standing there like ghosts of a former era, silent for so many years.

After another hour or so of driving we crossed the Tropic of Capricorn. We have of course done this on more than one occasion before, but never on land, and never knowingly!! By this time the temperature was at desert levels and so after a couple of quick photos we were back in the bus for the 150km drive to the start of the salt flats. During the drive we gained in altitude quite a lot, and we started to deal with the familiar signs of being high up. We were to be at high altitude on and off for a couple of months now, so we’d get used to it!! We stopped at a viewpoint that overlooked the Salar, and after a short walk up to the hill the landscape was just mind-blowing!! There were miles and miles of flat salt plain with a backdrop as good as we’ve seen anywhere. At the other side of the desert was the beginning of the

Anti-Plano, or high plain where Bolivia sits, at around 3500 meters. Towering above that are a series of volcanoes, some active which reach heights above 6000 meters. I had no idea that there were so many volcanoes in the Andes, but I sure did now!! In fact the Andes at this stage are the fastest growing mountains in the world, and geologists reckon that given time - a lot of time - the Andes will grow to be higher than the Himalayas!! Also in between the Andes and the Pacific in this area is another range of mountains, pretty low by the standard set by the mighty Andes, but in fact the youngest mountain range in the world - still being formed by the collision of the Pacific and South American tectonic plates. Isn’t geography just incredible!!

We got a close look at the salt flats pretty soon and although not pure white they did have the classic honeycomb patterns on them. They were also