The bus ride from Potosí to Uyuni counted amongst the most spectacular we have made. Soon after the stony hills of Potosí the first fields of cacti appeared and smaller salt flats stood out from the colorful desert landscape. Uyuni was originally erected as a military base, but nowadays mainly lives from tourists staying there before heading to the famous "Salar de Uyuni" or "Tunupa" salt flat, which is its actual name. Not surprisingly, the town consists of a few hotels, dull restaurants and over 60 travel agencies that all offer the omnipresent 3-day jeep tour to the salt flat, lagoons and volcanic landscape. From the beginning, we were aware that an independent visit of this impressive landscape was not possible (although on tour we saw a few touring cyclists – Philipp’s heart was bleeding). So we considered a few agencies and finally opted for the offer of "Perla de Bolivia"; an agency which had been recommended to us already in La Paz. And for once we were extremely happy with our choice! Nadia, our English-speaking guide, Carlos, our driver and DJ, as well as our two fellow traveller girls from the UK, Sara and Susanne, all made for a great and unforgettable trip! It certainly helped that we were all about of the same age and we simply had a lot of fun. As we followed the same program as all tours, we will just give you a daily overview of our itinerary. Anyways, the pictures will speak for themselves - we have never seen a comparable landscape before and were simply astonished by its beauty. Day 1 After visiting the locomotive cemetery just outside Uyuni (a British company had simply left all steam locomotives in the desert, as soon as the transportation of silver from Bolivia to the sea access in Chile was not lucrative anymore) we headed for the immense salt flat "Tunupa". The first impression was stunning: a glaring white surface with polygonal patterns as far as the eye could reach. We expected it to be slippery, as we could only compare it to ice :-). Obviously it was not, but wet and sticky instead. We had lunch directly on the salt flat with picnic table and chairs (super cool!), before visiting the first hotel built entirely from salt; it's a museum today. Taking some funny pictures by playing with the perspective and optical illusions followed next. The walk on the sacred island "Incahuasi" with its hundred years old cacti was a welcomed alternative to sitting in the car. Before watching the sunset on the salt flat we visited a calm cave with stalactites and stalagmites. Day one was crowned with a delicious dinner and a stay in romantic bungalows created entirely of salt. Day 2 The second day, we visited a handful of differently colored lagoons; one was more astonishing than the other. Flamingos were gabbling in the lagoons for algae and plankton (that's where they gain the carotenoids which yield the pink color of their feathers) and contributed to a very calm and idyllic impression. This impression could be deceptive, though, after all we were on the Bolivian Altiplano well above 4000 m height and the volcanic landscape and desert account for a harsh climate. Wind and erosion formed rocks into wondrous shapes. At our second, more basic, accommodation a fire kept us warm while enjoying a traditional Bolivian dish and a bottle of red wine for dinner. Talking around the warm oven rounded off the second day and last evening before our group was separated: while we were heading to Chile, Sara and Susanne would be returning to Uyuni after tomorrow’s program. Day 3 We started the third day by watching the sunrise at a field of fumaroles/geysers, hence called "sol de mañana". Warming our feet in the natural hot pools afterwards and having the morning sun shine upon our faces just felt perfect. The last leg through the “Reserva nacional de fauna andina Eduardo Avaroa" led past colorful mountains where the occasional vicuñas could be spotted (did you know that they can drink the salty and mineral water from the volcanic lagoons?). From the green lagoon, we could see the volcano "Licancabur” for the first time. Its shape is like a perfect, multi-colored cone and it stands out from the neighbouring volcanoes thanks to its remarkable silhouette. Soon afterwards we had reached the border and waved good-bye to the others. Our pre-booked bus arrived promptly (it was an eerie feeling to stand in the desert, totally depending on strangers) and drove us to San Pedro de Atacama where we had to endure Chile’s rigid immigration policies.
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