As we arrive to our hotel on the lovely San Pedro square, we find out that it's directly across the street from the infamous San Pedro prison. I had never heard of it before, but our Australian friends highly recommend reading March Powder, a book about the prison and it's amazing sub culture. After settling in, we headed out to explore this amazing city.
I absolutely LOVED La Paz. It had funky art, great restaurants, and the marriage of contemporary urban with traditional Quechua ethnic. It's landscape was breathtaking, as was it's elevation. Despite thoroughly enjoying my time there, I could barely walk a few blocks without huffing and puffing. The steep city streets didn't help matters any. All in all, I would go back to La Paz in a minute and I definitely recommend it on any travel itinerary to Bolivia!
The National Congress of Bolivia in Plaza de Murillo.
Check out the clock on the congressional building!
The presidential palace, which is also in Plaza de Murillo.
A view of the plaza from across the way. This one includes the Cathedral of La Paz.
Some amazing street art done by Mamani Mamani. My only regret was not buying his art while I was there...I'm currently working on my internet purchase!
The witches market in La Paz was much less creepy than I was hoping. Though there were lots of dead, baby llamas, it was mainly lots of tchotchkes like these.
More fun little things in the witches market.
Seriously, the basin was FILLED with buildings. Each direction I looked, it was the same...homes and businesses as far as I could see.
The city recently built these cable cars that stretch in all directions across the city bowl. The people are thrilled because it cuts tons of time off their commute and it's much cheaper than taxis. We rode several lines and it was so exciting!!
As we entered the Moon Valley, this Cholita was greeting us. I love that I'm taller than her even with that huge hat!!! This was what most of the women dress in all around the country. The color of the band on their hat indicates their marital status.
This is Moon Valley, which is right near the city hub. The whole area is covered with formations like this which were caused by erosion and high winds. It's rumored that it got it's name because Neil Armstrong was playing golf at a nearby golf course and caught sight of this area. He remarked that it looked just like the moon and the Bolivians stuck with it and named it Moon Valley.
I loved the food in Bolivia!! This was one of my breakfast favorites! They're called Saltenas and are cornbread-like with a filling of chicken or beef stew. I chose to get the spicy variety...yum!
A view of La Paz.
Another view. I know the pictures do it no justice, but it was beautiful!
Mark and I hanging out at the viewpoint.
This is the oldest road and neighborhood in La Paz.
On one of our wanderings, we nearly got lost...but I got some great photos of everyday life and graffiti! I love going off the beaten path!!
Our last night in Bolivia was spent at Cholitas wrestling. It was completely ridiculous and amazing!
The ladies came down the stairs and strutted around. Then they entered the ring and removed their overcoats and hats.
Mark and I got a group photo with these badass ladies!!!
Sandwiched between my exploration of La Paz, was a quick trip to Uyuni to explore the salt flats. Mark and I landed on this tiny airstrip and were met by our guide. Picture a slight Bolivian man with jet black hair, spiked in the front with a full mullet. He is wearing aviator glasses, an oversized puffy coat with brown fur lining, and pumped up kicks. When he reached out and shook my hand, he took my hand in his doll-sized one and enthusiastically pumped my arm while welcoming me with his broken English. This was the exact moment when Bolivia turned bizarre.
Day one commenced with a trip to a locomotive graveyard. Our guide really couldn't explain anything other than there were many trains here before and now they don't use them. So, instead they bring hundreds of tourists here to take pictures with old trains which are covered with graffiti. But, after some research, I discovered that Uyuni used to be a hub for trains carrying minerals to the Pacific Ocean ports. In the 1940's when the mining industry collapsed, most trains were abandoned where they stood. In any case, it would have been a really cool location for a music video...or senior pictures...or wannabe glamour shots.
One of the locomotives in the graveyard.
My glamour shots.
Just practicing my deadlifts on vacation.
Mark and I were playing with perspective on the railroad tracks.
After that wild stop, we headed onto the salt flats. These are the world's largest salt flats at over 10,000 kilometers and surrounded by mountains. The miles and miles of perfectly flat salt makes it easy to use perspective and create mind-bending photos. The landscape looks amazing when dry, but we got to see a bit of it after a snowfall had melted and it was even more amazing. The water on the salt created a mirror reflection. I recommend you google Bolivian Salt Flat photos to see some of the magnificent shots taken here. Our guide did say that many Japanese tourists have started to fly in for just 24 hours to take photos and leave. After my 37 hour journey here from Japan, that sounds like a terrible idea!
A picture of the salt flats up close.
Mark and I riding a salt llama.
This is the small area where the snow melted and the ground appeared glass-like. It was tricky because all my experience with white ground is snow and ice. I walking lightly like I expected it to be slippery. It was mind-blowing!
Some fun play on the salt flats.
Godzilla riding on the range.
Hahaha! We had so much fun and took hundreds of pictures out here.
Some stops in the middle of the salt flats include the island of Isla Inca Wasa, covered with rocks, cacti, and coral-like structures. Another was the town Jiria which is located at the foot of the Tunupa Volcano. It was there that we explored the Coquesa Caves where there was a family of mummies over 1200 years old. Honestly, it was really creepy. The bodies were laying there in the open without being protected like you would expect after seeing other exhibits of ancient mummies. We walked right up the mummies and could have literally reached out to touch them. Again, through broken English, our guide didn't really have any explanations and didn't understand many of our questions which was quite frustrating. Even after getting home to research, I can't find out much information. At the end of the day, we stopped to take in the sunset which might be the most beautiful one I've ever seen. The sun setting over the salt flats made it seem like the earth was bending and the colors were so vivid! After soaking up the picturesque views and taking as many photos as possible, we headed to our hotel which was made from salt bricks. The accommodations were basic, but comfortable, even in the freezing cold!
It was so wacky to see the cacti out in the middle of the salt flats.
Me and my knee had had enough hiking. I stayed put and enjoyed the day while the others hiked to the top of the island.
My pictures do no justice for the beauty of this sunset.
It was absolutely freezing out here. To go from 100 degree weather in Okinawa to below freezing here was a shock to my system!
I loved the scenery here!!
The salt was so hard and rough. I thought I was going to rip my pants just sitting down!
We look like statues that belong in Cambodia!
The sun set so quickly...we could have spent hours enjoying the colors of the flats.
Just another stop along the way. This was part of the town where the caves were located.
This is the view from the volcano. Looking down, it was white as far as I could see.
A picture of Uyuni...the town that we flew into. This just gives you an idea of what we were dealing with.
Another shot of Uyuni. The roads were dirt and there were stray dogs everywhere. It was weird though...like a ghost town.
This was a playground near the mine. Everything has been abandoned.
The next day we returned to Uyuni and caught a flight back to La Paz for a bit more exploring. Our farewell to our guide was less than difficult. I had experienced more frustration during these two days than in the last month on the road and I never like to be cranky. All in all this trip went so quickly...probably because we were constantly on the move and because it was so physically demanding. I'm not going to lie, by the time we got back to La Paz I was exhausted and just ready to relax. So this is where Mark and I split ways, I headed to the airport to catch my flight back to Lima, then Atlanta, then St. Louis and he had another day in Bolivia before heading home. This was my first time exploring South America and I loved (nearly) every moment of it! I loved how the locals wore traditional attire, to include their neat hats. I loved how the food was so healthy and included tons of quinoa (instead of rice). And, I loved the landscape and culture. This trip ignited a passion in me that I have recently found lacking. I'm not sure if it's because I have primarily been traveling in Asia for the past six years or if I'm jaded, but after this trip I am more excited to explore the world and return to my globetrotting ways. I'm back bitches!!!
