The Arrival...

Ha. What a title! "The Arrival..." It sounds like something out of "The War of the Worlds!" "No one would have believed, in the last days of 2013..."
So obviously we got to Bolivia. It involved a midnight taxi ride to the border. (it sounds exciting doesn't it?) Synta and I took one taxi and her parents the other. Our luggage packed to the ceiling. Our driver chewing coca leaves to stay awake. Somewhere north of Salta and before the Bolivian border we came upon hundreds of people walking along the road, inn the middle of the night. I believe it was a religious festival, but it kinda made me think of a Zombie apocalypse.
And then the border. A bridge separated Argentina from Bolivia. We arrived just as the sun peaked over the horizon. If you ever come this way don't forget the mosquito's spray. They are bad.
And our bus was waiting. With a few misunderstandings and false alarms behind us we were on our way to Tarija.
I guess this is a time to comment on the driving. Have faith. Yes, you have to kind of remind yourself that the driver has obviously survived driving many times before and why should this be the day he crashes and kills everyone? The chances are pretty remote.
Driving here is actually quite courteous. Everyone drives flat out and pushes in to any gap that appears, (or is about to) but that is all quite acceptable to all concerned. There is a lot of horn sounding, but usually as a kind of "careful, here I am!" announcement rather than a "get out of my way!" No road rage I've seen and although the vehicles are usually beaten up I am yet to see an accident. I must describe the taxis to you. Another time.

So while we endured a wild ride we got our first view of Bolivia. Rugged hills with steep cliffs above and below the road.  Dry and dusty at the moment. It is supposed to be the rainy  season, but the rain hadn't come at that stage and people were starting to get anxious.
And into Tarija we came.
We had all the advantages of being part of a worldwide organization that is full of people who care about us. Our contact and old friend Martin Rattray was ready for us. He also knew enough Spanish to chase away the bus driver who was thinking we were supposed to pay extra.
Our brother Edwardo had brought a truck to take our luggage to our accommodation. It is a very nice apartment over a witness family's house. I will have to do a post about the architecture here too. Suffice to say many buildings seem to be unfinished and waiting to add another floor as soon as the owners get around to it. Our house has a nice flat roof waiting for the third floor to be organised.
So we lugged our ridiculous number of bags into our apartment and collapsed.
Siesta is an excellent practice here. It is usually so hot here in the early afternoon that everything shuts down for a few hours. Shops close and people find somewhere to sleep.
We had been on the go for about 30 hours, so we decided to follow local tradition.