Bolivia

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Our entry into Bolivia from Chile was easier than we had originaly heard it might be. To avoid any hassle we decided to book ourselves onto a 3 day 4x4 expedition which included food, accomodation and our guide/ driver; Andreas. Over 3 days we made our way past numerous stunnning lagoons and everchanging mountainous senery to our final destination of Uyuni, Bolivia. Along the way we made several stops to take in the breathtaking scenery and take a selection of photos. It was on this trip where we first felt signs of altitude sickness, and at over 4000m it was Dave who was first to be nursed with coca tea by our soon to be "Brazilian mother". The Brazilian couple of Louis and Nadj who were sharing our 4x4 ride were very helpful and this was the start of a 7 day bond that followed. Highlights of the trip were the red lagoon; a large lagoon that appears red due to the algae growing on it shared by flocks of flamingos; and the salt flats; miles and miles of salt plains which make for some funny photos and some of Bolivia´s better roads!


We arrived in Uyuni on the third day as planned and slipped our drvier a few cds left over from our camper time in Oz as a sign of our gratitude. We had lunch with the Brazilians that afternoon and Mark and Dave tucked straight into a traditional Bolivian dish named "Pique Macho"; a plate piled high with chips, meat , sausage and peppers, soaked in a gravy sauce, mmmm.


We left Uyuni that afternoon on a bus to La Paz. The bus company recommended to us was fully booked that night so we had to search the streets for an alternative. Unfortunately they weren´t very forthcoming but by the time the evening came we had a ride. The night that followed was one of the worst yet for all of us. Only an hour in and all 3 of us were sick with what we think was food poisoning, altitude sickness, or a combination of the two. Numerous fights to get to the small toilet at back of the bus began, and the small 1X1 meter cubical was dominated all night by 3 weary Englishmen. In addition the temperature on the bus dropped remarkably during the night in what can only be described as freezing conditions. To make matters worse we didn´t hit a tarmaced road until just two hours outside La Paz. At one point Mark and Dave jumped off the bus for a quick toilet stop during which the bus tried to pull away, Hazh was left on the bus with shouts of "halto, halto!" to stop the bus on which the stubourn driver did on the 3rd time of asking.

The night behind us, we arrived in La Paz central bus station intent on getting a decent hotel room in which to recover. We joined our Brazilian freinds at "Hotel Copocabana" and spent the day in Bed comforting eachother with a burger king, the only food we could trust at that point.

The next day feeling a little stronger we embarked on a city tour of La Paz. We visited the "valle de luna", Cathedral, mirador (lookout) and witches market. That evening Hazh and Dave embarked on a night out in La Paz but only lasted a few drinks before heading home. It was clear we were not all feeling 100% yet.

After a disapointing night we all awoke and felt fully refreshed and decided to head straight to Copocabana on Lake Titicata and pull the plug on our time in La Paz. We said goodbye to our Brazilian Parents and headed on a 3 hour bus journey to the Lake.

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Photos

Salt flats
Mark gets a little excited outside the salt hotel.

Just cruising
Making our way to the salt flats.

Lagoon Verde
A Bolivian scenic shot.

La Paz lookout
The three of us taking in the views of La Paz

The city scene
Hussle and bussle of La Paz centre.

Comments

[NEIDE]

I miss you
My sons I hope you are OK! We arrived today in Brasil. We lives many histories during this travel. After I will say to you. I loved you blog. kisses, Neide

[Jenny Morcom]

yuk
yuk yuk yuk - glad I wasn't on that bus!