Moving On

The car made a squeaking sound and suddenly stopped; Craig and Bernard, along with their troop, were stranded in the middle of endless rocky deserts. They intended to glimpse the largest mirror on earth, caused by reflection on the salt flats in Salar de Uyuni, Bolivia. They arrived at Uyuni the day before to get acclimatized to the high altitude conditions and had started pretty early that morning. They hired a jeep for self-drive and were accompanied by a local tour guide in another vehicle. The salt flats in Uyuni are known for their rugged landscape, but the local drivers are skillful in fixing the cars quickly.

Bernard was a middle-aged man running a travel company in New York City for a decade now, which he had formed along with Craig. Craig was from Italy, and they met many years ago on one of their adventure trips to Iceland.

Bernard was pissed off as he never wished to come to Uyuni; instead, he wanted to go to Chile directly! But it was Craig who convinced him to alter the plan at the very last minute and squeeze in another place to their already crammed itinerary.

Bernard insisted the local tour guide skip the main spot if it was far off and return to their hotel instead, as it already had been a long day for all; all this while Craig sat inside the car and grumbled.

Bernard got down from the car with his camera equipment to take some perspective photos, as he was intrigued by the scenic view outside. He walked for a few meters and adjusted his camera on the tripod to get a snap; then he suddenly felt a tap on his back, and it was Craig; He exclaimed, 'Ben, reduce the camera's aperture and then take the shot!'

Bernard arrogantly replied, 'Stay away from my business.' Craig cracked a smile and said, 'I am sure you had fun today, right? I don't think you have seen a train cemetery before, the sumptuous colored volcanoes, clear pristine lagoons, and the cacti islands?' Bernard focused on his camera and said, 'Not sure about you, but I did not enjoy gasping sulfur fumes since morning.' Craig interrupted, 'Wait for a few more hours, and you will experience the most beautiful thing in your life. Ben, don't keep looking at the potholes. Rather try to enjoy the journey. You remember we started only as backpackers and the sole intention behind our travel company was only to travel around the world and explore new things.

Bernard busted out, 'it had always been about you, your wish, your bucket lists, if we had not given into your whims and fancies then we would be running the company together now!' Craig smiled, 'Our intentions till remain the same, and we were only supposed to make happy memories.'

Bernard kept walking for a few meters more and came across a patch of water with a flock of flamingos; Uyuni, devoid of vegetation and other flora and fauna, is known for the different varieties of flamingos found here.

Craig continued, 'Stop escaping! You barely stepped out of our house, last five years; it has been a long time since the deadly disease has ripped off my life. Ben, please make the best use of your life till you have it!'

An eerie silence prevailed.

The car was fixed sometime later, and the troop driver informed Bernard that they were ready to start the journey again. It was already sunset when they finally reached the spot; the Milky Way above created a perfect reflection on the vast salt land beneath, making it look infinite. Bernard realized it was truly the best experience of his life where the heavens had met the earth.