Boliva so far (mostly La Paz)

At the end of the last entry we were in Puno on the Peru side of Lake Titicaca. A few hours bus journey took us over to the border into Bolivia which has so far turned out to be a real gem of a place - great people, amazing scenery, loads of activities, obviously no coast, but you can’t have it all…..

First stop was Copacabana which predominantly acts as a stop off town for the beautiful Isla del Sol, where we did a four hour hike, ignoring Inca ruins which we have decided to retire from after Machu Pichu. After a few days in Copacabana we headed down to the inappropriately named La Paz (the peace), the world’s highest capital city. It’s a strange sort of huge crater of a city, so you get a great view from above as you approach with the mountains in the background. We checked into a hostel on the quieter side of town but there’s no getting away from the noise - traffic, bus destination ´callers´, street traders, flute playing buskers. Then at night there´s the bars and clubs which just about empty out in time for the day scene to begin again. The day after we arrived we met up with Ash (friend from home) who is travelling in the opposite direction in South America to enjoy what La Paz has to offer together.

Our first trip was north to Rurrenabaque which is the gateway to the Bolivian Amazon. We rejected the 16 bus ride in favour of a flight although I wasn’t keen on the choice of airline which only has nineteen seater planes, which aren’t ideal for a slightly nervous flyer like me. The flight was a bit odd as there was hardly any ascent as we took off from over 4,000 metres and were immediately beside the mountains. Twenty seven minutes later we landed in a field with a shed at the end (runway and terminal) and booked straight onto a jungle (pampas) tour joining a group of fellow Brits and Aussies. After travelling by jeep for a few hours we reached the river at which point the sky went grey and an almighty downpour started which lasted for the entire four hours of the uncovered boat ride. Despite the downpour we saw an amazing amount of wildlife - Alligators (lots of them!), monkeys, pink dolphins, Turtles, Capybaras, (sort of giant hamsters) and loads of big and exotic looking birds. Our lodge and base for the next few days was a wooden hut on the bank of the river. Getting up in the night to go outside to the ´bathroom´ proved to be a terrifying experience as the Alligators splashed into the water and the rats (we think) scuttled around our lodge. Over the next couple of days we went Anaconda spotting (our guide pulled a poor one out of a tree trunk), Piranha fishing (Nat and I both got one, Ash failed), and we even managed to squeeze in a game of football against the locals, unfortunately we lost - Bolivian Amazon 2, Rest of the World 1. Scariest bit by far was the night boat trip when the Alligators are in their hundreds and the guide deliberately takes you to within inches of them. After the trip we spent a day in Rurrenabaque before reluctantly getting back on the propeller plane for a bumpy half an hour up and through the mountains back to La Paz.

Once back in La Paz we headed straight down to the local stadium for the world cup qualifying game between Bolivia and Brazil. In truth the game wasn’t up to much, Brazil had already qualified and Bolivia had failed to do so, but it was still Brazil! There was also the altitude issue - Bolivia deliberately play all of their matches in La Paz because it gives them the biggest home advantage since Oldham were allowed to play their games on a plastic pitch. The Brazilians couldn’t run for more than ten yards without panting for breath and Bolivia ended up winning 2-1. As the Brazilians were in town we thought it would be rude not to head into town for a few drinks after the game, which turned into a bit of a session. The Hard Rock Café (a fake one) ended up being the place to be….The bar was periodically set on fire, a waitress got up there for an impromptu striptease, the Brazilians forgot about the football and focused on the fiesta. Brilliant!

After a few more days in La Paz we decided to brave it and book a tour down ´The world’s most dangerous road (AKA Death Road), which drops around 3,500 metres over 60km from La Paz to Coroico. We’d been recommended a company called Vertigo with a ´good´ safety record of only 26 deaths in their 12 year history. Not exactly reassuring. The ride lived up to the hype with amazing views and tight bends without any barriers. Nat retired to the van unwell (either that or her brakes wore out) about a third of the way down which freed me up to get involved in the race at the front. I quickly passed the girls, then Ash who was arguably cycling with the girls, then I passed two of the ´front pack´ at which point the leaders were in sight. Unfortunately I got a bit too excited and hit a big stone which sent me over my handlebars. Luckily I landed straight ahead on the road on my head, which was protected by my helmet, so the only scars I have are a few scratches on my shoulder, and the mental ones of course. After the Death Road experience we spend a few nights in Coroico, relaxing enjoying the warmth and the unusual availability of fresh fruit and vegetables.

After one final night out in La Paz we finally left the place (and Ash who headed north towards Peru) by catching a flight south. After another dodgy half an hour in the air (we’re going to have to start to get buses) we landed in Sucre, the administrative capital of Bolivia which is everything that La Paz isn’t - clean, sedate, warm, organised. It also happens to be as cheap as chips so we are lording it up in the Grand Hotel (12 pounds per night) where a four course lunch is about 2 pounds. Nat is suffering from a bit of Delhi belly and we’re taking a few more Spanish classes so we’ll hang around here for a few more days before we head to our final cold and high place - the salt flats. Nat can’t wait to get it over and done with so she can start enjoy the steak and red wine of northern Argentina!

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