Blogs from La Paz Department, Bolivia, South America - page 12

Potosi was once one of 'the largest and wealthiest cities of the Americas', according to my Lonely Planet guide. It is safe to say that whilst remaining rather large, Potosi's wealth dried up a long time ago. On out first night, after finding a hostel, we went out to find somewhere to eat. This was a surprisingly difficult task because, apart from street food, there weren't many restaurants to be found. We ended up eating at a Bolivian-stroke-Taiwaneese chicken shop. Because of this my meal cost less than £2.50, and was surprisingly good. The next day we were planning on doing the famous Potosi mines. I thought that I had conquered my claustrophobic fears, however I was yet to be proved wrong. We turned up at Big Deal Tour, which I would recommend to anybody, all ... read more

Hola Amigos... “Potosí! Potosí! Salimos a las una” the lady shouted... We hopped on board for a four hour bus ride to Potosí, the highest city in the world (allegedly) and a Unesco World Heritage Site. At 4070 metres above sea level, we huffed and puffed as we explored the lovely (and hilly) streets of this famous city. Little did we know that this city is not only famous for its elevation, but also its role in the history of the world‘s currency. The world’s first international coin was minted in silver here in Potosí. Our guide in The Casa Nacional de la Moneda gave us a very informative tour on the history of the mint and showed us some pretty remarkable pieces of wooden machinery from the 1700’s. The surrounding hills have one of the ... read more

We made our way north to Bolivia's capital of La Paz which is situated at 3,500m and quite frankly not really situated in an appropriate location to house a population of more than a million people. This sprawling city lies in a narrow, bowl-like canyon with ramshackled homes clinging precariously to its steep slopes. With tiny and heavily congested streets we found it a challenge to get around, and in general the architecture and buildings are in a poor state of repair with crumbling and dilapidated facades. The telephone and electrical cables are generally a tangled mess and one wonders if the whole infrastructure will come crashing down if a simple bird decides to land on them for a rest. A positive and original recent improvement to the city has been the addition of a cable ... read more

Nick: Can't....breathe.... That's right folks! We are now in La Paz, capital of Bolivia and located some 3500-ish metres above sea level in the 'altiplano' region of the Andes mountains. At this altitude, there is a good deal less oxygen in the atmosphere, and altitude sickness can be a problem for many visitors who aren't used to the conditions - especially those who have flown in and therefore not had the chance to acclimatise gradually (i.e. us). One of the first sights on arriving in the fairly rudimentary airport is an area set aside for 'medical emergencies', with a large sign offering oxygen therapy! But I exaggerate our own symptoms slightly. We've been here a few hours now and had a wander around the hilly streets, with no significant ill effects, other than a slightly light ... read more

Finalmente nos recuperamos en Corico, tres días de descanso después de la caminata del camino de la muerte.... Hora de volver a La Paz y hacer las ultimas vueltas antes de partir de Bolivia. Fuimos al MUSEF para recibir la carta de agradecimiento por la conferencia de david y copia del video, como todo en lationoamerica y en especial en Bolivia, todo toma mas tiempo del debido el video no estuvo listo, nos prometieron que lo enviarían por correo a Bogotá.... Amanecerá y veremos.... En todo caso la ultima noche en La Paz la aprovechamos para visitar con los norteamericanos Ron y Diane, viejos amigos y viajeros que llevan más de 45 años en sur América, viven en La Paz y son unos personajes.... David los conoció en Bolivia, pero sus primeros países visitados incluye a ... read more