La Paz, Bolivia – disappointments and unexpected delights
My 10 days in La Paz, Bolivia were full of unexpected delights and interesting lessons with a dose of disappointment. My initial reason in travelling to Bolivia was to visit the Uyuni Salt Flat. The Salar de Uyuni (Spanish) is the world’s largest salt flat. The Salar de Uyuni is the result of a prehistoric lake going dry, leaving behind a desert like landscape of bright-white salt and rock formations. Over 10,00 square km, it can look like you’re standing on a never-ending mirror in the rainy season. Many have called it the most other-worldly place on earth. And I have read a few times that if you visit Bolivia but do not visit Salar de Uyuni, then you haven’t really been to Bolivia. So, let me share some thoughts and experiences on La Paz, even though some may consider that I never really visited Bolivia 😉
Disappointment
But first, the disappointment, which was obviously the fact that I did not visit Salar de Uyuni. I actually had a tour booked from La Paz to Uyuni, before I even had my bus booked from Peru to Bolivia. I was so excited but sadly, it was not to be. In all of my travels, I have been lucky to stay quite healthy. Considering all of the planes, buses, hostels and homestays, I have been very, very lucky. I have only been sick 3 times (well 4 now, including Bolivia) in the past 20+ months of living as a nomad. It is actually quite interesting, as 2 of those times have been in Canada (providing some anecdotal evidence that illness is related to stress).
Regardless, I have been lucky in my travels and rarely ill. And I have not taken as many precautions as a lot of travelers take, regarding what they eat and drink. I know that many people are wary of eating certain foods in different countries or drinking tap water. For many reasons, I have been pretty open at eating almost anything. I do take some precautions with drinking water – if the locals drink tap water, then I do too. And if they don’t, then I don’t. I am still not sure what I ate or drank the day before I was to leave for my tour of the salt flats. But I definitely ate or drank something. I have had food poisoning before and this was like food poisoning on steroids. And so I missed out on visiting Salar de Uyuni, which had been my main reason for visiting Bolivia.
Silver Linings
However, as always, there are silver linings to be found. Truthfully, I do not know what the silver lining is for the food poisoning incident and missing that ‘would have been amazing’ tour. However, I am still grateful to have gone to Bolivia. I had the most relaxing and unexpectedly fun time in Copacabana and a couple of really, wonderful experiences in La Paz. I also met the most beautiful tour guide during my time in La Paz. And I had 2 of my favorite afternoons exploring the city, via the cable car system. Also, missing the Uyuni Salt Flat gives me one more reason to go back to South America and explore some more, especially now that I know what to not to do when crossing borders.
One of the interesting things about my time in La Paz was embracing a ‘beginner’ mindset again, in terms of travel. In Cusco, I had gotten quite familiar with the neighborhoods and people and their way of life. Every city has a different feel to it. You may not always notice, but there are patterns that you become accustomed to in each place. And when you travel all the time, you become very comfortable with always feeling uncomfortable. You are hyper aware of your surroundings and that feeling becomes normal. When you become comfortable someplace, as I did in Cusco, you lose that hyper awareness.
My first day in La Paz I set off to explore and was surprised to feel both unsure and uncomfortable. I had forgotten, a little, the initial unease and uncertainty of wandering unknown streets. My time in Cusco had dulled my aptitude for being uncomfortable. It took a couple of hours to settle into the unknown again. But then I started noticing all of the differences, all of the interesting people & markets, the fact that the streets bustled more with locals than tourists. I began to remember how much I loved discovering someplace new.
Unexpected delights
One of the most delightful things about my time in La Paz was my tour with Arecely. Aracely was a local Aymara woman – kind, passionate about her city and her people, and a wonderful representation of the the Aymara people. The Aymara are a fascinating mix of old and new. They embrace technology, science and tourists but also hold firm to their traditional beliefs and many, many superstitions. And Arecely is not only a tour guide. She is also a soon-to-be lawyer, passionate about land claims and indigenous property rights. She was equally passionate about being chosen within her family and community to become the next yatiri, a spiritual healer and guide. I spent the most delightful day with her and Bean, an interesting man from Belgium and learned so much.
The tour itself was excellent (and the best tour that I have ever booked through Airbnb.) We started out at the Coca Museum, located on the beautiful Calle Linares. The Coca Museum is a unique museum dedicated to the notorious and controversial coca leaf. It is most known as the ingredient responsible for cocaine and there is definitely an interesting and colorful history of cocaine in Bolivia. But there are many spiritual and medicinal uses for the coca leaf as well and Aracely was happy to share all of her traditional knowledge.
We also visited El Mercado de Las Brujas, otherwise known as the Witches Market. It is home to yatiris, spiritual workers and fortune tellers. The shops sell an amazing assortment of charms, potions, omens, alters and yes, even dried llamas that are used for important religious ceremonies. (I was relieved to hear that they only use ones that have died naturally.)
Aracely then took us on my first cable car ride so we could visit Valle de La Luna, an incredible geological formation on the outskirts of La Paz. It used to be a place of Aymara rituals and it was stark and beautiful. I was really lucky as Aracely offered to perform a small ceremony for Bean and I, which I will never forget. She then taught me a traditional dance and we ended the tour with some silly and joyful dancing. This was honestly one of the most magical days that I have ever had. Some people just imprint themselves on your heart and I will never forget Aracely and her magical spirit.
La Paz offered more delights including 2 afternoons exploring all of the different neighborhoods via the cable cars. La Paz has the longest cable car system in the world called Mi Teleférico. The system consists of 26 stations along ten different lines and connects all parts of La Paz, including the high suburb of El Alto. It was relatively easy to figure out and provided the most amazing views of the entire city, as well as surrounding areas. La Paz is incredible to see from above as it is such an interesting of mix of traditional markets, colonial buildings and modern glass skyscrapers. It is also surrounded by two mountain range with peaks above 6,000 meters. Between these two ranges lies the Altiplano, the second most extensive area of high plateau in the world. It really was an unexpected wonder, the city of La Paz – full of beauty, character and history.
Challenges
One of the challenges (that honestly was still a delight in many ways) was my awesome little condo. I found a wonderful, very large apartment through Airbnb which had everything I needed and more. The view was an unexpected delight, as was the hot water supply. The challenge was the area. Affordable Airbnbs are not always in the most convenient neighborhoods. It was over an hour walk to get to most places that I wanted to go. I love walking and I am not often bothered walking alone at night. However a few locals warned me to not walk in the neighboring neighborhood after dark. And while I do not subscribe to the idea that a poor neighborhood equals a ‘bad’ neighborhood, I respected the locals’ warnings and came home before dark most evenings.
I think it was still worth it though. The apartment had great Wi-Fi so no issues teaching. It also had enough room for a yoga mat, a full kitchen and that awesome view of the Illimani mountain. However, it is something that can be challenging when travelling solo and on a budget, especially if you require privacy and good Wi-Fi. I think it would be a rare find to come across something affordable, private with good Wi-Fi and in a convenient location. And for me, the first 3 always win out.
A few other things to note if you are travelling to La Paz. First, the food is incredibly cheap and delicious so being your extra roomy pants. Be prepared as there are an unexpected amount of parades and celebrations. Very few ATMs actually have cash in them so do not panic when your card is repeatedly rejected – it’s not you, it’s them. And sadly, there are very few well-dressed dogs in Bolivia although several plazas were overflowing with pigeons. Despite missing out on the incredible salt flats, I feel very lucky to have spent some time in Bolivia. (Also if you would like to hear how NOT to cross the Peru-Bolivia border, check out my blog about Bolivia and the nomad life 😉
https://www.airbnb.ca/experiences/3899334 This is for the wonderful La Paz experience with Aracely. Please if you book her tour, say hi from Pamela from Canada!
https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/museo-de-la-coca Link to the fascinating Coca Museum
https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/moon-valley The Valley of the Moon – actually named by Neil Armstrong 🙂
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/travel/article/how-to-see-salar-de-uyuni-salt-flats-bolivia A link to Salar de Uyuni
Love reading these entries. You have the BEST attitude ever. Thanks for sharing and inspiring.