Blogs from Bolivia, South America - page 580

Odds and Sods Spanish Lessons As you heard from Simon our rather elegant elderly neighbours invited us around for a BBQ last weekend (called Asado here). What he forgot to tell you was that in our efforts to make converstation with them our misuse of Spanish nearly caused an international incident and contintues to be the source of much hilarity... Over dinner we asked our neighbours if they had heard the kiddies party that was going on in our street the night before. There were startled looks all round and we couldnt understand what was wrong. Luckily our neighbours (who dont speak English) had invited their friends around who do speak English - let me explain.. The Lonely Planet our Guidebook gives you the low down on colloquial Spanish for each country and in the Bolivia ... read more

- FOOD & DRINK: Salteña's (like empañadas but tastier), pastry covered in syrup, alpaca (yuk), the loveliest bananas and oranges. Freshly squeezed OJ stalls, Chuflay cocktail (local spirit Singani with Sprite), chicha (alcoholic wheat drink - an acquired taste). Very difficult to find a typical Bolivian restaurant amongst the tourist places. - PEOPLE: SO very friendly and laid back, many in traditional dress, brightly coloured shawls used to carry the cutest babies on their backs, LOVELY Spanish teacher, knowledgeable 13yr old cemetry guide, sweet locals, shoe shine boys, patient salsa teacher, new friends! - AREA: By far my favourite place so far. I LOVE IT (as you will tell from the length and detail of this entry!). White washed buildings set amongst stunning mountainous backdrop, pretty plaza, well kept park, peaceful view point overlooking it all. ... read more

- FOOD & DRINK: Bolivian wine 'Kohlberg' very good. Hot choc with breakfast - yum. Food in the best restaurant for under 3 quid. None when it was needed on a long bike ride. - AREA: Beautiful little village where the locals from Santa Cruz escape to for their weekends away. Amazing mountainous scenery all around the town, long walks, long mountain bike rides up and down the hills to waterfalls. 'El Fuerte' site - Pre Inca and Inca engravings and and remains of an Inca town. - PEOPLE: Very nice. Big families who run the hotels, lots of hippies on holiday. - WEATHER: Mostly hot sun but torrential rain and strong wind when I really didn't need it (cycling uphill on a bike). Sat 14th May: Got up early to make my way to Samaipata ... read more

First of all the flight between Sucre and La Paz was an event in itself. It was either a 16 hour overnight bus (warnings of how buses ´fall off the edge of mountains´, especially at night, plus the experience of constant vibrating between Uyuni to Sucre had me convinced it would be 16 hrs of hell), or a 45 minute flight. 45 minutes won. The plane took off and literally just skimmed the top of the alti plano. It really was not very far from the mountains and you could see everything so clearly. I then understood why it would take such a long journey by bus. This part of Bolivia is just one mountain after another with the roads zig zagging up and down each one. In La Paz the airpot is 500m above La ... read more

This trip i did with a Danish fellow named Nils. We climbed 5400m Hati Khollu and then hiked 2 days down the Asiru Marka Valley to a little town called Unduavi. Some of the most impressive terrain I have seen in a long time. I was looking forward to a beer in Unduavi, but realized that it was nothing more than a desserted town, population 1. The only guy in town was some old native fellow wielding a machete! The bus ride back to La Paz was along the WMDR (Worlds most Dangerous road), where a vehicle is lost every 2 weeks into the oblivian below. We saw an accident that day, but fortunately the vehicle went into the ditch rather than over the cliff!!! ... read more