with an English speaking guide. This was a big splurge for us but well worth it. Circumstances dictated we leave the next morning with our cook, Maura, and driver/guide, Milton. Maura was cooking for us as well as another group who were mostly vegetarians so we ate our meals together. Really a lovely way to do the trip - the luxury of plenty of room in our car combined with meals with a fun group of people. The food was plentiful and well prepared. We all chipped in at the end of meals to help her with clean up.
We travelled as a caravan for safety. We would learn later how important this is. If you haven't been in this area it is hard to understand how utterly lost you would be without a guide. For much of the trip, there are no roads per se and landmarks are hard to distinguish.
Our first night we stayed in a tiny village. We had a room to ourselves and we had electricity to charge our cameras for a few hours, toilets with bucket flush and no shower. We were warned accomodation would be basic. However, that night was magical. The night sky was a blanket of stars and the air was so dry that just getting into bed would cause static electricity sparks. It was like a firework display in bed. And yes, it was very cold. The beds had heavy thick blankets and we wore our thermals, hats and gloves to bed and stayed pretty comfy. The next night we shared a room with our fellow meal companions in another small village but this time with flush toilets and a rudimentary shower. The tienda in the village had electricity until 10 pm for charging phones and cameras. At dinner a few kids from the village entertained us with a few songs and a little rap music while leaning up against the door to keep the younger kids from getting in. They passed the hat and we were all glad to put in a bit of money for them.
We brought a bottle of wine to share with our meal mates as well as Milton and Maura. Wish we had bought 2.
The third night we opted for a better hotel and had reserved the Salar de Luna independently. We split up with our meal group as they were staying closer to Uyuni and we were travelling back with Milton to Tupiza (at no extra charge). The hotel was like heaven after our previous accomodation. We enjoyed the hot shower, view of the Salar, and watching the sunset with a glass of wine. The hotel is a salt hotel, beautifully decorated and a lovely breakfast. I would recommend it.
The next morning Milton picked us up for
the long ride back to Tupiza where we ended up staying for several more days before heading to Argentina.
I will not go into detail about the tour. We were more than satisfied with Tupiza Tours. Milton was an extraordinary driver, good guide, all around good guy whom we would highly recommend. The tour took us through a world I have never seen before and an otherworldly beauty I will never forget. I had a smile on my face the whole time. It is not easy travel. The folks at Tupiza warn you of this so we were prepared. But despite the lack of luxury travel possibilities, I would emphatically encourage you to take this tour. It is one of a kind and must be one of the 5 best tours in the world. I think it will be the highlight of this almost 5 month trip.
I will spend a bit of time describing our last day, the return to Tupiza, because although the official tour was over, it was a fitting end to a fabulous and unusual experience.
We finished our tour in the morning and headed back to Tupiza which was a 5-6 hour trip through the mountains with more fabulous scenery. The road was pretty scary. Pure sand at times. Milton was a safe driver. I asked him if he did the trip at night (I can't imagine). He said yes, it was better for the passengers at night meaning they couldn't see the sheer dropoffs.
We stopped at the mining town of Atocha for the Festival of San Cristobal (Christopher) with the decorating of cars with flowers, parades and dancing. This is for the blessing of all drivers. Milton being a driver as well as a Catholic/Quechua, stopped at the shrine for St. Christopher. It was a tiny roadside shrine absent of St. Christopher (he had set up house in Atocha temporarily for the festival). We lit candles and placed them on the cement floor. We picked out the 12 best coca leaves we could find from Milton's stash and scattered them for the saint, villagers joined us and offered us a beer. We drank a bit and then sprinkled some on the floor and placed the can on the altar for St. Christopher. Cigarettes were offered all around and after a few puffs the cigs were put on the altar. Small bottles of 96% alcohol were also spilled around the floor and then left at the altar. A party atmosphere prevailed. Hands were shaken all around before we climbed back in the car.
We got outside of Uyuni about 50km and the road had turned to sand. A Quecha family flagged us down along with an older Gringo on a BMW motorcycle. He had fallen on the bike trying to drive in the sand. He was obviously dehydrated and almost in shock. Not very coherent. A long discussion ensued with Milton and "Tom" about the merits of returning to Uyuni or continuing on to Tupiza. Milton knows the roads backwards and forwards and convinced him to continue. Milton, the 3 members of the Quechua family, my husband and I all joined to turn that huge bike around and push it uphill out of the sand.
We left the driver with water and a hope that we would meet him in Tupiza. We did. And this morning my husband had a long conversation with him. He has been on the road since June starting in Colorado. 70 years old.. ...
So we all calmed down from that experience and started up again, this time into the mountains. Stopped for some photos and the car wouldn't start. Long story short, the fuel pump was broken. We were out in the middle of NOWHERE. A 4x4 stopped and 4 young guys jumped out with their tools. They tried for an hour but couldn't get the car going. In the meantime, one of the women in the car got out and started walking around in the rocks and using a rock to pry out something. Through that strange conversation that happens when you don't speak the same language, I learned she was digging out a small cactus that tasted like "carne". I walked with her searching with her and tried to pry out a few but was pretty pathetic, picking cactus prickles from my fingers. So we amused ourselves with gathering while the "boys" fiddled with the car.
These guys left unable to help and about 30 minutes later, another Tupiza Tour 4x4 drove up. Milton and the other guide fixed the fuel pump! My husband was astounded. They carefully pried off the casing, peeled back the innards and cleaned it out, reset the innards and carefully reset the casing. The only tool they used was my husband's knife. The car started. We were laughing about the American way to fix the problem: Call Triple A, get the car towed to the shop, pay $500 for a new fuel pump..... These guys are resourceful!
Anyway, we continued on towards Tupiza with a stop at Milton's village in a beautiful green valley near Tupiza surrounded by canyons. He would like to build a hotel there and start a guide service. He is a bright,resourceful young guy who speaks English and understands the nuances. If we had the money we would back him. It will be very hard in Bolivia to achieve his dreams.
And so ended our last day of the tour. Crazy day.....but unforgettable.
We were tired after the tour and decided to stay a couple of more days in Tupiza. We were glad we did as we had a couple of good experiences to add to our Bolivia time. We signed up for a 3 hour horse back ride into the red rock canyons of Tupiza (despite fearing a repeat of Crellston's experience). We made the arrangements with Tupiza Tours and walked the 1/2 mile or so to the area where the horses are boarded. We were lucky that it was market day and on the way home we took some time strolling through the market and purchased a pair of flip flops (we used to call these thongs, but when I told my 12 year old granddaughter, I needed some thongs, she almost fainted from embarrassment, so flip flops it is). We are not horse folks so although the ride went through some beautiful country, we were glad to get off the horses and return to our 2 legged walk. That afternoon we walked out of the tourist area south of town and discovered a more local area with a large labrynthian market. I bought a few gifts including Bolivian fabrics that cost 1/10 th as much as seen in Salta later.
The next day we saw adults and kids walking around with gorgeous costumes, masks and musical instruments. We learned it was a festival day and there would be a parade through town ending at the Plaza where a reviewing stand had been erected. We were told the parade would start about 4pm so walked down to the Plaza to find a park bench. Chairs had been lined up on the street, vendors were selling ice cream, popcorn, trinkets, etc and food stalls were being set up along the street. We settled in, enjoying the people watching and the lovely Tupiza plaza. We heard music and about 5pm saw the first children in their amazing costumes dance down the street. And guess what music was being played over and over with only slight variations? You guessed it, our bedtime lullaby. We pretty much knew it by heart.
We stayed a few hours and then went back to the hotel for a bit of a rest. Around 11pm we walked down to the plaza and the parade was still progressing, only now with adults. The costumes, masks, music and dancing were from the indigenous cultures of Bolivia. We were so excited to see these having experienced them in museums throughout Bolivia as well as the Origines dance production in Sucre. We especially loved seeing the dancing with the wooden platform shoes with the cymbals on the back. We were also surprised to see a contingent of young women using these as I believe it was originally for men only. Girl Power in Bolivia! The various groups were interspersed with clowns in costumes wearing many of the masks we had marveled at in the MUSEF in Sucre. What a celebration. We left about midnight and the streets were still ringing with music and dancing.
We were in Tupiza one more night, enough time to experience the flip side of Bolivia. We were seated in La Torres Restaurante next to an open door for our last pizza which had just been been delivered to us. A boy about 10 years old watched us from the outside. He came up to us with his eyes lowered and quietly said something. We didn't understand everything he said but understood he was hungry. Even as Americans, we recognize hunger when we see it. We gave him pizza in a napkin. He thanked us, still with eyes lowered and walked away eating it quickly. I will always regret not inviting him to our table to order whatever he wanted. I realize it would not have changed his life but it most definitely would have changed his evening and perhaps the next day.
This juxtaposition could not have been a more perfect ending to our Bolivian experience. Our daughter described Bolivia as "beauty wrapped in dust". This is true in so many ways. We loved Bolivia as we loved Cambodia - touched by a very poor country with a history of injustice and poverty just beginning to experience hope for it's future. The pride, pleasure and celebration of their indigenous culture, the meld of Catholic and Quechua belief, the reverance for Pachamama, the warm smiles and willingness to communicate after our initiation of "Buenos Dias" all make the sometimes hard travel so so worth it. Go to Bolivia, you will not regret it!
Next up: Argentina. Culture Shock......
We arrived at the bus station and took a taxi to Hotel Mitru. We did not know it was only a 6 block walk from the station or would have walked. The hotel room the first night was quite small and a bit musty (better room in subsequent nights) but the public spaces were comfortable and large including a nice pool with plenty of seating. We swam almost every day we were there and usually were the only ones in the pool. Wi fi was not great and it was necessary to sit in certain areas of the lounge to maximize reception. The upside was the relationship that evolved with our "wi fi buddies". We did note 1 curiosity at the hotel. There was music, quite loud, emanating from surrounding buildings. Mostly horns and sounding like a high school band practice. It also sounded like the same song over and over. When we returned from the tour after 3 days, the music continued. We laughed about starting our trip with all night Barbershop Quartet serenades and now here so far from home being kept awake by a multitude of horns. The song was catchy and stuck in our heads (think "It's A Small Small World" with a Bolivian slant). More on this later.....
We got settled in our room and then met with Gloria of Tupiza Tours (great by the way) whom I had been communicating with off and on for months trying to finalize our tour. We had decided on a private tour to the Lipez and Salar with an English speaking guide. This was a big splurge for us but well worth it. Circumstances dictated we leave the next morning with our cook, Maura, and driver/guide, Milton. Maura was cooking for us as well as another group who were mostly vegetarians so we ate our meals together. Really a lovely way to do the trip - the luxury of plenty of room in our car combined with meals with a fun group of people. The food was plentiful and well prepared. We all chipped in at the end of meals to help her with clean up.
We travelled as a caravan for safety. We would learn later how important this is. If you haven't been in this area it is hard to understand how utterly lost you would be without a guide. For much of the trip, there are no roads per se and landmarks are hard to distinguish.
Our first night we stayed in a tiny village. We had a room to ourselves and we had electricity to charge our cameras for a few hours, toilets with bucket flush and no shower. We were warned accomodation would be basic. However, that night was magical. The night sky was a blanket of stars and the air was so dry that just getting into bed would cause static electricity sparks. It was like a firework display in bed. And yes, it was very cold. The beds had heavy thick blankets and we wore our thermals, hats and gloves to bed and stayed pretty comfy. The next night we shared a room with our fellow meal companions in another small village but this time with flush toilets and a rudimentary shower. The tienda in the village had electricity until 10 pm for charging phones and cameras. At dinner a few kids from the village entertained us with a few songs and a little rap music while leaning up against the door to keep the younger kids from getting in. They passed the hat and we were all glad to put in a bit of money for them.
We brought a bottle of wine to share with our meal mates as well as Milton and Maura. Wish we had bought 2.
The third night we opted for a better hotel and had reserved the Salar de Luna independently. We split up with our meal group as they were staying closer to Uyuni and we were travelling back with Milton to Tupiza (at no extra charge). The hotel was like heaven after our previous accomodation. We enjoyed the hot shower, view of the Salar, and watching the sunset with a glass of wine. The hotel is a salt hotel, beautifully decorated and a lovely breakfast. I would recommend it.
The next morning Milton picked us up for
the long ride back to Tupiza where we ended up staying for several more days before heading to Argentina.
I will not go into detail about the tour. We were more than satisfied with Tupiza Tours. Milton was an extraordinary driver, good guide, all around good guy whom we would highly recommend. The tour took us through a world I have never seen before and an otherworldly beauty I will never forget. I had a smile on my face the whole time. It is not easy travel. The folks at Tupiza warn you of this so we were prepared. But despite the lack of luxury travel possibilities, I would emphatically encourage you to take this tour. It is one of a kind and must be one of the 5 best tours in the world. I think it will be the highlight of this almost 5 month trip.
I will spend a bit of time describing our last day, the return to Tupiza, because although the official tour was over, it was a fitting end to a fabulous and unusual experience.
We finished our tour in the morning and headed back to Tupiza which was a 5-6 hour trip through the mountains with more fabulous scenery. The road was pretty scary. Pure sand at times. Milton was a safe driver. I asked him if he did the trip at night (I can't imagine). He said yes, it was better for the passengers at night meaning they couldn't see the sheer dropoffs.
We stopped at the mining town of Atocha for the Festival of San Cristobal (Christopher) with the decorating of cars with flowers, parades and dancing. This is for the blessing of all drivers. Milton being a driver as well as a Catholic/Quechua, stopped at the shrine for St. Christopher. It was a tiny roadside shrine absent of St. Christopher (he had set up house in Atocha temporarily for the festival). We lit candles and placed them on the cement floor. We picked out the 12 best coca leaves we could find from Milton's stash and scattered them for the saint, villagers joined us and offered us a beer. We drank a bit and then sprinkled some on the floor and placed the can on the altar for St. Christopher. Cigarettes were offered all around and after a few puffs the cigs were put on the altar. Small bottles of 96% alcohol were also spilled around the floor and then left at the altar. A party atmosphere prevailed. Hands were shaken all around before we climbed back in the car.
We got outside of Uyuni about 50km and the road had turned to sand. A Quecha family flagged us down along with an older Gringo on a BMW motorcycle. He had fallen on the bike trying to drive in the sand. He was obviously dehydrated and almost in shock. Not very coherent. A long discussion ensued with Milton and "Tom" about the merits of returning to Uyuni or continuing on to Tupiza. Milton knows the roads backwards and forwards and convinced him to continue. Milton, the 3 members of the Quechua family, my husband and I all joined to turn that huge bike around and push it uphill out of the sand.
We left the driver with water and a hope that we would meet him in Tupiza. We did. And this morning my husband had a long conversation with him. He has been on the road since June starting in Colorado. 70 years old.. ...
So we all calmed down from that experience and started up again, this time into the mountains. Stopped for some photos and the car wouldn't start. Long story short, the fuel pump was broken. We were out in the middle of NOWHERE. A 4x4 stopped and 4 young guys jumped out with their tools. They tried for an hour but couldn't get the car going. In the meantime, one of the women in the car got out and started walking around in the rocks and using a rock to pry out something. Through that strange conversation that happens when you don't speak the same language, I learned she was digging out a small cactus that tasted like "carne". I walked with her searching with her and tried to pry out a few but was pretty pathetic, picking cactus prickles from my fingers. So we amused ourselves with gathering while the "boys" fiddled with the car.
These guys left unable to help and about 30 minutes later, another Tupiza Tour 4x4 drove up. Milton and the other guide fixed the fuel pump! My husband was astounded. They carefully pried off the casing, peeled back the innards and cleaned it out, reset the innards and carefully reset the casing. The only tool they used was my husband's knife. The car started. We were laughing about the American way to fix the problem: Call Triple A, get the car towed to the shop, pay $500 for a new fuel pump..... These guys are resourceful!
Anyway, we continued on towards Tupiza with a stop at Milton's village in a beautiful green valley near Tupiza surrounded by canyons. He would like to build a hotel there and start a guide service. He is a bright,resourceful young guy who speaks English and understands the nuances. If we had the money we would back him. It will be very hard in Bolivia to achieve his dreams.
And so ended our last day of the tour. Crazy day.....but unforgettable.
We were tired after the tour and decided to stay a couple of more days in Tupiza. We were glad we did as we had a couple of good experiences to add to our Bolivia time. We signed up for a 3 hour horse back ride into the red rock canyons of Tupiza (despite fearing a repeat of Crellston's experience). We made the arrangements with Tupiza Tours and walked the 1/2 mile or so to the area where the horses are boarded. We were lucky that it was market day and on the way home we took some time strolling through the market and purchased a pair of flip flops (we used to call these thongs, but when I told my 12 year old granddaughter, I needed some thongs, she almost fainted from embarrassment, so flip flops it is). We are not horse folks so although the ride went through some beautiful country, we were glad to get off the horses and return to our 2 legged walk. That afternoon we walked out of the tourist area south of town and discovered a more local area with a large labrynthian market. I bought a few gifts including Bolivian fabrics that cost 1/10 th as much as seen in Salta later.
The next day we saw adults and kids walking around with gorgeous costumes, masks and musical instruments. We learned it was a festival day and there would be a parade through town ending at the Plaza where a reviewing stand had been erected. We were told the parade would start about 4pm so walked down to the Plaza to find a park bench. Chairs had been lined up on the street, vendors were selling ice cream, popcorn, trinkets, etc and food stalls were being set up along the street. We settled in, enjoying the people watching and the lovely Tupiza plaza. We heard music and about 5pm saw the first children in their amazing costumes dance down the street. And guess what music was being played over and over with only slight variations? You guessed it, our bedtime lullaby. We pretty much knew it by heart.
We stayed a few hours and then went back to the hotel for a bit of a rest. Around 11pm we walked down to the plaza and the parade was still progressing, only now with adults. The costumes, masks, music and dancing were from the indigenous cultures of Bolivia. We were so excited to see these having experienced them in museums throughout Bolivia as well as the Origines dance production in Sucre. We especially loved seeing the dancing with the wooden platform shoes with the cymbals on the back. We were also surprised to see a contingent of young women using these as I believe it was originally for men only. Girl Power in Bolivia! The various groups were interspersed with clowns in costumes wearing many of the masks we had marveled at in the MUSEF in Sucre. What a celebration. We left about midnight and the streets were still ringing with music and dancing.
We were in Tupiza one more night, enough time to experience the flip side of Bolivia. We were seated in La Torres Restaurante next to an open door for our last pizza which had just been been delivered to us. A boy about 10 years old watched us from the outside. He came up to us with his eyes lowered and quietly said something. We didn't understand everything he said but understood he was hungry. Even as Americans, we recognize hunger when we see it. We gave him pizza in a napkin. He thanked us, still with eyes lowered and walked away eating it quickly. I will always regret not inviting him to our table to order whatever he wanted. I realize it would not have changed his life but it most definitely would have changed his evening and perhaps the next day.
This juxtaposition could not have been a more perfect ending to our Bolivian experience. Our daughter described Bolivia as "beauty wrapped in dust". This is true in so many ways. We loved Bolivia as we loved Cambodia - touched by a very poor country with a history of injustice and poverty just beginning to experience hope for it's future. The pride, pleasure and celebration of their indigenous culture, the meld of Catholic and Quechua belief, the reverance for Pachamama, the warm smiles and willingness to communicate after our initiation of "Buenos Dias" all make the sometimes hard travel so so worth it. Go to Bolivia, you will not regret it!
Next up: Argentina. Culture Shock......
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