South America 2007

So, i decided to stay in Cochabamba for a couple of days to chill out, warm up after the chilly temperatures in the mountains, recover from a dodgy cough and why not, also recover from the drunken marathon of sucre... Cochabamaba is a city with a student feeling to it (they sells books everywhere here) and with an all-year around temperature of 25C, which gives it the nickname of the "city of the eternal spring". After a couple of days, i ventured to the bus station to find out about the bus times to La Paz. I can not explain the feeling that you normally get in any of the soutamerican bus station i have been so far (that it is something that can only be experienced personally) but i can not certainly explain the state of the bus station in Cochabamba that day: people everywhere (even on the floor), shouting, screaming.. a chaos! and the worst bit: signs everywhere saying: "There are no tickets to La Paz. Do not insist". Ok, there we go again. Of course i try to ask someone about it: no answer, not even a "fuck off" from the ticket desks, nothing. Great. I got back to the hotel and decided to watch the news to see if the give any info. And if trying to talk to bolivians was frustrating, watching the news is even worse. After a whole hour of shit about really random and non important news, all i got out was that "people from cochabamba trying to get to La Paz, might find difficulties trying to do so..." But why? strikes? road works? and for how long?.. AGH!

it is then that i realize one of the biggest problems in bolivia, which is communication, or lack of it. Other backpackers always comment on hhow lucky i am that i speak the language. Trust me, in Bolivia, speaking spanish is pointless, as the problem is not the language, is the fact they dont use it, even amongs themselves or in the media. I bet most of the people in that station didnt even need to get to La Paz, but the panic takes over, and if they say it might be impossible to get there, they just HAVE to go..

I tried again the next morning, and eventually found a company that would operate services that same night, so without thinking about it i kick every bolivian person out of my way (in this cases it is good to be taller) and manage to get a ticket. To celebrate i decide to treat myself to a muffin from the bakery next to the hotel (which are heaven) and surprise surprise, walked in the bakery and it is completely empty. What is going on? I asked. No bread, she replied. YES I CAN SEE THAT, but why?? I think. But then i remember that one of the random news from last nite was the bakers in cochabamba would be on strike for 2days. Ok, is it that difficult for her to tell me that??? Apparently so...

Eventually made it to La Paz, and the location is AWESOME. Founded in the middle of a valley, and as it grows, the houses are being built on the side of the mountains, and they look they are gonna fall down! I get to the hostel and the nite porter tells me there are no beds and that they didnt get my reservation. It is probably the biggest hostel in La Paz, not a single bed for a little one??? So I ask him if there is something he can do, and he start looking at papers, and then the board, and then again the papers.. It is 4.30am, im exhausted and i have my 15kg backpack still on me. Not Happy! At this point an english girl gets to reception as she is leaving for the airport. And she says, if you dont mind sleeping in my sheets, you could take my bed, as it is paid until 1pm. Great! and the nite porter goes: no, you cant do that. And I have a "miriam moment" then: listen if you cant do anything better than that im taking that bed and i´ll come to speak to reception in the morning. So he has no choice :D

When i wake up at 9am i realized 2 things:

1. There are two empty beds in my dorm.
2. The bed i was sleeping in is full of dog hair.

The first thing gets sorted when i go to reception and they apologized cause they did have empty beds, and dont really know why the guy didnt give me one. Then i also find out about the second thing by my roomates. The hairs belong to the hostel dog, which apparently got on really well with the girl and SLEPT THERE EVERYNITE. She could have mention that little detail before she left i guess... Only left to say is that i dont like dogs sleeping in beds, and definately not that dog, that looks quite vile to me, so io close the door all the time and the dog cant get in, therefore, the dog hates me for the rest of the week and tries to bite me at every opportunity...

La Paz turned out to be this really cool place, where i had a FAB time. I was not expecting much of the place, so i guess that it is a good thing, cause everything surprises you much more. Also, the people meant a lot here: I met Greta and Dave (NZ) and Darryl and Andy (SA) again here, the guys from the Uyuni tour. And also, i met up again with Auri, the girl from Granada i met at the bolivian border that was living temporarily in La Paz. She took me to really cool places (including to a çn aymara witch that read the future with coca leaves at the witches market) and introduces me to many local people that were awesome! I must say that another good thing about my stay here was the hostel irish bar, that gave us many good laughs.. (that meant that at some point everynite i was running from an irish drunk or from the vile dog) It was also here in La Paz i found out about results from UNi, and turned out to be a first!! me! a first!! im still getting over the shock, and of course it was great to have an excuse to get pissed :D

Apart from the alcohol, I actually found time to do other stuff, believe it or not, and that includes being part of one of the biggest protedtd ever in Bolivia (people from La Paz want the city to become the capital of the country, and they were concentratring in the highest part of the valley for it. Every single office and business was closed that day, and 2.5million people made it to the demonstration. We tried to walk up there but eventually realize that 10kms uphill it is a bit too much, so end up taking a ride in a local truck to the top, with all the locals looking at us and thinking "what the f***k do you care about this matter" whilst we sang to the himn!

Next day me and Auri went down the "most dangerous road in the world" on bikes, and that was amazing! The road was named like that cause it did have the highest accident rate in the world, and although there is a new road now for the main traffic, the 64kms downhill on the dirt road, going from 4700ms to 1200ms, it is soooo impresive!

Although loving La Paz, it is time to leave the next day, and head to the next stop, Copacabana, a town in the shores of Lak Titikaka. The bus ride was hell, and i think the fact that i was stupidly hang over had something to do with it.. And to make it even better, at some point during the journey we stopped and lots of people disembarked and started walking towards the lake that was in front of us. And then i look at the rest of the bus and see that only the gringos are left.mmmm not a good thing. Asked the driver and he tells me that we all need to leave and take little boats to go to the other side. But what about my lugagge?. Leave it on the bus and run to get those boats before they leave, is his answer. So i turn around and shouted to my fellow gringos " everybody gets off and run top the boats!" and like a joan of arch, i lead the way... we made it to the other side of the water, and believe it or not, the bus floated all the way to the other side too... ! Eventually made it to Copacabana, and was a nice little town, very touristy, but still charming enough to spend a couple of days chilling out after the madness of La Paz. After that i decide to visit the "island of the sun" the island 2hs away from Copa where the incas believed the sun was created and still to this days is considered a sacred place. I leave my backpack in the hotel, and told the guy i would be back the following day, as i was spending the nite at the island. The island was awesome, did some trekking there and visited the sacred sited and stuff. Came back to copa, changed all my money to peruvian, as i was crossing to peru next, got my bus ticket and headed to the hotel to pick my backpack, just to find out the hotel is CLOSED. Ok, dont panic just yet, i think. Walked in the bakery next door, that shared the building woth the hotel and asked, what is going on?. Oh, nothing, today is wednesday, and it is the manager´s day off, she says. And he closes the hotel??, i asked again. Oh, when there are guests, he leaved the key with me, but there werent any, so he went home across the peruvian border and wont be back til the next day. S**T, i think. she sends me to talk to the guy at the restaurant in front, and that one to the one next to it. And so on. Nobody knows anything, and nobody has keys. So i go to another hotel, check in for another day, after changing the money again, and getting a refund for the bus ticket. Go shopping for a new jumper as the one i have stinks already, and use the emergency underwear from my daysack. Stay cool i think, tomorrow I´ll get back at him for this.

I wake up at 7am, make my way to the hotel all ready to give him the bo****ing and STILL CLOSED. Which means i will miss the morning bus to Peru AGAIN. I come back at 10.30 and still closed, but this time the bakers and one of the restaurant owners are around the door, obviously talking about me. And then i have another "miriam moment": "if the guy is not back at midday im kicking the door down, cause it is a shit door anyway, and then he can come and find me in Peru if he f***ing wants to" as loud as i can in the middle of the street. All looking at the poor gringa that has lost the plot. And im about to go when i hear a quiet voice saying "miss..." "Leave me alone!" i say to this timy guy from the restaurant to the side and carry on walking, when i hear "blablablabla.. backpack....", "what did you just say!!?!?!: and he replies.. are you looking for a backpack, miss? OF COURSE IM LOOKING FOR A BP! I shouted, and he goes inside and turns up with my backpack!!!

What i said to him afterwards cannot be written here, but the fact that he saw me yesterday and did not say a thing, cause he keeps insisting that he didnt know it was mine, still makes me angry! but what can you do¿ welcome to Bolivia my friend... Managed to make it to the border in a shared taxi, and to Puno, the peruvian city where i could catch the bus that i missed already in another shared taxi... That is how i leave Bolivia after 3weeks, taking with me all this unforgetable experiences, the surreal landscapes, the llamas, the incredible quinua soup, and of course, the memory of the most incredible sky at night, full of stars so close you could reach them.. cause the truth is Bolivia might be poor in many aspects, but it has the most incredible sky at nights...

Hasta Pronto!

PS. By the way, for those of you on facebook, i have decided to put the photos there, cause it is easier, so if you want, you can have a look and see pics of La Paz (mostly drunk, sorry), the protest, the death road, the crossing to copacabana and the lake!)

Im becoming a lazy writer. there are so many things that I see, I hear, I smell and I live here, that I would like to describe them one by one so you could live them with me. But instead, I leave them for another day, and then more and more details are accumulating, therefore, I write less...

So, i will try to summarize the last 10 days as good as i can, although it wont be easy! it is funny how ten days back home could be described in a paragraph, and now it seems so impossible...

I bumped in to Jo and Vern in Tupiza again, as they had also decided to take the tour from there too. When searching for tours it is true that "the more the merrier", so we managed to get a good price from an agency which guy named himself Freddie Kruger. Random. But he promised he would find 2 other people to join us for the next day, and he did! So the next day the family was formed now by us three, plus Claire from Southafrica and Hugo from France, the driver-guide and the cook. There was also another car from the same agency that travelled with us all the time, formed by two guys from Southafrica and a kiwi couple. I must say, at that point i didnt think that the people who travel with you in a 4 day tour can make such a difference, but it does. Everybody was so nice that the experience was even better. I guess I should be grateful to Freddie kruger for that :D

During the following days we had the opportunity to see one of the most amazing landscapes i could imagine: From deserts to high snowed peaks, the green and red lakes, the volcanoes, the flamingo communities, the "llamas"... everywhere you look there is something amazing. And in addition you are travelling at an altitude of up to 5000m above sea level, and the feeling is rather strange: you cant breathe, you can only walk for few meters before you are tired, your head is aching and if it gets worse, you are also very sick and unable to eat. i was pretty lucky, i didnt get too sick, unlike some of the other guys, that were badly affected by "soroche" (altitud sickness).

Every night we would arrive at a lodge, which was described as "very basic" and was very basic indeed: little village in the middle of nowhere, no heating, no hot shower and limited light. Funny enough these people live like that their entire life, and it is difficult to imagine how they survive. Most of them are "llama" shepherds, and they spend their lives up and down the altiplano, running really fast with no map.. it is quite an amazing sight..

Talking about llamas, they are one of the cutest animals i've seen, quite funny really. the hardest part was when we have spent the whole day taking pics of the animals and then the cook served us llama meat for dinner. Pretty bizarre feeling, but quite yummy nevertheless. From here I apologize to the llama community.

Also talking about photos, i send you a couple here. not the llamas, im afraid, cause the good pics are in my other camera, so you'll have to wait for those...

And yes, is REALLY coold, the first night was about -5 degrees, but the second got to -10! At some point you get use to the fact of wearing 2pairs of trousers, 3 jumpers and a jacket, and 3pairs of socks, even while you sleep..

The last day is dedicated to the salar de uyuni (the biggest salt lake in the world), and boy, isnt that impressive? It is so inmense it is impossible to explain... by the way, we slept in salt beds the last night too (pretty cool, but not extremely comfy...)

and here is the vehicle we spent the 4 dyas, going through sand, snow, stones, salt...

when we finally got to Uyuni, after all the laughs, the emotions and the "dulce de leche" we had for breakfast, it was kind of hard to say goodbye to the rest of the family! my plan was to go straight to Potosi, so i got my ticket for the evening bus.

And now is when my personal experience with Bolivian buses begins. i must mention at this point that every single traveller you find along the way, has a bolivian bus story. Everybody. And of course, i was dying to have my own. Now that few days have passed and im a professional bus rider, i need to say, this trip would not be the same without the bus stories! So i decided to include a pic from my first bus:

My backpack is somewhere on that roof, next to the million things that bolivians take on a bus. The best part is not that, no. They obviously think their valuables are that, very valuables, so the roof is not good enough for them, so they take them IN the bus with them. We are talking about sacks of seeds, and stuff like that. Together with the kids that women carry in their backs, which are not that little anymore. Even better, I have an allocated seat, as im going to the end of the journey (which by the way is 7hours), but for the people that are only travelling for 2hs or so, dont get a seat, they pay less and seat in the aisle, if they are lucky, on top of a sack or huge bag. My favourite detail, the sticker next to the driver which says: dont spit. I love it! And to think there are people in this world they find a charter aeroplane too cramped...

Still wondering how the buses manage to routes, seriously. Potosi is the highest city in the world at 4100ms and all those up hill moments are nervebreaking in the bus!

I got safely to Potosi at midnite, still amazed of getting there and also by the sight of "Cerro Rico" (the rich hill) the reason Potosi was founded there in the first place, as the mines inside the hill have been providing minerals (and sorrows) for the last 500years. Visiting the mines is the highlight of the visit to the city, which is very nice, even though is not well preserved. You can tell when you walk around that there was a time this city was really powerful. So here is the view of the city and the mountain itself (once again, apologies for the quality of the pics!)

The opportunity to visit the mines is unique. There are no priviledges for tourist, nor a special treatment. You go where the miners go, there are no lifts, no big galleries, nothing. you get your helmet, your light, your overall and you sign a declaration of responsability cause ANYTHING can happen (i got hit by a little rock by the way). And even though you have an idea of what you are about to see, you cannot have the feeling until you do. It is shocking and incredible.

First you get to visit the factory where they take the minerals and the miners market (i had breakfast there, so you can see me at my best silly outfit, glass in hand)

The miners work in cooperatives and they are responsible for buying their own materials, including the dynamite (which by the way can be bought by just anybody in the market, freaky thought)

They bring us here so we can buy little gifts for the miners when you see them inside: coca leaves (which they chew constantly to help them with altitude and taking the hunger away), cigarretes (made of coca too), soft drinks and stuff like that. I tried coca at this point and it tastes like chewing tea leaves, so not my thing...

We went down 3 levels in the mine, which is about 100m, and the temperature there is about 35degrees. You are constantly out of breathe, between the heat and the dust. We crawled the galleries (as they are bolivian size) or you go down a wood slide that is normally where they bring the carts up and down. You even have to be shouting constantly while you go down the ramp, cause you just never know wehre the next cart is coming. Sometimes you are walking and you hear them coming with the cart, so you have to literally run for your life! When you bump into a group of miners you can talk to them and you normally leave them a little gift, which makes them really happy.

The visit to the mine has been one of the bigest experiences in my life. When you speak to the miners, it makes you realize how lucky you are to have your job, cause ANYTHING is better than this. They enter the mine as young as 10 years old and their life expectancy is around 50yeras old, as silicosis (the miners illness) normally kills them sooner. I was lucky enough to meet one of the oldests workers in the mine, which has been there for 21 years. When you see him you would think he is 75, only to find out he is only 36. When you get out of the mine, not only you are covered in dust (see picture below) but you have inhaled so much i was coughing for the next 2 days. And i was only there for 2hs, imagine them...

The next day is time to carry on, on my way to Sucre now (the real capital of Bolivia, even though everybody in europe thinks is La PAz). Sucre surprises me been a beautiful city, old colonial buildings in white and big enough to have many things going on, but not as big as a capital city. My original plan was to spend a night there only, but end up staying 4days and loving it. time goes so quickly when you are happy i guess.. The hostel was great, but not as good as the people that i met there. Quite a few are spending a long time there learning spanish, so they showed me the city tricks, as if they were locals. They took me out (i was in serious need of night out, not anymore after 3 nights!), to the markets, to watch the football... I even end up meeting again Jo and Vern, and Dave and Greta (my kiwy couple!) and it felt i belonged to the place, you kind of knew people and got to know th city well...

Finally i decided to leave on sunday, after the amazing victory of Brazil over Argentina in the copa America, and the greasy meal we were having at the bar whilst watching the match. After a 10hs bus journey i got to Cochabamba, further north and a lot warmer (about 25degrees, yeepa! no more layers of clothes!!) I must add another note for the bus journeys. at some point in the middle of the night, the driver stops, and looking outside the window i can see a big fire, and lots of people. Got a bit stressed until i realized the driver was chating to the locals and it was only a local party. So we waited for 30mins until he had a drink with their friends and we carried on. Only hoping the drink was not alcoholic...

x x Love x x