Latest Articles on Bolivia
Homeward Bound
Well after a month our time in Bolivia has finally come to an end and tomorrow morning we start the long journey home. Truth be known it actually started last night when we boarded the public bus in Uyuni for the 12 hour overnight trip back to La Paz. It was an interesting experience with the first 4 hours being over dirt tracks and through rivers, as you can imagine little sleep was had by all.
We will be back in the UK early Tuesday morning. I have really enjoyed Bolivia and would love to return again really soon as although we have spent a month here we have only touched the surface of this beautiful and diverse country. However it is time to see family and friends and to get some washing done!
See you all soon!
Uyuni & The Salt Pans Tour
Well we are back in La Paz after an excellent tour of the Salt Pans in the south of the country. The trek aside this was the highlight of the trip, for us leaders anyway
I do not have much time as we are preparing for the trip home so it will have to wait until I am back in the UK for the full details. In the meantime here are some pictures to wet your appetite.
Oruro & The Southern Antiplano
We´re currently in the city of Oruro in the Southern Antiplano area of Bolivia waiting to catch at train to Uyuni and our Salt Pans Tour.
Its a very different city to La Paz and much less touristy. Some of the group think that this means its not very friendly but it has its own charms and its great to see Bolivian live going on without all of the tourist faff.
This will probably be my last chance to post until we are back in La Paz at the weekend. The Salt Pans are supposed to be stunning so hopefully I will have nice photos to upload. After that its the long flight home, arriving back in the UK next Tuesday.
It will be a shame to leave Bolivia but I am definitely looking forward to getting home and seeing family and friends.
Project Complete
Well we finished the project this morning. The orphanage were really grateful and presented us with cards, a certificate and banner thanking us. The project wasn´t the best in the world but the team got stuck in and made the best of it. Hopefully 16 lads will enjoy their new dormitories.
We had a rematch at the football afterwards which ended in a 3-3 honors even result. I´ll try and get some pictures up soon.
We are now starting the final phase of the expedition which will involve us traveling south through the country for a tour of the largest salt lake in the world. It sounds dull but is supposed to be beautiful. Loads of photo opportunities hopefully
So as we enter the final week of the expedition we´re all tired but still having loads of fun. Hopefully the final week will be as good as all the others.
Ireland & England All Stars 3 - 2 Bolivia
The project phase is still ongoing and we should hopefully finish tomorrow lunchtime. There have been a few logistical problems with the staff at the orphanage but nothing the team can´t take in their stride.
Last night a team of us decided to challenge some of the locals to a game or two of football, a brave decision considering our altitude of 3600m. 3 Irish lads and yours truly made an all star team against some rather fit Bolivian players.
It was round robin and after watching the 2 Bolivian teams play we were feeling rather confident. However our first match was a bit one sided with the Bolivian side beating us 2-0. After a quick rethink we decided to change our tactics from a continental flair style of play to a more traditional British hard tackling game. This had the desired affect with the All Stars winning 2 games on the trot.
The All Stars had to withdraw at that point for a rest due to the lack of available oxygen but we quickly returned to the fray with another convincing victory. At this point there was no chance of further play as we were all knackered and we quickly slumped to a final defeat. However we left the field with our heads held high 3 victories to 2 losses!
Project Phase
Well we are now into the project phase of the expedition working at a orphanage in La Paz, helping them create 6 dormitories for the children.
After 2 days of rest following the jungle trip the team is feeling refreshed and enjoying being back in La Paz. A few stomach upsets remain but these appear to be easing so as we enter the final 10 days of the expedition hopefully everybody will be fit and well.
The one main benefit of the project phase is us leaders can cover the project in shifts thus giving the others time off to explore La Paz, something that hasn´t been possible to date.
Rurrenabaque & The Jungle
Well we´re back from the jungle in one piece and not a snake to been seen.
The flight to Rurrenabaque was brilliant and we had a 19 seater aircraft to ourselves. The initial section was quite bumpy as we flew over the Andes but the views more than made up for it.
We descended into Rurrenabaque airport to be met by steaming temperatures of over 30 degrees. A real shock after the cool altitude of La Paz. The airport was extremely basic with a single building acting as check in and departures and the baggage collection being off a trolley at the gate. This was when our troubles began, yet again! Although we had checked in 20 bags only 5 had traveled with us on the flight. As the airline only ran 4 flights a day to Rurrenabaque it seemed unlikely the rest would arrive so we headed off to the town.
Rurrenabaque is a frontier town if ever there was one with a combination of basic local services and tacky tourist shops. All our bags eventually arrived the next day at 10:30 and we boarded our jeeps for the 3 hour bumpy and dusty ride to the Pampas Park. The roads were unpaved tracks and it was a really uncomfortable ride but we all arrived safely and in one piece and boarded 2 dug out canoes for the 30 minute ride into the Pampas to our camp.
The views were breath taking with wild life all around. We saw…
Off to the Jungle
In a couple of hours we leave for our 5 day tour of the Amazon Jungle and Pampas area around Rurrenabaque. This will involve a 45 minute flight over the Andes in a 20 seater plane which should be fantastic.
The Annaconda and Cobra hunting on Sunday morning is less than appealing but I´ll try and maintain a brave face.
More details and hopefully some photos when we return to La Paz next week
Takesi Trek
Well we have returned from the Takesi Trek safe and sound, with lots of fun and games to report. The trek was fantastic with us crossing a 4650m pass on day one before camping at 4300m. On the second day we planned to ascend the mountain again to view some lakes before returning to our high camp. Days 3 and 4 involved us descending from the high mountains down into the Yungas (jungle type terrain) before arranging transport back to La Paz.
That was the plan anyway. The first day (Sunday) went well with us meeting the mules and muleteers (people in charge of the mules) in the Cordillera Real Mountain Range at 10am in the morning. It was beautiful high mountain terrain with glaciers and some of the highest peaks in Bolivia visible. We set out on the trek and ascended to the pass. Some of the trail was made up of pre-Inca paving which was over 3000 years old. It was awe inspiring to walk across this and think about the effort that must have gone into creating it and how many thousands of feet have walked across it over the years. That was for Maz and I, it was all a bit lost on the group to be honest.
We made the pass by 4pm and headed down to our high camp which we reached just before dark. Tents were pitched and food cooked and eaten before we all turned in for a very cold night
Day…
Copacabana & Isla del Sol
Well we’ve just returned from a three day trip to Copacabana & Isla del Sol. What a stunning place it is! After the hustle and bustle of La Paz, Copacabana made a pleasant change with its quiet streets and beach.
For those that don’t already know Copacabana is on the shores of Lake Titicaca, which is supposed to be the highest navigable lake in the world. You cannot see land on the horizon so it gives the impression of being a sea, although it does feel weird to be standing on what appears the sea shore and just shy of 4000m
The trip to Copacabana was fairly straight forward with the bus picking us up from the hostel. The highlight was the small ferry crossing on route where we had to leave the bus which was put on a small barge and make our way across on smaller motor boats. It was quite surreal watching the coach being taken across the 2-300m stretch of water on a flimsy barge, more so when you realised all our kit was on top of it.
The drive from the ferry to Copacabana was very reminiscent of the North West of Scotland, with dramatic landscape dropping into deep blue water. The only minor difference was the parched landscape, oh and the lama’s !
We spent the night in Copacabana before catching a ferry to the north of Isla del Sol. The original plan had been to trek along the coastline before taking the short…
