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Published: September 8th 2014
Our Arrival FROM COPACABANA
We arrived from Copacbana at 10:45am. The bus dropped us off in a car park opposite a cemetery on Avenue Baptista on the West side of the City. We were next heading to Rurrenabaque so we headed over to the bus terminals over in Villa Fatima. To do this we caught a micro from by the cemetery which had Villa Fatima on the front. There were lots of micros heading past to different destinations. Buses to Rurrenabaque leave from 2 separate offices in the Villa Fatima district, one is next to an old petrol station. We asked the driver to stop at 'El Ex-Surtidor' and he dropped us next to the office for Flota Yunguena. We caught the micro at 10:50am and arrived in Villa Fatima at 11:25am. Normal price for a micro is Bs. 1.50 but he charged us an extra Bs.0.50 each for our backpacks even though we had them on our knees.
FROM RURRENABAQUE
The Flota Yunguena bus from Rurrenabaque dropped us off on the street behind their office on Av De Las Americas in the Villa Fatima area of La Paz at 6:30am. Our next
stop from La Paz was to be Uyuni so we headed over towards the terminal terreste to find somewhere to stay near there and check out the bus times. We were going to get a micro but decided to walk as it was pertty early to check in anywhere. The terminal is on Avenue Peru.
We walked down Av De Las Americas, branched off down Av Tejada Sorzano and followed that road until we came to Sucre. We turned right on Sucre and along Av Armentia until we reached the terminal. The whole walk took just over 1 hour.
FROM SANTA CRUZ
We arrived with Cosmos from Santa Cruz to the main terminal in La Paz at 11am. We exited the terminal and went over the road and up the steps to the Hostal Perla Negra.
Where We Stayed Alojamiento Maximo - Bs. 50 for a double room with shared bathroom. The room had a TV but the bathroom only had cold water and the room was a bit chilly at night. No wifi. On calle Coripata which was a side street just to the right of the bus stop for
La Cumbre
The highest (and coldest) point of the trip just after leaving La Paz.Flota Yunguena buses to Rurrenabaque.
The hotel itself was fine however an incident occurred when we were there. After dinner we got a couple of beers to bring back to our room and went back to the hotel at 6:30pm. When we got there, we saw through the door that there was a big crowd in reception. We were severly waved away by them and we saw a policeman in the reception. We assumed some police check was happening so left them to it thinking it better we didn't get involved and hung around outside. We kept checking back but the police were still there. About 1 1/2 hrs later we had had enough so went back to the hotel even though the police were still there. We were allowed in the door however we had to walk around the edge of the reception to go to our room and we noticed that the police had bags on their feet, giving the impression that there was a crime scene. We didn't find out what had happened until the following morning until we checked out and went past the reception area which had blood on the floor and was taped
off with homicide police tape.
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Hostal Perla Negra - Bs. 80 for a private room with a single bed and bunk beds (the first time we stayed) or twin beds (the second time we stayed) with a shared bathroom. Breakfast of bread, cornflakes, juice and hot drinks included. Wifi actually works and there was a computer available for use as well. Hot showers and a games area with ping pong, pool table and table football. Located right near the bus terminal. Coming out of the bus terminal cross over the road and turn right. The hostal is signed up some steps and is on Kramer. We got to check in early and had breakfast on the day of arrival as well. They have bag storage as well.
What We Did Went shopping - La Paz is a great place for shopping. When we were staying up in Villa Fatima there were loads of street stalls and shops selling everything you could want. For example we bought some more Doxycyline (for Bs.1.60 a pill), insoles for my trainers, various toiletries and snacks for the long bus journey to Rurre. I also got
The Death Road
The bus went down the new highway my watch battery changed from an old man on the street for Bs. 10 as it had stopped in Puno. When we were staying nearer town we bought souveniers and warm clothes from the art markets in the centre.
Visited Kili Kili mirador - a lookout in the centre of the City, about 15mins walk from the hostal. Nice views of the City and mountains in the background.
Went to El Alto market by cable car - the cable car station is behind the old train station up Munecas street if coming from the centre. It costs Bs 3 each way. It has good views and drops you in El Alto by the market. El Alto market is big but is mostly junk and 2nd hand clothes. Once you reach the top there is a lookout by the food court in the cable car building.
Took a free walking tour with Red Cap Tours - we took the afternoon tour at 2pm but they also leave at 11am. They leave from Plaza Sucre which is opposite the San Pedro prison. The tour lasted just over 3 hours and is free, you just tip at the end. The
tour visited a couple of markets including the witches market and plazas. The sights themselves weren't amazing however all the information provided about the City and the people that live there was really informative. We did the tour before catching a night bus after leaving our bags at the hotel so was a great way to waste time until the bus left.
Where We Ate We got some chocolate bananas from Av De Las Americas for Bs.1.50.
We had a set meal of lunch and main for Bs.10 on Av De Las Americas.
Opposite the bus stop for the bus to Rurrenabaque was a restaurant Recreo Familiar. We paid Bs.14 for a soup with rice, potatoes and a massive piece of really nicely cooked chicken.
Opposite terminal terreste is a restaurant with no name (number 325). We got a meal of a bit of salad to start, really nice soup, a main of spicy chicken and a juice for Bs. 13.
Around the bus terminal you can get a burger from a stand for Bs. 4.50.
There is a Hipermaxi supermarket on Cuba and Avenue Brasil.
The market next to
Plaza De Los Heroes has a food section upstairs where meals are Bs.7 or complete lunch for Bs.9. On the ground floor of the market you can buy a 750ml bottle of white rum with limon for Bs.15 a bottle.
About La Paz It is easy to walk around the centre and to and from the bus station however the other districts are pretty far. Micros are plentiful and display the streets where they go on the front. Just hail one and hop off when you want. They cost Bs.1.50.
It is quite hard to navigate around as street names change as you move along blocks and street signs are not very common apart from in the centre. You can get a map from the tourist information inside the main bus terminal.
La Paz has weird temperatures due to the altitude. When the sun is out is is pretty warm however it got really cold at night.
Shared minibuses to Coroico leave from the Minasa terminal in Villa Fatima.
The bus station has bag storage, lots of ATM's (including one's dispensing US$) and a exchange counter.
Where We Went Next
TO RURRENABAQUE
There are a couple of bus companies that go to Rurrenabaque from the Villa Fatima area. We went with Flota Yunguena who are next door to an old service station. Get a micro with V. Fatima on the front and ask the micro driver to stop at 'El Ex-Surtidor'. It is number 344 on Avenue De Las Americas.
We bought tickets from the office the day before. The bus leaves at 11:30am every day and cost Bs.70 each. Try and get seats at the front of the bus for the best views (only if you are feeling brave). The bus departs from the street behind the office, not the terminal Minasa. When we were leaving there were 3 buses there from the same Company with no signs so ask which one is going to Rurre.
The bus started loading at 11:15am and we put our bags underneath. They were tagged with our seat numbers. We were due to leave at 11:30am but didn't board until 12pm and left at 12:20pm. Just after setting off we stopped briefly outside the bus terminal Minasa to round up some more passengers.
The
journey started off climbing to La Cumbre and started heading down towards Coroico. The death road that bikers go down branches off and the bus carried on down the new highway. We stopped for a bathroom break at Yolosa as there is no toilet on the bus. Just after at 3:40pm we stopped in a line of trucks/buses etc and the driver turned off his engine. Turns out that the road is closed everyday until 5pm as they are working on it. So we sat there until 5pm.
The road then turned into a single lane dirt road alongside high crumbling cliffs. It got very sketchy when we met other buses or trucks and had to reverse on the twisty roads.
Next we stopped at 6:45pm in a busy town for a dinner break for an hour.
The road following the dinner break was just as bad, and the driver had to navigate it in the dark. There were several times when I was jolted awake by the bus tipping from side to side, thinking it was about to tip over. Again there were more cliff edges made up of loose soil. I was glad we were
travelling in the dry season, I don't know how the road is passable in the wet.
There were no more toilet stops since we left the town after the dinner break and we arrived in Rurrenbaque at 5:40am.
TO UYUNI
We bought tickets for the night bus the day before from the terminal terreste on Avenue Peru. Inside the terminal are Panasur at office number 18 and TransOmar at office 16B both offering Semi-Cama buses at 7pm for Bs. 120. We decided to go with TransOmar. You have to pay a Bs. 2 terminal tax at the office inside the terminal and the tax tickets are checked on the bus before departure. The bus departed from the gate next to the office at 7:15pm. The bus was comfy, had heating and a blanket was provided. There was no toilet on board and we stopped for a break about 3am. We stopped to do something to one of the tires for about an hour as well and we arrived in Uyuni at 8:20am.
Everything was fine with our experience with the company and the bus looked nicer than the Panasur bus however a couple of
days later after we took the bus to Uyuni a Trans Turistico Omar bus from Uyuni to La Paz had an accident and 10 people died.
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