After Rio, our next stop was Bolivia. We landed in La Paz, the highest capital city in the world, at 3600 metres. The approach into La Paz was a beautiful one, with all the mountains surrounding the city. A total contrast to Chle or Brazil, La Paz was cold and damp and the thin air made it difficult to breath initially. In contrast to many other South American nations, most Bolivians are of native descent, (brown). they wear really colourful ponchos, and the women wear bowler hats.
The next day we arranged to go mountain biking. Downhill almost all the way, from the freezing cold of 5000meters to the sweltering tropical heat at 1000 meters. It took about 4-5 hours at the scenery around us was stunning, from what is officialy the world most dangerous road. 1 vehicle goeas over the cliff edge at least every 2 weeks. We gradually dropped through the fluffy clouds, and rode through waterfalls towards the heat. We`ve never had so much fun from 20 quid.
The nest day, we left La Paz for a more strenuous activlty, trekkimng through the Cordillera range in the Andes, and finishing it of with the ascent of Huayna Potosi (6088m). The trekking was easy enough, though the altitude made it a little challenging. The scenery was stunning, and we camped out for the next 3 nights, even though it snowed hard on the 3rd night. Our guide would make us fresh, hot food everynight for us on his stove, and a donkey carried a lot of the equipment until we started the ascent of Huayna Potosi. The night sky at this altitude was the clearest we may have ever seen, twinkling in all its glory.
The ascent of Huayna Potosi is the single most difflicult activity we have ever done in our lives, ever. The 14 day Mount Everest Trek done a couple of years earler didn`t even compare. On the night of the ascent, we had to be asleep by 7 pm, in order to wake at 11am and after having breakfast and kitting up, leaving at 12am. At this time there is a lower rick of avalanche and the snow is a lot easier to walk on (which we found out on our way down). Armed with spiky shoes and an ice pick each, we slowly made our way sideways up the steep slope of this beautiful but harsh mountain, the entire snow covered landscape surrounding us, brightly lit by the huge full moon, so brightly that our torches were not needed. All 3 of us, (guide Sheetal and myself) were connected by rope in case someone fell into a crevasse.
As we ascended, the moon slowly set after a few hours, and the total darkness waited for the sun of the emerging new day. The cold was numbing, with any exposed skin hurting in the extreme cold. The wind made it even colder.
When we reached on of the two technical bits, the suide went up the 80 degree slope first, shouting to sheetal to sart making her way up a few minutes later. The ice axe wouldn`t even pirce the solid ice when she hit it hard. after several attempts and a prayer, she started ascending the 50 metre slope. the higher she went, the softer the ice became, making each "crawl" easier than the last one. kicking our spiky shoes into the solid ice was painful, but we put every bit of energy we had into getting up there, in the knowledge that in we fell, we'ed plunge onto solid ice and wouldn't have a chance of survival. Very slowly we made our way up in the pitch black darknes, having decided to turn back before realising haw far we'ed come and how much effort we'ed put into getting here. we had to stop several times on the technical manouvre, gasping for breath as if someone had held there hands over our mouth for ages, struggling to breath in the ridiculous altitude. This was no place for humans.
After the technical stage we were welcomed by our 1st glimpse of the sun. We edged towards the summitas night very slowly turned into day, the snow showing a spectrum of colours throughout sunrise. Our landscape was absolutely pristine and unmarked whiteness, with icicles towering above us here and there, and deep bluish holes (crevasses) that we needed to stay well away from.
We were happy and disappointed when our guide told us that there was a high risk of avalanche so we'ed have to turn back. We came really close to the summit, only 150 meters away.
The snow became dangerous in the warmth of the new day. The top layer began to melt and made all of us slip many times during the descent, particularly Sheetal! Thoroughhly exhausted after 5 days of trekking with little food in the high altitude with our backpacks, we inched carefully back towards base camp.
It was great to get back to La Paz and check into a decent hotel. But there was little relaxation to be done, for the day after we left La Paz again , this time into the Amazon Jungle. After waiting in the airport all day, we were told to come back at 6am the next morning, because of bad weather. So we landed in Rurrenabaque on a grass runway the following day. the heat a humidity of the jungle region was intense yet comfortable, particularly after trekking and sleeping in sub zero temperatures. We the booked a 15 day jungle expedition on a canoe, going down the River QuiQuibe, a tributary of the Amazon River. After a 6 hour journey from Rurrenabaque, the bus dropped us and our two guides (Carlos and Melvin), canoes and food for 2 weeks etc where the road intersects the River QuiQuibe. We stayed with a native indigenous Bolivian family in a wooden hutwith chickens and a pig wandering along with the 7 kids of the family It rained all of the 1st night, turning the River QuiQuibe into a torrent, far too dangerous for us to navigate in our inflatable canoes. So we left the following day at 4 in the afternoon. 5 minutes into the 15 day expedition, one of us had already fallen into the river!
After passing over the dangerous rapids, our guides found a disudsed hut sitting on the high banks of the River QuiQuibe. It was on top of a sandy slope, up which we had to take everything, including the boats. We got out of our wet clothes, and had a refreshing bath in the River QuiQuibe while Carlos and Melvin prepared dinner and set up camp for the night. Our shelter for the next 13 days was a large mosquito net suspended over 4 sticks. After the sweaty night, breafkfast was impossible with sandflies, wasps and other weird creepy crawlies coming at us relentlessly. We had to walk around all the time while eating, continuously shaking our heads and arms furiously.
When we got to the really large rapids on the River QuiQuibe, we would all get out and Carlos and Melvin would drag the boats to the other side. Sheetal got stuck in the really squidgy mud, and I got stuck when I went to pull her out. It wasn`t all bad, however. We saw lots of unique wildlife, some that we had never even heard of before. there were Tapirs, Capiwaras, lots of birds of paradise (macaws, toucans etc), turtles and alligators obnly a few feet from where we were.
In the evening, we lay on the sand afetr dinner, around the camp fire. Gazing up at the southern cross, we also saw many shootig stars. We chatted about Pachamama, (mother earth), whom the native people believe in deeply. Carlos and Melvin told us about how tehy make sacrifices of llama embryos by burying them along with herbs and potions, and about the sacred qualities of Coca, the leaf that is chewed by almost everyone in these parts, though illegal in most of the world (you make cocaine from it). Coca leaves in Bolivia and Peru are used to make tea, or one can just pop a few leaves into ones mouth and leave them there. It helps with altitude, hunger and pain.
We went on night walks in the jungle, and saw an armadillo searching for food and monkeys. We saw Jaguars, playfully roaring and scrapping with each other. Although it was an awesome experience, the discomfort of the situation made us want to go back early. After 10 long sticky nights and days, we made it back to Rurrenabaque. It was a huge relief to not have insects constantly trying to bite us to death.
We then had a 24 hours bus ride back to La Paz , because there was a problem with the aeroplane (it didn`t take off).
After spending a month in Bolivia, we became pretty attached to this magnificent country and its people. It was amazing to find such a beautiful, easily travelled, friendly and inexpensive land as Bolivia. There were so many different experiences we`ed been through here that one would think impossible in the same country. Climbing 6000 metre peaks, hacking our way through dense tropical rain forest, zooming down on the bike from the freezing roof of the world to the stifling hot tropical greenery, meeting friendly faces all the way. Bolivia - highly recommeded.
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