March 8, we were all going to leave Uyuni and head to Potosi for a couple of days…while waiting for Bob to pick us up midday, turned out there were a couple of other folks that were interested in skipping Potosi in favor of another couple of nights in La Paz. So on a whim, Ryan and I headed to the area where they were supposed to sell bus tickets, and sure enough, for around $14, we would be on a 12 hour overnight bus to La Paz, SORTED!
Got back to the hostel and convinced Rachael to join us, huzzah! We emailed our hostel, waved off the group and spent the rest of the day phaffing about(British people—any idea how to spelling this? faffing? spellcheck doesn’t like either), grabbing food, trying Quinoa beer(don’t do it, it’s a trick, you have to chew the last couple of sips), watching Ryan get his haircut for a few bucks, and then stocking up on supplies for our journey(meaning cookies, crisps and almond snickers bars).
Bus was sort of uneventful? Nothing exciting, the seats themselves made zero sense(there was this thing that sort of folded down for you to put your legs over so they’d be supported at an angle, but it cut into the upper thigh even when reclined). We drove most of the night, not sure any of us got much sleep. I think if it had been daylight, we might have been slightly terrified by the driving, but as it was I was only terrified of the most disgusting bathroom in the world that we stopped at. It was upstairs from a snack stand, but they had two by fours on the ground so you wouldn’t step what I could only assume was sewer water, then up some stairs, and there were the toilets. Three for guys and three for girls…but instead of the doors you might expect, there were clear shower curtains as doors…well not completely clear. It was clear with sucks every couple of feet, so you could only mostly see in. Yay? Really wish I had the guts to have just gone by the side of the road.
We arrived in La Paz slightly late(more of a 13 hour journey), said goodbye to our awesome bus, and hit the road looking for our hostel.
It was an easy 10 minute walk away, and they thankfully had room for us. We spent most of the morning/afternoon showering, and hanging around catching up on sleep and internet. Rachael and I wandered around a little in the afternoon looking for snacks/quick food and finding a plethora of fried chicken stores…also noting that we were still at 3600 meters above sea level and each step up the steep hills felt way harder than it should have.
That night was relatively uneventful, we were still pretty knackered, but had some great hummos/fallafel for dinner, and found an English station on the TV to watch movies. Sad how enjoyable English speaking stations on the TV could be after so long…
Next day, Ryan gave Rachael and I an awesome walking tour of the highlights of La Paz, we enjoyed walking around the various streets and having a no stress kind of day, expecting the rest of our crew to join us in the evening.
Some things of note, all of the landscapes/little gardens in the roads seemed incredibly well maintained, San Francisco Cathedral is gorgeous, San Pedro prison sits on a block in the middle of the city, there were Chinese restaurants!!, and a cool witches market that includes lots of llama fetuses for sale.
That night we met the rest of the crew for dinner/drinks at an English pub, and made plans for the following day–March 10 was just another walking around day, checking out the markets, and getting a tattoo. Yup, finally bit the bullet and got myself a tattoo. Many of you may know I’ve been thinking about getting a tattoo for almost 10 years. At first thinking I wanted the word hope written in Thai(since my summer abroad in Thailand at 15 was probably one of the most life-altering events until University). Then realizing that was more of a teenage fad idea, and not something I was positive I wanted to commit to(because really, I barely was able to learn any Thai, and how could I be sure they were writing hope, and not apple, or something else equally meaningless?). Instead, I opted for an elephant–what I like to consider my spirit animal. Another thing I connect to that awesome summer(as they would wander down the street I lived on), the animal I identify with to bring me strength, and a gorgeous majestic creature. So we found one online I liked, and with the help/input from Gemma, Claire, and Rachael, redesigned one I found online.
So March 10, Rachel, Claire, Daisy and I set off for the tattoo place. I could only have one person with me as i actually got it done, so Rachael(experienced in being tattooed) joined me to hold my hand and make sure nothing fishy was going on. It was relatively easy…I say now. Seriously, the tattoo isn’t that big, but it is on my ribs, and what can I say, I was being a wimp? Anyway, incredibly glad I did it, and since then it’s healed quite nicely. 🙂
Rest of our time in La Paz was doing some price comparing shopping, grabbing Chinese food, getting slaughtered in Trivia night at the pub(but we started so strong!), heading with Claire to the doctor to get a fresh wound cleaned, visiting Rach at that same tattoo place as she got hers redone and hanging about attempting to do the free walking tour that apparently no longer existed, oh well! Most of the group did the most dangerous road bike trip…but given my massive fear of bikes, in combination with my slight fear of heights, decided it was worth another lazy day instead. Overall, turned Bolivia around in my mind a little bit after the salt flat let down.
Belated Gap Year 