We arrived in La Paz (elevation 3660m) at 5.30am. Once again our 13 hour bus trip was completed in record time – 9.5 hours. They really drive like maniacs here. Since we arrived so early we were forced to shiver away at the bus stop until 7am when we thought it might be likely that hotel receptions would be open. We ended up staying at a place near the hotel we were trying to get a room at (it wasn’t open yet). We didn’t care; all we wanted was a hot shower and a heated place to crash. They could have said it was $200 a night and we wouldn’t have hesitated in saying – thank you we will take it. Thankfully it wasn’t.We really haven’t done anything much here except shower ten times a day (slight exaggeration), surf the net and catch the elevator downstairs to drop off another bag of laundry. We have wandered down the main tourist strips and passed numerous stalls (the witch market) selling lama foetuses, stuffed toads and armadillos, as well as little packs of Catholic charms. An odd combination of stuff. There are numerous shops selling alpaca and lama beanies, scarves, ponchos, gloves – you name it and they have woven it. There is also silver jewellery galore and silver antique odds and ends (if you can believe they really are antiques and are silver. There seems to be an unlimited supply of them).
Yesterday we passed by a Catholic parade. Apparently the Virgin of Copacabana is visiting La Paz this week before she goes back for the festival there on the 5th of August (unfortunately we will have just passed through there before it starts). There were dancing people dressed in costumes, and a marching band, following a taxi around town which the virgin was mounted on. Fascinating and colourful stuff. We also visited the Museo San Francisco – the 460 year old Cathedral that is the city’s landmark. A rich Potosi miner called Diego Baena y Antipara donated 6000 pesos in 1743 which made it possible to rebuild the cathedral after it had fallen down a few hundred years before in a snow storm. We got to climb up on the roof for some pretty cool views - La Paz’s buildings cling to the side of a canyon and in the distance you can sometimes see snowy Mt Illamani (6402m) in the background. In the evening we dropped by the Coca museum to learn about the sacred leaf. It was really interesting except I don’t remember any of it!
Today we went to the Parque Mirador Laikakota (a very strange, half constructed park with good views of La Paz) to check out the view of Mt Illamani. We could just see it behind the clouds. All in all, I think La Paz is a visually amazing and very ugly city at the same time. I am not sure how else to explain it. At lunch we met a retired, chain smoking, Bolivian civil engineer (Spanish origin) who proceeded to tell us how he lived in Tasmania and worked on the Hydro Electric scheme and also worked in South Africa (he loved the black women), and numerous other places by the sounds of it. He seemed quite dismissive towards the Indians here, saying they should be knocked off the road if they can’t avoid your car. During the La Paz floods last year he happily watched fat Indian women float down the road and he believes that the crocodiles in Australia should be better utilised to control the Aboriginal population in the NT!Tomorrow we are off to Copacabana and Lake Titicaca.
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