Blogs from La Paz Department, Bolivia, South America - page 3

Prepare to be amazed if you take Reman’s tour on the cable car ride over La Paz. http://www.heygo.com With 10 lines: Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, Orange, White, Sky Blue, Purple, Brown, and Silver - We took 3 journeys on the Red, Silver & Purple lines. The views were stunning at the highest altitude of 3,600 meters above sea level. The average speed of the gondolas is 11mph. What a wonderful experience to be able to take this tour. Rising more than 300 metres from La Paz – the world’s highest altitude administrative capital at almost 3,700m – up to the predominantly Aymara communities of El Alto on the plateau, the Mi Teleférico (My Cable Car) system links neighbouring cities that were long seen as social worlds apart. For decades the main route between the two was ... read more

29th December 2020 La Plaz - Bolivia I probably over-dosed on tours yesterday, note to self organise your trips better 2nd tour was to La Plaz in Bolivia with our tour guide David. The Plaza Murillo is the central square of the city of and the open space most connected to the political life of Bolivia. The most prominent buildings on the square include the Presidential Palace, the Government Building and the Cathedral of La Paz. An interesting sight is the clock in the spire of the Government Building, the clock runs anti clockwise but we weren’t able to get a close enough photo. There is a major problem with pigeons in the square, it reminded me of all those years that pigeons were a tourist attraction in Trafalgar square almost as much as the surrounding ... read more

One last day in La Paz. Primarily because of a long journey yesterday and a long journey tomorrow, so I left a day in between. Not because there’s loads of touristy things to do here – we’ve pretty much exhausted that list. We planned to have a lie-in but the police put paid to that idea when they arrive at our door at 8 am to check our passports. This morning we start at the Coca Museum which charts the history of the coca leaf, its role in Bolivian culture and uses as a drug, both legal and illegal. It’s more interesting that I’d anticipated. They even have a café where you can buy coca cocktails and original recipe Coca Cola. We continue to St Francis church with its beautifully carved façade and ornate interior (lots ... read more

All the travelling with food poisoning and then a cold have taken their toll so I’m taking a ‘duvet day’. So while the old man sets off on a boat ride to an island full of steps, I take a stroll along the lake, then return via reception, borrow a Judy Finnigan from the library and settle in my deckchair overlooking the lake. I have a pleasant day reading and watching the many hummingbirds in action. In the evening we go to dinner. As we pass the resident llamas I point and say “and you can f*** off too” not realising that I’m actually pointing at a lady in a hammock. Luckily she sees the funny side and when we bump into her in the restaurant 2 hours later, she’s still laughing at me. We return ... read more

Today we are taking a minibus to Copacabana on the shores of Lake Titicaca. It’s only 90 miles but takes 4 hours. Partly because it takes ages to fight our way out through the crazy La Paz traffic and partly because it involves a ferry crossing. First, breakfast. It’s not as easy as it seems as we are behind a Chinese tour group. The buffet looks like it’s been hit by a plague of locusts. There’s no fruit left at all, meanwhile a Chinese woman is trying to force an entire watermelon into her handbag. Once we have left the city, the driver seriously puts his foot down and our white knuckle ride begins. Soon the highway runs out and we continue on what look like abandoned road works. Eventually the quinoa covered plains give way ... read more