Honeymooning in Bolivia

I will grant you that Bolivia is not a typical honeymoon destination.  We wanted to go to Machu Picchu and we wanted to visit the Atacama Desert in northern Chile (# 2 on the New York Times' list of places to go in 2017), and guess what is right in the middle?  And when we saw photos of the Uyuni Salt Flats, we had to stop by.  As it turned out, Bolivia is so photogenic, we took far more photos in that country than we did in the other two.

I did not have great expectations for La Paz.  We only stayed one night, but were favorably impressed.  There is a new cable car ("Teleferico") system that connects the various neighborhoods.  It gives the visitor the equivalent of an amusement park ride over the city for just 50 US cents.

And we had dinner at Gustu, reputedly one of the best restaurants in South America, started by a Danish chef who is a 4-time restaurant of the year (worldwide) award winner back home in Copenhagen.  It is like dining at Alinea in Chicago for a fraction of the price.  In fact, everything was inexpensive in Bolivia, but once you are outside of the cities, be sure to have cash, because a lot of small stores do not take credit cards.

Llama fetus, anyone?

The old ways are not completely gone in La Paz.  We visited the Witches' Market and saw the llama fetuses for sale (apparently for use in potions).  We only saw one vendor with the fetuses, however, so perhaps the market for potion ingredients is drying up.

Then, it was on to Uyuni.  Our flights (both into La Paz and into Uyuni) were completely made up of tourists.  I doubt there were any Bolivians on either flight.  Now, Uyuni is a dusty town.  It is definitely not a typical honeymoon destination.  And, I have to admit, after nearly having my bank card swallowed by an ATM (and on a Sunday when I could get no one to help me), before prying it back into my possession, I was a little dubious.

The main drag in Uyuni.  Not Honeymoon Central, I think.  There's still a bit of the Wild West here.  Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid spent their last days in a similar town just down the road.

But then it was on with a great tour group to the salt flats, and in the following days, the Avaroa Natural Reserve.  There are photo ops everywhere, particularly on the salt flats.  Beware that accommodations are sparse, particularly in the Reserve, where we stayed in a hostel for one night without an electrical outlet (or lock) in our room and with shared bathrooms that were, let's say, below standard.  But when you can get photos like these, you will still have the time of your lives: