Bolivia

pictures of the World: Bolivia

Sucre 30 March - 5 April 2003

Sucre

the best view from the Caffee at Museo de los Ninos Tanga-Tanga, Plaza de la Recoleta Sucre Bolivia

Sucre is the capital of Bolivia, thanks to the Supreme Court. This is one of the highest cities in the world. It was founded in 1538 under the name of Chuquisaca, after the discovery of silver deposits of the area became known as La Plata (“Silver City”) and the last time it was renamed in 1825 in honor of one of the followers of Bolivar – General Antonio Jose De Sucre.
Currently, it is also called or Charcas Ciudad Blanca (“White City”), so Sucre is known as the “City of Four Names”.
The first half of the 17th century was the “Golden Age” Sucre (then La Plata), because the huge profits from the exploitation of nearby silver mines of Potosi have allowed the local elite to build many beautiful churches and monasteries, extravagant palaces and administrative buildings, which are still preserved by creating capital of the glory of one of the most picturesque cities in the world.
Sucre is located at an altitude of 2790 meters above sea level (the airport – almost 4000 m), in a broad mountain valley on the eastern edge of the Altiplano. The city is inhabited by the Quechua Indians, known for their weaving, which is considered one of the most advanced in South America.
The main square is Casa de Libertad where independence of Bolivia was declared.
One of the oldest universities in Latin America’s - Mayor de San Francisco Xavier, founded in 1624.
points of iterest:

Palacio de la Glorieta

Fort De La Glorieta

National Library of Bolivia

City Hall Theatre

church of San Miguel, the oldest church in Latin America,.

In the Dinozaur-Marc Valley, 10 km north of Sucre are traces of dinosaurs and fossils of plants and animals of the Jurassic period.

Sucre

Potosi 6 April 2003

Potosi

Potosi is the main attraction of Sucre . It is located in 164 kilometers from Sucre at an altitude of 4100 m above sea level, claiming to be the highest city in the world (possibly there are higher cities in Tibet). Potosi was founded in 1545 near the deposits of silver. The city center is Plaza de Armas and the convent of San Francisco.

Salar de Uyuni 7-11 April 2003

Salar de Uyuni

Salar de Uyuni (or Salar de Tunupa) located in South-East Bolivia, altitude of 3,656 m, is the biggest salt flat in the world, 10,582 km2, much more than many countries. The area contains 64,000,000,000 tons of salt.
Salar means salt flat in Spanish and Uyuni means a pen (enclosure) in Aymara language. Salar de Uyuni can be translated as a salt flat with enclosures.
Aymara legend tells that the mountains Tunupa, Kusku and Kusina, which surround the Salar, were giant people. Tunupa married Kusku, but Kusku ran away from her with Kusina. Grieving Tunupa started to cry while breast-feeding her son. Her tears mixed with milk and formed the Salar.
Salar was formed as a result of transformations between several prehistoric lakes. It is covered by a few meters of salt crust, which has an extraordinary flatness with the average altitude variations within one meter over the entire area of the Salar. The crust serves as a source of salt and covers a pool of brine, rich in lithium, 60% of the world's lithium reserves.
Altiplano de Bolivia includes fresh and saltwater lakes, and salt flats, surrounded by mountains with no drainage outlets
Some 30,000–42,000 years ago, the area was part of a giant prehistoric lake, Lake Minchin.
During the wet season, lake Titicaca overflows and floods Salar de Uyuni.
Underneath the surface of the Salar is a lake of brine 2 to 20 meters deep. The brine is a saturated solution of natran chloride, lithium chloride, magnesium chloride. It is covered with a solid salt crust with a thickness varying between tens of centimeters to a few meters. The center of the Salar contains a few "islands", which are the remains of the tops of ancient volcanoes which were submerged during the era of lake Minchin. They include unusual and fragile coral-like structures.
The large area, clear skies and exceptional surface flatness make the Salar an ideal object for calibrating satellites routes.

main attractions:

Fish Island, an isolated ecosystem similar to an oasis in the Salar formed by a great number of cactuses taller than eight meters

volcanoes

geysers

Stone Tree

Red and Green Lagoons

Salar de Uyuni

train cemetery One major tourist attraction is an antique train cemetery. It is 3 kilometers outside Uyuni and is connected to it by the old train tracks. The town served in the past as a distribution hub for the trains carrying minerals enroute to Pacific Ocean ports. The rail lines were built by British engineers 1888-1892. It was constantly sabotaged by the local Aymara Indians who saw it as an intrusion into their lives. The trains were mostly used by the mining companies. In the 1940s, the mining industry collapsed, partly because of mineral depletion. Many trains were abandoned, resulting in the train cemetery.

Salar de Uyuni

Sorata - April 2003

Sorata

Sorata is a small town near La Paz and Lake Titicaca.
The city center is Plaza General Enrique Penaranda.
Sorata is located at the base of the mountains Illampu, 6,368 m and Ancohuma, 6,427 m which are the northern anchors of the Cordillera Real.

Sorata

all pictures on this pages (c) Ina Nowarski

April 2003

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