Salar de Uyuni, Bolivia

The world's largest salt flat.

The spanish word 'salar' literally translates to salt flat. I'm sure you're all acquainted with the Bonneville salt flats in the US, where Bert Munroe's Indian motorcycle became the fastest on earth. Well Bonneville ain't got nothing on Uyuni - at least in terms of size. It's over 100 times bigger by area and up to 120m deep (of salt!) At an elevation of around 3600m, this time of year the Salar de Uyuni is freezing. Literally. And at six o'clock in the morning on this given Saturday it was minus six degrees. Who said salt flats were always hot?

Salt flats are also not always dry. In fact, they rely on frequent wetting and drying to become salt flats in the first place. To become a salt flat, an area of land needs a mineral-rich water inlet with no outlet, or an outlet which expels water at a slower rate than evaporation. This means that the primary way out for the water is evaporation, which leaves behind the minerals which said water had been carrying in suspension. The drying process also forms impressive salt crystals which become even more spectacular under pressure from the layers on top. Our unfortunate seasonal timing meant that the flats were bone dry on our visit - which was extremely disappointing as the salt flats become the world's biggest mirror in flood. A magical experience, I'm told. Nonetheless, witnessing the sun rise over this glistening white desert was definitely one we'll remember, if not for the beauty then the numbing pain I was feeling in my ears, fingers and toes.

Our tour continued once the sun had broken day. At 120km/h travel felt incredibly slow given the vast distances to any distinguishable landmark. Our driver (Ever) was periodically falling asleep at the wheel which was cause for great panic until we realised that there were literally no obstacles to hit if he tried. Even still, our persistent poking kept him conscious enough to get us to our breakfast destination - a small 'island' in the middle of the flat. Bolivian drivers working this tour are notorious for driving drunk and/or tired. Despite our best efforts to get a good driver (we paid extra and were assured 'our drivers don't drive drunk'), ultimately the onus was on us to read the situation. I would hate to have seen the state of the 'bad drivers' - a short read of tour reviews is enough to put you off. Poor form from Bolivia but what can you expect?

Aside from that, Even was indeed a very good driver and tour guide. He gave us all a stint at the wheel through the salt flats (which was actually the most boring driving I have ever done) and did a fine job of treating us like real humans despite the number of times he forced us to listen to his favourite song: 'Despacito' (hourly).

We climbed the island and admired a fantastic view of the eternal white from between giant cactii. The rising sun provided pockets of warmth which we were sure to linger in as an attempt to thaw our digits. Breakfast on the flats and a drawn out photo shoot was a great way to take it all in before piling back into the car.

We only spent a few hours driving across the salt flats (thankfully) and barely chopped a wee corner off it. We passed through Dakar before arriving in a very ugly Uyuni. Dusty, rubbish-strewn streets with piles of rubble and unfinished buildings triggered much disgust in all of us who clearly had higher expectations. Unfinished houses are exempt from taxes in this country which obviously creates little incentive to finish them. Hence, perhaps why we felt Uyuni was such an eye sore. We had a quick visit to a fairly underwhelming train graveyard before our last supper: quinoa fritters. The 'superfood' (which is actually a staple here) had a lot of potential but a lack of flavour really let them down in a meal which I'm sure has set the mood for Bolivian dining. The red meat diets of Argentina and Chile, I doubt, will be seen for a long time.

Even dropped us at the 'bus terminal' (just a regular street) where we said our farewells and searched desperately for the next bus out of town. Next stop Postosi.Read more