Onwards and Upwards

Today (18th August) we left Tupiza for the salt flats.

Before we could leave Tupiza our driver, Johnny, had to check in with the local police to register his details. When we asked why we were told it was to ensure he didn't travel too fast through the national park which is dangerous. They record the time of departure and compare it to the arrival time at the next checking, not that we saw a second check point today!

Just outside of Tupiza we came across a herd of llamas taking themselves for a walk in a big long line. There were several mum and babies and this was the first time we had heard them make a noise. It was a soft sort of murmuring which is a call for them to all get in formation and march on.

To get to the first night stop on our trip we had to driving through a dormant volcanic area reaching our highest point yet, 5000m!

Altitude affects people in different ways. Although Stu and I are both acclimatised to the altitude the jeep is quite bumpy. That combined with the altitude made Stu feel sick and headachey. I however just got really hungry at the higher altitudes but feel ill at around 2000m :-\

On the plus side Stu got to sample the local "cure" for altitude related issues: coca leaves. Although we've tried the tea (which I think is vile!) we hadn't tried chewing the leaves. Our guide, Eli, suggested Stu try chewing some leaves (the leaves in larger quantities are used in the production of cocaine). He took a handful and was then encouraged to take more. So there he sat in the back of the car, chewing coca leaves looking like a llama! Supposedly they took the edge of it but I'm not sure he's keen to chew them again!

The rock formations around Tupiza are amazing. Everywhere we've driven through today has been carved by the elements. And of course lots of llamas and vercuñas (wild alpaca whose fur sells for $100 per kg).

For lunch we stopped in a sheltered area that is a favorite munching spot for all the local llama (some travel up to 3km). Even though we were at more than 3500m the sun was lovely and warm and we only needed a jumper to keep warm while we ate our picnic lunch, quite different to Peru where we would have been in full winter gear at that altitude!

After lunch we saw a couple of llamas fighting, biting each other's legs to force the other one to the ground. This went on for around 15 mins with other llamas watching. Then they just walked off together as if nothing had happened!

Further along the road we saw our first wild ostrich grazing in amongst the donkeys and llamas. A few minutes later we saw a pair of them running in front of the jeep which showed just how fast they can run (50kph!), one disappeared off into the distance whilst the other continued to run in front of the jeep for a while before turning and running off up the mountain.

Today was full of wildlife. Last time our guide passed through this area she saw 3 condors and today we were lucky again and saw one flying above the jeep following us along the road.

We got to our night stop at around 4pm, our highest night yet at 4200m.

San Pablo is a small (250 people) mining town 25 miles north of the Argentinean border. We went for a walk through the town and along the river, encountering some more llamas and donkeys on our way.

The town consists of lots of small houses and a church made of mud bricks plus a more modern section sheltering JCBs and a football ground which was is full use.

At dinner we were given (for the first time on our trips) a pudding, and this one was good! An extremely rich chocolate pudding that tasted like they had just melted a chocolate bar in a pan and served it, delicious but too rich for me to finish. However Stu had fully recovered his appetite and had no problems finishing mine off too!