copacabana

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we went from corrorico back to la paz where we did some shopping.. and yes bough jamie some shoes.. then went from la paz to sorata which is a really pretty little mountain town. from there we did a one day hike to a cave where we saw some bats and jamie went swimming in the underground lake. the walk to the cave was awesome and the scenery was stunning, some of the mountains looked like they had been painted because of all the different colours in the rock. we walked along one side of the valley quite high up and you could see right down to the river running along the bottom. we had a little dog as a companion for the first part of our hike which was ncie.. he was an odd looking little one though with a face like a possum!

from sorata we got another bus to a place called huarina where we had been told we could get a connecting bus to copacabana. we sat by the side of the road there for a couple of hours then managed to flag down a bus that was full, but they let us sit on the floor!

bus journeys in bolivia are not the nicest of experiences, they cure you pretty quick of any personal space requirements! often you have someone leaning right over your seat, almost sitting on your lap! the women here wear seven layers of skirts which makes them about twice the size they would normally be and a lot of them are quite large anyway! they arent the best people to be sitting next to on the bus, especially as they seem to have some personal hygeine issues as well.... they stink! one woman who was sitting in the aisle next to us had either a horrific cold or TB or something, and was busily blowing her nose on the lining of her skirt! hot!

anyway we eventualy got to copacabana after having to be ferried accross lake titicaca separately from our bus and then re-meeting it on the other side! its really nice here, right on the shore of the lake, which is so big that you cant see the other side and so it looks just like the sea.

yesterday was my birthday and so we stayed in a nice hotel and both spent ages enjoying the hot showers. then last night we went out to a local pub with an australian eco warrior, a dutch dance fiend, a german chain smoker and a fairly normal english guy! we had a good night in a local bar and tested out some pretty strange cocktails!

today has been a lazy day, and tomorrow we are off to the isla del sol on the lake for a couple of nights.

xxxx

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Comments

[Kate F]

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
Hey guys! Sounds like you're having an amazing time...Norwich is the same as usual and is raining a LOT! I hope you had a great Birthday - I expect hot showers never felt so good! I was kinda hoping that you wouldn't mention it in your blog, cos now it looks like I forgot and it's only this that reminded me! It's written in my diary - I was thinking of you...while sat in my exam! ARGH! Only two weeks until my last exam and then I'm FREEEE! Lots of love and hugs - I look forward to your next update! Kxx

[Mum]

Great Stuff
Llama foetus has arrived safely. Have put it in your room for your return! Dad looked in the bag and told James and I that he did'nt recomend we look (it was just before dinner) so we have'nt.