LA PAZ AND LAKE TITICACA (BOLIVIA)

Despite finishing my amazing 3 day tour of Salar de Uyuni only a few hours previously, my time limitations meant I was forced to leave my other 'team members' as I boarded a bus bound for La Paz the same day we arrived. Whilst over the previous few days I had gathered that Bolivia was in the midst of numerous political problems, the most significant relating to the government's plan to privatise the country's natural gas industry, I was certainly not prepared for the chain of events which occurred over the next 24 hours. Before leaving Uyuni I was warned by a friendly American restaurant owner that I was unlikely to make it to La Paz that night... nonetheless I decided to risk it.

My most immediate problem however turned out to be considerably less complex. Having booked a ticket from Uyuni to La Paz through the company I had taken my Salar tour with, I assumed that I would have no problem getting from A to B. However, I later discovered the company I was meant to travel with did not travel between the 2 cities. As such, I spent a number of hours chasing up various companies and demanding that the company refund my ticket. Thankfully this problem was eventually sorted out with the reluctant help of one of the drivers from my tour of the Salar. This sorted I enquired at the local tourist office about other places to visit within Bolivia, hoping to form some contingency plans should I not be able to get into La Paz.

That night I boarded the bus and immediately discovered that Bolivian bus trips were sure to be an adventure I was unlikely to experience elsewhere. Crammed into the bus were not only the 50 or so people that had actually paid for tickets (of which about half were Israeli's) but also another 40 more standing in every inch of free space. Sitting in my seat was an old man with his wife and after attempting to explain that the seat was mine, I eventually gave up, feeling sorry for them and retreated to the back of the bus to stand. Thankfully the other Israeli tourists were quite friendly and it was nice to speak english for a change...

After only half an hour of standing on the bus I was certain this was going to be one of the more painfull experiences of my life. When boarding I had wondered to myself why the bus was almost a metre off the ground, but after looking out the window once we had left Uyuni it became immediately obvious as we were driving through rivers and along roads not much better than those in the cow paddocks back home. Thankfully a few of the local Bolivians on the bus kicked up enough of a fuss that a 'tourist' was not being allowed to sit in their seat that one of the 3 bus drivers removed the old man and lady from my seat allowing me to sit down.

Making reasonable progress, we were suddenly stopped by a bunch of crazy protesters at a road block just a few hours out of the town in which we were supposed to change buses. As we waited and waited to be let through, it became colder and colder and following a mass exodus of many of the local people who had decided to walk, I was forced to grab my sleeping bag so as to avoid freezing to death. After a few hours we were eventually allowed to pass, although all the other buses and cars had left much earlier, the reason why we had stayed not being established although apparently not only had the driver fallen asleep, but also the bus had almost run out of fuel necessitating one of the other drivers to locate some more.

Arriving into our first destination, we managed only to grab a quick bite to eat before boarding the same bus and embarking literally on the most crazy bus ride I will ever have (of this I have absolutely no doubts !). As a result of multiple known road blocks along the route to La Paz, our bus driver decided to take less well known routes and back roads in the hope of avoiding delay. Once again, this basically resulted in us driving along dusty tracks and through paddocks at about 3o km/h. Eventually we were forced to take a main road and were almost immediately stopped by a bunch of dynamite weilding miners. Apparently this mob was protesting about something completely different to the rest of the country, but this didn't stop them congregating on the road and throwing hundreds of rocks onto the road. In an act of desperation our bus driver decided to try and drive through anyway, a move the miners didn't seem to take too kindly to and so they began throwing lit dynamite sticks at the bus. This put a quick end to our escape plans.

Eventually after pleading with the protest organisers we were allowed to pass and a few hours later made our way to the bus station in El Alto, just outside La Paz. Completely exhausted and pissed off with the world after the previous 24 hours events, I caught a taxi with a number of the Israeli tourists to a hostel they knew, which was apparently well placed and very cheap. The views of the city from the taxi on our ride into La Paz were quite spectacular, as buildings seemed to just sprawl for kilometers along and up the sides of the valley. Although not as impressive by day, La Paz was extremely densely populated and appeared to become more dirty and empoverished as the city spread up the valley slopes.

I spent 3 days in La Paz and found the city to be more interesting than many of the other larger centres I had visited elsewhere in South America. In many ways the city possessed a raw edge meaning whilst wandering the streets it was possible to see almost anything from 'witches' trying to sell llamba foetuses to drunkens using the drains as a toilet. I really enjoyed exploring various parts of La Paz, checking out archaeological museums and an explanation of the cocoa trade in Bolivia over the last few hundred years. In a moment of madness I also attempted to get into the La Paz prison, a self run institution in which it was apparently possible to be shown around by one of the inmates. Unfortunately/fortunately I wasn't allowed in by the guards outside and in hindsight this was probably lucky as I'm not sure how easy it would have been to get out once inside...

The multitude of churches, cathedrals and squares in La Paz were also quite interesting and I particularly enjoyed an exhibition of the best world press photos from 2004, which was being held in one of the cathedrals close to my hostel. However, by far the highlight of my visit to La Paz was the street parade held over the only weekend I was there. Whilst during the week the streets of the city had been filled with protesters who had marched in from other parts of the country, demanding whatever the hell it was they wanted, on the weekend these people were replaced by smiling faces dressed in amazingly coloured costumes. It seemed as though suddenly everyones problems had dissapeared and with the aid of a few beers everyone had a great time. Whilst wandering around checking out the parade, I was suddenly grabbed by one of the street dancers and asked if I wanted to join in... which of course I did, much to the amusement of everyone watching. A few hours later I was still at it, having a great time dancing in a massive cardboard costume and at other times, learning some dance moves from some very beautiful girls also part of the procession. Participating in something like this was once again an opportunity that I was extremely grateful to have been given and it gave me a true insight into the type of people the Bolivians were...

Another of the highlights of my stay in La Paz was a hair raising but amazing mountain biking adventure down the world's most dangerous road. Completed as a day trip from La Paz with the Gravit Assisted Mountain Biking company, this tour included not only a heap of great riding and provided an opportunity to meet other travellers, but also it passed through some trully amazing scenery in the mountains just outside La Paz. Despite having a small spill on the loose gravel towards the end of the ride, I thought I performed quite well and particularly enjoyed the initial 'sealed' sections of the road on which I could just cruise down and literally let go and take in the scenery. This is definately one thing I would recommend everyone in La Paz should try.

Photo 1: Sunset just prior to reaching La Paz from Uyuni (crazy bus ride).
Photo 2: La Paz city.
Photo 3: Last minute preparations before the ride.
Photos 4-6: Short breaks along the way (much welcomed).
Photos 7&8: Our guides (reassuring to know we were with safe & responsible 'adults' !!)
Photos 9-11: Scenery and other shots from the day.
Photos 12-14: Presentations, congratulations, a group photo and 1 very happy & relieved rider.























































Lake Titicaca, the highest navigable lake in the world was my destination following my short stay in La Paz. I decided to leave La Paz rather hurriedly, mostly because I had been unable to shake a stomach bug that I had picked up after eating some dodgy food in a restaurant but also because I had heard there were likely to be big protests in La Paz the following day which could potentially have slowed my progress considerably. The bus ride to Copacabanna on the shore of Lake Titicaca was relatively uneventful despite the usual antics of trying to pick up twice the legal number of passengers in El Alto and I arrived in my final destination in the late afternoon. After checking into a nice hostel with great views I had a look around the town and met a few other travellers, who I shared dinner with at the restaurant attached to my hostel.

My first mistake was probably eating such a big meal after only just shaking off my stomach bug from La Paz, the second being that I ate the infamous Lake Titicaca trout. As such, later that night I was projectile vommiting all over the place and was forced to clean my room afterwards so I could sleep without the stench. The next day I felt absolutely terrible and seriously contemplated just chilling out with a few of the girls I had dined with the previous night, who were also feeling crook. However, my stubborness and need to continue moving dictated my decision and I decided to continue as planned, taking a 2 hour boat ride to Isla del Sol to have a look around the island. With temperatures approaching 40 degrees and my rapidly deteriorating condition, this was trully a mission of pain and it took every ounce of my energy and willpower to continue to the walk. Despite the Tihuanaco ruins on the island being quite dissapointing, some of the scenery from the 4 hour walk was quite impressive and in hindsight I was glad that I had completed the trip.

Without a doubt, Bolivia was probably the most erratic country I visited on my tour of South America and the country never stopped throwing surprises in my face. At the time of my visit I swore I would never return, a decision based mainly on the fact that I spent almost 24 hours waiting in the La Paz airport trying to get out of the country when I returned in the midst of a growing political crisis. In hindsight however I would say that the memories of my time Bolivia whilst not all positive ones, will definately remain with me for a long time to come and I anticipate that someday in the future I will return to the country to take in a number of other locations I wasn't able to visit during my first trip.

Photo 1: Sunset in Copacabana.
Photos 2&3: Photos from Isla del Sol.