Time to move on again, a new country today! I have mixed feelings on leaving. Bolivia has been a country of dramatic landscapes and welcoming people. I didn’t expect to like it as much as I have and I feel it’s highlights will be some of my most memorable times. From the flamingos, vast Salt flats, sweet Sucre, cold Potos铆, crazy La Paz and of course the Death Road.
It is totally time for me to move on, Copacabana is a great place to chill but I would go slightly loco if I stayed longer. Tricia arrives this morning, super excited to be in a hotel with such a great view and is ready for some relax time. I should have stayed another day so we could have gone out tonight, but it is all booked to Arequipa so no changes now. We spend the day enjoying good coffee, wandering key town spots and catching up with friends.
I hop on the bus at 5pm and we cross through the border half an hour later. No incidents but I did notice immediately how much more affluent the Peru side is. We get on a bigger bus and follow the edge of the lake to Puno. The sunset is spectacular tonight. Arriving in Puno, it is bigger than I thought but still cold. It is 9pm Peru time (-1hr from Bolivia) and I am snuggled under blankets trying to get warm. I hope to get to sleep soon as I have a early start in the morning to visit the floating villages on Lake Titicaca.
Tricia enjoying her first baked beans in monthsSunset over Lake Titicaca as I cross the border
The Island of the Sun is the largest island on Lake Titicaca, and part of Bolivian territory. The island is an ancient holy site of Inca. Legend says that Viracocha, the bearded god who created the universe, emerged from the waters of Lake Titicaca and created the sun at this location.
The boat trip across to the island is painfully slow, an hour and a half at a rowing pace. I get chatting to an Italian girl, Vinchenza and Anton who I recognise from climbing the Cerro Calvario at a similar pace to me yesterday. As we get off the boat Anton is freezing, so we make a pit stop for hot chocolate. We then start the assent out of the Port of Yumani. The Escalera del Inca is a staircase leading to a spring once believed to prolong youth. This is slow going again, not sure if it is just altitude but we all regularly have to stop. At the top a Cholita is cleaning the waterfall as this is the water that feeds the port below and it has a weed blockage. It doesn’t look clean enough to bathe in.
Vinchenza is staying overnight and is keen to dump heavier stuff off at her hostal. We walk along the coast towards the north of the island, passing a small church and a family digging out potatoes. They use donkeys as the main form of transport on the island as it is rocky with no roads or cars. The scenery is stunning, across the lake you can see Luna Island and behind that on the far side of the lake are snow capped mountains. After a few wrong turns we find the hostel and Vinchenza is able to drop her stuff. I am not able to use the bathroom as due to restricted water on the island it is limited to guests, just going to have to hold on.
I had read about Inca Ruins on the southern tip of the island called Pilko Kaina. These were thought to have been constructed by the Inca Emperor Tupac-Yupanq. It was a bit of a walk along the coast but mainly downhill, with more steps down to the ruins themselves. They were smaller than I imagined and consisted of a single square building featuring about 8 rooms. I liked the doorways and the face carved into a stone at the entrance.
Obviously the return trip was uphill and we stopped at a couple of places trying to get a cold beer only to be told they were out but the delivery from Copacabana tomorrow would bring some! We ended up backtracking all the way back to the church where we found a pizza place that had 4 beers left. I felt we had earned our pizza and beer, as we smugly sat on the terrace in the sun.
We had to eat a little fast so Anton and I could make it back down to the port for our 3pm return boat. This time I sat on top of the boat napping in the sunshine for most of the trip. Once back on the shore we arranged to have dinner together and enjoyed a tasty spaghetti ragu with mulled wine.
The boys are keen to join me as I am going to a baptism at the Basilica of Our Lady Copacabana. This isn’t a regular baptism but one for motor vehicles. The locals bring new vehicles to the basilica, creating a line outside ready for the priest to bless each one. The vehicles are sparkly clean with flowers displayed colourfully around the front, and a garish top hat to finish the look. The families spray beer or wine over the cars and pose for pictures with the priest. It is quite fun to watch, and there are about 30 cars to bless which I thought a lot for such a small community.
The boys are hungry as they missed breakfast so we sit on a sun terrace enjoying food and drinks. They are heading to Puno at 1pm, so I bid farewell before heading back to my reading routine. I also manage to speak to Mum & Dad and Justin who are all doing well, not a lot of gossip. A chilled afternoon with a couple of glasses of wine on the balcony.
This evening I decide to climb Cerro Calvario for sunset. This is a small rocky hill with a sharp 220m ascent (reaching 4,040m at summit) behind the hotel. I set off with vigour but pretty quickly I am out of breath. I don’t think the wine helped and by the time I reached the top 40 minutes later I had stopped over 20 times with dizziness.
It is beautiful from the top and the line of small monuments representing the 14 Stations of the Cross make a nice foreground to the sunset. I don’t dawdle on the way down as I don’t want to be walking in the dark. On the way back is a nice restaurant which has a cosy log burner and great food. Needless to say I stuck to water with my meal.
Basilica of Our Lady Copacabana
Proud family & priest with their blessed vehicleMaize based snack (tastes like out of date cereal)
Today is a total chill day, feel like I am on a mini break. The weather is still sunny but it is cold once you are out of the sun. I use the free time to plan a bit more of my trip, update this blog and actually read. I haven’t really had time to read a book, so it was nice to relax and just read for pleasure rather than travel literature.
I went to a restaurant renown for its trout this evening, La Orilla. Lake Titicaca had trout introduced as a source of protein for locals, this fish has now totally taken over but it is certainly tasty. I walked into the restaurant and was heckled by Paddy & Jerry who I first met in Potos铆. Great to have company for dinner and hear about their adventures. Paddy has had food poisoning again and has also been bitten by a dog, they certainly get into their fair share of trouble but are having a great time. They are also staying in the same hostel so we all walk back together after a few cervezas.
I was gutted to be up too early to get a final good breakfast but I grabbed a couple of bananas and said goodbye to the lovely hostal family. I stepped outside into a flower market, lovely scent in the air with Cholitas sat along the pavement selling their bunches (mainly gladioli). I had a early pick up this morning by Bolivia Hop, on time but we had to walk a bit to the bus as there are road closures for this weekend’s parade. We pick up at other hostals but soon begin our climb out of the city of La Paz onto flatter plains. We have 4 hours to Copacabana, the Bolivian town on the shores of Lake Titicaca. It is a big pilgrimage town and the larger Copacabana in Brazil is rumoured to be named after it. The scenery is interesting, mainly due to the corn fields that continue in a largely flat landscape. Quite a welcome change from the hills of La Paz. We do get to watch The Lion King which is in English, I’ve not really been watching any television so it is nice to pass the time. We are about half an hour out when we need to cross part of the lake. They have these shabby barges that they load the coach and cars onto, whilst we take a passenger boat. The coach looks a little unstable tilting to the front but it makes it and we soon climb back onboard.
We arrive for lunchtime in a lovely bay with the lake water lapping on the shore. The sun is shinning and feeling quite warm, my hotel is only 20yards away and I am delighted with my double room that has a balcony overlooking the lake. There is not much to do here apart from relaxing and drinking some vino whilst enjoying the spectacular sunsets.
Early start as we need to be at the bike shop for 7am. I am surprised not to be feeling nervous or apprehensive, given the roads reputation. The Yungas road or notorious death road has claimed many lives due to its narrow width, blind corners and erratic weather. The new road was built in 2009 so the original now has less traffic making an ideal mountain biking challenge and one that has been on my ‘list’ from the start. We travel by minibus with the bikes on top for approximately 1hr to our starting point, La Cumbre. Ali and I have both paid a little extra for double suspension bikes, we did ask for lady saddles but apparently they aren’t available. The guide Max gives us an introduction to the equipment, our bikes look pretty good and we have elbow/knee pads together with a full protective suit. We have bread and coffee before setting off on the first section.
This part is all Tarmac and we are already feeling free like children racing downhill again. When we stop at a tunnel Ali is just grinning from ear to ear. We hop back into the bus for 11km uphill as we approach the ‘death road’. It is slightly surreal to be in thick mist, so we cannot see the drop off the edge, probably a good thing! This time the terrain is gravel and rocks, so considered braking using both brakes is required. It takes a good bit more concentration and there is only one point where I brake too much into a turn and skid a little. What is incredible is imagining when it was the only road and traffic needed to pass. It is in the main about 3metres wide and as we descend lower we clear the cloud of mist to appreciate the drops. We find ourselves riding under waterfalls including saint james where locals used to baptise their children, and also one of the notorious spots. Here the guide tells us about the last fatality, an Israeli girl who was taking a selfie as she rode and lost control. My hands never leave the handle bars!
We stop for a snack and take off a few layers, it is getting warmer the lower we get. I have a T-shirt on whilst we eat and my arms are ravaged by sand flies. We continue to descend and start to experience tropical jungle, which is great. The road also starts to widen as we hit the bottom section. The van is waiting for us at the bottom and it is a great feeling to have safely completed it. I would totally have gone back up and done it again, such a thrill.
We finish with a beer and a couple of hours poolside at a hotel. Totally exhilarating day, days like this just make you feel alive!
We have no real agenda today, the key list for La Paz has been ticked off and so today can be a chill day with Rachael as she leaves on a Gadventures tour tomorrow.
Ali and Rachael are keen for some shopping on Sanagara street, so I avoid temptation by going and booking my Boliviahop pass. I pre-book the first 3 stops to Arequipa, heading to Lake Titicaca first.
Rachael and I then scroll back to the colonial neighbourhood to see the colourful, cobblestone Jaen street (where I indulge in jewellery purchases!). We then head to the main plaza, just a short look round as Rachael has a big pigeon phobia and there are thousands of them here. We walk back via the Church of San Francisco. It is a simple structure with ornate carved facade. We can’t take pictures inside which is a shame as it is one of the most interestingly beautiful churches yet. The main stone structure inside is plain but each alcove has a gold ornate altar floor to ceiling dedicated to a specific saint. There must be a fortune of gold and jewels in here and is well worth the look around.
We bump into Eva on the way back and together enjoy an cup of tea together at cafe del mundo Rachael leaves for her tour with a few hugs goodbye as I am quite sad but hope to see her again back home. Ali and I enjoy a succulent steak for dinner, a last supper before our early start and the Death road adventure tomorrow.
Camino Deportivo Los Andes, Municipio Nuestra Se帽ora de La Paz, Provincia Murillo, Bolivia
Rachael is back in La Paz today, and I have read about an Art Gallery in the Sopocachi area where she is staying. Ali and I walk the 20minutes down to the gallery and it is interesting to be in a more upmarket commercial area. It is great to see Rachael and she is looking well after her long weekend in Buenos Aires. The Art gallery we are visiting is based in the former studio of Walter Sol贸n Romero (1923-1999) a great Bolivian muralist painter. He was inspired to sketch and paint the character of Don Quixote by stories his father had read to him. His son was imprisoned during the cruel and brutal dictatorship of Hugo Banzer Suarez in 1972 at the age of 22. Walter Sol贸n mixed political messages into his art and his famous Don Quixote with dogs led to him being exiled to Lima. His son tragically disappeared from the prison never to be seen again. The gallery is very interesting and his art has a lot of movement & emotion in it, despite the cartoon like character of Don Quixote. We strolled through the plaza and a small park dedicated to Sol贸n’s missing son and others that went missing during the dictatorship. It led to a mirador with good views of the modern city with mountains behind. We stopped for Vietnamese for lunch, I had a sensational Pho washed down with condensed milk coffee which was a real treat. The girls and I went to a strange Roofbar tonight for cocktails, the manager moved people off tables so we could sit down which we thought was rude. We collectively decided to move on after our first cocktail and enjoyed the Dutch run Sol y Luna restaurant instead.
My friend Racheal arrives this morning at 6am, poor girl has been on a overnight bus from Uyuni. I go back to sleep for a bit but I have a early start for my first morning of Spanish class. MeGusta Spanish school is a 15minute walk away, and I arrive on time to take my level assessment test. I am not a beginner, which is good news but I am the only one at my level so will be in private lessons this week. My tutor Andrea is lovely and I enjoy the lesson reviewing previous knowledge. Lessons finish at 12.30 and as I walk back to the hostel the girls pass me in a taxi. They are heading back to the Mirador cafe so Rachael and I walk up to join them. It is not so easy walking up, I blame the altitude for my breathlessness but I think it might be lack of fitness. Lunch at mirador again, it is super cheap in Bolivia so we are all happy eating out.
The girls say it is now snowing in Uyuni, much colder but also it is hampering the tours so travellers are stuck in San Pedro. I feel lucky to have had such a great tour.
Today I wanted to do a city tour, just to get my bearings a bit. It is Sunday, so the streets are really quiet as I make my way to the Condor cafe. This cafe runs tours on a not for profit basis and they support local community projects so I feel the 70bolivianos they charge for a city tour is money well spent. We meet at 10 o’clock and we are a group of 5; two Aussies, two Americans and me. The first stop is the Catedral on the main plaza. It is Sunday so we are fortunate to find it open and we can look around. It is quite simple, no ornate angels adorning the ceiling but pretty in its own right. The janitor locks up behind us, bolting the huge door and fancy gate. The main plaza is still not busy, apart from a school group practicing for the city’s celebrations on the 26th May. The guide explains the Bolivian symbol or shield, with the Potos铆 hill in the background and Llama in front. The motto on the government building is ‘stronger together’ with the 9 stars representing the departments that make up the union of Bolivia. The current president created a new constitution in 2008, recognising more of the indigenous people’s rights but also said this created a new Bolivia and thus he was eligible to run an additional term!
The San Francisco church is famous in Bolivia, and it is very popular. The bell tower houses the bell that was rung on the 26th May and initiated the start of independence uprising across South America. The bell was rung that hard it cracked, and this is how it remains as a reminder. It is around the church that there are some nice vendor stalls selling a myriad of souvenirs. Behind the church is the central market and we walk through the centre. There are fruit & veg stalls, cheese sellers, a meat section and well to be honest there is everything here. We sample some chorizo from a stall that is famously run by seven sisters. The chorizo is spicy, which makes a change as the Argentinian and Chilean food was surprisingly bland.
We walk on to Bolivar park, this was created and donated by a eccentric childless couple who also adopted over 80 orphaned children. The park has a big children’s area with a dinosaur theme, but also a replica Effel tower. It was constructed by Gustov Effel himself as he was a friend of the couple. We then hop on a local bus, only 1.50Bols one way (anywhere). We are heading up the hill to Recoleta, the oldest part of the city. There are several streets that are named after cats where the freedom fighters first planned the uprising for independence. The cat streets lead us to a cobbled square that overlooks Sucre. This is where the tour ends but close by is the Mirador cafe where I have arranged to meet the girls. This spot is amazing, and we spend the whole afternoon sat in the deckchairs looking out over Sucre in the sunshine. The cafe is great for food but best is their cafe frappe which is deliciously cooling in this lovely weather.
