Potosi

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After 2 years in Argentina we said our final goodbyes and left for new adventures! The bus from Salta to La Quiaca was uneventful and the border crossing into Bolivia was surprisingly swift and efficient. The Bolivian official was even friendly and chatty, which makes a bizarre change! That’s not quite going to be the case for any American citizens from now on though. Bolivia have introduced restrictions and, according to both the information poster and the border official, Americans will now need to buy a visa (US$100), produce a Yellow Fever vaccination certificate, have a major credit card, and also have a hotel reservation. Good luck guys!!!

We changed our pesos for bolivianos, bought some Oreos (!) and walked up to the bus station in Villazon. With just under an hour until our departure to Potosi we feasted on some cheese empenadas which were very different to Argentine ones. We had completely forgotten about departure taxes from Bolivian bus stations, but luckily we had some loose change to pay it, 2 Bs each. Then the bus departed 5 minutes early which was a shocking development. Fortunately we were already in our seats!

You know you are back on Bolivian buses when the following occur:
1. You ask if there is a stop for dinner and are told yes, it will be about 4 hours into the journey
2. It is cold outside and the windows rattle open producing an icy draught throughout the bus - and you haven’t got a blanket
3. After 2 hours the bus stops in a town you were told it wouldn’t stop in, somewhere you would have liked to have visited. The driver tells you it’s a 15 minute stop so you get out, stretch your legs, get back to the bus to find the driver underneath fixing (or at least patching up) the hydraulic suspension system. He then tells you it will be another 15 minutes and there will be no other stop for dinner. Therefore you have to quickly grab some chicken and chips from a debatable shack, eat quickly, and hope the bus gets going again.
4. You discover that the bus journey time, according to the driver, is up to God!

We eventually arrived in Potosi at 4.30am. A taxi took us to our hostel where we got the receptionist out of bed. He didn’t seem best pleased to see us as check-in isn’t until 10.30, despite our reservation stating that we anticipated a 6am arrival. He gave us a room though (and charged us for it of course, but this being Bolivia it hardly dents the daily budget) and the next morning seemed not unhappy that we had missed breakfast! Our relationship picked up a lot after that though, and by the time we left we were joking with each other.

The Hostal Casona was nice and comfortable, but all it did was rain which reduced the temperature dramatically towards zero, and there is no heating!! It did seem that all we did was eat most of the time we were in Potosi. After missing breakfast we made our own with our leftovers from the bus journey. Then after 10 minutes walking in the rain we dived into a café for a hot drink and some apple cake. After that, a further 10 minutes getting soaked in driving rain pushed us into a restaurant for lunch! The Sky Room was ok, the soup was amazing, but we had a bit of an argument with the waiter about the lack of choice for the main course. We didn’t really want milanesa but he insisted that’s all that was left. Apparently the other dishes we subsequently saw distributed to various diners had been pre-ordered - yeah, right!

Having decided that we are too old, sensible or scared to venture down the silver and tin mines, we decided that the Casa Moneda was what we really wanted to see. The tour took over 2 hours and was conducted entirely in Spanish. Our guide was very clear and we understood absolutely everything he told us. It was great to see the works of art in there, but the examples of coins and the ancient coin presses were the highlight. It’s amazing to think that the wooden machinery was constructed in Spain and over 14 months was transported by boat to Buenos Aires, then by mule to Potosi.
At one stage we had some stragglers in the group, and he told them that if they get locked in any of the rooms, they will become a future attraction - ghosts! We can thoroughly recommend a visit.

The evening involved eating and drinking again! Then the following morning the rain continued to fall so we decided to head straight to Sucre. It was an interesting bus ride which took almost 4 hours because the driver wanted to pick up everyone who wanted a ride, even when there was no room left for anyone to stand. We were surrounded by families, women in traditional dress, and an awful lot of shopping from the markets!

And as we pulled in to the bus station in Sucre, the sun shone - briefly!!

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Photos

Bacchus
A big smiley face inside the Casa de Moneda museum

Our Street!
Potosi has a lot of narrow steep streets for you to explore if the rain stops!