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Published: April 11th 2006
Well Melia and I are now in Bolivia. We had our first overnight bus leaving Cusco and arrived in our destination of Copacabana, Bolivia 14 hours later after switching buses in Puno, Peru. The bus ride was as expected: LONG!
We were thankful that we paid for and got bus cama (bus-bed) class for most of the night (having run into travellers who have paid for but not gotten bus cama class). Though I can’t really say that the reclining seats were comfortable at least there were only 12 people on our level of the bus. The ticket hawks in Cusco all told us different prices and different things about the availability of Bus Cama class and direct service. ¨Sure we have it....no that company doesn’t have it...of course it is direct...no their bus is not direct....trust me I am your friend that company is lying to you.¨ So, we pulled out the guide book and talked with the recommended company. ¨Sure no problem, señorita¨, but as we were about to pay Melia smartly asked whether the bus we would be riding would be the same as the company we were paying. Of course the answer was NO. So back to
square one, Melia and I went to the ticket agent who assured us they had bus cama service and it was her bus company, and it was direct. Turns out that we did get bus cama class seats but it wasn’t the company we booked on.
Direct also continues to mean sure there are no "official stops" but we will stop right outside the bus station and pick up locals who don’t pay the full price or departure tax, we will stop at three other neighborhoods in Cusco before leaving and then we will continue to stop throughout the night until we can’t fit anymore people on the bus.....But we made it! We changed buses in Puno, Peru.
One quick bus story. A young American couple had bought a Chihuahua (sp? taco bell dog) in Chile and were travelling with their new baby dog on the bus! The bus people got a kick out of it and asked how much they had paid. They said $150 USD and they started laughing hysterically at the couple saying for $150 you could buy a cow not just a dog! Everyone got a good laugh............
Upon arrival in Copacabana we bought our
tickets for the boat ride on Lake Titicaca to Isla de Sol and grabbed lunch as we were starved! The food was not great but we were both starving. After lunch it was on to the boat. The boat was on old wood boat with a couple of 50hp engines packed with tourists and a few locals heading to the island. Fortunately, we had some sun for the hour and half trip because it had been raining earlier. The lake and region is absolutely beautiful. The lake and region sits at almost 14,000 feet! It is so undeveloped and the lake is huge! It looks like an ocean because as you look out all you see are different levels of clouds with the farthest melting into the water in the distance.
Our plan was to spend the night on Isla de Sol and then figure out what our schedule was. Melia and I found our accommodations and were slightly underwelmed at first sights. It was a SPLURGE option in our budget travel book and we figured after taking a bus for 14 plus hours we could use a good rest. After bartering the agreed price down a bit, ¨taking care¨
of the family of 30 flies who watched over our room, we decided to watch the sun in the afternoon with a beer. It was so peaceful, and tranquil! After that we took a quick nap before dinner and woke up 14 hours later in the morning!
We decided we would catch the afternoon boat back and explore the Island during the day. It was truly beautiful and so picturesque. We got caught in a 30 minute rain storm but found shelter in a building under construction. After a quick lunch we took the boat back to Copacabana. Along the way we read the trusty or not so trusty guide book to try and figure out where we would look for a room for the night. Upon arrival we promptly took the wrong street and couldn’t find any of the hotels we thought we would. Once we figured out we were off a street we started taking a look at some hotels. First one was not that cheap (Bolivian standards, not US) and all the rooms were dark and dreary. That wasn’t going to work so we headed to the next one that sounded good in the book. We
met a pair of traveller’s from the boat who were in front of the hotel and said well it has a roof and a not so comfortable bed but it was only $1.50 pp a night. We decided to pass now that we are not in our teens anymore. So we tried a decent looking hotel not in our book, appropriately named Hotel Paris.
I used my impeccable Spanish to ask for a room on the top floor with a view of the water. The kid helping us was smart because he got the idea and took us up six flights of stairs (felt like 20 at 14,000 feet and not so light backpacks on). After haggling a bit over the price we agreed to stay for a night. The room had an amazing view, was huge (although empty except for the bed and night stand) and was a cheap $5 a night. Well worth the upgrade over that $1.50 a night place! After checking in we hit the streets and soon learned that we would be spending 2 nights in our new hotel. The bus company informed us that there was a transportation strike in Bolivia so there would
be no forms of transportation going the next day.
Slightly surprised we headed out for a dinner at a restaurant the guide book recommended. It was fantastic! We enjoyed great food and tried getting used to the beer here in Bolivia (a bit off). We met a great Irish woman named Niamh (pronounced Neeve). We swapped ideas for La Paz and tour companies for the Salt Flats in Uyuni.
The next day we decided to hike around the town and were determined to hike up a small mountain to see some type of colonial church. It seemed easy enough until crazy dog number one sprinted out of nowhere! The dog had Melia and I back to back (think Western movie with both of our guns drawn facing a militia all around us in a circle. It circled us snapping a little too close for comfort until its owner an old lady told us not to worry he was still a baby. She promptly grabbed the dog and tried to hold on while we whisked up the hill. About 100 yards (ok 20 yards but its really tough with the altitude) of running and Melia and I were both out of
breath. We decided to continue on until 10 feet later a pair of not so friendly looking dogs made their presence known. At this point we decided we would get out of there ASAP, especially since the day before an Italian man on the boat told us how he was bitten by a local dog and looking for a rabies shot! Melia and I decided to relax on this great deck at our hotel. We read and took in the sun. We returned to the restaurant from the night before and had another great meal. We saw our friend Niamh again and others who were stuck in town and returning again.
Early the next morning Melia and I awoke to a downpour. We put on our limited rain gear and got on our small local bus to La Paz. The bus was packed and we were slightly soaked along with everyone else. The bus ride took us through beautiful country alongside the lake. The road ends at a lake crossing and you watch as all of your belongings and the bus take an old boat across the lake. We took a separate small boat across and waited for our bus.
Then we reboarded our bus and continued on our way. Who says you need bridges!
La Paz is a spectacular city. It is the world’s highest capital and is set in this huge crater surrounded by hills and mountains. We first stopped by a new hostel but decided in La Paz it wouldn’t do so we went to our second choice, a much nicer hotel. The hotel was great! We ate a great lunch in La Paz and spent the afternoon talking to tour companies for our upcoming Salt Flat Tour in Uyuni. We picked a company but were told that there was a blockade near the border of Bolivia and Argentina and that no trains had been running for the last three days. That left us with option number 2, a 14 hour bus overnight. We decided to wait in hopes of news that the blockade had been cleared.
That night we had a real treat. We met up with Melia´s friend Yvonne and her mother Marina. Yyonne lives in La Paz and her mother was visiting for the week before doing an Operation Smile mission in Santa Cruz, Bolivia. We met and headed out to dinner at a
Peña. It was a great Bolivian dinner with traditional music and various types of traditional dances. We all got to dance with the dancers and I ended up dancing several times! See Photos!
The next day Melia and I confirmed our trip and thankfully the train was running again! We both felt a little sluggish so we had a relaxing day exploring the markets in La Paz and rested before our upcoming trip to the Salt Flats.
Hasta Luego for now!!
Bryan and Melia
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la prima en China
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dancin' lessons!
Well, I see that the dancin' lessons last summer weren't that bad after all, even if the rhythm is quit different ;) I am soo happy to see you having that fun during ur adventure, guys. I hope China will be ur next destination...Hopefully we'll find some place to improve our salsa steps! Love u both..