My border crossing experience was interesting (aren´t they all?). I had no problems finding the border and gtting my exit stamp but once over on the Bolivia side I stood in a line for 45 minutes waiting for it to move just a little and wondering why no other travelers were there. Luckily I decided to ask the immigration police for a form and he told me that I did not need to wait in that line and I breezed into Bolivia. I bought a ticket for the next bus to Tupiza and went to check on train tickets for the next day. That was when I discovered there was a strike in Uyuni and no buese were running. That was upsetting because it meant I had to take a bus through Potosi and add about 8 hours of travel time to get to La Paz.
I got to Tupiza after 3 hours on a shaky, dusty bus on unpaved roads and was met at the bus station by Ken who I had traveled with in Bolivia. After I checked in and freshened up, we headed out for food and drinks and ran into Laura from New Zealand who I had met in Mendoza. Small world. The three of us went for dinner and drinks and ran into Ken´s German friends and an Austrian guy I met on the bus. So we all hung out for awhile and then Ken and I decided to check out the local nightlife for a bit. The next morning Ken and the Germans headed for Uyuni. I gave the train station one last shot and found out that the trains were back on! So I booked a ticket and spent the day lazing around Tupiza (I had been there previously so didn´t need to check out the tourist sites). I splurged for "executive class" on the train. Once on I was reminded that I was back in Bolivia as "executive class" had more comfortable, smallish chairs that reclined a bit. It did not include food (and apparently you cannot bring any on) but did include blankets and heat which I was VERY thankful for that night- it was freezing!
The next morning I arrived in Oruro and took a bus to La Paz. I wandered around and booked into a little hotel and booked a tour for Monday. The tour was terrific! We drove up to close to the top of Chacaltaya Mountain (5450 meters- 17,895 feet) and hiked up to the peaks. The views were terrific! We could see Illumani (tallest in Bolivia) and Waima Potosi as well as others. After the mountain we headed south of La Paz to Valle de la Luna which is named Valley of the Moon because the white rocks and formations look like the moon´s surface. Awesome day! I got back to La Paz and moved to a hostel to meet more people and then booked a trek for today. Today I hiked for over 4 hours to alpine lakes with more terrific mountain views. Pretty good couple of days!
Anyway, this is a quick update and I am trying to keep them shorter. Ciao for now!
I got to Tupiza after 3 hours on a shaky, dusty bus on unpaved roads and was met at the bus station by Ken who I had traveled with in Bolivia. After I checked in and freshened up, we headed out for food and drinks and ran into Laura from New Zealand who I had met in Mendoza. Small world. The three of us went for dinner and drinks and ran into Ken´s German friends and an Austrian guy I met on the bus. So we all hung out for awhile and then Ken and I decided to check out the local nightlife for a bit. The next morning Ken and the Germans headed for Uyuni. I gave the train station one last shot and found out that the trains were back on! So I booked a ticket and spent the day lazing around Tupiza (I had been there previously so didn´t need to check out the tourist sites). I splurged for "executive class" on the train. Once on I was reminded that I was back in Bolivia as "executive class" had more comfortable, smallish chairs that reclined a bit. It did not include food (and apparently you cannot bring any on) but did include blankets and heat which I was VERY thankful for that night- it was freezing!
The next morning I arrived in Oruro and took a bus to La Paz. I wandered around and booked into a little hotel and booked a tour for Monday. The tour was terrific! We drove up to close to the top of Chacaltaya Mountain (5450 meters- 17,895 feet) and hiked up to the peaks. The views were terrific! We could see Illumani (tallest in Bolivia) and Waima Potosi as well as others. After the mountain we headed south of La Paz to Valle de la Luna which is named Valley of the Moon because the white rocks and formations look like the moon´s surface. Awesome day! I got back to La Paz and moved to a hostel to meet more people and then booked a trek for today. Today I hiked for over 4 hours to alpine lakes with more terrific mountain views. Pretty good couple of days!
Anyway, this is a quick update and I am trying to keep them shorter. Ciao for now!
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