I woke up pretty early and went to eat breakfast - pancake buffet! They also had tea, coffee, and actual cold milk. Quite the miracle. I had some pancakes and milk tea and started my day.
The hostel at which I am staying is next to a pretty major street in the city. It's always busy, and during rush hour, it gets a little crazy. What I like about the street is that is has overhead crossings for pedestrians so they don't have to try to navigate themselves, and have random patches of little gardens everywhere. I found a little plaza of art that was tucked away in a corner, but it seems to have used recycled metal to make sculptures of various animals.
I walked to a main square, where the city's main church is. Pictures of the interior were not allowed, and overall the city doesn't come alive until about 11 am, so it was relatively quiet but very pretty. The inside of the church itself is much like every church I've seen in Peru, but the square outside is attached to a rather large market that I went to explore as well. Again, it was very quiet and most shops were closed, but there were lines of flower shops open with all sorts of gorgeous bouquets that I wouldn't mind receiving.
I planned to take a guided tour at 11, so I had over an hour to spend. I walked around the area some more and booked a Death Road tour for tomorrow (more on what this is in tomorrow's post!). Note about this - the hostel advertised a tour for 700 Bs, and another agency told me their offer was 750 Bs. I actually booked a tour through this tour agency next to the church for 360 Bs - we'll see if that was a mistake or not. In my experience though, things usually work out. TBD.
The cool thing about the random gardens in the middle of the main street is that you can see gems like Christopher Columbus - who doesn't deserve statues of commemoration, come on - in between a random bank and a hotel.
The tour itself was really great! We started off in another plaza (La Paz seems to be teeming with them) that was next to the San Pedro prison. Apparently the prison is famous for its drug culture (and creativity with smuggling), and people who are accused are sent to live there - even before they are convicted. People are considered guilty until proven innocent, but they can also bring their families to live with them to make things easier. The prison environment is a mini city in itself and doesn't have any guards inside - that would make it a perfect candidate for social science research if it were ethical.
We then walked through the regular market (on weekends in its prime, 5 streets shut down across 6 blocks to make room for everything). Apparently people tend to pick one seller and stick with them, and then get the benefit of the best produce/meats/products and a trusted adviser.
The tour led us to the main church and adjoining market again, but thankfully it was worth the trip because the plaza had a small group of what looked like indigenous people dancing, and the market had livened up. We stopped for some food, and I bought this peeled potato that was stuffed with meat, carrots, onions, and some sauce and then fried on the outside. It cost me 6 Bs (less than $1) and was delicious. Seriously, that thing is so genius.
We also went to see the witch's market, which apparently has all kinds of weird things. Llama fetuses (more creepy than you can imagine, but randomly hanging along the streets, eww), potions, and "witches" walking around approaching people and reading their fortunes. Our guides explained that llama fetuses are apparently used in building foundations as an offering for stability, and that certain potions have legendary effects (the "Follow me follow me" will have the object of your affection following you home if you blow some of the powder on the back of their neck, and the "come to me come to me" will help someone want to sleep with you). I'm not so sure about the consent aspect of these potions, though.
Our next stop was the actual main city square because it was next to the Presidential Palace. Our two guides talked about the tumultuous political history of Bolivia - including setting the Guinness World Record for most coup-d'etats in the shortest period of time. Apparently, presidents have been killed, kidnapped, hung, and otherwise brutally removed from office/publicly displayed in the area. It was quite disturbing, and a lamppost in the main square (from which one president was hung to his death) held a bullet hole from a shootout not to long ago in the area over political power again. I'm just glad that's not an issue now.
The last stop was a tavern where we were given a traditionally Bolivian shot (it tasted like 90% orange juice, 10% alcohol otherwise I wouldn't have had it), and a further explanation about the current Bolivian president in the more private place because freedom of speech is not as far-reaching here as it is in the United States and Western Europe. Apparently, he has done some good things for the country's development, but has also done things to try to increase the Bolivian population like trying to outlaw condoms, taxing women 18+ without children, giving bonuses to women under 18 with children, etc. Hmm.
I then went to something called the Urban Rush. Basically, you are tied up to a rope/pulley system and can rappel down 17 stories of the side of a building. You can also do a little bit of free fall during the last part. It's not overly expensive (I did it twice), and is a lot less nerve-wracking when you've actually done it! 100% terrifying at first, but without a doubt is worth it. It was super fun!
I was told that I needed some warm clothes for the Death Road tomorrow, so I decided to finally go buy a scarf. I spend the next hour or so shopping, and bought 2 cute and reversible hats for 35 Bs (comes out to about $2.50 each) and a scarf for 18! I am super excited for these.
There is a huge park that was blocked out in the map that I have of La Paz, and I wanted to go see it. When I arrived, however, it didn't seem that great except for a small amusement park in the center of it. I wasn't sure how it worked (entrance ticket, pay-per-ride, etc.) so I didn't go in. I was also running out of time before sunset, so I went to try to buy a bus ticket to Cochabamba instead. I had asked a random employee in the bus station about a ticket yesterday, and was told around 65 Bs. I went into two travel agencies today who told me 140 and 150. When I went to the actual bus station, I got one for 30 Bs. Granted, it's probably not the most comfortable I could have - we'll see tomorrow. But seriously, that price difference? Hmm.
Last thing of the day was Mi Teleferico - the cable car system. It works a little like a mini subway system. There are many different lines but they mainly are at the edges of town. There was a station (red) about 3-4 blocks from my hostel, so I walked to the station and took the cable car up. Since La Paz in the valley of many mountains, the routes go from the edges of the valley to the top of the mountains. As a result, they give spectacular views - and since I went right as the sun was setting, they were made even better by the sunset. Also, did I mention the round trip cost 6 Bs, or less than $1?
Dinner was street food - What? Why would you eat street food? Don't you know you're going to get sick?! - Well, okay. That is a possibility, but street food is the closest you get to what people actually eat, and it's also dirt cheap. I got this hamburger and a generous serving of fries for ONE DOLLAR. Also, it was delicious and filling. And I don't regret my decision at all.
No comments:
Post a Comment