Feb 28, 2018
Like many big cities, traffic is a major issue. La Paz is no different. What was supposed to be an 11 hour bus ride turned into a 13 hour ride. It was also very easy to know we had arrived or at least were making our way to the city. Looking out through the window, you would see smog, grey clouds of pollution, and if lucky a small opening in the polluted air could be seen a somewhat blue sky.
After the night bus to La Paz, I allowed myself 2 whole days in the city. After checking in to the hostel, I headed out to the San Francisco church nearby. The big space in front of it was filled with people. I booked a walking city tour for the afternoon and asked the lady what was happening. She told me there was a blood drive happening. I thought to myself, wow that’s an amazing turn out. I soon found out however, that it was no blood drive. It was the gathering point for a protest happening a bit later. I was not sure what the protest was about but I noticed that most participants were indigenous women, all wearing traditional dresses and most carrying babies on their back.
The walking tour was very interesting and definitely a must in the bustling city. My favourite part was the story of San Pedro prison. Around 10 years ago, tourists could have the chance of visiting inside the prison. It was never an official tour, but got to be known through word of mouth. Inmates would be the tour guides. Somehow, it was rated as the #1 thing to do in La Paz according to the Lonely Planet. As the story goes, an inmate was giving a tour when another confronted him. The inmate giving the tour left the group of tourists so they tried to get out on their own and very soon lost their way. The guard didn’t remember a tour was going on and the tourists stayed wandering in the prison for 3 days. The tourists finally got out through the involvement of their embassies. Since then, only people holding Bolivian ID are allowed inside. Another fun fact was that the Coca-cola company held a monopoly in the prison for food delivery. The government did not provide food (illegal but it’s South America) and no company wanted to be seen doing business with a prison. Coca-Cola saw it as just another business opportunity. Nowadays, every Saturday, there is a Coca-Cola truck parked in front. There are many other stories to the prison just as entertaining, which makes it very easy to understand why it’s a popular tourist spot.
Mar 1, 2018
My second day in La Paz was a full day tour down the infamous Death Road, or Yungus Road, on mountain bike. The 1st part of the biking was on paved road, just to get acclimated to the bike. It was pouring and freezing cold during this part. Finally, the real mountain biking and fun began in the 2nd part. The whole part is downhill, giving the best adrenaline rush for those brave enough to go fast. I was very cautious at first, going slowly to avoid bumps and rocks. Letting that fear go made for the best and funnest ride. I was soon going down full speed, bouncing on the shocks constantly. The road, being on the edge of the jungle, is also in a completely different climate. Even though it was foggy that day, it did not take away the beauty of the green plants and waterfalls covering every inch of the mountains. The day ended at a hotel in the jungle for lunch, a swim and an amazing hot shower before a 4-hour ride back to the city.
I did some packing before an early bed time for a morning bus ride to Copacabana, where I would continue on a boat to Isla del Sol.