Tracys Travels

Big News!

2008-01-05T13:36:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone! I have some exciting news to share. Jeramy proposed to me this christmas eve! We are engaged! It was a big surprise, and apparently he had the ring since October 18th and it nearly killed him to wait that long. My ring is beautiful and he picked it himself. It's white gold with 2 butterflies on either side of the diamond. He made a nice choice. We are very happy and excited. Still no idea on dates or places, but we are content that we are engaged and the details will work themselves out later. Neither of us want to be married in Dawson Creek, so that means either down south in Vancouver or on the island or perhaps somewhere tropical! Who knows. Lindsay if you are reading this, phone me! I wanna chat in person!
Well, the x-mas holidays have been great and very relaxing. I haven't done any work though and I am feeling the pressure now. I go back to work on Tuesday and I don't feel prepared! Better get off the computer and get busy! I am teaching Kindergarten half time right now and they are terrific. They keep me very busy. I have 22 five year olds and no assistance! NON- STOP is how it feels most days. It's all good though.
Bye for now.
Happy 2008!
Tracy

Relaxing after a wonderful holiday!

2007-08-30T12:09:00.000-07:00

Hi all!
Well, it is the end of summer already, can you believe it!? We just got back from our holiday down south and have been getting back into the swing of things now. 3 out of 4 weddings are over, just one to go! My aunty Wilma had an awesome medieval themed wedding which was a lot of fun and I got to make a dress especially for the occasion! Fun! Then I had to MC my buddy Mark's wedding before we went on our holiday. It was awesome, but so nerve wracking! I did ok though and it was a lot of fun. The morning after was a big hangover for me, but we had to pack and get ready for our trip the next morning. We drove straight to Courtenay on Vancouver Island and spend a week there with Jeramy's parents. That was a great and relaxing visit. Each morning we spent drinking our coffee's in the hot tub on the deck outside. Beautiful!
I met all of his family at a big dinner and they were all terrific, we got along great and I passed the test! ;)
We went up to Mount Washington and hiked down, enjoying the stunning views all the while. We watched car races and the "crash to pass" races at saratoga speedway one night. We also watched the "crazy canuck" jump a bus and a bunch of cars and then crash at the end! We walked Miracle beach one morning and picked seashells for my nephew (and me)! We got to go to a festival in Cumberland one night and I saw Xavier Rudd play. It was awesome! Let's see, lots of shopping and we played two games of golf with Jer's parents. Pops and I against mops and Jer. Pops and I won the last one! We did a lot in our week there and then we drove over to Tofino and stopped in Cathedral Grove to see all the old growth trees. That was a beautiful walk. We spent the nightin Uculet and I would highly recommend the Bed and Breakfast we stayed in called "The Amphritite". It was so crisp, clean and modern and just stunning views. While we were over there we did a really romatic dinner at the wickininsh restaurant overlooking the ocean, and we also walked the famous long beach. I got to pick more seashells there! After one more night in Courtenay we took the ferry back across to the mainland and spent a few nights at my aunt Rosie and uncle Doug's place in Langley.

Before we went to Langley we hiked Lighthouse park and shopped around Metrotown mall. I was able to show Jer some of my old stomping grounds! We had bellinis at the Cactus Club and then went and introduced Jer to some of my family! Thursday was spent visiting with aunties in the morning, grandpa (aka papa) in the afternoon and my dad and stepmom in the evening. Very busy for Jer! He got to meet the father! They got along great. Friday Jer and I spent at Granville Island and then on a dinner cruise. The weather was perfect that day! Beautiful sunset from the boat. Then Saturday was Aunty Karen's wedding to Angelo. It was beautiful. So elegant and so "aunty karen". They did a super job. We got a room in Burnaby that night and snuk into the pool when we got back for a fast dip! Sunday was a BBQ at my dad's house with lots of family and then back to aunt Rosie's place. We left Monday morning and hung out at the Cultus Lake waterslides for the early afternoon and then drove as far as Quesnel to spend the night. We made it back Tuesday to Dawson Creek and now the holiday is over. It was a darn good one though and we have lots of photos!

Now I have been keeping my eyes peeled to the teaching website and have been applying for teaching jobs in Dawson. I quit LP just before Mark and Crystal's wedding, so I am jobless for now, but I go back on the teacher on call list tuesday when school starts again. That's about all of my news for now. Summer had flown by far too fast! Hope we get better fall weather than we did summer. There has sure been a lot of rain and crappy weather this summer.
Hope you are all well and send me an email or post a note to say hi!!
TTFN
Luv Tracy

Spring is finally here in Dawson Creek!

2007-05-16T15:46:00.000-07:00

HI gang!
Well, the weather is better, it has stopped snowing and all the white stuff has officially melted. Yah! We built a flower bed in the back yard and planted a bunch of perenials, how domestic eh! It looks beautiful and now for the hanging baskets and pots. I am still working at LP, but I hope to find a nice teaching job this next September, wish me luck. My back is healed and I am strong once again. Jeramy and I are as happy as ever. We're busy planning holidays for the summer. Can't wait. We want to buy a little camper so we can enjoy the summer weather once it starts. Jer is enjoying his job as a gas plant operator - understatement, he LOVES it. That is great. We have 4 wedding to attend this summer, 2 aunties are getting married and 2 good friends. I am to be my buddy Mark's MC for his wedding. Yikes, big responsibility! Wish me luck and send me any good jokes you may have! I need all the advice and help I can get.
We hope to go to the island and down to Vancouver (mainland) this summer. Then I can see all of Jer's friends, family and old stomping grounds, and he can meet my coastal family!
I gotta jet for now, I just got off nights this morning and I need to enjoy some of this day before it rains. It is looking fairly overcast and windy (although warm).
Bye for now, email with any gossip!
Tracy

Holy crap, it's 2007 already!

2007-01-02T17:58:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone!
Time sure flies eh! I thought I had posted an entry a while ago, but it apparently didn't work. Oops. Well, lots to update, here's the short version.
I haven't been travelling anywhere lately! I have been working out at the mill still and living with Jeramy now. Romance has taken up a bit more of my time. ;) We are planning a short getaway trip to Fairmont Hotsprings near the end of Jan. I've basically been working a lot and been busy being domesticated! The weather is a bit crap in Dawson, it was actually raining today! We have had SOOOOO much snow this year; it's crazy! Jer's parents came up for xmas and stayed with us. I was totally spoiled for x-mas (so was Jer). Lots of computer goodies (printer, wireless router etc.) and kitchen goodies. Had to work xmas eve and had a good fall getting out of my van. It has screwed up my back a bit so I have been off work a bit and trying to get my back feeling good again. Good drugs though! I am sick of the emergency room in town though. I was in getting a shot for my back and Jer had some groceries in the truck, we came back out to find his door open and all our groceries gone. Bummer. I guess we just have to assume that they needed those groceries more than we did. Oh well. Shitty place to steal from someone though (hospital parking lot).
Well, that all sounds very negative. Sorry, it wasn't supposed to be a moan session! Life is good, and I am in love. What more can you ask for!? :) Send me an email!
Take care for now.
Tracy (aka:Tracer or the Dykester)

Happy Summer!

2006-09-05T12:43:00.000-07:00

Hi all!
It's been a while since I have checked email and added to my blog, so here goes (it will be short).
I have been working hard at LP in Dawson all summer. A few days ago I had carpal tunnel surgery on my wrist so am off work for 2 weeks and am finding typing difficult so this will be short for now.
Played lots of baseball this summer , our team did really well. Found a new boyfriend (from my ball team). He's great! He has also moved in (Yikes!). Have another room mate in the spare room named Jeffery. Nice young guy. The house is busy and I like it.

Had l0ts of great friends visit this summer. Kylie came and stayed withme a week in Dawson. She and I were room mates and great friends in England. She is from Australia. Was wonderful to catch up. We have made plans to meet for xmas 2008 in Tanzania (2 wks) and Kenya (2 wks). Anyone wants to join us you are welcome!
Linds was up for an excellent 36 hours and of course we made every hour count!! Great havin ya here girl!
Lots is new and life is wonderful. Phone or drop me an email and we can catch up. Hotmail closed my account for a while, so I just got it started again, but I lost alllllllll of my emails. So if you emailed this summer, I amsorry, I did not get it. Try again.
lotsa love and hugs all!
:)
Tracer

Summer fun!

2006-07-29T13:14:00.000-07:00

Hi all!
It's been a while (as usual), but life is treating me well! I have been working a lot this summer at my new job at LP (Louisianna Pacific) and actually just got a full time position. I start in about 12 days. I will be making more money and getting less dirty, should be good! It's hard physical work, but hey, I figure I am getting paid to work out! I am slowly ssssllllooowwwwlllyyy paying off my VISA from the South America trip, and enjoying my summer at the same time. No complaints here!

I've played a bit of baseball this summer which is always good in my books! I love baseball, especially when it's beer ball!! ;) I like my beer! We came third in the A division in a tournament 2 weeks ago. Won 3 games on Saturday and so the whole team celebrated too hard and we lost the 2 games on Sunday, still we didn't do too bad! We've got a great group of people on our team.

I am getting totally excited as I now have the next 12 days off (I worked for someone else, now they return the favour). I am going to Jasper tomorrow to pick up my friend Kylie and then I am bringing her back to Dawson Creek with me for 8 or 9 days!!! Yayyy! She was my room mate in England and is a fab friend. She's an aussie and we all know how cool they are!!! ;)
Can hardly wait to see ya Kyles!

I am having a hard time as my birthday is coming up this wednesday and I will be turning 29 (again) with a year's experience. Yes, that means 30!! YIKES!!! I just hope that I keep up the same pattern!! The pattern where I get better and better each year!!! ;)

My nephew is here at my mom's house right now and he's eating an orange and checking out my letter to you all. He is 3, so I have to tell him what I am saying! He says hi!

Well, happy summer everyone! Hope life is treating you really well. Love and hugs to all!
Tracer

New Job!

2006-05-08T18:57:00.000-07:00

Well, I have been working for the school board a lot lately, but that is all about to change! I just applied for a job as a general labourer at Louisiana-Pacific (an OSB/chip board mill) and I was hired! I started today. We sat around in a boardroom all day listening to safety stuff, but I am sure it will get more active as the days go on. All week we do training, and after that I will be doing general things around the mill, but mainly relieving people for their holidays. It's a temporary position, but I will have the ability to make a ton of overtime. That is where the money will be!! I will be working 4 days on, then 4 days off, then 4 nights on, 4 days off . . . You get the picture. The funny thing is I will be working at the same place as my MOM! Bizarre! Well, wish me luck on making lots of money and having work for the summer!

Oh, I also had a girls night at my house Saturday. 15 women gathered around my living room drinking margarita's! A great night had by all!

Will add more later. Hope everyone is great! Lotsa luv comin your way!
Tracer

Back to the "Real World"!

2006-04-15T15:53:00.000-07:00

Hi ho, Hi ho . . . It's off to work I go . . . so I can pay off my damn VISA!!! (then do it all over again!)

I started back to work at the end of March and have been going non-stop ever since! I have worked every day since. Thank Goodness! Only 2 1/2 months to go and the school year will be over, YIKES! I need to find a summer job. Perhaps I can sell some of these Alpaca scarves I bought while in Bolivia! :) Too bad it's spring because I'd probably sell more in the winter. Although, this is Dawson Creek, and the weather is always unpredictable. Actually, I think we are going to get snow tonight because it is freakin chilly today. Perhaps the Farmer's Market in May will be the place to sell my wares! I shoulda bought more me thinks! :) Maybe I will have to get into this buying and selling business. It could be a great excuse to travel more! (Not like I need one eh!)

Well, not much to add lately. Life goes on. I work, I see family and friends, I play, I go back to work! Fun!
OHHHHHH, I have spent the last few days at the hospital because my friends', Mei Ling and Jason, just had a 3rd child! A baby girl named Lilly. She is beautiful! She is also the closest I have ever come to birth as of yet!! (Probably the closest I will EVER come to birth!) I got to watch as she was weighed and bathed at all of about 40 minutes old. Too cool! She's the youngest baby I have seen and held yet! That is some exciting news in my life this weekend. There sure has been a lot of "BABY" stuff going on since I've come back. I have had 3 friends have babies in the past 2 months! I am going to be very careful not to drink the same water they do!! It could be contaminated! ;)

Well, HAPPY EASTER EVERYONE! Oh yeah, it's Spring. Hmmmm??? That could be it! Well . . . Hope the Easter Bunny is good to you. Heck, I hope he is good to me!! (I wonder if he is like Santa Claus? Does the Easter Bunny know if you've been naughty or nice???) I may have to go buy myself some chocolate just in case!! ;)
Ciao 4 now! Tracer

Post Macchu Pichu and home.

2006-04-09T11:32:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone!
I am back home in Dawson Creek, BC after an excellent trip!
I left Lima around March 14th and then spent a few weeks in Calgary with friends and family. I will tell you more about this after I finish off with my experiences in Lima.

After Macchu Pichu we spent a few more days in Cusco before catching an internal flight to Lima. We were running short on time, as Lindsay had to catch a flight on the 11th and mine was the 14th. In Lima we decided to stay at a place called "The Flying Dog". It turned out to be a decent hostel and located in the middle of Miraflores. Linds and I explored a bit and relaxed a lot until she had to leave. I waved good-bye and felt a bit lost as she disappeared in the taxi. After a while I decide to go out and explore a bit on my own. My exploring took me shopping! After some retail therapy I felt much better, so I decided to go for a movie. I don't remember what I watched. If you know me well, you won't be surprised by this!

The next few days I spent a LOT of time shopping and wandering the city area around our hostel. I met a lovely Norwegien girl who was staying in my room and we had a few meals together. I also spent an afternoon with Emily from the USA (she had come out with Lindsay and I on Lindsay's "going away" night). I got to meet Emily's peruvian stalker! I will explain. She met a young guy who was convinced he loved her and wanted to marry her. They had spent a few days or a week together before he hit her with this information! Ha! It was a little much for her I think! A nice "young" guy! Anyways, I also spent a bit of time with one of the guys working at the hostel, Yossef. He needed a fashion consultant to go shopping with on my last night, so I joined him for an hour of shopping. It's just as fun shopping for someone else, cause you get the thrilll of the purchase without the addition to your VISA bill. He was happy with a few shirts and a pair of jeans! He was preparing for a month long trip to Europe! Nice guy. My last day was also a beach day (only my second beach day on the entire trip, so don't get jealous yet)! I walked down to the rocky beach and was determined to get some colour before returning to Canada! It was a success. I also had 2 seperate guys try to pick me up on the beach and on the walk home. They ARE friendly! I had a great time in Lima even though I hadn't heard anything good about the city from fellow travellers. It is what you make of it I guess!

So, I managed to get the taxi to the airport after a beer at the hostel with Yossef and all his buddies. I was sad to be leaving because I didn't feel quite ready for my trip to be over, but I was cheered up by the fact that I would be seeing people in Calgary for a while first.
After a very long, gruelling 3 flights I was back in Calgary the following night. Shannon (one of my best friends) and Kevin (her boyfriend) picked me up at the airport in Kevin's van and we headed off to their jam session with their band at Kevin's house. I got to meet the other 4 band members and hear Shannon sing while they practiced and worked out a few songs. It was awesome! Then we went back to Shannon's place and visited and hung out.
I spent a few days at Shannon's that week, and then headed to my cousin Lori's place for a 3 night weekend! We ended up going out for St.Paddy's day and Kevin and Shannon met us there for a few green beers! My cousin's Sean and Lori were there, and Lori's hubby Rod came after work as well as a friend of Seans. We had a great night!

I ended up back at Shannon's for the next week, but it turned out to only be a few days because we decided on a rushed trip to Vancouver. Shannon wanted to try out for the show "Rock Star", so we did a fly by trip in Kevin's van to Vancouver. We stayed with my grandpa for 2 nights in White Rock and then did the audition and came back. It was crazy busy and we only really had 1 day, which we spent with my family. On the way back we were pretty tired, so we spent the night in Revelstoke and headed back to Calgary the next day. It was a great road trip, but really really rushed. I wish I could have seen more friends and family while I was there, but that was impossible. Next time!

Back in Calgary, Shannon and I spent a few more days together and it was time for me to go home to Dawson. I grabbed an overnight bus on Sunday and my mom picked me up Monday morning! School was back in session on this Monday, so I knew I'd get work soon. I worked Wednesday that week, and last week I worked every day. Tomorrow is Monday and I work all week again. Hi ho, hi ho, it's off to the real world I go! I guess I have to pay off my VISA somehow hey!

Oh, I have to tell you about my toothache! It started wednesday night at my grandpa's in White Rock, and came and went. In Calgary Shannon bought me some "ambasol" to help with the growing pain. By Monday morning I was in lots of pain. I had a quick chat with my room mate, Mickey, and went to bed for a few hours. I had called my dentist that morning and they said the earliest they could get me in was Friday. Okay, so that night I ended up going into emergency and was given some anti-biotics and pain killers. (Thank God) Friday morning my dentist appointment came (I thought it was maybe a cavity) and I found out I had an absess tooth. I got to have my tooth drilled apart and they decided to do it in 2 sessions, so I get to go back on the 18th! The good news is, the pain went away after this dentist appointment! (Again, Thank God) I don't think there are many things that hurt and frusturate more than a toothache. Saturday I was finally able to think straight! All is well in my world now, except the $650.00 dentist bill that I don't have!! Haha! Everything is funny if you wait long enough!!! That was our favourite travel phrase! It's true too! Even my dog bite story is hilarious now!!

Well, I am back to work and loving that I basically missed winter this year! I have e-mail until my room mates leave on the 15th, so send me a note! I'd love to hear from you all!

Until the next blog session, over and out.
Tracy

2006-03-10T13:59:00.000-08:00

My other photo CD doesnt seem to work, so here is my first photo of Bolivia!! Tupiza, a view from the pool!

Machu Picchu! The Inca Trail, Peru.

2006-03-07T09:27:00.000-08:00

Hello all!

I know I have missed quite a bit, but I am gonna write about my last 4 days first and then catch up on the rest later!! I need to talk about Machu Picchu while it is fresh in my mind!

So, we left Cusco, Peru at 6am and hopped on the bus which would take us (along with 14 other travellers) to mile 82, where we were to begin our 4 day adventure up to Machu Picchu. We stopped along the way in a small village for breakfast, and we stocked up on whatever we had thus far forgotten. Sweet snacks, batteries, and mittens! Yes, it was cold and raining (some of you will be happy to know)! Back on the bus and a few miles into the journey we had to all get out so the bus could cross a broken cement bridge and manuver itself back on to the dirt track! Crazy, but not the first time we have had to get off a bus so it could cross a river or riverbed. After a few minutes we were back on and ready to go. We pulled up to mile 82 and all the 16 tourists (ourselves included) and the many porters and 2 guides jumped off the bus to begin the trek. It was pouring rain, so Lindsay and I were quite happy that we had bought ourselves rain ponchos in Oruro, Bolivia. Lindsay in pink and myself in light purple, we couldn}t missed!

Thankfully, Lindsay and I had hired porters to carry our bedding and change of clothes and toiletries for the 4 day hike. We had our day packs on, which were filled with huge water bottles (2.5 litres) and snacke, rain gear and warm clothing for our hike. At around 10:30am we began the adventure!

In the brochure, the first day was described as the "easy" day, day 2 was the "difficult" day, day 3 was "unforgettable", while day 4 was described as "unique" (or vice versa). I am glad we had an easy day to begin with!! My body has not felt this beaten up or physically exhausted in a long time (day 5). Day 1 was around 5 or 6 hours of hiking, but lucky for us it was training for day 2! We had some uphill and some rolling hills, but nothing too overly strenuous. It was a beautiful walk and other than the rain to start it was perfect! We found out quickly that the food was excellent and plentiful!! The porters would literally run (at times) ahead of the trekkers and set up camp for lunch before we arrived. They had 2 tents, one for cooking and one for eating in. These were large tents. In the dinner tent they would have tables and chairs set up with table cloths and silver plates and cuttlery ready and waiting for us when we arrived. It was crazy how quickly they could do the trek! We were fed like kings! Breakfast even consisted of 3 courses!! Every meal was a treat! It was a good thing because we expended a LOT of energy trekking up and down the mountains! Okay, I am off track! Day 1 we arrived to camp and our tents were all set up (of course), so we picked one and made up our beds. Then it was tea time (snacks and tea), and a few hours later it was dinner. In the meantime, we cleaned ourselves up and played some cards with 4 or 5 of the other trekkers. There was a woman selling beverages from a tin pail, so we bought a beer as a treat! 5 soles each! It went dark, so we were playing cards using our flashlights, sitting on rain ponchos outside our tent. We were called to the dinner tent and there we were met with around 5 or 6 courses!! It was crazy. Every lunch and dinner started with soup, and sometimes salad as well, then 4 or 5 different dishes to try and we usually ended with desert and tea! We were so lucky. After dinner we visited a bit and headed to the tents for sleep. The porters all slept in either the cook tent or the dinner tent, so we didn{t like to take too long, as they needed somewhere warm to rest. We had 21 porters in all, including the cook and assistent cook, and we had 2 guides. Viktor was our main guide and Gladis was the assistent. Both spoke good english which was nice. It turned out that all of our group spoke english, I think they plan it that way. We had people from South Africa, England, Holland, and the United States (+1 Hawaiian girl), and then Lindsay and myself from Canada. A great mix of people and a good range of ages (between early 20s to late 30s) and physical abilities. We ended up getting to know each other very well and had a LOT of laughs together.

Day 2 was to be the toughest day and therefore we had to get up early! We were woken up at 5:10am by Viktor and Gladis shaking the tents and asking what we would like to drink! Tea or coffee in bed! Too cool! They poured us a coffee and we proceded to get packed and ready to go. We met in the tent for breakfast and by the time we had finished the tents were packed away and the porters were getting ready to take down the big tents. We hit the road before 7am and we had a very hard day of hiking up steep mountains and down very steep steps carved into the rocks. It was a killer and there was a lot of huffing and puffing, especially being so high up! We were generally at an altitude well over 3500meters, sometimes more than 5000meters. Luckily we had bought ourselves a hiking/walking stick at mile 82. This stick ended up being a terrific purchase, and was more like my best friend by the end of the 4 days!! As I was saying, we hiked up, up, up and up some more for most of the day until we hit the peak and started down, down, down. It was tough going and we were hiking for around 6 or 7 hours this day. Thankfully the weather was perfect, overcast and not too hot for the uphill, and the sun poked out a few times. No rain that day though, thankfully! We got to camp quite early in the afternoon, so we had a snack and lazed around the tents for a few hours. It didn{t start raining until we were all at the camp, which was good. I can{t nap, but most of the others did. I rested and read my book a while. Dinner was another wonderful 5 course extravaganza, and we even got to try "Macho Tea", a wonderful alcoholic peruvian tea. It was great and well deserved again! Another sleepless night in the tent that felt like it was on a downhill slope, but hey, you can{t have everything! So, next morning we were woken up at the same time and with coffee or tea in bed. Perfect, I could get used to this! Up and packed, had breakfast and off we went again, uphill. By this time in the trip I had had NO sleep, and my body was physically exhausted. I was a complete zombie for the first 2 hours of this day{s hike. I couldn{t even force myself to smile, just too tired! (I felt very unlike myself, but eventually I woke up) We stopped for a mid morning snack and the porters had the tables and table clothes set up for us. We felt very lucky as we looked around at the other groups standing up eating apples!!! We definitely chose the right company!! Anyone wanting to do Machu Picchu, go with Peru Treks! They are the best! We only saw one other group with tables set up for snack time. There were 200 trekkers on the trail at this time of year! So happy to be with Peru Treks! So, after snacks we were off uphill again. After a few more hours mixed with sweat, huffing and puffing and a lot of water, we were at the top of the mountain that we were to tackle that day. We stopped for a rest and some photos, then down the other side. It was a killer!! So many steps going down! Argh! That afternoon we made it to camp again, thankfully!

I have to stop now, as I have been on a computer for 2 hours, however, I will come back and edit this another time. I think I have 2 days mixed into one! I will be back to finish my story and fill in the blanks later!

Tracy

More on Copacobana and Isla del Sol!

2006-03-02T12:52:00.000-08:00

So, I just tried unsuccesfully for an hour to put more photos up. Lindsay has about a hundred more on, but the ¨hello¨program I am trying to use is not responding or cooperating with me in the least. Again, no new photos! I give up!

So, Copacobana! We get there, find a hostel and chill out for the night. It seemed that the people in this town either didn´t really care to do business or were totally friendly (like the lady at our hostel). It was wierd, lots of grumpy, unhappy people though. Very strange considering their beautiful surroundings! Restaurants turning people away, and business people snapping at customers. Anyways, we had a good time there. We walked down to the beach and took lots of photos (which you will probably never see because I can´t figure out the program, but nevermind). We booked out boat ride over to Isla del Sol for the next morning (8am). Isla del Sol is the ? birthplace of the first Incas ?. It is the island of the sun and has a very special importance to the Incas. We get there after a 2 and 1/2 hours boat ride, wedged in with all the other tourists. We have a 5 hour hike ahead of us! Yippy! Lots of uphill too, but we managed alright! We started with the ruins on the north of the island and had our own lovely little 9 year old tour guide. She was so funny, vamos (let´s go) she kept saying! She kept us on track and showed us all the nooks and crannies of the ruins and then asked for her tip. How could we say no, she was great!
After a quick water break we headed on our way to the other side of the island. It took us about 3 1/2 hours and it was a tough hike at times, but so beautiful and worthwhile! What views of the lake and countryside! We got to the other side and were met by a little guy who directed us to his family´s hostel. 15 bolivianos each for our own room! That´s 2 dollars Canadian! Crazy prices in Bolivia, I love it! We freshened up and decided to tackle the other ruins, but took a wrong turn and ended up down at the boat dock. It was a VERY STEEP climb back up and it took us quite a while because of the very high altitude. It´s crazy how the altitude affects you, I had no idea until I experienced it personally. On the way back up the hill we had another little unofficial guide named David, who was 10. He just trucked up that hill like it was nothing! Man, I wish. I feel a bit better knowing that the Bolivians have a larger lung capacity and are born at high altitude, so are used to it (more than me at least). So we ended up hanging out at the hostel on the grass overlooking the massive crystal blue lake. A little girl of 5 came by and hung out with us for a while, so we took it upon ourselves to help her practive her numbers/counting! It actually helped me a bit too! My spanish is better than it was when I got here, but by no means good yet! I know poco now. Sometimes I understand what is going on, but I have a long way to go!
After playing with our little friend, counting postcards etc., we went for dinner across the way. It had many windows overlooking the lake, so we were able to see a storm coming on. The wind picked up and blew open a window a few times, and the clouds moved in pretty fast. It rained hard and at one point hailed. We could see what looked like snow building up on the windows. It was pretty cool, lots of lightning as well.
Next morning we tried to actually find the ruins and we walked half way down and took a few far away photos and gave up, as we had to catch our ferry back to Copacobana. Luckily I had just enough change to buy our tickets. The banks only give 100´s, yet no one will make change for a 100 anywhere it seems. It´s always a struggle to pay for things here! Shop owners will choose not to sell you something if you don´t have small change. It makes for interesting times in some of the smaller cities/villages!

Okay, so back for a rest and shower in Copacobana and we catch a micro (small van which seats about 10 or 12 people) back to La Paz. We hit a massive traffic jam on the way back into the city. It is amazing how they drive in this country! It is absolute insanity. There were about 6 or 7 lanes coming out of the city and 2 going in, but it didn´t seem to help anything. The horns are blaring in every direction( despite the signs saying no honking) and people are pushing into traffic at every possible angle. We had 2 buses on either side trying to cut us off. They almost managed to squish us! Insane drivers in Bolivia, that´s all I can say! Well, I have many more stories to catch up on, but I feel I should take a rest for now. We do our Inca Trail tomorrow, so we have a few things to get organized. We are actually in Peru finally! Home in a few weeks, so sad! I will fill you in on the rest of the adventure later! Ciao!

Copacobana.

2006-02-26T09:16:00.000-08:00

Hi gang!
It´s are hard to keep this blog up, but here´s a bit more of our trip. By the way, just so you know, I have been trying to download photos every few days, however it seems that the world is working against me on this one! I am not meant to put photos up or something! Everytime I get to a computer place something won´t work. I get the computer with the broken CD Rom, or they don´t have one, or the power goes out 3 times in one sitting, or the hello program needed to download the photos won´t cooperate. I am trying! Perhaps I won´t have all of my trip photos on the blog until I get home, but they are coming slowly!
Okay. Copacobana.
Well, we had a massive night out the night before, so the bus ride was no treat, luckily it was only 3 or 4 hours. Lindsay broke her flip flop on the way off the bus to catch the ferry, so she looked pretty cute walking around carrying one flip flop. We pretty much slept the whole bus ride. Got to Copacobana to find that there are no taxis in this city. We were very sad at the idea of having to walk, but we did it and managed to find a hostel. Oh, I have to go (we are in Oruro at Carnival and the parade is waiting). I will finish this later. Ciao for now.

2006-02-24T11:51:00.000-08:00

Plaza in Salta, Argentina.

2006-02-24T11:13:00.000-08:00

A great coffee place on the plaza in Salta, Argentina!

2006-02-23T18:46:00.000-08:00

The prized foozeball table at Terra Occulta. (I think I had a small following!!)

2006-02-23T18:42:00.001-08:00

We made it to Salta, Argentina. This is in the hostel bar (Terra Oculta).

2006-02-23T18:42:00.000-08:00

Noel from Barcelona!! What a foozeball partner! He has a blogsite with only people wearing the �red nose�.

2006-02-23T18:39:00.001-08:00

More of the wicked road across the mountains going into Argentina.

2006-02-23T18:39:00.000-08:00

Views from the bus window!

2006-02-23T18:35:00.000-08:00

Check out how the road winds down the mountain. (This took FOREVER)

2006-02-23T18:33:00.000-08:00

A lot of downhill curves on this very long bus trip.

2006-02-23T18:32:00.000-08:00

From the bus window, going from Chile to Argentina!

2006-02-23T18:31:00.001-08:00

Views from the bus window, going into Argentina.

2006-02-23T18:31:00.000-08:00

Exiting San Pedro (yippy, Argentina here we come). P.S. We biked this road and found an oasis in the desert. A long day.

2006-02-23T18:30:00.001-08:00

More views from my bus window!

2006-02-23T18:30:00.000-08:00

The border crossing into Argentina.

2006-02-23T18:29:00.000-08:00

That�s our bus!

2006-02-23T18:28:00.000-08:00

Tree and a police officer in the main plaza, San Pedro.

2006-02-23T18:23:00.001-08:00

Stop!!!!!!!

2006-02-23T18:23:00.000-08:00

More of Main Street, San Pedro. We were stuck here a few extra days, waiting for a bus to take us to Salta, Argentina.

2006-02-23T18:21:00.000-08:00

Main street, San Pedro, Chile!

2006-02-23T18:20:00.001-08:00

The bartender, mixing my yummy Mohito�s! 2 for 1!

2006-02-23T18:20:00.000-08:00

Me and the San Pedro Grandpa having a few drinks. Photo op!

2006-02-23T18:19:00.000-08:00

The San Pedro Grandpa!

2006-02-23T18:18:00.000-08:00

Lindser! Dinner in San Pedro. Turned out to be a great night. Many Mohito�s later!

2006-02-23T18:17:00.000-08:00

Michelle from Montreal, and yours truly!

2006-02-23T18:16:00.000-08:00

Check out the food!! Yeah! This was beside our HI hostel in San Pedro.

2006-02-23T18:14:00.000-08:00

Hi!! Look at me! I�m on the other side of the stream!! This was on the cactus forest walk.

2006-02-23T18:13:00.000-08:00

Linds and I on the cactus forest walk after seeing the geysers.

2006-02-23T18:09:00.000-08:00

Welcome to the cactus forest!

Coroico = Bolivian Paradise!

2006-02-22T07:07:00.000-08:00

Where did I leave off? I had better go back and check! Just a minute!
Oh my goodness, I am sooooooo far behind in my travel tales! Here is the short version, I may come back later and add more.

We left Potosi in a cab with Neil and Katie (London) to Sucre (the capital of Bolivia). After a 3 hour ride twisting and turning with our crazy cab driver we finallz made it, unharmed. We splurged on a nice hotel as Lindsays B-day was coming up (Feb. 7th). Hotel San Francisco. We had our own bathroom, a TV (what a luxury) and an upstairs terrace. It was very clean and beautiful. We spent a bit of time exploring the market and trying out different restaurants. I bought 2 pairs of funky glasses, one blue pair and one red! Very fun! Together they cost me all of about 70 or 80 canadian dollars. (Good thing, because I have already lost my blue ones! I am hoping they are at our hostel in La Paz)

Lindsay turned 29 on Feb. 7th and we had a wonderful day helping her celebrate. I was up at the crack of dawn to sneak away to the market to find all kinds of good things to help her celebrate! I found cake, flowers, a plastic childrens party set complete with plates, cuttlery and champagne glasses. I ran around for an hour to every little shop I could find, looking for champagne, but apparently they dont like to sell it at 8am!! Por que? So, next best thing, orange juice and sparkling water! (we drank them seperately!)

I got back and had a little table set up with a happy birthday table clothe (made from wrapping paper) on the upstairs terrace. When it was all set I went and found Linds and made her follow me to the terrace. I think she was happily surprized, so it was a success. We had a pre-breakfast of cake and little cookies, then Neil and Katie came up to join us. (They had found champagne!!! We saved it for the evening though!)

That night we went for an excellent Mexican dinner. I had bought Linds a party set with the Incredibles on it. We had paper plates, cups, straws, party hats, party bags . . . the works! So we first enjoyed some wine on the terrace, then out for Mexican, then on to JoyRide Cafe for more drinks. The guests were myself, Neil and Katie, and our good buddy Dave (the drunken english miner!). We all put on our Incredibles party hats and set off down the streets of Sucre. We got many looks and waves of encouragement! We brought a few extra hats and passed a few out to various waiting staff and a drunk aussie or two! The intention was that by the end of the night we would all decide on a "super power" for ourselves, however, we ended up drinking too much and forgetting all about that great idea! Whoops! All in all it was a success.

Okay, so other than me leaving my VISA card in a bank machine in Sucre, that was about all the excitement we had there! At least all that I can remember now (its been quite a while since we were there, I am very behind).

No, I didnt get my VISA card back, it is gone forever, but no money is unaccounted for and I was able to transfer the remaining balance to my bank account, so all is well and I still have money!! No worries! You see, in South America, the machine gives you the money first and then your card and receipt! I was just so excited to get my money, that I forgot about this little detail and didnt realize it for a few days (until I went to use it again and my card was gone). Whoops!

Well, lets see. After spending a few days around Sucre, Linds and I decided to go to Santa Cruz. However, it was to be a 20 hour bus ride and that didnt sound like any fun, so we looked into flights and found one for 60 canadian dollars. Badda boom badda bing, we were in Santa Cruz after an hour in the air. I love flying!! (Except for the screaming baby sitting directly in front of us the whole way!) The poor baby, and the poor poor mother! What do you do. Ahh, so we arrive into Santa Cruz and it is VERY HUMID!! Wow! Its a bit of a shock after being quite cool in Potosi and Sucre. We could finally wear shorts!! Yippy! No more jeans for a while.

In Santa Cruz we had a few good nights meeting various people, ususally in the Irish Pub on the plaza! In a nutshell we shopped, explored, drank, met other crazy Canadians, Argentinians, an Aussie or two, a Yank, a few English and many other terrific people! It was fun times, but soooooooo humid. Oh, we were able to see a Pre-Carnival parade from a rooftop. We went to a Salsa club (didnt dance!), a bar called Shotz (5 Bolivianos a shot, dangerous), and many other places (where we did dance). Our hostel was called Hostel Boliviar and there were two resident tucans living in the courtyard. They were very cool to watch and take photos of! They also had hammocks there, which we took the ultimate advantage of! I dont want to get into too much detail because there is so much else to write about! Maybe I will add more later.

After a big night out we had to decide what we were doing. We really wanted to see the rainforest, but time was coming to a crunch. We eventually decided to come to La Paz, so we bit the bullet and bought a ticket. We left at 7pm (well, actallz 8, they werent on schedule) and thought we would arrive into La Paz at 10am. Nope, wrong. We didnt get into La Paz until 4pm that afternoon, so we were lucky enough to get a 20 hour bus ride after all!! Lucky us!
La Paz is high up, so altitude was a problem again. The streets are all going either up or down hill! We stayed at Hostel Austria which had warm showers and crappy beds. Stayed a few days there and spent a lot of time at a bar called Mongos. Very fun, lots of stories. Email me and I will go into more detail!! Linds and I did one hard core day of shopping in La Paz. We started early in the morning and loaded up until we had to make a trip back to the hostel, then go again. After lunch we had another load of shopping! It was a long, hard day, but somebody has to do it! Spreading it all out over our beds was good fun. It felt like Christmas! I love buying people presents! We hit the post office the next day to send it all home! It cost a bit, but was worth not having to pack it all! Okay, so I am nearly caught up, but I have to go because my time online is running out and I dont want to loose all of this.
Over and out for now. I will tell you all about Copacobana, Isla del Sol, and Coroico (the worlds most dangerous road) at another time.
Ciao Ciao!!!

2006-02-22T06:26:00.000-08:00

We did a walk through a cactus forest, along a small stream. Very beautiful!

2006-02-22T06:23:00.000-08:00

More views on the way back from the geysers.

2006-02-22T06:21:00.000-08:00

Just another day on the job! We have seen so many shepards.

2006-02-22T06:19:00.000-08:00

my playful little doggie friend! He kept biting my pantlegs and playing around.

2006-02-22T06:18:00.000-08:00

the roof on one of the small village homes.

2006-02-21T07:36:00.000-08:00

a woman selling her wares in the little village. It cost me 2 Bolivianos to take her photo! A real entreprenuer!

2006-02-21T07:33:00.000-08:00

Houses in the village (San Pedro mas o menos, Chile).

2006-02-21T07:31:00.000-08:00

A little church in a village of 40 people that we stopped at on our way back from the geysers.

2006-02-21T07:27:00.001-08:00

Llama mommy and baby!

2006-02-21T07:27:00.000-08:00

The valley of Llamas! We stopped for heaps of photos.

2006-02-21T07:24:00.000-08:00

Viscacha, a wierd rabbit like rodent with a long tail. It can detach its tail and run, leaving a predator a writhering tail to grab. Strange creatures!

2006-02-21T07:23:00.000-08:00

Vicunas, closer up!

2006-02-21T07:22:00.000-08:00

Scenery along the way.

2006-02-21T07:21:00.000-08:00

More of the view on the way home.

2006-02-21T07:19:00.000-08:00

Mountains in the distance. Drive back to San Pedro, Chile from the geysers.

2006-02-21T07:17:00.001-08:00

Wild Vicuna! (sort of like a Llama)

2006-02-21T07:17:00.000-08:00

The drive back from the geysers!

2006-02-21T07:16:00.000-08:00

Linds and I EARLY in the morning at the geysers!

2006-02-21T07:15:00.000-08:00

La lune!

2006-02-21T07:12:00.000-08:00

linds in a fog!

2006-02-21T06:51:00.000-08:00

more early morning geyser photos!

2006-02-21T06:47:00.000-08:00

Early morning at the El Tatio geysers in Chile (San Pedro)

Outta the mines and downhill from there!

2006-02-13T16:48:00.000-08:00

Okay, so our day at the mines in Potosi was an adventure. So was our evening!
We got back to the hostel (set on meeting our guides for a night out on the town) and we found that our English (London) friend Dave was more or less dying (or so he thought anyways).
Turns out he´d had quite a big day out drinking with the miners! His tour finished around 2pm and they had drank a bottle of the 96% stuff I mentioned earlier. Yuck. Well, he was pretty pissed when we saw him that afternoon. Later that night (around 7:30) he was quite a wreck! He´d been out all day drinking with a few people (all miners but one) and he came home and passed out. His friend Dominic was to leave that night on a bus to La Paz. It fell into our hands to take care of him. Between the alcohol and the extreme altitude he couldn´t breathe too well. He´d woken up and was more or less gasping to get air. We stayed with him a while and got him settled down and sorted out. He was okay, just needed to relax and focus on breathing properly. He´d just kinda scared himself I think (isn´t that right Dave). So we convinced him to come out for some food around 9:30pm along with his Swiss drinking buddy, George. We ate and Dave left early to go back to bed (we were convinced he was okay by this time, so we let him go). On the way back from the restaurant we ran into Neil (English guy from our mine tour). Turns out he was with Katie and the 2 guides (they were the only ones to meet up with our guides at 8:30- whoops!). He convinced us to come up to this miners party on the second floor. We had actually heard the music from the brass band earlier, on our way to dinner. We decided to go for a quick one and check it out. I mean, how many times do you get invited to a Bolivian miners party, fully equiped with a brass band, free booze and a translator? We went up and said hello to everyone. It turns out it was a party in honour of a French woman who had just written a book about the mines, the miners, and their way of life. She has been living in Potosi for 15 years and going into the mines researching etc. Pretty cool. So, long story longer, we went up and saw our guides from earlier in the day (apologized for not being there), said hi to Katie (Neil´s girlfriend) and had a large number of free shots! They were handing out these colourful shots left, right and center! It was an alcohol that came from a bottle that slightly resembled a champagne bottle. The bottle was the only similarity! There were yellow and orange shots coming around on trays, as well as a bottle under every second chair! Everywhere you went you were offered a shot, well, in between dancing that is! The band, let me tell you about the band!! There were about 15 Bolivian miners (all men) that each had a brass instrument of some kind. When they started half of the room got up and danced. Just when you thought the incredibly LONG song was over and coming to a close, they would start up again!! We were out on the floor dancing as they did- legs a flying! Once you were out dancing, the song lasted a good 20 minutes. This happened about 4 times before we decided to go home! It was an incredible experience! We had a blast dancing with these cute little Bolivian men and women(they were all about a foot shorter than Linds and I)! One big, fun party! Luckily the shots weren´t too harsh or alcoholic because we must have had a dozen or two! Certainly an adventurous day for us! Linds and I left as the band was finishing the final song. Home to bed!
Don´t worry, we checked on Dave and he was fine, fast asleep. He felt reasonably okay the next day considering how he was the night before! Boy, those English can drink eh!!

Our Potosi mining experience! Silver mine tour.

2006-02-10T13:36:00.000-08:00

So, we get picked up in a little van/bus with another couple named Neil and Katie from England. The van drives us to another point, where I get out and run to pick up my camera and burned photo CD´s before this big tour, and when I get back there are 16 people in the van! I make 17! I squeeze in and we are off to begin our tour into the depths of hell.

We drive, slowly I might add, to the ¨office¨ (for lack of a better word) and don our news threads. We are given a pair of rubber boots, a pair of olive green rain pants and a lovely rain coat (long sleeves). Along with this fashion statement comes a lovely belt used for attaching the large battery pack to your person. The battery pack is of course for the large light on the top of the hard hat we get to wear! We are going deep down into the rickety ¨ulta safe¨(not) old mines of course, so being able to see is a good thing! So once everyone is kitted up, we head back onto the tiny little van (yes, all 17 of us, now larger in our equipment).

We then go to the miners market where we get to buy gifts for the miners that we are going to visit. The work for themselves as a part of a cooperative. They receive 15% of the money from the tours and of course, all of the gifts that the gringos buy for them. So, here we are. What do you buy a miner for a gift you ask? Well, DYNAMITE of course! As well, 96% proof alcohol is always a big hit! Then there are the tamer gifts such as coco leaves to chew (as it helps suppress the appetite, and they do not eat while they are down in the mines, sometimes for 15 hour shifts). Sugary pop is always good to give energy, and it´s not a bad mix to the 96% alcohol! Um, cigarettes and lighters are something else that is popular (but they have to have filters).

So, all of the tourists buy gifts for the miners and we pile back into the van to head up the ominous hill toward the mines. The van crawls along at nothing like warp speed and we wind our way up the little track/path, along the cliffs edge, to the mine. The particular mine we are going to is 17 levels deep. It is also important to mention that the day before was the mines anniversary, so all of the miners were either still pissed or hungover! We met quite a few ¨pissed¨ ones on the way in! Remember the 96% proof alcohol (kind of what I would consider paint thinner, or rubbing alcohol)!

Okay, so we all bought dynamite of course! Now is our chance to see it in action! They light the fuse, which is good for a few minutes (maybe 5) and then pass it around to some of us crazier tourists who want a to take advantage of this rare photo opportunity! Yes, of course I had my picture taken holding live dynamite! Aren´t you proud mom! Lindsay declined. I think she values her life!

Anyways, so we all take photos of 2 live sticks of dynamite and then watch as two miners take these stickes and run over to a point on the hill where they procede to throw them and then run like hell! Such an exhilarating experience! What a boom! Dirt flying everywhere! I tried to take a video, or a photo but didn´t manage too well. (Did well on the jump and scream part though!!)

So, after that we get into our groups and head for the ritual shot before entering the mine! Yup, we tried the 96% alcohol! Mixed with a lovely green soda this time! We enter the ???? I don´t know what. It was a room filled with very drunk miners and a shrine of the devil. The miners worship (or pay respect) to the devil. It is very uncool to say ¨oh my god¨ in the mines. Bad luck. I took to saying ¨holy hell¨ a LOT!

We enter the mine in our big rubber boots (thankfully) and sludge through the muck and mud. Our guide´s name is Pedro and he is a funny guy! His assistant´s name is Daniel. They are the lucky ones who get to pack all of our gifts into the mine. It is hot and there is a lot of ducking and walking sideways. I´m trying to make the heavy helmet stay on without killing my neck. The little lights on the tops of our heads light our path. The mine is hot and it gets harder and harder to breathe. Thankfully we ran into Dave and Dominic (the boys from London, AGAIN) at the mine and they had just finished their tour. I managed to scoop a face mask from them before we went in. It helped keep some of the yuck out of my lungs!

So we entered the first level, then the second, third, and finally forth level. It was very hard going and being so high up was difficult on the old lungs! At times it was VERY strenuous, but well worth it. Most of us continued down into the 5th level, and once we shimmied our way there we were treated to another drink with one of the miners. We all drank to Patcha Mama and Tio (they call the Devil ¨Uncle¨) and then had one for ourselves. I haven´t really gone into any great detail about our trek through the mines. Let´s just say there were many tight spots, many rickety (one rung broken) old ladders, tight spaces, lots of crawling on hands and knees, and some sliding like a snake into some clausterphobic spots. It was something like I have never experienced before, nor do I ever want to experience it again! Those miners are amazing. It´s no bloody wonder they drink 96% alcohol!

We were able to meet and talk with some of the miners along the way. We even got to watch 2 fellows hammering a hole into the rock with a pick, so that they could place the dynamite. (A lot of things are done old style, as it was hundreds of years ago.) These 2 miners set off some dynamite and we all scrambled up the ladder and down the mineshaft to a safe distance to hear the BOOM! It was pretty cool! We felt safe in the fact that we were scrambling up the ladders first, so the miners were closest to the dynamite. We assumed they wouldn´t light it until they felt safe as well!

It is amazing how young these guys start in the mines. Our guide worked in the mine from when he was 10-15 years old. His father was a real novelty because he was still alive and working in the mines at 68 years old. Most men are only given about 10 years in the mines, then the respiratory ailments begin. The life expectancy of a miner is only about 40 or 45 years old (maybe 50). We met a miner who was 14 years old. Crazy!! I can´t imagine some of the 14 year olds I know doing this kind of work. I can´t imagine anyone I know doing this kind of work. It was definitely a unique and eye opening experience. One I hope to never have again! You just can´t imagine the dust and grime going into their lungs each and every day. No food while they work and some do 12, 15, 24 hour days!!! They don´t go to work, they don´t get paid. They work for themselves. It´s a crazy kind of life. Like I said, it´s no wonder they drink 96 proof! Well, I could go on and on, but I think you get the idea.

We had to climb back out of the 5 levels. We were in the mines for about 2 full hours and it was pretty gruelling at times. Near the end we saw a miners museum (it´s not touristy by any means), and then we were out. The closer we came to the entrance, the colder the air and the easier it was to breathe. I was never so happy to breathe proper air and to see daylight!! What an amazing experience. As the brochure says ¨Not for whimps and woosies¨!!!

After we exited the mine we all piled into the van again and cruised down the hill to the refinery. We watched how they processed the zinc and silver etc. It was a pretty rustic affair! Talk about safety hazards everywhere! No one has safety meetings in Bolivia, as far as I could tell! Once this portion was over we headed back to the office, but not before some people having to get out and help PUSH the van up a certain hill!! hahaha! The fun never ends! Everyone took off their gear, put on their running shoes and we were done! My shirt was soaked through completely! Sweat, yuck! Glad I had another one there! Whew! It was over! What an experience!!

Onwards to Potosi! The saga continues!

2006-02-10T12:56:00.000-08:00

Hi all!
Forgive me, as I am quite a bit behind on my blog! BUT, I HAVE finally caught up in my journal for the first time this trip! First things first!
Just to let you know how far behind I am . . . Lindsay and I are currently in Santa Cruz, Bolivia. We arrived by air last night (yup, we flew)! It is very very humid here so we are sweating up a storm, but otherwise having fun so far!

Okay, where did I leave off. After Uyuni, we took a bus to Potosi. The highest city in the world! It is 4300 meters above sea level. I think 4 kilometers above sea level sounds worse! What do you think?
All I know is that it´s a bit harder to breathe the air up there! We were okay because we´d just spent the past 4-5 days at that height or higher on our jeep trek. The bus ride was a bit fun. It was supposed to be a 5-7 hour bus ride, it took us 8 hours, no problem. We had to get off the bus at one point to watch it take a run at a very sandy riverbed. We walked across it and hopped on at the other side. That was no problem. At another point we had to get off and gather all of our belongings and walk them over to another bus because an oil tanker was hanging off the edge of a cliff blocking the entire road. Thankfully our bus company planned ahead and had another bus waiting for us on the other side. We met some people that ended up having to wait for another oil tanker to pull this one back onto the road and their bus ride turned out to be a 16 hour one!! Yikes! The joys of riding a bus in Bolivia!! Okay, so we made it!

Grabbed a hostel bed at Hostel Maria Victoria, grabbed a bite to eat and ended up running into London boys again. They must think we are stalking them. (We are the ones to see them all of the time! ) We were on the 4 day trek together, stayed at the same hostel in Salta, Argentine together, we ran into them as they were horseback riding through some small obscure town on our 2 day loop in the rental car. It just keeps on going! We can´t go anywhere without running into these two! It´s okay though, they are pretty funny guys! ;) So we had an early night, and linds and I decided that we needed to change hostels as this one was only ¨okay¨. We headed over to the Koala Den Hostel (recommended) the next day fairly early in the morning. Then we decided to book our tour to the mines later that day at 1pm. This is where the day gets interesting! I think I will give this story a new title!

2006-02-08T17:35:00.000-08:00

Can�t take a bad photo if you try!

2006-02-08T17:32:00.001-08:00

Stunning!! Absolutely stunning! Worth getting up at 3:30am for!

2006-02-08T17:32:00.000-08:00

Steaming geysers!

2006-02-08T17:10:00.000-08:00

Lindsay at the geysers

2006-02-08T17:03:00.000-08:00

Spectacular sunrise!

2006-02-08T17:02:00.000-08:00

Sunrise at the El Tatio Geysers, near San Pedro de Atacama, Chile.

2006-02-08T17:01:00.000-08:00

The geysers

2006-02-08T16:59:00.000-08:00

Apparently my photo CD is missing a lot of pictures from our bike ride. So here we are the next morning at the geysers!

2006-02-07T11:26:00.000-08:00

There�s lindsay on her bike!!

2006-02-07T11:25:00.000-08:00

More of the barren view from our bikes!

2006-02-07T11:23:00.001-08:00

It�s lookin pretty barren. Glad we have lots of H2O!

2006-02-07T11:23:00.000-08:00

Can�t take enough photos!

2006-02-07T11:22:00.000-08:00

Valle de la luna sunset!

2006-02-07T11:21:00.000-08:00

The next day�s bike ride.View leaving town from a dirt track! San Pedro.

2006-02-07T11:20:00.000-08:00

Walking back over the sand dune after sunset!

2006-02-07T11:18:00.000-08:00

more sunset!

2006-02-07T11:16:00.000-08:00

Sunset!

The rest of the Solar de Uyuni!

2006-02-07T09:46:00.000-08:00

So Day 3 (maybe day 2, they all kinda blend together) we hit the thermal pools!! All 12 of us changed into our bathing suits (quite magically) and had a good soak! I think this was day 2. After this, we changed and hopped back in the jeep for a bit of a drive. Before we knew it we were in SNOW! We got to the geysers and jumped out onto the snow. The snowball fights were on. I made a snow angel, and lindser made a tiny snowman (she took a really cool photo of it, check out her blog). It was a lot of fun to kid around up there, and we even managed a few photos! That night I tried to learn a card game called Uker from the Americans in our jeep. I love that game! I hope I can remember it enough to teach Linds. We called it a night when all the power shut off (without warning).
Up early the next day and off to check out Laguna Colorado. We saw thousands of pink flamingos! We were dropped off down by the lagoon, and the jeeps drove off to meet up with us later up the hill. I got out and immediately realized tht I had no batteries in my camera. Bugga.
I had to do the hike up the hill twice! Got batteries and took mas photos! It was beautiful. The lagoon, the mountains in the background and pink flamingos everywhere! We drove over the hill and to another lagoon after that. There we saw Flamingos, mountains, the lagoon, AND Llamas!! Very cool photo op yet again.
Onwards through the park to many other intersting sights. Stopped often for photos. Saw my first ¨sun dog¨ which was VERY beautiful. It´s kind of a sideways rainbow. So pretty.
That night we stayed in San Cristobol (we changed our itinerary a bit due to the mass quantities of rain). We visited and about 1/2 of us hit the local bar called Mad Max. It was an interesting place. It was a room made out of a massive metal drum of some kind. Very cool.
Next and final day we drove to Uyuni. Our jeep drove really slowly, waiting for the others to catch up (they went for gas), but they never ended up catching us. The town of Uyuni had MASSIVE puddles in the streets everywhere. They looked like small lakes! We were running out of gas and at one point we were all quite worried that we might have to push our jeep through these huge puddles. No worries, the 2nd gas station we went to actually had gas! Whew!
We drove to the Salt Flats (Solar de Uyuni) for the grand finale of our 4 day trip. It was something amazing! Linds and I got crazy and took tons of funny photos. The Salt Flats cover an area of about 12,000 ? meters ? When we were there the water was almost a foot deep covering all of the salt flats. It was pretty cool. Not what we expected. (We were hoping for a tiny bit of water so it would have a glass like mirror effect, but alas, it was still phenominal!)

We drove to the Salt hotel (yup, a hotel made of salt blocks in the middle of the salt flats) and had lunch there. Our cooks prepared our final meal. I was able to pay 5 Bolivianos to use the washroom. (no running water in the sinks). Lucky me. (Thanks for the loan Zoe) That is nearly a canadian dollar to use the loo! We took tons more photos and said ciao to the other jeep and that was that. We went back to Uyuni and Linds and I got a hostel (Hostel Avenida- looks a bit like a prison, but is central). Then we ran into the South African boys and made plans to meet for dinner. A bit of e-mail and hit the Italian pizza place for dinner. The 4 Americans and 3 South Africans were there, so we ate drank and said farewell! An early night otherwise for Lindsay and I.

That was the end of our amazing 4 day trek across the Salt Flats of Southern Bolivia. A great time had by all! It was so cheap too. Only 105 us for 4 days of food, accomodation and transportation with a local, experienced guide. We´d pay at least 10 times that for something similar in Canada. I love Bolivia! More stories to come, but that´s all for now!

2006-02-06T09:57:00.001-08:00

the dune

2006-02-06T09:57:00.000-08:00

Finally, sunset!

2006-02-06T09:55:00.000-08:00

I can�t stop taking photos!! Thank god for digital!

2006-02-06T09:53:00.002-08:00

It�s getting darker and people are heading back

2006-02-06T09:53:00.001-08:00

lindsay and I with the rainbow background. Still watching the sunset on the Valle de la luna tour. San Pedro, chile

2006-02-06T09:53:00.000-08:00

here is a pic of everyone crowded on the cliff edge waiting to cross back over the duen

2006-02-06T09:51:00.000-08:00

it just gets better and better. You can�t take a bad picture here!

2006-02-06T09:50:00.000-08:00

Look at that

2006-02-06T09:47:00.001-08:00

It�s getting windy up here, but the views are stunning!

2006-02-06T09:47:00.000-08:00

check out the rainbow

2006-02-06T09:46:00.000-08:00

check out the colour change

2006-02-06T09:45:00.000-08:00

hey,there I am again!

2006-02-06T09:44:00.000-08:00

Still stunning views

2006-02-06T09:42:00.002-08:00

check it out

2006-02-06T09:42:00.001-08:00

here i am