The importance of 'normal days' while long-term traveling

Long term traveling is exhausting. Although we have no jobs to speak of and no real set schedules (other than our flights, trains, buses, tours, etc.) we are constantly arriving somewhere new that we may never be able to visit again. Cities and towns are filled with interesting things to see, people to meet, food to try and history to learn. Most of our stops are three days, with the occasional 5 or 6 day stay. This requires a lot of packing and unpacking and washing clothes at all opportunities. There is little routine other than making it up in time for breakfast then getting out there to do stuff - and as I said, this is exhausting. Throw into the mix the fact that we are constantly alert for scams, pickpockets, safe food, bad weather and everything in between leads us to fall into bed early and quickly each night. 

When you travel for 2 weeks, it is ok to go go go every day to try to squeeze in as much as possible. But 4.5 months of traveling? You have to build days into your schedule to just lay around and do nothing or find something that makes you feel more normal. At first, I felt a bit guilty about doing this. My internal voice shouted at me: 'You're in Rio and you're just going to sit on Pinterest?! And then go to a mall and see a film?! Why are you even traveling? Just go home!' Luckily, I got over this very shouty, judgey monologue just after the film finished. I felt refreshed and ready to be a tourist again the next day. 

Rest days are essential to help you recover from the all the seeing/doing/absorbing that a new country or city requires of you. When we arrived in Lima, Peru, we were ready for another rest day. Our time in Bolivia had been incredible, and extremely intense in terms of touring the many wonderous places across the country. Every moment I stared out the window just in awe of all the colors and constantly changing scenery. Being that in the moment can be quite exhausting. So out of our three days in Lima, we took quite a few opportunities to just recover. We ate sushi at a local restaurant. We went to a beautiful mall on the cliff side and just walked around absorbing the comfortable homey feeling. We went to an arcade and played many games (Guitar Hero, Deal or No Deal, ski ball, air hockey, Dance Dance Revolution 2, and a shoot 'em up game - Paul's choice obviously). We found a book store with English books and enjoyed browsing. Finally, we went to see a movie together - in English! - and reveled in the normalcy of popcorn, gummie candies, and soda. 

Do you ever get home from a vacation and need a vacation to recover from it? Now imagine doing that for months and months. I'm not complaining at all, in fact I am sad that my trip is slipping so quickly by. But I am taking a few moments here and there just to relax and not have to be a tourist, so I can better understand and explore my next destination. And I will not feel guilty about it, not for a moment. If you're planning long-term travel, just remember to take the time to rest every now and then. Do something familiar that requires little energy from you. Without that rest, it can be hard to appreciate your incredible surroundings. Our next rest day? Visiting Torrance, CA in 5 days to see friends, family, and yes, maybe a mall and a movie :)

Salt Flats Tour Part 2

If you missed part 1, click HERE. It will take you through the first few days of this trip... But now for the crowing glory....

Day 4

Normally, people take a 4 day tour through Bolivia, but we opted for one day longer. This gave us the chance to sleep in on Day 4 (I say sleep in, but we were still up by 8am) and see a bit more. After a quick breakfast we headed out to our first stop - the Inferno Cave! Discovered only recently, it shows the lava that had, a very long time ago, flown into the ocean and frozen in the most peculiar of fashions. On the ceiling was also coral and salt water stalactites. It was a small cave, but interesting nonetheless. Our heads were grateful for the helmets as some of the passages were quite low.

After the cave, we began our drive across the salt flats. It was mesmerizing, looking out the window and seeing nothing but the flats and some distant peaks of mountains that were just barely shadows. We drove for some time, although I couldn't tell you how much, before we arrived at The Island. Poking up in the middle of the white nothingness was a small, for lack of a better word, island. We got out and had a short hike up to get a better view of the surrounding area. Other than getting a bit lost on the way down, we enjoyed ourselves and tried to hide our huffing and puffing because at about 3500 meters above sea level, we still weren't completely acclimatized.

The Island in the middle of the salt flats

A cactus on the island

One of the new Bolivian flags that recognizes native people of the Andes.

 

Our lovely driver and guide then set off in the direction of seemingly nowhere to find the holes in the flats. I have no idea how, but they found them, and we pulled over for lunch and fun pictures and enjoyment of the flats. Felipe (our driver) poked around with a screwdriver and hammer in said holes until he found us satisfactorily large salt crystals to take home as souvenirs. We ate lunch on the flats, just marveling at its vast size and seemingly endlessness. Then was the time for pictures! Because of the nondescript landscape, you can take incredible perspective pictures. Felipe and Ellie were amazing helpers in taking our pictures, directing us and suggesting funny and interesting ideas. Time flew by, and before we knew it it was time to move on. It was a good thing too, because I turned out quite sunburned and was as red as a ripe tomato! 

Honey I shrunk the Szczypkas?

Careful Paul, if you crush the truck we'll be stuck here forever.

Paul's getting blown away!

Look at tiny me doing a handstand!

Paul, contemplating life (and looking for a meteorite!)

Lunch on the salt flats!

Kisses!

We drove across the flats once again, with Elizabeth (the guide) at the wheel. We stopped to take pictures of the volcanoes and at a reflecting pool. I got soaked up to my knees in saltwater, but it was worth it for a few cool pictures! Then we were suddenly not on the salt flats and back on the bumpy dirt road, heading to our next night's sleep. We stopped in a small museum with a mummy and old Bolivian artifacts, and got the chance to see a multicolored volcano. Time slipped through my fingers and it was night in the blink of an eye. 

Perfect place for a handstand!

Multicolored volcano

Llamas! Finally!

 Day 5

This last day had precious few stops, but they were all interesting and each one got us closer to our bus and La Paz. We first stopped at a big crater, where Elizabeth informed us that no one was sure about how the crater was made. Next, we got to take a much needed rest at a thermal baths. Unlike the previous thermal bath, these were private little rooms with a bath and shower. The hot water was just what I needed after being bone cold for 4 days. A quick and delicious lunch and we were zooming on to Oruro. Most travelers don't stop in this city, and when Paul and I first drove through it felt like a ghost town with hundreds of half built buildings and no one around. The second time through it was buzzing with activity, as it is the commercial hub of the entire country. Elizabet got our tickets and waited with us to be sure we were on the right bus. Then we waved out tearful goodbyes and said our prayers as our bus zoomed off to La Paz. A short ride by comparison, only 5 hours, but sitting right at the front we got to see our very sensible driver overtake trucks on a blind curve.... going uphill... and then honk at any offending car that had the nerve to be in its own lane coming head-on at us. Informative stickers on the windows reminded us that we were required to wear our seatbelt, which we surely would have should they have been working. Ah well, it's all just another trip in Bolivia. We made it back to La Paz, to our previous hotel, for a much needed rest. 

If you are considering a trip to South America, I would strongly urge you to visit Bolivia before it becomes strangled with tourists. We had so many opportunities to just be in nature, just us, without hundreds of people milling around. This is a place best experienced through your own eyes, and it will be a trip you will never forget.

Traveler's Tip: Even though many hotels and restaurants advertise that they take credit card (Visa or MasterCard) it seems that most companies don't actually know how to use their card readers. Come prepared with lots of cash, as USD is widely accepted.

Salt Flats Tour Part 1

One of my biggest bucket list items is a trip through Bolivia to the salt flats in Uyani. And this week, my dream finally came true. Usually I use my words to describe a trip, but in this case I fear that words cannot even remotely describe this experience. It's something you just have to do to understand the incredible beauty of Bolivia. For those of you that are interested in coming her someday, I will walk through the things we saw each day, but mostly rely on the pictures to help tell my story.

Day 1

We started our tour in Tupiza, in the south of Bolivia after a nearly-all-night bus (click here to read about how we got to Tupiza and chose our tour company). The tour started at 8, and after a bit of stress trying to pay with 3 credit cards and ending with Paypal, we got out by 8:30. Our tour guide and cook was Elizabeth and our driver was Felipe. Our first stop was 10 minutes down the road and it was Palala where the weathered rocks created incredible shapes sticking straight up into the sky. From there our jeep climbed quickly up the hillside, gaining even more altitude. We stopped at many beautiful rock formations, cliffs, valleys and towns. Mostly Paul and I just stared out in wonder at the gorgeous changing landscape around us.

We had a chance to stop at some Inca ruins and learn a bit about the Spanish that came to exploit the mines from the town. We ended with a delicious dinner and a clear gorgeous sky bursting with stars. By 9pm we were freezing and huddled under our sleeping bags and 6 blankets. Brrr!

 

Day 2

This was a big day for us! We started the day by seeing the 'Stinky Lagoon' (Laguna Hedionda) which wasn't very stinky but was very beautiful and we were the only ones there. Next our jeep dropped us next to the 'Shampoo Lagoon' (Laguna Kollpa) and Paul and I got to walk around it, enjoying the peaceful quiet, flamingos and birds around the edges.  We entered the national park and saw a small salt flat (Salar de Chalviri) and then entered the Dali Desert (Desierto de Dali), so called because of the multicolored mountains and strange rock structures that pop out of the ground.

We arrived first at the White Lagoon, and then crested a hill. Our guide Elizabeth turned around and said, "Are you ready to see the Green Lagoon (Laguna Verde)?" A a bright green/turquoise pool of water came into view. My jaw hit the floor, it was so gorgeous. Behind it was a volcano that sat on the border between Chile, Argentina, and Bolivia. 

Next we arrived at the hot springs where I got to swim in the warm water while lunch was being prepared. The view was incomparable and even though I was loathe to get out (the wind was freezing!) you can't stay in hot springs forever. A quick lunch there and we were off!

We were to climb even higher, above 5000 meters, to see some geysers. The steam was pouring out of several holes in the ground, with bubbling pots of mud of a range of different colors across the land. Again, pictures speak louder than words.

We had one last stop on our second day, and that was the Red Lagoon (Laguna Colorado)! With sunshine and wind, the algae was agitated enough to make it a deep red. Full of flamingos and bright colors, it was an incredible sight. Paul and I walked around the lake with Elizabeth guiding us and telling us interesting facts. It was great just to be able to soak it all in. Our next hostel was close by, and we ate a quick and delicious dinner before running off to bed (about 8:30!) it was far too cold not to be snuggled under the pile of covers. 

Day 3

Our first stop on day 3 was the stone tree (Arbol de Piedra). Apparently the minerals on the bottom are softer than the minerals on the top, making the bottom erode more quickly. This has caused the tree like shape that you can see in my pictures. It is estimated that the tree will erode to the point that it falls over in the next 5 years!  Elizabeth and I decided to climb up some of the tall rock formations to see the view of the surrounding area and the Atacama Desert (Desierto de Siloli) which is the driest place on earth. It was beyond incredible and the view was just breathtaking as the rest of the tourists disappeared and we were left alone to wonder in amazement. 

Paul on top of the world!

Me on top of a big pile of rocks. It took quite a bit of climbing and scrambling, but was worth it!

Our drive continued and we appeared to be alone, in the middle of nowhere. We passed by the rainbow mountain, so named because it looks similar to another mountain of the same name (and the rainbow colors or red, orange, yellow and purple that stripe its sides). We then drove by 4 lagoons but only stopped at 3. The first one was frozen on top and so we skidded rocks along it. The next lagoon was chalk-full of flamingos and it was interesting to watch them scrape their beaks along the bottom of the lagoon and fight each other as they saw fit. We ate lunch at the last lagoon, which had a beautiful reflection and more flamingos. Then we arrived at a beautiful rock formation (petrified lava, our guide informed us) to overlook an active volcano on the border of Chile.

Where are we? Why we're in the middle of nowhere, and it is gorgeous!

The first lagoon we stopped at for the day

Second lagoon - full of flamingos!

Third lagoon - our view for lunch!

In the background in the volcano on the border of Chile and Bolivia.

Finally, we made our way to a 'train graveyard' with one long decommissioned train and the border of Chile. We took the opportunity to stretch our legs and take a few pictures.

Me standing on the border of Chile! It is so well guarded... just look at that big fluffy scary dog.

What a scary train!

Our next to last stop for the day was a small shop that sold interesting flavored beer: coca, quinoa, and honey. We bought a few to share with our group, but only took a few cautious sips (still at altitude!).

Back in the trucks we went and continued on a bumpy dirt road to the prize location - Salar de Uyani, finally, for sunset. We didn't go far across the flats, but it was already mesmerizing. We took pictures and just took in the view.

Another cold night ahead of us, but it was mitigated slightly by the promise of a salt hotel. Everything, from the tables to the chairs to the walls to the floor (but not the mattress or pillows or blankets thankfully) were made of salt. It was quite a novelty, and definitely a more interesting stay than where we had been previously. And here, the most amazing thing - HOT WATER! We loved our showers then snuggled down for the night in anxious anticipation for the next day. 

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Now that is quite a post...to read about Days 4-5, click HERE.