Travels travels

Caitlin wandering lost, and probably dismayed, through the endless white expanse of Salar de Uyuni. Our trip there was far from uneventful. Packed with long hours in the car (23 in 3 days), extreme temperatures, some rowdy Brazilians, outrageous landscapes, broken windshields and running out of gas in the middle of nowhere, it was certainly something to tell the kids about. Freezing and beautiful Salar is not for the faint of heart, even if Caitlin looks pretty chilled out here.
At 16,000 feet, in the frigid cold, with winds whipping about, are hundreds and hundreds of contented looking Flamingos. Totally bizarre. I mean do they know there are a lot of warmer, lusher places they could live? Don't they have cousins in the everglades they can stay with? Anyway, they are majestic and giant birds. Their pink is only outdone by the fact that in one of the lakes (Laguna Colorada) is an even brighter hue than they. It's something out of a demented fairytale, the water, shimmering against red mountains, under viciously blue skies, shifts from a passionate purple to the color of cherry flavoring.
This is Laguna Verde. You can't really tell how green the water is, but with the volcano looming it's an impressive sight. Unfortunately, at negative temperatures, we really only had time to hop out snap a few photos and plunge frantically back into the jeep.
More impressive than pink lakes, salt flats and volcanos, our kitten, Salvador's, growth. He's a monster, and pretty good looking. Caitlin and I have decided he either is posing for a woman's magazine (what a bod) or is some sort of sexy R&B singer. We'll call him Sal D. Either way, he brings the funk. And he's giant.

Overdue Pics

Caitlin and I on the Isla del Sol, Copacabana's main tourist attraction. And, after putting it off for four months, I must say absolutely worth the effort. It's outstandingly beautiful. Clear, almost tropical water with sandy beaches, give way to swooping and dramatic hills. With incredible views of the Cordillera Real (think the Olympics times five) in the background beyond the deep blues of the Lake, it's all really magnificent. We had the pleasure of doing the day tour with my sister and her friends who were visiting. Good times all around.
A shot of some spooky rock formations on the island. And, you know, the mountains too.
In a complete change of scenery, I'm not in the middle of the tundra, though the weather certainly felt like it (-20 celcius!), but rather in the vast salt flats outside of Uyuni. It was a totally mindblowing and disorienting place. Something of a salty moon land. The environment was completely different than anywhere I've ever been previous, or ever will be again. In a word, harsh. Dry, freezing, blindingly white, but somehow mysterious and magical.
On Fish Island in the middle of the salt flats, its a giant coral reef above ground dotted with massive, imposing cactus. Definitely surreal. Definitely the moon.