Mar 18, 2013 - Isla del Sol and Copacabana

At 5:30am on March 14th, a 10 year old boy came and got us from our hostel to take us to the bus we’d booked a few days before. Thankfully he was not the driver, just the escort to the bus as well as the baggage handler. We made sure to give him a nice tip :) The trip to Copacabana was short, only a few hours from La Paz, and once again the views were well worth the price of the ticket. Our bus had to cross a part of Lake Titicaca by ferry, and we were a little nervous for our packs which were underneath, but it made it across with no...

Mar 17, 2013 - Bolivia

To-day, March 6th is a big day. We are up early to check out and store our big bags. We are the first to be picked up by Estrella del Sur and have a complete tour of town as others are picked up. We go quickly through customs (Chileno) and are on our way up to the first pass on the route to Pasa de Jama. We are almost at the top when we turn off on a dirt road and wind around the 2nd volcan and see the Bolivian border--a small post in the middle of a dry arid spot miles away from the closest town. There are two 4X4 jeeps waiting with...

Mar 14, 2013 - La Paz

La Paz is the highest capital in the world, sitting at an altitude of 3,650 meters above sea level. We arrived early in the morning for what would be a week’s stay in this beautiful city in the mountains. We cheated death, found some of the best food in South America and had the opportunity to purchase dead llama fetuses. The week went something like this. Five thirty in the morning is not the ideal check in time for a hostel, but La Paz is a big city and we had nowhere else to go. After an overpriced cab ride (by Bolivian standards) we...

Mar 7, 2013 - Salar de Uyuni

Uyuni is a small town in a remote part of Southern Bolivia. It isn’t close to any major cities, yet it has 14 Pizza places. It’s main purpose is the launching point for trips to the Salar, the world’s largest salt flats. In doing our research for the trip, this was one of those must see highlight points. It was a bumpy, sleepless bus ride to reach Uyuni, but it was well worth it. Here’s what happened in our 5 days in Southern Bolivia. We arrived in Uyuni about 6am local time after a long night on the bus. Our hostel wasn’t ready for us yet...

Mar 2, 2013 - Corumba-Santa Cruz-Cochabamba

The words ‘Ay Corumba’ have taken on new meaning for us. Bart must have been talking about the Corumba in Brazil on the border with Bolivia because there were plenty of reasons for a hearty ‘Ay Corumba’ during our 14 hours in this town. We booked a hotel for this night instead of a hostel as we’ve always done, thinking that we could use the added luxury after 4 days in the wilderness, plus it was only $7 dollars a person, so how could we go wrong? Here’s how. This place looked like it was straight out of the shinning; dimly lit halls, paint...

Feb 28, 2013 - Checkpoint #2 - Santa Cruz

We made it to Bolivia!!! This is still another checkpoint,the next one is a real post! Here are 10 fun/interesting facts about Bolivia: 1. Bolivia is one of the wettest countries in the world. The annual rainfall is over 5000mm. 2. The world’s largest butterfly sanctuary is in Bolivia. 3. The Bolivian military recruit men as young as 14. 40% of the military forces are between the ages of 14 and 18. 4. La Paz is the world’s highest administrative capital city. La Paz is located at an elevation of 3,630 meters. 5. Bolivia’s Lake Titicaca is...

Jan 22, 2013 - Week 17 - La Paz, Rurrenabaque (Bolivia)

We left Samaipata and took a three hour taxi ride into the nearest town, Santa Cruz, where we had to waste a couple of hours before our night bus to La Paz. Santa Cruz is a big hot modern city, not the kind of place you’d choose to visit. The bus trip was actually one of our best as we had a cama (lazy boy seats with leg rests) although unlike on Argentine and Chilean buses you don’t get served food and you have to wait until the scheduled loo stops to use the bathroom. After 17 hours we arrived into La Paz, 2 hours behind schedule and...

Jan 16, 2013 - Week 16 - Sucre, Samaipata (Bolivia)

Our second day in Sucre we took a taxi out to the Mercado Campesinos with Hanne and Wim, street after street of market stalls selling fruit, veg, meat, clothes and anything else you could possibly need. The rest of the day was pretty relaxed, lunch in the central market and dinner with Wim and Hanne at a pub on the main plaza. The next morning we were up early to pack our bags and head over to the tour office where we’d booked a two day hike into the Maragua crater (thanks Ceri and Billy for the Christmas present!). We set out with our...

Jan 9, 2013 - Week 15 - Uyuni, Potosi, Sucre (Bolivia)

The first 3 days of the week were spent on a 3 day trip into Bolivia (thanks for the Christmas present mum!). We left the hostel in San Pedro at 6am for a 5 hour drive in a minibus to the Bolivian border, a different border crossing to that the tours usually use since the usual one had been blockaded. After having our passports stamped by a drunken Bolivian guy we were allocated to a jeep with a French couple and a Swiss couple. Our driver wasn’t overly impressed as he considered 6 bags for 6 people to be excessive luggage and moaned about...

Dec 29, 2012 - It's the same story the crow told me, it's the only one he knows....

Like the morning sun you come and like the wind you go Ain't no time to hate, barely time to wait Wo-oh, what I want to know, where does the time go?... Christmas day found Paul, Thomas and myself on a Bus to Bolivia. A somewhat crazy, last minute, not too well thought out impulsive side trip. The bus ride is about 3 hours and stops first at the Peru border to get stamped out of Peru and then you walk over to the Bolivian border and get stamped into Bolivia. Simple enough, huh. For most maybe, for US Citizens a bit more of a pain in the,...

Dec 7, 2012 - Bolivian salt flat and desert

Uyuni - San pedro de attacama 3 days of mind blowing , nature baffling landscapes. 2 Toyota jeeps held together by love and would probably withstand a war and 11 adventurers. Irish, Danish, Canadian, American, English and Dutch. Conversations ranged from heavy metal, torture movies and whose Santa Claus was real. Most of the time we were gob open ,noses stuck to the window at the undulating landscapes with some soft rock anthems.  The salt flats are perspective mangling bonkers and they build houses out of blocks of salt. The first night in...

Dec 6, 2012 - Uyuni

Uyuni About 7 streets worth of dust...... Just an overnight stop to pick up our off road tour in the morning. Another great market packed with unwrapped carcasses in the back of an estate car and baskets of wriggling stuff  sold by jolly short ladies in 12 skirts and a tophat. We found another shifty cantina which appeared to be the only rugby supporters club in Bolivia and counted at least another thousand stray dogs. ( the dogs in central and Latin America are everywhere - always at least 5 per street)  Big dog breakdown Uyuni: dust bowl...