Tupiza

We took a bus from Tarija over very high (14,000ft) and barren mountain passes to Tupiza. The road was paved more than half of the way and we were lucky to get a very cautious driver, as some of the drop-offs were scary. Our driver was also a softie as he bought several loaves of bread he broke up into small pieces before we set off that we saw him tossing out the window to dozens of stray dogs we passed on our route. When he ran out of bread he waved kindly to the dogs that missed out, probably thinking I’ll feed you on the way back. When we’d bought our bus tickets we’d asked if the bus was new and had been told “more or less”. It was definitely the latter as the driver’s co-pilot was continuously pouring water on the engine so it didn’t overheat going up the steep hills.
Tupiza is a small city known for beautiful red rock landscapes. We hired a driver for a day and were able to see most of the famous (we use the term loosely) rock formations, which were very impressive and reminiscent of parts of Southern Utah, though without the crowds. We only saw one other tourist the whole day! We were told this was less because of it being winter and more because everyone had stayed home to watch the soccer Worldcup.Read more