Yes, yes, and yes. If you got the gist that I was pretty over La Paz at the end of it, you wouldn’t be wrong. Leaving the city was exciting.

We got on the bus and drove what was supposed to be a 3 hour trip but ended up more like 5 to Copacabana on Lake Titicaca. You can stay here but we had heard great things about Isla Del Sol, so when we got off the bus we bought ourselves two ferry tickets, and made the 2 hour boat ride to the island.

Isla Del Sol is where the Incas believe the sun was born, and after seeing the beautiful sunrises and sunsets – it’s almost believable…almost.

We arrived at the little harbour not having booked any accommodation, and were greeted by a man yelling ‘hostel?!’ ‘Si’, we replied and we began the 20 minute uphill hike to the accommodation. You can stay closer to the water but the views from higher up are worth it. Isla Del Sol is about 3,900m above sea level so the altitude was making the hike tough. The guides ended up taking both our packs while we wheezed our way up.

We had no idea what the rooms would be like so were blown away when we were shown to our baby blue cabana, with private deck, an completely unobstructed views of the lake, surrounding snow-capped mountains and sunrise. The best accommodation so far by a long long shot.

We dropped our bags, said ‘holy shit this is awesome’ about 10 times, and then walked up to find somewhere to get a drink. We crossed over the top of the island and found a little place where we ordered a Pisco Sour and a beer and rocked on little outdoor rocking chairs overlooking the sunset on the West side of the lake.

On our way back we got pizza – which was very average, bought a bottle of red wine and a Kit Kat and watched The Revenant in bed while drinking out of the bottle. 🙂

The next morning we woke to the first light of the day creeping through our little curtains. We both got up, rugged up (it’s very chilly), and sat on our deck watching the famous sunrise as the birds, donkeys and llamas of the island also woke.

We hopped back inside and watched the day unfolding from our cosy beds until we got a little knock at the door from a very sweet lady offering us breakfast. Our limited Spanish meant we didn’t really know what we said yes to, but turns out it was eggs, bread, jam, yoghurt, and coffee. We ate this on our deck, repeating the ‘holy shit this is awesome’ line a few more times.

After breakfast we chilled a bit more then headed down to the water to get a ferry to the North of the island so we could walk the 3 hours back to where we were – the South. Buuuuuut we got there at 11.30 and the only ferry to the north was at 10.30. So we hiked the 25 minutes of steep steps back up and did our own walk. We walked out to what was one of the highest points on the island and could see sparkling blue lake and snowy mountains in all directions – the area around Isla Del Sol looks a lot like Queenstown.

We walked for about 2.5 hours and headed back for a beer and some fries. The worst fries we have ever had. They tasted like fish haha.

For lunch we got some Pringles and a Snickers-  #cleaneating – and went back to our little paradise to chill for the afternoon.

For dinner we went with Trip Advisor’s number one recommendation on the island and it paid off big time. The place was called Las Velas and it stood on its own at the Southern tip of the island. It was very small with seating room for about 15 and no electricity, so we ate stone-fired pizzas and trout by candlelight. It was so delicious, as was the bottle of red wine that went with it. From our table we watched the stunning sunset be replaced by the most stars and one of the brightest full moons I have seen in a while which lit our cobblestone path home. It was such a nice night, that capped off one of our favourite days of the trip so far.

The next morning we were again greeted with breakfast, packed our bags and headed down to the water. We ferried back to Copacabana to wait for our 10 hour bus ride through the night to Peru!

So far, this was the most challenging thing for me on this trip. Give me a bungy jump or sky dive any day. Biking down something called ‘Death Road’ at speed, over loose rocks along a 600m drop – not so much.

We had heard a tourist died a week before we were doing it, and one also died a few days before Scott’s sister did it, soooo needless to say I was a bit nervous and I didn’t tell mum and dad I was doing it till after the fact.

We met our group for the day and were taken by our chosen company – Barracuda – to the start of the road, about 45 mins out of La Paz. We were given our gloves, helmets, pants, jackets, and bikes, rode around for a little bit and we were off. The journey itself goes from 4700m above sea level to 1100m. The first 24km was sealed road which gave us a chance to get used to the bike but also meant it was freaking fast, and a little scary when big trucks and vans are passing you in both directions. We made four stops on the way for our crew to regroup. Apparently most times they are waiting about 15-20 mins for the last people to catch up. But we were all within about 5 mins of each other. There were four Danish guys who literally didn’t use their brakes the whole time out the front and then four of us girls who were fast but cautious 🙂 Scotty was being nice at the beginning and hanging with me but then I said he could go and he disappeared into the distance.

After the first 24km we got back in the bus and were driven the next 8km which is uphill, to the start of the real Death Road.

I will tell you now that my jaw, my fingers and my forearms were already seizing up due to being so tightly clenched. Also, I had to keep reminding myself to breathe…

So we got to the beginning of the next 32km which is a gravel road with a sheer drop off the side. Hurray.

It was actually wider than I expected which was nice, but there were some tricky parts with a lot of loose stones, pot holes, and waterfalls landing on the road…

One of the girls in our group came off her bike and grazed her chin but she was all good. And a few of the Danish guys also bailed when they were taken on the single track for the last 10km. But they were fine too.

When we reached the end a clever Bolivian entrepreneur was there selling ice cold beers out of his chilly bin – the perfect way to finish.

From there we were taken to a cool little restaurant where Scott and I swam in a river while waiting for lunch. Then we all got back in the bus for the 3 hour ride back to La Paz, during which I found a little satisfied and proud smile creeping across my face 🙂

I really enjoyed Death Road and highly recommend going with Barracuda. Their mantra is ‘no bullshit’ and it really was. Stay safe, have fun. It was an awesome day out, and despite the stories you will most definitely hear about it, I feel like if you just refrain from being a dick, you will be safe.

Death Road – been there, got the t-shirt.

…literally, they give you a t-shirt.

We have just got back from a 3 night/4 day trip through the Amazon. There are many different tours you can do and obviously you can go into the Amazon from a number of different countries in South America, but for price, experience, and service I would highly recommend what we have just done.

We flew from La Paz on THE TINIEST PLANE. You can see a picture below. I felt quite claustrophobic when we first boarded but the fight itself was fine and affords some spectacular views of snowy mountains (which you get very close to) and helps you begin to comprehend the size of the Amazon as you come in to land.
Side note; as the air is so thin in La Paz the runways are extra long. I was a little worried about how long it was taking us to take off before someone told us that…

So we landed in Rurrenebaque to a welcome humid heat. That might sound a little strange but I have been quite sick with a cough and moving out of the dust bowl that is La Paz pretty much instantly fixed me and I had my first actual sleep since we left NZ. Yay.

Anywayyyyyyy. Rurrenbaque is a little islandy town on the Beni River. We were met by lovely Salim from our tour provider, Mashaquipe. I will say now that their service was exceptional – from the moment we landed till the moment we took off – highly highly recommended.

We were taken to our hotel – Hotel Maya – had a swim in the pool, had a few very cold beers and went to find the famous French Bakery everyone talks about. Yep, a French bakery in the middle of the Bolivian Amazon, who would have thought. Before we left Rurrenbaque I had about eight pan au chocolats.

So the next morning Salim picked us up and we met our guide Domingo and the two other American girls who would be with us the next four days. You can do a jungle tour, Pampas (which are like the Florida Everglades where you boat through little foresty canals), or a combo of both. We did the combo. Yolo.

We got on our little boat and travelled to our lodge. On the way we stopped at a family’s settlement where we made sugar cane juice which was seriously yum.
From there we arrived at our lodge where we were welcomed with cold juice (the first of many), and a delicious lunch.

We had asked if we could spend the first night in the jungle so after lunch it was a four hour hike through the freaking Amazon to some mattresses on a bench. We saw Spider Monkeys and Cappuccino Monkeys. Lots of awesome birds. Jaguar footprints. Beautiful butterflies. And my favourite part – learnt about all the amazing medicines that naturally occur in the plants and trees of the Amazon. We chewed on some natural anaesthetic and our tongues went numb. Sniffed some natural nose spray and my clogged sinuses instantly cleared. Nature, you so clever.

The hike was actually really tough. I think it’s a combo of me not being overly fit at the moment and having to wear long sleeve tops and long pants to protect from mosquitoes in probably 28 degree, 100% humidity.

We got to our camp for the night and Scott and I popped down to the river and bucketed cold fresh water over ourselves – it was magical.

Our beds, like I said, were mattresses on a wooden bench with mosquito nets in the middle of the jungle. We had a great dinner and actually slept really well.

The next morning we were up at 5.45 and off for a 3.5 hour hike from the camp but didn’t see too much. Domingo made me a back pack out of vines so I didnt have to carry my drink bottle. Classic Domingo.
We got back to the camp for lunch, then headed off with all our gear to the river. This was another 3 hours and on the way we visted Macaw Mountain where, you guessed it, is a mountain where lots of Macaws live. Again a tough walk with the heat.
We got to the river and put our bags in the boat to go back to the lodge. What about us you ask? How did we get back? Well, we made a raft and floated down a river in the Amazon. Complete with mini rapids.

It was awesome.

Halfway down we jumped off and swum beside it. Apparently ‘there are ónly small alligators in that river’ – quote from Domingo. Rafting through the Amazon on four wooden logs tied together with rope was a very cool experience.

We got back to the lodge around 6pm, showered, ate dinner, got introduced to the resident Tarantula that lives, lol, 20 METRES AWAY FROM OUR BED, and went to sleep. It was a full on two days. If you are going to do it, invest in some really good quality BREATHABLE long sleeve tops and full length pants.

The next morning we had to leave at 6am (lots of early mornings). We got back on the boats and went back to Rurrenebaque where we got in the jeeps and headed to the Pampas.

On the 2.5 hour drive I spotted a Sloth in a tree which we watched for awhile. So cool. We also pulled over for a stop at a very small village and saw a Jaguar skin hanging in a shed. Apprently ‘it’s legal outside the national park’, ummmm is it?

We got to where the roads end and the Pampas start and boarded the boats to take us to our lodge for the next night. As soon as we got in the boat we saw the Amazon pink dolphins – they are so cool but so weird. They got there by literally coming in from the sea and getting stuck. The pink colour comes from their diet.

Sitting on the small boats with a welcome breeze, after two full days of hiking I felt more relaxed and happy than I have the whole trip. The Pampas are awesome.

We were greeted at the lodge by smiling faces and more juice and were shown to our rooms. Our cabana was large, clean, and beautiful.

We had an amazing lunch (the food has been really good) Scott was happy because there was lunch dessert. Then we headed back out to cruise through the Pampas looking for animals. We did this a few times, and over the two days we saw heaps of animals.
Including;
Monkeys – lots of them – some of which ran all over our boat.
Sloths
Pink dolphins – One of the trips was to go swimming with them. The dolphins eat piranha and the alligator are scared of them, so if you are surrounded by dolphins, you are safe. We jumped in the river (this being the river where anacondas and alligators live) and had the pink dolphins swim around us. At one point we all heard a quick splash about 15 metres away from us and Domingo looked over. He then slowly started making his way back to the boat, not taking his eyes off that spot. We were worried. That night at dinner he just smirked when we asked if it was an alligator…
Speaking of alligators – the night of our dolphin swim we headed out on a night cruise and saw a total of probably 50 alligators about, ohhhhh i don’t know, EXACTLY WHERE WE WERE SWIMMING.
Capybaras – On the same night cruise right by the alligators we saw a big family of Capybaras which was soooooo cool. (Scott thinks they look like me, but they are the biggest rodent in the world so i’m not sure how I feel about that.)

We also did a cruise to watch a sunset and woke early (again) on the last day to see the sunrise. Sitting in silence on the water as the Amazon world woke up around us was a very special experience.

That day we did another animal cruise, slept in hammocks, had lunch and headed back to Rurrenebaque.
Right back to the French Bakery.

That night we stayed in a real shitter of a hostel called El Curachel (or something similar). Avoid it. But that’s all I am going to say about that because I don’t want it to taint what was a bloody awesome experience.

I can’t recommend Masahquipe as a company enough. And Domingo was fantastic.

The jungle trek was hot, hard, and rewarding. Realising you’re walking through the Amazon doesn’t get old, and staying the night in the middle of the jungle is pretty great. Also the rafting was epic.
The Pampas were so good. So many animals, super chill, great accomm and food. If you can only do one, I would do the Pampas for the animals. But it depends what you’re into. Also we have heard others saw more animals than us in the jungle, so just do both if you can.

Got back in the tiny plane, and back to La Paz. Keen to get back out of the city already…

From Buenos Aires we flew to La Paz, and the instant I got off the plane I felt dizzy. It’s not overly surprising as we went from sea level to 3700m above.

Luckily, the dizziness dissipated pretty quickly, and we were in a taxi to Loki Hostel. The service at Loki is really good and our room which is a matrimonial room (the name South American accommodation gives to its double bedrooms) is really clean and comfy. And the shower pressure is epic.

Loki is very central and the rooftop bar/restaurant/common area are has amazing views of the city. We are spending a total of 5 full days here with Uyuni Salt Flats, Death Road, and a 4 day Amazon Trip in between.

Food

So far we have visited a few good restaurants – the best being Kolkaditas a really cool Mexican place, and Mozzarella which was an awesome pizza place. We left a little napkin with our names on it under one of the tables there, so if you go, have a wee lookie.

Walking Tour

We took the walking tour of La Paz with Red Cap tours which was really good. The guides were great and we were taught about a bunch of interesting topics. My top two facty things were: 1) San Pedro prison and the way it works. If any of you have read Marching Powder you will understand our fascination. The guide pointed out a little hole in the roof where inmates launch baby’s nappies filled with cocaine out of into the public square, where someone is waiting to catch it and run. 2) The Bolivians believe burying a llama foetus under a building construction is good luck for future business as it is an offering to Pacha Mama (Mother Earth). But guess what Pacha Mama likes more? Human offerings. So if the building construction is important enough, one of the witches goes out and finds ‘someone whose family or friends won’t miss them’ (that was an actual  quote) preferably a passed out drunk or drug addict, offers them a drink which is 96% alcohol, waits till they pass out and throws them down into the building foundations to be covered in concrete WHILE THEY ARE STILL ALIVE. No joke.

Also there was a lot of really interesting political history stuff, and we could see bullet holes in the facades of government buildings. And the guide told us about this drug you can get from the witches market called FollowMeFollowMe dust, which guys can blow on to the backs of girls’ heads and they will go home with them. A couple of the Brits and Aussies and us, were looking at each other thinking, soooo a date rape drug?

So yeh, three things: 1 – Do the walking tour. It’s $4NZD. 2 –  Don’t try to catch a baby’s nappy flying from the roof of San Pedro prison, 3 – and perhaps most importantly, don’t pass out on the streets of La Paz, Pacha Mama apparently loves gringo offerings the most. Yuck.

NB: I am now writing this part as we leave La Paz for Lake Titicaca. La Paz overall was not my favourite place. The way the city is formed is like a natural amphitheatre of houses creating a sort of bowl which is very unique but it also means the pollution and dust are quite overpowering. That combined with the altitude makes walking around the city not overly pleasant. It is a great base for the trips that we did, but I wouldn’t come here for the city alone. We might have put too many days aside between activities, and did plan to go out but I wasn’t well so that didn’t happen. It is worth saying that I didn’t feel unsafe here and there were some yum food options 🙂