Time-tiempo

Sometimes I wish I could stop clocks. Sometimes I wish I could make them go back or forward them really fast. If I had could choose a picture for this article the picture would show the page of a calendar I grabbed from the streets this morning... It was not the only one, thousands of little pieces of paper were falling, flying and still are from windows and balconies from offices in the center of Buenos Aires. All that notes, bills, telephone numbers that were writen sometime during a year and that are to be burnt or recycled or collected by someone during the hours announcing 2006. Time jumping from a window, one day telling you that now is not now anymore but now from a new year. The one I got is empty, 3rd of May where nothing seemed to have been happening for someone somewhere in Buenos Aires (unless her or she forgot to write it down or just came as a surprise). For me, if I remember well, May was a good month, so I ll keep the calendar this time... This afternoon we ll get some food, seems that New Year will happen here in our roof. As many of you won t read these pages these days, well, happy new year... let s hope all calendar pages next year will be full of good things, at least some of them...

Sergio, desde Buenos Aires

motherfuckers!

THEY STOLE MY BAG,
yesterday I decide to visit a museum with a friend, then we go for a beer, well more then one, stefano leaves his bag on the chair, in front of the friend, who is not sleeping and not jet a bit drunk. And fuck, when I am back the bag is gone! Fortunately I keep my docs and money on me, but in the bag there was something i can't replace in an embassy, my diary, which i filled up with passion every single day of my trip, and two films of pictures i was too lazy to develop, fuck my lazyness! pluss, my phone card with all the numbers...so please don' t get mad if i don't call you once back to finland...
No matter how carefull you are with your stuff, it seems that there is a superior will which rules the destiny of your stuff while travelling, it simply happens that something decides they have to leave you...at least this kind of theory makes it easier to accept...let me find excuses to my stupidity.

But the night was cool, hanging around the city (no bag to carry), with local friends, I also passed in front of the disco “República Cromagnon”, which burned last year, precisely the 30th of december, when more then 190 people died. It is like a santuary, photos, messages and a lot of shoes hanging on the top of it (they told me they belonged to the victims), tables where people can sit and talk, like in a sort of open air museum of sadness and desperation. The atmosphere was dense and it seemed that the noise of the nearest street couldnt brake into the silence of what has been a huge tragedy for all the argentinians. This episode changed many things in buenos aires.

Ste

Two gentlemen and one cowboy

So... wednesday night, Stefano disappears (for good, safe and coming back briefly). The other two idiotas are very hungry after a very hard day of city sightseeing or sieghtsieng (whatever it is writen). Steak is the target and Bar Manolo is calling. Bar Manolo was too full so decision brings the idiotas to El Caracol, very local place with the presence of friendly stuff, including one man from Galicia, Spain. Following reccomendation from waiter the idiotas order Bife de Chorizo (which is not a chorizo as it is know in Spain but a huge piece of tender meat, tender like a cloud, mmmh). But let s stop talking about meat... after the meat and the Tinto de Verano (bad wine plus soda water) the idiotas decide to have a carajillo to give a proper ending to the meal. Pay, leave and find a rock bar to have a little beverage before going back to the hostel where they were supposed to meet one girl they were supposed to go out with). To precise, the drink was rum, and was not so little (but that is not important). Songs they played.. Radiohead Everyone can play guitar, Creep (I m a window), The Verve, etc etc So wer were a bit drunk. Back to hostel the girl was waiting for us full of energy to go out, we have a last glass of wine in our room and some more stuff from Argentinian countryside. After that, we are all in our room, the girl leaves to get ready, H'ector says he goes to toilet and Sergio stays. Result... After two seconds Sergio is already lying down in bed, eyes closed (sleeping after around 25 seconds). Hector starts feeling bad so decides to go for a little walk. The girl, we didn t see her until this morning, from his words we know that she found Sergio sleeping in bed and tried to wake him up (no success) and that she tried to call Hector around the hostel (same result).

That s about it.... Have a happy 29th of December.

H and S

The situation two days before the end of 2005 (MMV)

MMV, in roman numeros, 2005... It is almost gone. We are not gone, well we are since a while ago, but not moving from here until new year arrives. Situation.. The idiotas are together in Buenos Aires, waiting for arrival of new member (yes, surprise...). It is hot here, very hot, we cannot even leave the hostel during the day. We are eating a lot, recovering after Bolivian diet... Nights are better (Hector says very convinced)...

...and, for your information we announce (with James Bond theme music background)

...New Year Idiotas special article...

coming very soon so keep tune...Stefano will reveal his hidden secrets... Hector will explain wat happened to him long time ago... Sergio will confess what he did once....

Everything here....

Los3idiotas

Foto photo, collection of pictures we never had time to add....

Cinema is on sale in north of Bolivia (Uyuni)
Boy and girl (Sorata, Bolivia)
Hector, next to hot springs at more than 4000 meters. He wouldn t try them. On the background Stefano and Sergio had been there.
Sergio s new shower sandals, bought in Oruro (Bolivia)
Pizza sign, Titicaca, The Andes (taken in Isla del Sol, Bolivia)
The Viejo Convento (Salta)
Bolivianos
Stefano Wayne
I met Jesus (Lima)
La adoracion del pene (Penis addoration)
Falcon in Guaynapichu
Stefano y Hector or Sergio y Stefano or Hector
Jesuit ruins in Paraguay. They are really well preserved. Just spent one day in that country, enough to get the kindness of its people.

Bolivia before the elections (La Paz)
Road trip Salta..Cafayate (car suffered from the three idiotas)
Two little people and volcano

Touching the wall (Cusco, Peru)
Hector in Parque del Amor (Lima)
Tres idiotas in the Pyhajarvi from Bolivia (Salares de Uyuni)
Elections in Bolivia. Tuto, the leader of the right side part lost in favour of Evo Morales, from MAS. Days before the election atmosphere was tense in the capital

Road between Salta and Cafayate (north of Argentina). Hector driving
Selling ready fresh made juices in La Paz market.
Chirimoya was excellent and fruit salad was just delicious

Los autenticos decadentes

That s the name of a band here in Argentina. Words from one of the hostel dudes>

They, and not Bersuit, Redondos or any other band... they define la argentinidad. They are the only ones in lauhing at our problems. Here, every band, even if they are no one, pretend and have some kind of seriousness, well, except this ones...

Lyrics of one of their classics>

No, I dont want to work
No, I don t want to study
No, I don t want to get married
I wanna play guitar all day long

they surely know the Ramones, Ramones probably they don t know them, well know you all do, same for me.

Sergio, Buenos Aires

RAMONES

Diego

We wanted to see the Bombonera stadium from the inside, but just a week before we arrived in Bs As the Boca Juniors gained the championship, wich ended up with spectaculars celebrations, and sad idiotas watching them from the TV. There was no championship, but there was the possibility to watch el Diego playing for a charity match, well better then nothing, so we went.
He is now kind of slim again, and I would have never bet he could go back to a field, but he was there.
The match was terrible, of course and I will never go again to such an happening. But it didn't matter, because there was only him there, they were calling only him, tired, slow, magic Diego Armando Maradona. He was the last one to enter the green, people imediately went crazy, it was not football, it was "pass the ball to Diego", people clapping every time he touched a ball, every time he kicked the ball, every time he raised his hand to scratch his head, to say bye to the croud...it was not football, it was like if the croud wanted to see the expression of his face once again, the look of champion getting the sphere, his first 2 steps as in the great times, his soul...just that, even if in the end nobody was allowed to touch him. But it was not sad, he is a legend, he has a great mediatic power, people shush in fron of him, journalist would kiss him. plus, he was over 120 kg, a shame, but now he is back, with his show, with his friends, in the field again. And everybody loves him, ooo Diego Diego Diego Maradona!

Ste,
Buenos Aires

Christmas in Buenos Aires

Aire is not as Bueno as it should seem, but things go on.. people talk everywhere, constantly and longly...fireworks in Christmas day...mix of everything...short long history...tango...mate...Fireworks again...It is hot but not so hot...Meat...people keep on talking...Long avenue...Little streets...Morning coffe...Night beer...Wine...and at last, people still talking, and a firework explodes again...

..the three idiotas joined again for Christmas..Buenos Aires there in front of us.. we, there, inside it...

sErgio from bUenos AiRes

Message

As the king does in Spain or as the Queen in England or as our grandmother do before Christmas s eve dinner, we, the idiotas want to send some words to you for such an occasion. Santa Claus told us when we were in Suomiland to wish you all good time these days and also later on, doens t it make sense?

Hohoho

Jooo Jooo

Merry Chrisma, Feliz Navidad, Buon Natale, Bon Nadal ja Hyva Joulua

Salta (Jump)

And in the streets of Salta the three idiotas splited up!

Salta is a big but quite and nice city in the north of Argentina. We liked it a lot as we lived in the hostel "La Morada" for 2 weeks. But Sergio had other places to see and he went on his way after four days (as you all know, in the good and in the bad).
Meanwhile, the other 2 idiotas partied up for the first week. The night of Salta never ends! Drives you out until the sun knocks you down the day after.
Among the things we did, an outdoor phylarmonic concert with fireworks, falling asleep after 18 empanadas under a 28 meters high Jesus Christ, on a green field (with the happy company of a dog and a tarantula, Paola and Marian), celebrating in the streets the Boca juniors' victory (dale dale dale dale BO!!!), asados with local friends and an interesting conversation with an ex deputy (from the peronist party), a reggae ska punk heavy death metal concert with a lot of beer, Stefano managed to get a job interview but at that moment he was sleeping under the giant Gesus and he missed it, while Hector managed very well with the locals, getting informations for a possible new business in the city (a dreamer). Stefano met the mate and eventually he liked it. From now on this strong argentinian habbit is gonna travel with us everywhere.
There would be much more to tell, but above all the great kindness of the people made us stay so long in Salta. Because of that we would like to say goodbye to Miguel, Sergio, Martin, Paola, Marian, Tatiana, Fer (good stuff man!), Lorena and the super funny security guy from the supermarket. And a special thanks to who eated our pizza yesterday.

We are now in Buenos Aires, waiting for idiota number one, and all the details of his story...we will confort him, giving him positive vibrations...hehehe!

Buenos Aires,
Ste & Hector

Being an idiota, disaster from a week ago

(written some days ago, after not a very good day of trip)

I'm writing from the beach (so long I wanted to say that...) In front of me the river Paraná, running slow, behind palm trees and sand. It´s quiet in here, 9 in the morning. I´m staying in some little house, a family rented me a room (pieza) for a cheap prize, enough to sleep and save my few things left.... oui, yes, si, jooo... my first night after the disaster.
It had been a strange day in Corrientes (Argentina) First a hostel I was not very sure to take, expensive and ugly, then a storm that broke trees after months without rain there, then at night some bad food, and finally, later on, while I was sleeping or having a shower (still unknown)
Sergio the day after disaster. In Spanish we call it
Dejarte con lo puesto
!Leaving you whith what you are having on
I like this expression,
at least didn t need much more there...

someone made it inside the room and stole my backpack, money and some things. Fortunately I saved the tapes I am recording, pictures, my diary and documents, and the towel I am sitting now on...

Yes, idiota Sergio blamed and punished himself for stupidity but then decided to enjoy rest of the time... what can you do...

Other News
Boca won the championship and the Copa Libertadores
In Bolivia, Evo Morales won the election (first presidente indigena)

Sergio (from Ituzaingo, Argentina) some days ago...

Three countries in two days (Sergio alone in SouthAmerica)

Many things have happened since we, the idiotas, decided to split for a while. Me, myself and I, decided to go north, to Iguazu, Iguaçu or whatever way you prefer it. I am there today and, truly, the famous falls deserve being famous. It is like The Beatles or Ferrari or Maradona, there are things that are more than average, and this place is impressing.


"typical topical picture from the falls, imagine the noise"


"Álvaro Núñez Cabeza de Vaca, spanish explorer, was the first white man in discovering the falls. In 1542, going up thrpugh Río de la Plata on his way to Asunción, Paraguay was amazed by the natural miracle... these are his words "the strong stream was so huge, the waters ran with such a fury .. near where we left the boats the water falls through the rocks and it hits the ground with a power such that you can hear them from far far away and the foam goes high"
From the Iguazu falls museum (Brasilian side)

The falls are shared also by Argentina, that side will be tomorrow (at least for me).

As I said, in three days, three countries (I was yesterday in Paraguay, short but intensive stay, shopping for a big reason and watching jesuitic ruins, today Brasil, tomorrow back to Argentina). And soon time to meet the idiotas.

Sergio, Foz de Iguazú

La Monumental -at the level of Esquinica, if you rememba-

That name, before, would have reminded me the name of a bullfighting Plaza in Barcelona.Now it has a new meaning: asado. Stefano already explained but some things need to be clear. Remo Remolino had told me about it and we almost went there on my birthday. At last we waited for the day after. I still had meat in my mouth but couldn´t skip it after listening to the stories of the place.

..and this is the feeling afterwards... Sunrise near Cafayate, afer sleeping outside in some field....

When we arrived it was almost empty; however, you got the feeling that it is going to get full sooner or later; so it happened, people coming and leaving, waiters running, greetings, words, wine, chats, and meat. Meat... when the waiter said that two portions would be enough for three people (two big people and one little, me, but that can eat like an animal) well I couldn´t do more than believe him. Rightly done. After five minutes he popped up with two huge grilled pieces of meat. After trying it, melting it with the fork I knew that was, again, THE PLACE.

Monumental (Salta)... ask if you go there...

Sergio, Foz do Iguaçú

Un poquito de musique fatal total

Here some lyrics I heard during these days...
---
Dáme más gasolina, quiero más gasolina (don´t remember the order)
give me more gasoline, I want more gasoline
(while listening to this you might see some semi-porn shows in the southamerican discos)
------
Gavilán, gavilán, gavilán
te llevaste mi *polla, gavilán
si tú traes mi polla para mí
yo te doy todito mi dinero

La pollita que más quiero,
sin mi polla yo me muero

*polla, in spanish, can mean wether han or dick (man´s device)
------

...it was just a short note... hope you enjoyed it...

Sergio, Brasil

Salta, la Linda

That s how they call this city in Argetina. People sleep siesta in the parks, there is great meat, the surroundings are just amazing and well, people are really nice. My other two idiotas fell in love with the city and they decided to stay there a bit more. Here is where the idiotas split -no worry, just for a while-

"Salta, salta conmigo"
"Jump, jump with me"
Tequila (rock band)

I love rock and roll lyrics...

Sergio, desde Brasil



"this is what to do when sun shines too much"

Remo Remolino

Remolino and me did rafting together. Yes, that was the present I got from my beloved two idiotas for my birthday. They talked with the Remolino from Hamburgo and put me~send me on a rafting trip in northern argentinian lands. Fair enough, it was fun, actually quite fun. Remo Remolino is probably now in Colobia; after finding him -by chance- in three different countries in the most unexpected situations:
-ticket lane in Machu Pichu
-little minibus I dont remember where
-La Paz, bus
-Salta, in the streets

I believe he will appear now from behind this table... No, pity... Merry Christmas Remolino. You should and probably will meet up with Remolino someday.



"Sergio is on the first little boat there, in front... I got the special place as the shortest and lightest there"

Sergito

Los chicos eslavos nunca se pierden (slavic dudes never get lost)

First, apologise for being out of communication lately; sure you were eager to hear again, well, here we are and the reasons for such delays are, as you will understand, heavy ones... -end of captatio benevolentia-
While we ran around the Salares de Uyuni, Wojtek, a polish dude who liked the mountains too much (hi Wojtek!) disappeared one night. Jose Luis, our guide, was worried, as it was hgis responsibility to bring all of us back (alive).


Elise was there too... she was a vegetarian for a long while until she went to SouthAmerica... Birthday asado, 4 kilos of meat where cooked...

Well, it was getting dark but Elise, who you might know already (hi Elise, hope you are safe back in Ceska!) -I promise to stop these greetings now...- well she said this words "Los chicos eslavos nunca se pierden' "Slavic people never get lost" So it was, Wojtek came back, happy and smiling after a little bit of night-climbing. That was a long time ago but it was just to explain thath, for a while, the idiotas travelled along together with Elise, a girl who had the patience, and also the pleasure of course, of sharing the roads from Bolivia to Argentina. As they never get lost, she won't get lost either. We are now, well, me in Brasil, the other two idiotas in Argentina. Interested...?

Keep on reading.

Sergio, Foz do Iguaçu (Brasil)

ASADO!!!!

...That s how you feel afterwards...

Hello meat lovers, I am sorry for the vegetarians, but here this word does not beong to the dictionary...anyway today we decided to grill some real argentinians proteins...4 kilos among the friends of the hostels...and believe me it was like tasting the meat for the first time! It seems that here everybody knows hot to cut, salt and cook the meat, which lied on a big plate like the steak of the cartoons, but it was real, ooo it was fu...ng great, melting while my mouth was chewing and praying for more, and laughing about a french girl who wanted to save the world, far from the grill... Jokes apart it was a tryunph of heavy steam, deep breath and satisfaction painted on the face of everybody, not counting the price, mmm 4 kilos for 34 pesos, a bit more then 9 euros! We grill atop the hostel, and we al ended up in the small childish swing pool, me in boxer, miguel as well, sergio was the first one, as it was his birthday he ended up in the water with all the clothes, but no problem, here is summer...then following sergio 2 half naked and hector who cut himself in the head (nothing seriouse, just some more blood in the night). We know nothing about meet in europe, fuck the butchers saying ¨this is good shitt!¨, cause its only a bunch of hormons hanging around a piece of humid crap! ste

In english, what I did today...

So.. today....

• I woke up from bed, well, from my sleeping back lying on the grass of a camping site where we didnt pay (as we were not requested so)
• I saved the sleeping bagI brushed my teeth and drank water (from a plastic bottle)
• I drove the WV Golf without F that we rented, almost killed Hector
• (there are no accents in english so I don´t need to apólogisé)
• I was congratulated by the idiotas
• I went to hostel, had shower, shaved and cut a bit my sideburns
• I tried to book my flight back, no success
• I fought (discussing) with the girl at the internet, calling center (she was not right and I was treated unfairly)
• I came back to the hostel, angry
• I was congratulated by Elise, she gave me a present, a necklace from bambu and amazonian seeds (she made it!)
• I ate some empanadas on the streets, and a cocacola bottle (forgot it at the supermarket so had to go back) I also bought icecream, wine and limoncello (made in Argentina...)
• I read some poems from Patagonian writers (in the hamaca in the terrace, it was ttoo hopt though)
• I went down, tried to book the flight again
• I got tired of searching so I decided to write this.. as it is my birthday I thought I d get some Felicitaciones, selfish me...

So far that s it... a rivederci!

Mr.Sergio, 25 yearsold, Salta (Argentina)

Lo que he hecho hoy, and still day is not over...

Pues hoy, so today... (in englis below...)

• Me he levantado de la cama, perdon, del saco de dormir estirado en el cesped en un camping donde no se nos requirio pagar por lo que no pagamos
• He guardado el saco
• Me he lavado los dientes y bebido agua (de una botella de plastico)
• He conducido el Golf que alquilamos y donde falta la f de Golf, casi atropello a Hector
• (perdon por no poner acentos...)
• He andado por Salta
• He sido felicitado por los dos idiotas
• Me he encontrado a Remo Remolino por las calles de Salta (ver capitulos anteriores)
• He ido al hostal: me he duchado, afeitado, cortado un poco las patillas
• He ido a intentar reservar el vuelo de vuelto, sin exito
• Me he discutido con la encargada de la sala de llamadas e internet donde fui a llamar para el vuelo (muy injusto trato recibi, y tenia razon en mis quejas, claro)
• He vuelto al hostal enfadado
• He sido felicitado por Elise, que me regalo un collar hecho con bambu y semillas de la selva )ella lo hizo eh!)
• He tomado unas empanadas por la calle, y una cocacola de botella (me la olvide en el super y tuve que volver a buscarla de nuevo) Tambien compre vino, helado y un botella de Limoncello (producido en Argentina, veremos esta noche...)
• He leido unos poemas de escritores Patagonicos (en la hamaca del balcon, pero hacia demasiado calor)
• He bajado y he intentado comprar el vuelo de vuelta por Internet
• Me he cansado de buscar y he escrito este mail, pense que si digo que hoy es mi cumpleanyos recibire felicitaciones, egoista de mi ;)

De momento ya esta... a rivederci!

Senyor Sergio, 25 anyos, Salta (Argentina)

solo per voi de zena!

Ciao belli,visto che una volta passata la frontiera con l'argentina mi sono subito sentito in una specie di mix europeo italiano, vi dedico questo articolo da Salta, citta di oltre un milione di persone, dallo stile pulito e coloniale, per davvero e non come il finto e bruttino stile che cercano di spacciare per coloniale a Lima...fa caldo, estate piena qui, finalmente....io mi riutrovo con un po di tosse..mamma non ti preoccupare mi bevo tanto te con miele...heheheE poi qui la notte e` folle, inizia a scaldarsi solo alle due di notte, e si scatena alle quattro...fate voi, siamo (soprattutto io e hector abbastanza scombussolati)...domani affitttiamo una macchina e facciamo la nostra brava escursione. Aggiungeremo foto non appena incontreremo un pc decente.Che alro..mmm, mi mancate tutti e mi ha fatto molto piacere parlare con alcuni di voi l`altra notte per MSN...Statemi bene, Fabio non ti crucciare troppo, Cla fatti vivo porca paletta, Silvio...ma allora ti sposi o no??? Sax, invece di mandarmi sempre attach che non posso scaricare mandami due cazzo di righe ogni tanto e simo scandaloso simo che non sento da una vita...Ma, Pa, riguardatevi e non preoccupatevi!Un abbraccio piu` grosso della panamericana a tutti voi! da Salta,Ste e forza doria!!!!

Mama, tranquila (parte 5)

Argentina...

Allá estamos ahora. Recién cruzamos la frontera y ua máquina de CocaCola nos anunciaba (no vimos ninguna en Bolivia) que esto es otro mundo. Y la ciudad, Salta, La Linda como la llaman aquí tiene más de Europa que del Sur de América. Vamos a ver, el cambio ha sido fuerte y va a costar acostrumbrarse (el autobús parecía un avión, más comparado con los transportes que habíamos usado últimamente).

Yo estoy bien, por fin, la diarrea me duró más de cinco días, al final me inyectaron un poco de suero, arroz blanco, agua agua agua y todo se ha arreglado... Así que bien mama...

En fin, slaudos a todos y hasta luego...


S. Eso es cuando me pusieron el suero, porque la diarrea de 6 dias ya me tenia un poco débil

PS; pronto me voy a degustar unos buenos filetes de arne argentina, mejor dicho filetazos (para dar envidida al señor Luis Reseco ;)

Food in Bolivia

Need to be brief... there are other things but...

Pollo... everywhere, all the time, too much; sometimes the only possibility. We made a calaculation and they do kill a lot of chickens here everyday.

Empanadas.... good, sold everywhere too. They are made from meat or cheese, and also called salteñas. Mmmmh...

Jugos... Natural fruit, delicious drink

Chicha... Well, you should know about that (if you are a loyal reader of the idiotas adventures...)

bon appetit,

S.

Hostels in Bolivia

...coming soon...

Bolivia

So, from Tupiza we went south, and from the south we left Bolivia. It was not in the plan but plan is changing now almost every day, even more than once a day... Hasta luego Bolivia,

Bolivia is...

Demonstrations in the streets
Blue and red flags all over
People smiling
Pollo a la brasa (too much)
A tooth less, a cold and diarrea
Real travellers
Casa Reggae
El Carretero
Empanadas
Mountains
High mountains
Really high mountains

...and many things more...hope nothing bad will happen, but the situation looks bad..

Sergio

The good, the bad and the ugly

So here we are, jeans on, hat and horse waiting outside the hostel. In Tupiza we arranged a horse ride around the area; it feels really that anytime some cherokees will appear behind the mountain or that some blue-coloured army will pop up somewhere. It was my first time on a horse but it was not so bad. Here you are a short description of them:


..Lucky and Sergio, before he collapsed and he got terribly scared, to be honest..



Good Diego; he was Héctor's. We guessed that they call it Diego because he's fat like Maradona... of course as he stops every five meters to eat anything he finds on his way. However he ended up being the best of the three.

Bad Lucky; I had feelig with him since the very beginning; he was the youngest (4 years) but he was not ready for a cowboy from Vilanova; after three hours, when we were having a break, he started complaining, trembling and jumping into the ground. Seems so that he had too much work on his back so I had to end changing him with the big one Vencedor. Poor Lucky.

Ugly Moto; the greatest. In words of the guide "this moto is a bit crazy" Yes, he was; besides being the ugliest he started running out of the path like mad and Stefano thought for a while that it was going to be a disaster; it was not but Ste is still suffering on his ass the effects of riding Moto.

Sergio, Salta

Tupiza

...Butch Cassidy and Sundance Kid, two gringos-outlaws from Yankiland (with all my respect :) ended up escaping and dying in Bolivia.. that were the times of stagecoaches and John Wayne.. yes, he was not a character, he was real. So, near there where they came we are now, surrounded by canyons, cactus and brown rocky hills. By the way, today we tried to climb one, as a result I look dirty and full of scratches (yes, not so bad but Héctor´s tooth was so popular that now we are all gealous).

Quiet little place. If everything goes well tomorrow we should be riding horses; my experience with that is a 5 minute walk on a horse when I was 14 and maybe a pony when I was a child (for maybe 5 more).

My favourite westerns, or the ones that came to my head now...

The man who shot Liberty Vallance- John Ford
The good, the bad and the ugly- Sergio Leone
Unforgiven- Clint Eastwood

photo: Tupiza children. Children here love being in photos.... it is a little present for them for us and for you

Salar de mierda (Excuse moi for the title..)

Just one of the most unbelievable places maybe in our trip... every hour something amazing came into our eyes in an overdose of landscape miracles.. From lagoons to flamingos to geisers and salares and deserts and volcanos...
It was not that it was bad but I had terrible stomach problems (to be polite) during the whole three days tour we did...

All things can be great but great things can be also a bit shitty...

PS; referring to Salares de Uyuni (Bolivia)

Sergio, Uyuni

A punt de deixar Bolivia

Ja portem unes dues setmanes donant tombs per Bolivia; vam passar uns dies a La Paz, várem visitar la casa Reggae, altre cop a La Paz (aqui va ser lo del meu queixal...que per cert mama, tot esta controlat i ja no hem fa mal...) i d'aqui cap al sud: Oruro i Uyuni. En aquest ultim poblet hem fet un tipus de safari durant tres dies pel desert, descobrint llacs de colors (vermell, verd, blanc...), un immens salar, volcans i paisatges únics. (el nostre técnic d'imatge, el Sergio, ja posará algunes fotos). Avui hem arribat d'aquesta excursió i aquesta matinada ja marxem direcció a l'Argentina, parant primer en un poblet boliviá (Tupiza).
Com ja haureu pogut llegir, sembla que els plans que teniem estant canviant una mica i potser no creuarem tot Chile i la idea d'arribar fins a Patagonia ja no es tan factible; aixi doncs toca improvisar i ja veurem on anirem a parar...qui sap? el que si tenim clar es que volem una mica de solet i platja. Portem gairebé tot el viatge movent-nos entre muntanyes i creiem que ja toca canviar d'aires. Aixi que aviat ens veureu en bermudes prenent el sol en aigues de l'Atlántic (o almenys aixó es el que volem!!).
Bé, molts records a tothom des del sud de Bolivia i moltes gracies pel vostre interés sobre el meu queixal!!

Héctor, Uyuni.

what I will remember...

...of Bolivia? mmm
first of all the buses: you have to think that bolivian roads are among the most dangerouse of the world, you are always on the edge of a cliff of hundreds of metres, and we didn't want to find out about the exact number of buses which fell...(in this exact momnt, a politician on tv stress on how is important to improove the streets in Bolivia, thanks a lot!), then you buy your ticket, everybody take its place, the bus starts, but after few hundreds metres it stops again and voilá, the abusive people who paid for a standing lift (i guess this is a parallel business of the drivers) invade every single centimeter of the truck. I was lucky, because on my face I had a nice culo of a pretty teen ager, but sergio was not so lucky, and for him it was a misteriouse bag smelling not so misteriously...
Plus, there was a party on the front side, and both the drivers were drinking a strong liquor in a plastic bottle, easy guys easy, we are only at 4.000 metres!

But there are so many things we saw, talked, drinked and whatever in such a short time, the breathless experience of the gaysers at 5.200 metres, the clouds always so near, old people drinking chicha (Bolivia is Chicha said an old man when I asked him Bolivia in a word), the kids in the streets, getting crazy for my stupids attempts to make them smile, the kids in the streets which are working and defenetely not smiling (some of them are not even 6 years old, I knew about that before, but seeing with your eyes is another thing), the political election approaching (18th december), and the lower bigger class saying: "I really believe this time it will winn the left side party of Ebo Morales" wich is for the people, who wants to close bolivia to "externalusas" influences and many good initiatives...but then, the same worker, taxi driver or touristic guide adds: "he will probably manage to govern for few days, and then se lo van a sacar..." "golpe?" i ask, "what ever, its always the same shitt", they generally answer..
Bolivia so poor, but bolivia so rich! FULL of gas, which now, thanks to previose presidents beleongs to Chile, FULL of minerals, same story...

Bolivia so cheap, so easy going (altitude rules), but La Paz with the Army in the streets, and soldiers everywherelse in the country. Bolivia of the mountais, volcanos, and WOW I CANT BELIEVE ITS SO...and the word fades away. Casa Reggae, the hostal el carretero, the short footbal matches, very short, the fever the day of my birthday, O SHITT I AM 31 today!!!!

Bolivia. Uyuni,
Ste

Bolivia es... Chicha

...and with shiny, red eyes, completely drunk but smiling the old man finished the sentence... Chicha, Bolivia es chicha.

It was a little door, like the door of another cheap lunch place (almuerzo familiar as they're called here). We we were looking for a place to have a coffee so that would be just fine. After opening the door, a distant sound of crowd and a waiter on suit started telling that the place was not what we expected. Another waiter came carrying three or four bottles filled with a yellow drink I had never seen until then. The waiter showed us the way and we entered. After two seconds the place beacme and open patio, sunny and full of local old people. And on the tables only that yellow drink. The atmosphere was so good (didn t find better word) that coffe idea disappeared fast from our heads... We had just found THE place.
One idiota- What is that? (pointing the bottles to the waiter)
Waiter -Chicha
Another idiota -Aha..
(after seconds of doubt)Idiota again -Well... bring us... two bottles
So it started. Bit weird taste but after two glasses we were already playing dice like everyone else there. After a couple more:
Waiter - So, 2 bottles more?
Hector- Yes, 2 bottles
We didn t miss the bus that we were supposed to take -and which was something close to hell, as someone will describe soon). But we took it quite happily... In the meantime we had been the main attraction, by age (we were around 35 years younger than the average) and by colour (darker than earlier but still paler than locals).We were invited, greeted amd pleased by almost everyone there. At the moment of leaving I felt like I knew everyone there. Right before that a man came, he had a bike and a superb drunkness:
Stefano- So.. what is Bolivia.. in one word?
Friendly man- Bolivia... Chicha... Bolivia es chicha.
So we left from that place in Oruro still wondering if it had been real... Well, the day after I realised it was....

Sergio, desde Uyuni

PS: Chicha is an alcoholic drink typical in Bolivia, made from corn, not very strong but strong enough