Happy Halloween from La Paz, Bolivia

Halloween as it turns out is not as big a deal here as in Canada, however, things seem to be changing. I see little plastic pumpkins and witches for sale in the street markets. Tomorrow of course is Todos Santos which traditionally has been a much bigger deal in Bolivia.

Tomorrow the plan is that we will be in Potosi, a very high elevation city. We will depart La Paz tonight on a night bus and will travel 10 hours to get there. In the meantime today we are merely hanging out on the busy streets of La Paz, window shopping, eating and going into the very inexpensive internet cafes!

I am in fact feeling rather glum today as I have just received news that my mother is gravely ill so it becomes a bit more difficult to merely carry on with our travels... my thoughts are very much with my mother and family back in Canada.

Since last I wrote, we travelled to the sacred Isla del Sol Island of the Sun, on Lake Titicaca. It is reputed to be the birthplace of the sun. Times have changed a bit since we were last there about 10 years ago. One now has to pay to hike around the island and go see the ruins. In fact each of the three small towns on the island charges its own fees of entry. It is still lovely though! Miles and miles of hiking accompanied only by the sounds of bird, donkey, sheep and wind. No cars on the island and the people still carry on a very traditional agricultural way of life. We spent 2 nights on the island, one in a hostal where the wind and sound of Lake Titicaca waves rattled through the wide gaps between the planks in the rustic door. The second night there we actually dared camp at 3800 m! It was good to use the tent that we have been lugging around with us hoping to save some accommodation money along the way. A tad chilly and uncomfortable on the rocky ground, but we survived. Our neighbours were a bunch of donkeys who checked us out with much curiousity. Here is a photo of one of the ROADS on Isla del Sol.

Then, onto La Paz, the highest capital city in the world and of course the capital of Bolivia. During our first stay with the family with whom I lived almost 10 years ago, the indigenous people striving to save the TIPNIS Amazon basin jungle park were also in town meeting with President Evo Morales. The only evidence of their presence we saw were the signs and grafitti around town, mostly expressing support for their position.

After several days in La Paz, we decided to risk a trip to Coroico, a small town in the Sud Yungas, the area where the Andes Mountains meet the lowlands jungles. I had never before gone as a trip there required navigating the Death Road, a road that saw a multiple fatality vehicle accident about once per month. It is a single track dirt road through incredibly rugged mountainous terrain with major drop offs. However, since I was last here, a new highway, paved and double lane, has been constructed. That is not to say all the drivers on that road are very safe. I did not take any pictures on the way down to Coroico because I was too busy clutching the back of the seat infront of me in the minibus, for dear life. The driver was, how shall we say.... un choffer loco... averaged 90 to 100 km at least all the way down, tailgated, overtook everything in sight, had almost one head on collision on a blind corner....

but the pay off in Coroico was a veritable paradise. We stayed at Sol y Luna Eco'Lodge, a gorgeous place which we really did not want to leave. We camped there 4 nights and slept to the sound of a chorus of bugs and awoke to the symphony of many tropical birds each morning.

Then back to La Paz with a better driver fortunately ... we have been here since yesterday and will head to Potosi tonight, then further into Bolivia. We are hoping for no road blocks. Road blocks are a very common occurrence in this country we are learning.

It is good here. We are enjoying ourselves and learning much about different ways to live life on Planet Earth.

Happy Halloween.
Happy Todos Santos.