On Monday, we left Potsi round 8.30 a.m. to drive 500 plus kilometres to La Paz. Once again, as is so common to Bolivia, the scenery we drove through was spectacular. Stunning mountain scenery through moss-green coloured volcano shaped mountains, steep red sandstone canyons, lush green river valleys and - of course - hundreds of hairpin bends. Then on to the Altiplano, past grazing llamas, sheep, and cattle. For lunch, we stopped at a very local restaurant in Oruro. It was a fixed menu with soup and a main course served with rice. It tasted good, but I didn't enquire what I was eating!
Around 5 p.m. we reached El Alto, once a suburb of La Paz, now a poor neighbour city. Our descent down into La Paz from the Altiplano was stunning. La Paz has a most impressive location at the bottom of a canyon with Illimani Mountain providing a triple-snow-peaked backdrop. The City is therefore all built on hills climbing up from the bottom of the canyon and is about 3100 to 4100 meters above sea level depending on where you are in the City. The population is just over a million. The streets are steep, narrow, and bustling with people, and the sidewalks are lined with tiny stalls and small shops selling everything imaginable from stationery supplies, toilet paper, material, toilets, doors, produce and meat. It just seems like one big market and the energy level is astounding given the height of the City. The streets are packed with cars and small vans. The vans are like buses, and a conductor leans out of the sliding door yelling out all the stops on the route the van is taking. So you can imagine the noise in the streets, let alone the honking of the vehicles.
Since Tuesday was a civic holiday, we decided to bike the Death Road - $65.00 US. This used to be the main highway between La Cumbre and Coroico and is considered the most dangerous road in South America due to the number of cars going over the edge. So, we topped up our accident insurance, picked one of the most reputable tour companies (out of about 20) called "Down Hill Madness" (http://www.madnessbolivia.com), and after being equipped with first class mountain bikes, waterproof vests and pants, gloves and a full face helmut, we set off. At La Cumbre we got out of the coach, and were given a pep-talk on safety procedures before setting off to bike the 64 kms dropping 3400 meters from about 4600 meters to 1200 in about three and a half to four hours of riding. The first 30 km were paved, and we mixed it up with the trucks, buses, cars and other vehicles for a fast downhill ride. Then we had about a 4 to 5 km uphill ride which sucked at 4000 meters above sea level - nonetheless, we managed it. From here the condition of the road deteriorated hugely. The remainder of the ride was on a one lane dirt road descending by a series of hairpin bends with plunges up to 600 meters to the valley below. The road, which is still travelled by the occasional cars, trucks, and buses not forgetting the tour company buses which follow you all the way, is in shocking condition - for a road - there were boulders, stones, gravel, and sand surfaces to contend with, and we rode under waterfalls and over small streams, through rain clouds, mist, and brilliant sun. The scenery was absolutely stunning, from above the treeline down into lush jungle. I was never scared, although many are, but treated the ride with an abundance of caution. It was certainly not for the faint hearted, but your safety was certainly all in your own hands and your limits were taxed to the full.
We heard horrible stories such as the Israeli guy who was killed this March when his bike went over the edge - apparently two bikes were passing each other on a hairpin bend and they collided sending the one chap over the edge to his death. Earlier this year another young guy decided to do the ride without a helmut, on his own at dusk. Needless to say he went over the edge. It took them quite a while to find his body and when they did, it had been partilly eaten by the dogs. Only a couple of weeks ago, a young girl passed out on the ride and is still in hospital in a coma. We believe she passed out from altitude sickness. Then there are the numerous cars that go over the edge, including a bus with over 30 passengers. So, you can imagine the ride! But we were very cautious and are now "Death Road Survivors" and proudly wearing the complimentary T-shirt we received.
After the ride, we had a fabulous swim, sauna, and meal at the Esmeralda Hotel in Coroico. The views from this hotel were also stunning as it sits above the town looking over the jungle valley below.
On Tuesday, we set out to explore La Paz but had to return after about an hour as Ray was not feeling well. We did manage to make it to the main square and went into the Cathedral where there was a service in progress. Once back at the hotel we discovered that quite a few people were not well. Not quite sure what it is, maybe a flue, maybe just exertion and altitude. I spent the remainder of the morning and early afternoon writing up my journal and preparing my posts for the blog. Later in the day we went walking through the city to experience the "street scene". We saw tons of markets, and walked down the Calle Commercio which was one long market. The stalls were grouped according to what they were selling - so all the sports goods are together, all the underwear, socks, etc. The material and haberdashery stalls far exceeded anything on Spadina or Bathurst in Toronto. The meat market was fun, and some of the locals had fun trying to sell us some sort of fish which quite frankly looked awful!
In the evening, despite the fact that Ray was not feeling a hundred percent, we (Robin, Ray and I) went out to an Aymara folk show with music and dancing. The food was not very good and was twice as much as anywhere else we had been (for example a llama steak was 89 bollies as oposed to about 38 bollies elsewhere) plus a $US12 cover charge each. Nonetheless, the show was terrific and I now have a CD of the band that played.
Tomorrow, Wednesday, we are on our way to Puno in Peru and our visit to Lake Titicaca. We will try and update the blog with some pictures and further info as soon as possible. Our 4 day Inc Trail trek is May 8, 9, 10, and there will definitely be no Internet during that period. So be patient!
Around 5 p.m. we reached El Alto, once a suburb of La Paz, now a poor neighbour city. Our descent down into La Paz from the Altiplano was stunning. La Paz has a most impressive location at the bottom of a canyon with Illimani Mountain providing a triple-snow-peaked backdrop. The City is therefore all built on hills climbing up from the bottom of the canyon and is about 3100 to 4100 meters above sea level depending on where you are in the City. The population is just over a million. The streets are steep, narrow, and bustling with people, and the sidewalks are lined with tiny stalls and small shops selling everything imaginable from stationery supplies, toilet paper, material, toilets, doors, produce and meat. It just seems like one big market and the energy level is astounding given the height of the City. The streets are packed with cars and small vans. The vans are like buses, and a conductor leans out of the sliding door yelling out all the stops on the route the van is taking. So you can imagine the noise in the streets, let alone the honking of the vehicles.
Since Tuesday was a civic holiday, we decided to bike the Death Road - $65.00 US. This used to be the main highway between La Cumbre and Coroico and is considered the most dangerous road in South America due to the number of cars going over the edge. So, we topped up our accident insurance, picked one of the most reputable tour companies (out of about 20) called "Down Hill Madness" (http://www.madnessbolivia.com), and after being equipped with first class mountain bikes, waterproof vests and pants, gloves and a full face helmut, we set off. At La Cumbre we got out of the coach, and were given a pep-talk on safety procedures before setting off to bike the 64 kms dropping 3400 meters from about 4600 meters to 1200 in about three and a half to four hours of riding. The first 30 km were paved, and we mixed it up with the trucks, buses, cars and other vehicles for a fast downhill ride. Then we had about a 4 to 5 km uphill ride which sucked at 4000 meters above sea level - nonetheless, we managed it. From here the condition of the road deteriorated hugely. The remainder of the ride was on a one lane dirt road descending by a series of hairpin bends with plunges up to 600 meters to the valley below. The road, which is still travelled by the occasional cars, trucks, and buses not forgetting the tour company buses which follow you all the way, is in shocking condition - for a road - there were boulders, stones, gravel, and sand surfaces to contend with, and we rode under waterfalls and over small streams, through rain clouds, mist, and brilliant sun. The scenery was absolutely stunning, from above the treeline down into lush jungle. I was never scared, although many are, but treated the ride with an abundance of caution. It was certainly not for the faint hearted, but your safety was certainly all in your own hands and your limits were taxed to the full.
We heard horrible stories such as the Israeli guy who was killed this March when his bike went over the edge - apparently two bikes were passing each other on a hairpin bend and they collided sending the one chap over the edge to his death. Earlier this year another young guy decided to do the ride without a helmut, on his own at dusk. Needless to say he went over the edge. It took them quite a while to find his body and when they did, it had been partilly eaten by the dogs. Only a couple of weeks ago, a young girl passed out on the ride and is still in hospital in a coma. We believe she passed out from altitude sickness. Then there are the numerous cars that go over the edge, including a bus with over 30 passengers. So, you can imagine the ride! But we were very cautious and are now "Death Road Survivors" and proudly wearing the complimentary T-shirt we received.
After the ride, we had a fabulous swim, sauna, and meal at the Esmeralda Hotel in Coroico. The views from this hotel were also stunning as it sits above the town looking over the jungle valley below.
On Tuesday, we set out to explore La Paz but had to return after about an hour as Ray was not feeling well. We did manage to make it to the main square and went into the Cathedral where there was a service in progress. Once back at the hotel we discovered that quite a few people were not well. Not quite sure what it is, maybe a flue, maybe just exertion and altitude. I spent the remainder of the morning and early afternoon writing up my journal and preparing my posts for the blog. Later in the day we went walking through the city to experience the "street scene". We saw tons of markets, and walked down the Calle Commercio which was one long market. The stalls were grouped according to what they were selling - so all the sports goods are together, all the underwear, socks, etc. The material and haberdashery stalls far exceeded anything on Spadina or Bathurst in Toronto. The meat market was fun, and some of the locals had fun trying to sell us some sort of fish which quite frankly looked awful!
In the evening, despite the fact that Ray was not feeling a hundred percent, we (Robin, Ray and I) went out to an Aymara folk show with music and dancing. The food was not very good and was twice as much as anywhere else we had been (for example a llama steak was 89 bollies as oposed to about 38 bollies elsewhere) plus a $US12 cover charge each. Nonetheless, the show was terrific and I now have a CD of the band that played.
Tomorrow, Wednesday, we are on our way to Puno in Peru and our visit to Lake Titicaca. We will try and update the blog with some pictures and further info as soon as possible. Our 4 day Inc Trail trek is May 8, 9, 10, and there will definitely be no Internet during that period. So be patient!
2 comments:
Liz and Ray-
You two are role models for our generation! How adventurous!
Looking forward to hearing more about your home stay and the Inca Trail.
Pat and Richard
Amazing. What an adventure. Can't wait to hear more. I'm on you blog every day looking for updates, but I am having some trouble posting comments. Hope this one reaches you.
Can't wait for the next chapter.
Lots of love
Cathy and Tony
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