Bolivia tambien - Aug 2018

Cochabamba

We left Coroico early in the morning for the two hour journey back to La Paz intending to catch a bus to reach Cochabamba, a 7 hour journey, on the same day.  This would get us into Coch at a reasonable time to get to our friends' place?!?!  We caught the 11.30am bus and sat back to relax for a few hours.   There were road works ALL along the way which didn't bode well for a speedy trip.  The other unusual thing we noticed about this road is that every 100-200m along the way there is a dog sitting, usually well off the road but in plain sight, looking expectantly at the flow of traffic.  In the main they looked well fed and not unhappy with their lot, but we did worry about them.  We later discovered that the locals consider it good luck to throw food out for them.  Hmmm, not sure about that as a lifestyle for the poor dogs.

Here is a link to a fabulous story about a Bolivian photographer who is publishing a book about his photos of Bolivian stay/street dogs ... the good, the bad and the ugly of the situation:
Bolivian street dog article

Needless to say, and in true South American bus travel fashion, the journey seemed to drag on forever.  When we reached the outskirts of town there seemed to be some kind of fiesta going on.  The road was horribly busy.  We sat and waited six rotations of one set of lights.

Quillacollo evening fiesta

When we finally reached the street of the bus terminal at around 8.45pm the bus couldn't get to the terminal the street was so busy, so they unloaded us all on the side of the road to walk the last 100m.  Getting to the house from here was a whole different story, even having found our friend to guide us ... but you get the idea.  Clare commented that the city was looking a lot more affluent than when she was here in 2006/7. 

We had come to stay with our good friends Abraham and his two younger children Nelly and Gabriel. They live in New Zealand where his wife Sue (Clare's school friend from NZ) and the two older children still are.  We had enjoyed time with the whole family in NZ this previous summer.  Abraham had come to spend the (NZ) winter in Bolivia, visit with his family and check up on the house.  It is also a good opportunity for the children to be immersed again in their culture, not to mention keeping their Spanish language alive.  Great timing for us to be able to catch up with them here.

The house is some way out of the city centre but on a main transport route which makes life very simple.  The property has a rural feel to it with the mountains so close.

There is a caretaker who lives on site and looks after the (guard!) doggies.  Most South Americans have dogs as security rather than viewing them as pets.  The kids found Pepa (the large dog) as a puppy in a drain near the house when they were in Bolivia three years ago.  She was really happy to have us all around for a time.

The day after we arrived Abraham cooked a feast of local fare ... pork, corn and potato stew.  We had some (mutual) friends over to share some good food, good company and chicha, a local 'beer' fermented (usually) from maize.  The potatoes the locals prefer, the Chuno, are certainly an acquired taste!  They are freeze dried and rehydrated in the stew.

We took a few trips into town to get some jobs done.  James neededhis leather hat repairing and there are many street merchants offering a service to repair shoes.  The hat was a simple fix for the one we chose.  We spent some time walking in circles around the cancha, the huge local market in town where you can buy anything from fresh fruit and vege, to meat, to dog food, to plastic ware and clothes.  You name it, they've got it.  Again Clare commented on how developed the city was looking.  In 2006 the cancha was a festering mess of mud and germs and you wouldn't buy the meat if it was the last thing available.  Now the roads are all paved and the meat is kept refrigerated.

The legume and pasta stall

Potato aisle

Trying on traditional head gear

Another day we ventured up to the Cristo atop San Pedro Hill.  At 33m in height it rivals Brazil for the rights to claim the worlds largest statue of Christ.  We took a taxi up to see it and rode the cable car back down.

View of Cochabamba from San Pedro Hill

There is always a square to sit in and watch the world go by

As usual we stumbled upon a fiesta!  These people really know how to party.

On our last night with the family we ventured down the road to enjoy some anticucho from the lady who sets up her fire on the street corner every night.  This is traditional street food consisting of beef heart and potatoes cooked on an open fire served with a spicy peanut sauce - Clare's favourite street food of Bolivia. While we waited for the food to cook we went for a walk around the village where Nelly and Gabriel became part of the street art.

Thank you familia Aruquipa for offering us a week of respite from our busy travels!

We took the night bus to Sucre.  Our first attempt to get out of town on the main route failed as we came upon a blockade.  Locals regularly block busy traffic routes leading out of town in protest of something or other.  After waiting 15mins to see what would happen, our bus driver turned tail and found an alternative but very bumpy road out of town.  The rest of our journey continued without incident and we arrived in Sucre before we knew it!

The bus station was extremely old and dilapidated, in stark contrast to the city itself.  It would appear that in the rush of "progress" made in the last 12years, since Evo Morales became president, that many more people now own cars where as once upon a time that mode of transport belonged only to the wealthy (of which there were not a whole lot in Bolivia).  It is up for debate whether this is a good thing or not, and also whether Morales has been good for the country (it depends on who you talk to), but it shows in ways that are least expected.  Obviously only the poor take buses these days so the state of the station is immaterial.

More beautiful colonial architecture to be found in Sucre

Sucre is the constitutional capital of Bolivia and was founded on the back of the silver mines in nearby Potisi.  The Spanish royalty and wealthy mine owners preferred it's temperate climate to that of Potisi.  It also has some more recent terrible history involving some heartbreaking racial demonstrations which occured here in 2008.  Here is a link should you have the stomach to read it:
Racism runs amok in Sucre

As usual, we found a pretty park to sit in ....

and a market to enjoy some fresh fruit smoothies ....

On to Potosi next.   The landscape was becoming more desert like by the mile.  Interesting in a unique way.

Potisi is one of the highest cities in the world at just more than 4,000m.  By this time we were really looking forward to descendiing to a more comfortable altitude.  Again the architecture was eye-catching and one night probably didn't do this town justice.

Our bus journey to Tupiza the next day was even more enchanting.  The sight of the huge cacti as far as the eye could see soon gave way to the wonder of the red river rocks Tupiza is so well known for.

Our hostel was perched on the side of the hill across the river from town.  Apart from one other couple, we were the only guests for the few nights we stayed.

Walking into town one day we watched a tree catch fire.

Our final day was marked by the fact that it was National Car Free Day in Bolivia.  Instead of the roads being busy with traffic, kids were out learning to ride their bikes, their Dads running along side ready to catch if there was to be a fall.

In the town square there was a fiesta in full swing.  Gotta love Bolivia for finding an excuse for a festival at the drop of a hat.

This lovely old lady arriving to soak in the
atmosphere

The boys using the street for football training

And the girls for an impromptu aerobics class

The morning we left Tupiza for Argentina was to be our last day in Bolivia .... for now ;-)

Ah, Bolivia .... Aug 2018

One would imagine that getting from Puno to La Paz by bus would be quite straightforward.  Our experience was quite comical.  We had booked tickets to go via Copacabana and across rather than around Lake Titicaca.  Clare had been here 12 years ago and recommended that the trip from Copacabana to La Paz was quite fun and encompassed a short trip on a barge across the lake.  It would take a bit longer than the direct bus, but the scenery promised to be worth it.   About half and hour into our trip the bus conductor told us, and all others on the bus who were expecting to go on to La Paz from Copacabana, that we would have to change buses onto the direct bus which was waiting at the cross roads for us.  Apparently there was some kind of "strike" in Copacabana and we would not be able to progress from there.  We rather fancy that they realised that the direct bus had enough seats on it for the few of us who had booked the complete journey and, if they moved us onto it they would then not have to bother with another bus for from CCB to La Paz!!!  Typical South American fobbing off.

The journey was still pretty enough as we skirted around the lake.

The border crossing was also an easy one.

We were pretty happy with our first glimpse of La Paz too.

A sprawling city high in the Andes

Morning view from our hostel

The first thing we noticed about La Paz was it's cable car, or teleferico, which inter-weaves its way through the sky.  Swiss designed and costing approximately US$750mil, we were surprised to discover the rides were very cost effective.  It is more a cable car for the average citizen to get to work rather than a tourist resource.   Off we went for an adventure in the sky.

The Andes in the distance - this was the steepest line

It was quite fun and beats walking the hills at this altitude to get these kinds of views.

As we arrived in La Paz, Clare was full up with a cold and James was not feeling great in the tummy.  We found the local market to buy a bunch of fresh produce to make chicken soup.  This is a good go-to meal when we need to feel better and we have a kitchen to use.  We always try for homemade meals with fresh produce when we get the opportunity and the markets in South America certainly make this process very cheap and easy.

On the Saturday we ventured out onto the main street to be greeted by a carnival in full swing.  Carnivals are plentiful in this part of the world and it never seems long before we come across another.

Police dog obedience display

We found some delicious pork buns for lunch.

Delicious ice-cream for afters!

And time to clean the grime off ones boots.

Next to this cute wee guy :-)

And a stall where we could taste the different varieties of potatoes, which are delicious in South America, and corn (which is not so delicious here!)

The dipping sauce is Llajuay (pronounced Yaqua)
a spicy tomato salsa typical in Bolivia

We went for a wander in the tourist market and were perplexed to discover these dried llama fetuses for sale in the Witches Market.  This is what Mr Google has to say about it .... "They are the most important part of an offering to Pachamama, a goddess that many Bolivians and Peruvians call Mother Earth. Together with candy, cotton and other small items the llama fetus is burned after which the ashes are buried under the house for protection.  He also told me that they do not kill the llamas, but that they come from miscarriages. That explains why we saw them in so many different sizes."

Narrow alley leading to the market

For some time before arriving in La Paz we had been planning and looking forward to a journey to Coroico, in the tropical area of the Yungas.  It is a couple of hours from La Paz by colectivo.  The views were amazing, not unexpectedly.

Clare had been to Coroico numerous times when last in Bolivia.  Back then it was accessible only by The Death Road. There is now a new (safer!) road for daily transportation purposes and the Death Road is now mainly used as an adventure cycle trail ........ all down hill and largely on gravel.  We were hoping to do this trail (even though neither of us are cyclists!), another very popular tourist activity, but again, one we considered a must seeing as we were right there.  Unfortunately, when the time came, we were both too unwell to make the trip.  James still suffering with his tummy and Clare not yet able to shake her cold.   Ai caramba!  The best laid plans, as they say.  Maybe it was just as well.

We had booked an Airbnb for our stay in Coroico.   It turned out to be just what we needed for our collective recuperation.  We had a whole house to ourselves just a 15 minute walk downhill from the village.  Perched on the side of the hill, with no neighbours, we had a view to die for.

The view from the deck

There wasn't much to do except enjoy the peace and tranquility, make the odd journey to the village for supplies and look forward to feeling better.  Quite simple really.

Taking the colectivo back to La Paz, we had the worst driver imaginable.  Oh, apart from the one who had crashed his van at the depot as we were arriving that morning.  Anyway, our driver didn't understand what the gears were for and seemed to have no clue when to change up or down.  The journey back up the mountain was a painfully slow one.  But at least we got to see lots of cyclists setting off on their journey down the Death Road!

On arrival in La Paz that day we took a taxi straight to the bus station as we were heading for a friends place in Cochabamba.  After telling our driver where we had just come from, he made a brief detour to show us the warehouses where the coca is stored.  We also saw some flat deck trucks laden to overflowing with bales of the stuff.  Yes, coca .... from which cocaine is derived.  The Yungas is the main area where the legitimate supply of coca is grown.  This they use for chewing and making tea.  It really does help with altitude sypmtoms ... apparently!