Salt, salt, everywhere - and one hell of a bus trip

Our final day on our 4WD trip was to visit the salt flats.  Firstly I am a lucky girl because I have seen the flats in all their glory, the first time in the dry season when the hexagonal salt patterns are amazing - and this time during the wet season - where the whole flats are covered in salty water that glimmers and shimmers as far as the eye can see.  We stopped off at a village and saw how locals collect and dry the salt for sale and supported the community by buying a few bits and pieces.  Bernard and I got to sit on top of the 4WD as we drove across the salt flats to the salt hotel. We waded in the salty water, our feet and calves being exfoliated so nicely in the process - our clothes covered in salt. We all tried hopelessly to get our perspective shots just so - and try not to make our knees bleed in the process. We returned to Uyuni mid afternoon, had an expensive pizza (by Bolivian standards) passed some time in this very uninspiring city before catching our night bus to Sucre.

We were taking a very local bus to Sucre - an on this occasion Bernard and I were pleased to be travelling with our 5 other travelling companions from the 4WD.  The journey involved a stop in Potosi for an hour (at 1.30am) to change bus. As it was still raining season and much of the road unpaved, there were so many moments where I said an "Our Father" as we skidded all over the road. At one of our stops we were given a free coke - something we hadn't expected for our cheap ticket price of 8USD. When we changed to paved road I managed to sleep a little before we arrived in Potosi - and whether we liked it or not - we were kept on the bus perhaps for our safety or perhaps for our comfort, for it was extremely cold outside and not a particularly nice part of town.  We eventually switched buses and were crammed into the back seat of another local bus - Bernard and I were most uncomfortable - we didn't even fit in our seats and therefore didn't sleep a wink those three hours. We arrived in Sucre at 5am, exhausted and two hours early - so we took a taxi to our hostel (complete with open car boot that bobbed up and down along the way) - thankfully our hostel wonder answered the door at that hour, confirmed that we had a reservation and allowed us to check into our room early.  And so we slept.