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Published: March 14th 2011
So the adventure begins.......................
We had a decent night in Copacabana at the hostel but as both recovering from the terrible ride we kept it low key.... We ran into a couple of the guys from our tour which was nice! We walked Copacabana beach at night and had a sticky beak at the lovely markets. Had two dinners as we hadn't eaten all day, one was Lebanese Copacabana style - YUMMY.
The next morning we went back down to Copacabana and enjoyed the beach while waiting to head to the airport for La Paz. LOVELY!
So.... we get to the airport with plenty of time. Check in goes smoothly and our luggage is cleared with no specific weight problems (p.s my backpack has lost 3 kilos - don't know how that happened). We go to board the plane and this is where the NIGHTMARE begins. They wouldn't let us on. Why? We had a CONNECTING flight via Paraguay and apparently we had to pick up our luggage as we were changing airlines which meant we couldn't just cruise through to the next plane but had to go through immigration which of course requires a visa doesn't it!
We spent the next ... oh.... maybe 5 hours following around two security guards from Tam air who wouldn't let us on the plane. We later read in the lonely planet that it isn't really a HUGE problem if you don't have a visa for Paraguay, we could have got one there. So the story ends that after allegedly exploring all of our options they couldn't help us in any way shape or form. Our best bet is to get to Sao Paulo (where the office of the connecting flights airline is) and see if they can help us - by this time it's 9pm!
We get to the bus station in Rio and take an overnight bus to Sao Paulo in hope for a better day to follow. We are completely ripped off by the taxi driver who drove us from Sao Paulo bus station to the airport - the rate at which his metre was rising would have actually been funny under different circumstances. It's cost us $90R for a $30R trip - WANKER!
After arriving at the airport at 6:30am (on a Sunday) we are told the office of Aerosur isn't open until 3h prior to departure of the only flight they have for that day i.e. 1pm. Thats another 6h in limbo! We explored our flight options in case Aerosur wouldn't help us out (which of course we knew they weren't going to) and in the end after another DENY from Aerosur paid $1300USD to get to La Paz that evening via Chile....
We board our plane which is delayed... a major problem when the connecting flight to La Paz leaves 1 hour afterwards. When we fly into Santiago we fly off the plane for the next flight (which doesn't actually have confirmed gates etc at the time the ticket was purchased). We are told we don't need to go through customs, and then they won't let us through as we need to go through customs and then no we don't, yes we do and so on and so forth for the next 45 minutes. I find it hard to believe that no one had a F@cking clue as to what we were supposed to do. At one point - on our third lap back down to customs we had a small moment when we looked at each other and just laughed at how ridiculous the situation was - I felt sorry for the little Chilean girl from Lan air leading the way - she was very unfit and clopping around in heals - I thought she might roll an ankle or something! Aaaahhhh.
So yes - of course - we missed the flight, our luggage apparently has made it to La Paz though! But I guess it's kind of a happy ending, albeit far from over. We have been put up in the Crown Plaza Santiago with all meals included and it is LUXURY at its best - we have a double bed each, plasma, bath, hairdryer, shampoo, conditioner, razors, face wash, a beautiful view of the city (which I might add looks really lovely so far). And the people are friendly and helpful it's soooooooooooooooo nice to feel cared for - I need some nurturing after the past few days!
I'm about to take advantage of the extra destination in a whole other country and go exploring for the day - maybe hunt down some warm clothes - it's quite chilly in Chile! Poor Nicole is in bed with flu 😞 She keeps telling me she is sorry for involving me in her usual routine of bad luck! But it's not too bad anymore I'm living as the princess I was born to be. It's all a part of the plan right!
At least I have finally caught up on the blog will try for some pics if time permits this afternoon. We try again for La Paz tonight - it's been emotional 😉 Cross your fingers toes and eyelids for us.
Besos!
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Narelle
non-member comment
Ahhh Kell I'm sorry but I have been laughing uncontrollably at you misfortune, there has to be one disaster story in your travels and when you tell it, well! it will be on of the highlights of your trip. At least you are safe and I am happy you are living like the princess you are destined to be only if it is for a short while. Love you and miss you.