First day in La Paz the elevation head aches were pounding and every small hill felt like a marathon in our lungs so we headed the the roof top bar at the Raddison to get a good vista of the city with out the huffing and puffing. La Paz is a crater of a city where the wealth has settle in the basin with the brick barios crawling up the walls.
Restaurants seemed to only exist for the forigner, the locals clustered around the lines of street food vendors selling everything from fried chicken mystery soup, ham sandwiches cut off the pig hide as you order, saltenas (Bolivian style empanadas), leche de qinua, a yellow liuid with something that looked like a mix between a snail shell and a testicle floating in it.....while all was tempting we stuck with the saltenas religiously.
The presidents house square was plagued by pigeons
This restaurant, across from our hostel in La Paz, was like sitting inside an antique treasure chest, Every space was filled from floor to ceiling with someone's forgotten treasures. The greatest treasure in this place was the price...we indulged in 2 pre dinner drinks, soup appetizers, 2 big local beers, main courses of llama and asado, wrapped up with 2 aperitifs all for around 30 us dollars!
After what felt like a life threatening drive along the "deadliest road in the world", swigs from a bottle of local cocoa leaf liquor, bought from an old man up the street using his living room as his store front, was exactly what the dr ordered to calm the nerves and help us relax and ignore the spiders and centipedes in our swiss/hippie bungalow hostel and quaint streets of Corico.
Our new friend, Fernando, took us on a very informative hike through the cocoa and coffee field terraced mountains surrounding Corico. Other countries historical stories of what the US has been up to over the last 100 years varies drastically from what you learn from elementary school history books.
Due to the Bolivians favorite hobby of blockades, we had to take a side route to get from La Paz to Copacabana. Rather than a single large 3 hr bus ride we did a mini bus-rickshaw-walk-mini bus-walk-taxi. (When I say "mini bus" I am not referring to the short bus the "special" kids had to take to school. Rather its similar to a family minivan with seats for 9 but some how 15 snuggle in)
Our Hostel in Copacabana: kitchen, loft, floor to ceiling stained glass window over looking Lake Titicaca, open air stone shower....40$ a night!
Day trip to Isla Del Sol, easily comparable to the greek isles.
Lake Titicaca: Highest navigational lake in the world, largest lake in South America
Thank God for religious pilgrims! They always choose stunning places to pilgrimage to and thus paving easy walking trails for us tourists to enjoy a bottle of wine and stunning vistas.
Friday night entertainment in Copacabana...Cars 2 on the big screen!
Dance off Bolivian style
more hostel shots...did I mention how awesome it was!
Bus ride back to La Paz: driving along and the road ends, everyone shuffles off the bus trying to avoid stepping in the little girl who ate too much chocolate and got car sick's throw up, the bus drives onto a raft and leaves...guess we should follow it. Example of the Bolivian Navy (who can not swim) hard at work.
Perfect example of a mini bus in action
I dont know who he is but he's gold, lounging, mustached, and giving an enthusiastic thumbs up....i'll except him as my leader any day!
empanadas=fried bliss
awww I'm glad you made it to isla del sol! I loved it!
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