Southeastern Idaho (out of focus)

These are some pictures I took from the car of the Altiplano. If you squint your eyes a bit so the view looks like what French impressionists paint - colors and general shapes with the details a little fuzzy and out of focus - I think the altiplano looks like the Snake River plains of southeastern Idaho, especially since there are potato and wheat fields, herds of dairy cattle showing some Holstein ancestry and high mountain peaks on the horizon. This all felt very familiar and seemed rather pretty (in the same odd way southern Idaho can be). However, once you un-squint your eyes and focus on the details, there is no mistaking that you’re not in Idaho.

The pyramid stacks are stalks of “quinoa” – cereal like plant grown on the altiplano since before the Incas. It thrives in the high altitude and is actually said to be more nutritious than most other grains. I tried some at the buffet breakfast in the hotel. It’s OK, but unlikely to replace oatmeal as my breakfast staple.