Potosi

Hola, I just arrived in Sucre, the white city. It currently is 5.55 pm, so in Holland 10.55 pm.You will have to wait for the salar the uyuni, it will be a longer blog with more pics. Also some youtube movies...

Yesterday morning I left Uyuni, going to Potosi. An old mine city and the highest city of its size in the world, 4070 meters high.. I went by bus, where in Peru the busses were quite organized and luxury, this 6 hour and 4 dollars costing trip was quite different.. A lot of locals, who smelled terribly. All the others I met at Uyuni were at other busses, but a girl from Costa Rica sat next to me. We had a great chat.

The trip was bumpy, loads of rain (first time) and thunder.. was happy to arrive at Potosi.. Later on I met those Costa Rican´ girls again and we had dinner together (the bill, ten dollars for 4 persons, ok my meal was the most expensive one, 2,50 euro, including drinks)! This after I booked my mining tour at Greengo tours, where I was helped very friendly... After dinner I read a bit and went to sleep early.

This morning the tour.. Amazing, really, Julio was a great tourguide, but the mines, the circumstances.. We first went to the market (me and an australia guy and Britisch girl), bought some coca leaves, cigarettes, soft drinks and DYNAMITE! for the miners! We were shown around in a refinery, and then the mines...

It is quite a disadvantage being 1.91 in a country where most people are around 1.60. Especially going into he mines.. At some places it was between 1.50 and 1.60 for50-100 meters. quite hard, bending, walking. The unique thing about this tour was the mine being fully operational! So the miners were working hard under severe conditions, medieval almost for 12-14 hours a day for 12 euro´s a day. It was quite hard to breathe at this hight and in the narrow dusty mine. We saw a lot, gave away the dynamite, the drinks and coca leaves. At a certain moment it simply was enough, and coincidentally it was also the end of the tour. Then it was case getting back, already exhausted. Only the path was blocked (hight around 1.50) by the carriages for the minerals (Zink, Lead and some Silver). The only way to make it to the exit was climbing over those things, quite an adventure on its own. It was a great tour, thanks Julio!

From the Greengo Tours office they booked a ´collectivo´ for me to Sucre. A collectivo is a taxi with four people (the others were locals) that drops you of at the place of destination.. Costs, 3,50 euros, 2,5 hour drive!

I am staying at the hostel colon (3,50 euro a night), Sucre, I will be here for approx 2 weeks. Tomorrow I will go to the language school to book two weeks of private spanish lessons!

Well, this is all for now, pics and movies from the Uyuni will follow later (some movies are already uploaded to youtube), take care!!!!