, got emotional and finally gave in and came up with a better alternative. So we meet Ever, the English speaking guide, and Fabio, the driver and load up ready for the big adventure. Then, Fabio excitedly announces that the first stop is the train cemetery. F***** rusty trains – heaps and heaps of them, sinking into the dirt as a memorial to the American mining companies. Thankfully, our stay wasn’t lengthy.
Next stop, Colchini, the home of the salt factory where the white stuff makes its way from big shiny salt castles into little plastic bags – in a rudimentary sort of way. Beginning to see the first buildings made of salt bricks – and the first souvenirs carved from salt.
Onward, and finally, we are walking on salt. Surreal, amazing, unbelievable! And soooooo white! The light is so 
white that it is impossible to take a photo without changing the setting to the darkest possible.
white that it is impossible to take a photo without changing the setting to the darkest possible. People are working shovelling the salt to build the castles – ready to be loaded into trucks. The salt is quite wet and will need a lot of drying before it can crawl into those little plastic bags.
Stopped a little further on at a building made of salt – inside and out! Was a hotel but it is now not legal to have hotels on the lake because of contamination, so it has morphed into a museum
that sells more little salt creations. It is like being in the middle of a snowfield – it is cold, and crunchy underfoot, but flat flat forever.
Stopped a little further on at a building made of salt – inside and out! Was a hotel but it is now not legal to have hotels on the lake because of contamination, so it has morphed into a museum
that sells more little salt creations. It is like being in the middle of a snowfield – it is cold, and crunchy underfoot, but flat flat forever. Perspective has vanished. Mountains in the far distance disappear in all the white light when photographed – like we imagined them. And the rain has been good to us in a way as the vast areas of water, lying on top of the salt, reflect the mountains and volcanoes to the point that it is difficult to remember which way is up.
Finally arrived at the Ilsa Incahuasi which had been floating 
eerily on the horizon for some time. Lined up with all the other 4X4s and got out to explore this incredible place – a cactus haven in the middle of a glistening white ocean. Must have been a highish altitude as climbing the hill to the loos made me puffed – Warrior Col later climbed right to the top of the hill and communed with the cacti – some of which had been waiting there for him for 900 years. And of course, he took many many photos. A gourmet lunch of llama steaks, quinoa and vegetables was laid out for us on the salt slab picnic table (with two tablecloths of course) and we supped regally ‘neath the shade of an umbrella.
eerily on the horizon for some time. Lined up with all the other 4X4s and got out to explore this incredible place – a cactus haven in the middle of a glistening white ocean. Must have been a highish altitude as climbing the hill to the loos made me puffed – Warrior Col later climbed right to the top of the hill and communed with the cacti – some of which had been waiting there for him for 900 years. And of course, he took many many photos. A gourmet lunch of llama steaks, quinoa and vegetables was laid out for us on the salt slab picnic table (with two tablecloths of course) and we supped regally ‘neath the shade of an umbrella.
From there it was back over the lake to our bed for the night in a brand spanky new salt hotel. Brilliant decor, like a fairyland, all white and light and spacious. Even the beds were made of salt. To top it all off, the water was hot and pl
entiful, the food great. A brilliant day!
entiful, the food great. A brilliant day! 