The bus journey to Uyuni was on a small local bus, which we were told would have a toilet and from the photo´s looked pretty luxurious.  It wasn´t.  We were the only gringos and seemingly the only people who had washed in the last week!  After some coca-chewing locals were thrown out of our seats, we sat down to the 7 hour journey, freezing and on dirt tracks.  The ride was so rough we felt physically sick the whole way, which wasn´t helped by the stench.

Arriving in Uyuni at 1.30am we headed straight for the Lonely Planet´s hotel tip, which was unsurprisingly a dump and freezing cold. 

After about 5 hours sleep we were on a trip to Salar de Uyuni, the salt flats of Uyuni. 

Unfortunately our guide didn´t speak a word of the queens, but Rich translated as best he could (not that good).  The salt flats of Uyuni are the largest in the world (1200 square kilometres), and are the result of an ancient salt lake.  Without sunglasses it´s hard to see, as the brightness is immense.  With the blue sky as well it really is a beautiful sight.

First stop (well after looking at some derelict trains to fill some time) was the Salt Museum, where everything is made of salt, including the building itself (which took 2 years to build).  A friendly woman gave us a tour of the supposedly free museum, before hitting us with a charge as we left.  It was worth it though, as they had some pretty cool sculptures in there.

Next was the salt hotel, which again is constructed completely of salt, including tables, chairs and beds (though not mattresses we hope). 

We also visited some bubbling salt pools, which looked a bit like geysers but were cold, and stopped off on the plains for a photo session, where everyone tries to get the picture of someone in their hand, as there´s no point of reference.  We sort of succeeded after about 4 hours of trying. 

Last stop was the Isla de Pescador, which is a cactus-filled island in the middle of hundreds of kilometres of salt.  After climbing to the top we realised we were at about 4000 metres above sea level, as we were exhausted, but the views were spectacular, especially of the distant, extinct volcanoes.  Some of the cacti were 1200 years old too, as they only grow about a centimetre a year.

After climbing back down we realised the lunch which was included in the trip was being unpacked from the back of the 4x4 and cooked by the driver.  On the menu was cucumber, tomato, rice and some unidentifiable meat, so we gave it a swerve and had the customary toasted cheese sandwich and plate of chips that has saved us from food poisoning on many an occasion.

The trip made the smelly, long bus journeys worthwhile, and although many people do three or four day salt flat trips, one day is plenty to see some great scenery. 

Uyuni is only a small town but is packed with backpackers, and has a great pizza restaurant run by a guy from New England.  We refrained from telling him we used to work for SSgA though.  After a few 700ml beers, we got four hours sleep before boarding a train at 2.50am to Tupiza.  These overnighters are killing us!