15 January 2016 – Copacabana to La Paz

We sleep in.  It seems that earplugs block dog noise!  It also means that we miss breakfast.  I have a crappy breakfast in town.  Andrea is ill (likely cause was the improperly boiled tap water last night)!  Our Brazilian friends are also catching the bus to La Paz, so we are braving the trip together.

We catch a decidedly non-touristy bus to La Paz.  It is cheap, only 20 BOB’s each (about A$4.50) for a 3.5 hour bus trip, but no reclining seats, no toilet etc.

The scenery around Lake Titicaca is spectacular and would be well recommended to do on a motorbike or car.  It’s all quite lovely, right up until you hit the outskirts of La Paz.

The locals on the bus have enjoyed the trip too.  The family in front of us feast for what seems like the entire journey.  Andrea was decidedly unhappy about that.  She is feeling poorly.

The bus trip also features a ferry ride.  We cross on the last possible boat and arrive just in time, as the bus is readying to leave.  We do leave a bit earlier for one fool, who has to run and scream for the bus to stop.

Arrival into La Paz is extraordinary.  The surrounding city, El Alto, is chaotic, noisy and clearly very poor, although with surprises.  Buildings to host ‘special events’ such as birthdays, weddings etc are remarkably shiny and elaborate, yet are surrounded by half-built buildings or low quality buildings.  Traffic flow is by some unexplainable rules and forces – a miracle?

We finally see La Paz.  Incredible.  Huge.

We drive down from El Alto and are let off at a seemingly random place next to the cemetery.  In my first major failure of the trip, I don’t have the details of the hotel organised in my notebook, so we search around and eventually find an internet kiosk.  I locate the address.  We find a taxi driver who knows where it is – harder than it sounds.  We pile in to his beaten up station wagon – 5 passengers plus luggage!  My seat feels like it is only attached by one bolt, and pivots and wiggles all the way to the hotel.  Remarkably enough, the driver DID know where it was.  So far on our trip, he is the only taxi driver to deliver on a promise of knowing where the destination is.

The hotel is OK, although our Brazilian friends are not keen and head off.  Lovely people.

Andrea takes medications, rests and is very unwell.  Alma and I have lunch.

We wander the streets – we’re in the Witches Market area, which means lots of markets and is, on the whole, quite a touristy area.  The hills are quite steep and take some huffing and puffing to traverse, but I’m liking La Paz.

Andrea is slightly better in evening, but only slightly.

My earplugs are ready to go!