Leaving Argentina, catching a bus to Bolivia

We left Argentina yesterday morning on the earliest bus available taking us to the Bolivian border. None of the public buses offer the convenience of taking passengers out of one country into another. So when we reached La Quiaca, Argentina (very close to the border) we had to find our way from the bus station to the immigration offices of both countries. It was a short distance, no hassles or delays and seemed very casual (thank goodness!). Once into Bolivia (the town of Villazon) we found our way to the very small bus station which hardly looked like a station as there were no buses, just minivans lined up. The drivers were asking people as they showed where they were going and filled the minivans - tourists and local alike. So no more waiting, we were on our way to Tupiza, our destination. We arrived safely, found our hotel and once settled in for the night we slept soundly. The altitude here is approximately 3000m, enough to make us feel oxygen deprived. We are taking medication which seems to help, neither one of us feel sick or have a headache, just notice how quickly we feel winded and exhausted! We’ve also been drinking lots of coca tea, chewing the leaves and even sucking on coca candies. Coca products are readily accessible everywhere, and we see people walking around with cheeks puffed out with what we think must be coca! Also the air is extremely dry, the sun super intense, and once it sets the air cools off almost immediately.
Today we took a private tour of several parks in the surrounding area. It was another day filled with incredible sights of geological formations. Bolivia is rich in natural resources, we haven’t seen much recent mining evidence but on our park visits we’ve seen lots of raw tin, lead, copper and salt. All the gold and silver is found in different regions of the country.
Tomorrow, Saturday, will be a restful one. We planned to stay here a few days to be ready for our four day tour starting Sunday. It will be a private tour led by a local couple. The itinerary takes us in a big circle, travelling west then north to the city of Uyuni. The largest salt flats in the world are there! Nico, our guide told us we will be out of cell range for most of the time, even electricity will be scarce! Having mentioned that, I probably won’t be able to post anything until we get back here to Tupiza on Wednesday night. I’m having internet problems right now so if I get this post finished I’ll be really lucky!