A little more beauty from my off-road Bolivia tour. These beautiful rock formations were in an area called Italia Perdida, which translates to Lost Italy. Our tour guide told us it was named after an Italian who went missing in the area, although the internet had other interpretations, including that it was because they resembled Roman ruins.

This stop wasn’t part of our original itinerary. I think our tour guide was trying to make up for the fact that one of the Land Cruisers in our two-vehicle convoy broke down, twice, on a desolate mountain road, late at night. Both drivers proceeded to pile rocks behind the back wheels of our vehicles (to keep them from rolling back down the mountain). I was riding shotgun at the moment and had easy access to a door (unlike some of the people in the back). I turned to my traveling companions and said, if this thing starts rolling down the mountain, I’m jumping out. Fortunately, no jumping out was necessary; both drivers were very resourceful and had the vehicle up and running in an hour or so. But I think this extra visit was his way of making up for the scare. I considered it a good trade.