Border Patrol and a cure for long bus rides

I've found borders rather lax. Argentina: no customs declarations forms, and they didn't check my bag (I must look really innocent). Brazil: no one home?!?! Bolivia: has a customs form but they make you walk over the border while the bus drives to the other side and picks you up again, even though it was absolutely pouring with rain?!?!?

I'm not very good at the border crossing thing yet - totally unprepared when it comes to cash. Crossing over from Bolivia to Argentina we didn't have one Argentinean Peso between us. Guess we're walking the 2km or so to the bus station with our 20kg backpacks. And we'd already walked about 5 blocks through Villazon to the border from the Bolivian bus terminal. Joy. Am definitely in a love-hate relationship with my pack at the moment. Actually, more of a hate relationship. I'm not happy Jan when it comes time to move on. It seems to be getting heavier, though that is impossible cause there is not an inch of space left in it to fill it with anything else, so I must just be getting fleakier.

When we finally found the terminal (thank you Lonely Planet maps) we missed out on seats for the earlier bus to Salta and had to wait till midnight for the next one. Luckily spoted a clock and so realised Argentina is one hour ahead - could have been a really long wait had we missed that bus as well....

After finding some moolah, we sat ourselves in one of the only open restaurants for the rest of the night cause there is nothing much else to do in La Quiaca, Argentina. Lonley Planet thinks your nuts for being here other than to cross the border.
 

We were starving and had a long wait ahead so we ordered the Parilla. We knew it was meat to share, that is it. Next thing we know an entire bbq arrived out our table. It was covered in beef, chicken, pork, blood sausage and an unidentifiable organ - thinking kidney or liver. Tasty! (minus the guts) It was massive - but that soon became the theme of the evening. It washed down nicely with our 1L bottle of Quilmes beer and bottle of wine. I was wondering why the waiter was looking at us funny when we were ordering and questioning whether we were sure about what we wanted to drink. The wine only cost about $14 pesos, or AUD$4, so I don't think we were that silly for thinking it was a glass. Ah well, it made for a good bus ride.