Cycling Bolivias ¨Death¨ road

Well first thing first... don`t panic....although it has the name ¨death rd¨, its really not that dangerous anymore as there is no traffic at all on the dirt part since the new road has been built. So its now more a spectacular dirt/stone road with some big drops down the side into the valley, which is used for foreigners to hurtle down on mountain bikes... fun! Mind you, you definitely want your breaks and bike to work properly!

I went with a fairly new Bolivian company called b-side, who had great full suspension bikes and friendly and professional guides. You start up in the mountains above 4000m and ride down to Coroico which is about 1000m... I think... thru snow to start then rain, a few waterfalls along the way, and finally end up at the bottom where its warm and sunny and shorts and t´shirt weather.

Anyway great fun, pity about the weather obscuring the views. Actually I`m a bit sad about leaving Bolivia... I`ve really grown to like it and its chaos. Only a week in Chile, Easter Island and then home now.

Another thing to winge about... dropped the camera and busted the LCD screen, so although I can take photos framing them is rather hit and miss now.

So I´m not a mountaineer...

One of the things which you cant help but notice here is some of the lovely snow topped mountains. I got the idea that after having spent almost a month in Bolivia and most of that being about 3500m, with my highest point til then at 5000m, that perhaps I was acclimatised enough to try climbing one. Well Huani Potosi is just out of La Paz, climbable for novices with a guide and at 6088m its not to be sneezed at, so I signed up.

After collecting all the ice climbing gear at the agency, it was about a 2hr drive to the hydro-electric lake (that along with the others below it supplies most of La Paz`s power), that was the start of the walk. And then a 3hr hike up the mountain to the refuge at 5130m. Well I was puffing a bit but felt ok going up. Unfortunately things got worse not better, with sleeping at this altitude rather difficult. The hike to the top is supposed to take about 6 hrs and you start at 1am to summit at sunrise. I ended up walking for about an hour or so before being completely stuffed... puffing of course, but also feeling nauseous, dizzy and then starting to faint with everything going black... altitude sickness - I think about 5500m. So I went back down with my guide and climbed into my sleeping bag, leaving the others to slog their way up and down. Judging by their exhaustion it was bloody hard work (but beautiful), and from my experience I think I´ll stick to walking around the bottom of any mountains from now on! Great view when the clouds clear though.

Oh well, I can now say I´ve hiked up snow and ice with crampons and an icepick, and know enough to definitely say that those who climb Everest are NUTS!

Lowlands

Santa Cruz

I flew into to Santa Cruz and found myself sweating profusely in the bus into town... from pleasant mid twenties weather in Sucre to 38 and humid. Thats lowlands for you.

Santa Cruz is Bolivias biggest city, and also probably the most affluent one, and hasnt much in the way of tourist attractions other than a pleasant town square. So I passed straight thru on my first day, and came back for half a day later to explore before catching a bus on. Nice and tropical to wander around, too much traffic would be my summary!


Samaipata

Straight from the airport I went to a shared taxi service to visit Samiapata, a nice town with some impressive hilltop rock inca ruins about 3 hours out of Santa Cruz. While I was waiting for enough people for a shared taxi, my big backpack dissappeared from where I left it. Stress. I found out from a taxi driver that it had been loaded into a taxi along with the bags from a large family group... better than being stolen, but with no way to contact them, I was left hoping to 1) catch up with the taxi onway to Samaipata or 2) hope that they´d realise and leave my bag at the taxi centre. Luckily I shared the next taxi with a lovely Bolivian couple who chatted to me and kept my mind off my bag. Amazingly we did catch up with the taxi and bag just at the town entrance... So how freaky is that- chasing your bag across the country.

Samaipata is a lovely laid back colonial town, with friendly locals, good food and of course those mysterious ruins. I met these 3 girls, and shared dinner, a taxi and tour which was nice. The site is definitely atmospheric, but odd with all the carved grooves, seats and recesses presumeably for mummies or offerings. Also ran into Miles after last seeing him in Peru!

There was also a small zoo which I walked out to, and found myself becoming the climbing frame for friendly monkeys and other animals... stop licking my knee wild pig!

When it came to getting back to Santa Cruz, I was planning on catching a passing microbus, but got invited by two merry Bolivian truck drivers to share the ride along with three Swiss girls. Service with a smile, roadside peaches and unfortunately for me too many bends which made me a bit carsick.

Villa Tunari

Theres this wildlife refuge run staffed mainly by volunteers that has rescued large cats, monkeys, a bear and more, that I saw on the internet. To be a volunteer you need to stay a minimum of 2 weeks so with that out I decided to drop in and have a look for an afternoon instead. What I found was a small town on the side of the highway and a lovely refuge overrun by friendly volunteers. Two looking after a Bolivian bear (endangered), and many more looking after cats, monkeys and birds. I spent a few hours watching and playing with their monkeys, and chatting to volunteers.

Cochabamba

On to another major Bolivian city on my way back to La Paz, and this one known for its large sprawling market, and its palace built for a tin barron. I checked out the markets succumbing to another woven blanket-rug, lots of fruit juices, and nibbles too. The palace was stunning with a gorgeous interior and lovely gardens, and rather out of place in Bolivia as it wasnt colonial style... supposedly based on Versaille. But it really showed just how much money was made from mining here... all imported marble, furniture and statues, silk wallpaper etc.

A few more photos when I get a chance

Sucre

Sucre is a beautiful white colonial city, with heaps of churches, convents, a thriving market, parades and a lovely green town square.

Since I was staying across from the market, I adopted the habit of getting myself a delicious fresh fruit salad and smoothy to start the day. And couldnt help but be impressed by the hum of this busy area... open first thing in the morning, and a popular pedestrian strip come 9 or 10pm.

I loved Sucre´s weaving museum, had to go back after lunch, and went back a few days later to buy myself some amazing hand woven pieces. I also checked various other museums, most of which were housed in lovely buildings.

And for a change of pace I went to see some dinosaur footprints... yeah, the local cement factory were quarrying when they uncovered a whole slab of footprints going up a almost vertical wall. It used to be a muddy swampy area near a lake apparently, but a volcanic eruption covered it with protective ash, and the plates tilted rather a lot. Odd.


And just before I was leaving, I ran into a wierd parade around the town square... dancing teenagers followed by decorated cars..


And I decided to fly between Sucre and my next destination as I couldnt face another overnight bus, and a half hour flight sounded oh so much better!