Saturday, February 21, 2009
Friday, February 20, 2009
The coolest spot south of Havana...
Copacabana, that is.
In that little town on the Bolivian end of Lake Titicaca, I have never seen so many hippie backpackers in one place. As Sonja and I boarded the lancha for the Isla del Sol, there were even a couple who attempted to trade their "musical fashionings" (on Playschool keyboard and tambourine) for their fare. Fortunately we could enjoy the spectacle from a distance as they were on a different boat.
The boat ride took about an hour and a half including the delay when the little 50hp outboard stalled because there was too much weight at the back of the boat. It took them a good 15 minutes to get it going again, and we putted along at about 5mph.
The Isla del Sol is one of a pair of islands in the Bolivian half of Lake Titicaca, the other being, of course, the isla de la luna. Isla del sol seems to be a main destination for backpackers, mostly due to the temple of the Sun and the Inca staircase. The island is still inhabited by the Aymara.
In that little town on the Bolivian end of Lake Titicaca, I have never seen so many hippie backpackers in one place. As Sonja and I boarded the lancha for the Isla del Sol, there were even a couple who attempted to trade their "musical fashionings" (on Playschool keyboard and tambourine) for their fare. Fortunately we could enjoy the spectacle from a distance as they were on a different boat.
The boat ride took about an hour and a half including the delay when the little 50hp outboard stalled because there was too much weight at the back of the boat. It took them a good 15 minutes to get it going again, and we putted along at about 5mph.
The Isla del Sol is one of a pair of islands in the Bolivian half of Lake Titicaca, the other being, of course, the isla de la luna. Isla del sol seems to be a main destination for backpackers, mostly due to the temple of the Sun and the Inca staircase. The island is still inhabited by the Aymara.
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Coroico
We spent a couple of days at the Hotel Esmerelda in Coroico, a couple of hours by bus from La Paz. The road to get there used to be one of the most dangerous in the world, the "death road". Vehicles would slip over the edge on a regular basis, as the road was constantly being washed out by rains and landslids, and was only wide enough for one vehicle at a time for much of it. A couple of years ago now they finally completed the "new" road (which apparently took them over a decade to complete, again because of the landslides, etc.). So while it is much wider than the old road, and heavily reinforced, there are already major repairs underway in parts of it. The old road is now an adventure cycling destination, and you get a t-shirt that says "I survived the Death Road" -- a little tacky, if you ask me, considering all the people who didn't.
Sonja at the pool in Coroico
Sunset from a hammock
The vegetation
Sonja at the pool in Coroico
Sunset from a hammock
The vegetation
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
at 3600m
Well, today is my last day in La Paz, with plans to make it to la valle de la Luna (Valley of the Moon) and exploring the markets. Then packing everything up again for an early morning flight to Lima.
My time in Lima was extremely limited on the way here, as I landed at about 22:45, lined up through immigration, got my backpack, went to the hostel, slept, went back to the airport. The flight to La Paz is only about 2 hours, and Sonja met me at the LP airport.
Sonja took me around the city a little on Thursday, changed some money and things, then I napped at high altitude. The air doesn't feel any different here, but the lower oxygen levels certainly make a difference. Other than the odd headache and the inability to walk carrying a heavy bag, I don't feel like I've adapted too badly. And the coca mate helps. Seriously, that's what my doctor "prescribed". And carrying a bag wasn't too much of a problem, as Sonja acted as my sherpa :)
Friday morning we took a bus to Coroico, a sort of resort town about two hours from LP. Coroico is at about 1800m, so half as high as LP. It's also neat since it's cloud forest--that is, rain forest at altitude. So it doesn't get too hot, but is a lot warmer than La Paz, and it's a lot more humid too. Coroico is also at the end of the "Death Road" one of the world's most dangerous roads. It's a narrow track not wide enough for two cars to pass each other, prone to erosion and land slides. Fortunately for my parents, a new road (that took over a decade to build)was opened about two years ago, and the old road is now only really used by crazy extreme cyclists.
We stayed at a lovely little hotel with a pool (in a country where water is a major concern, pools are something of a rarity). Friday afternoon was nice and sunny, and we moved from lying by the pool to lying in hammocks, to lying in the sauna. It was really tough...
Saturday was cloudy/foggy/misty most of the day, so we alternated napping with the beginning of our own cribbage tournament. We were 2-2 by the end of the day. We slipped our way down the extremely muddy hill to go to a Mexican restaurant for dinner, accompanied by Paceña, the main Bolivian beer. The walk back up the muddy hill was also something of an adventure, since the municipality of Coroico is not very into streetlights. We took a minibus back to La Paz the next morning as it was still cloudy. I couldn't tell if it was raining or not--if you get wet in the middle of a rain cloud, does that count as rain?
My time in Lima was extremely limited on the way here, as I landed at about 22:45, lined up through immigration, got my backpack, went to the hostel, slept, went back to the airport. The flight to La Paz is only about 2 hours, and Sonja met me at the LP airport.
Sonja took me around the city a little on Thursday, changed some money and things, then I napped at high altitude. The air doesn't feel any different here, but the lower oxygen levels certainly make a difference. Other than the odd headache and the inability to walk carrying a heavy bag, I don't feel like I've adapted too badly. And the coca mate helps. Seriously, that's what my doctor "prescribed". And carrying a bag wasn't too much of a problem, as Sonja acted as my sherpa :)
Friday morning we took a bus to Coroico, a sort of resort town about two hours from LP. Coroico is at about 1800m, so half as high as LP. It's also neat since it's cloud forest--that is, rain forest at altitude. So it doesn't get too hot, but is a lot warmer than La Paz, and it's a lot more humid too. Coroico is also at the end of the "Death Road" one of the world's most dangerous roads. It's a narrow track not wide enough for two cars to pass each other, prone to erosion and land slides. Fortunately for my parents, a new road (that took over a decade to build)was opened about two years ago, and the old road is now only really used by crazy extreme cyclists.
We stayed at a lovely little hotel with a pool (in a country where water is a major concern, pools are something of a rarity). Friday afternoon was nice and sunny, and we moved from lying by the pool to lying in hammocks, to lying in the sauna. It was really tough...
Saturday was cloudy/foggy/misty most of the day, so we alternated napping with the beginning of our own cribbage tournament. We were 2-2 by the end of the day. We slipped our way down the extremely muddy hill to go to a Mexican restaurant for dinner, accompanied by Paceña, the main Bolivian beer. The walk back up the muddy hill was also something of an adventure, since the municipality of Coroico is not very into streetlights. We took a minibus back to La Paz the next morning as it was still cloudy. I couldn't tell if it was raining or not--if you get wet in the middle of a rain cloud, does that count as rain?
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