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We have now crossed the border into Peru and so we have the rest of our time in Bolivia to share with you. After the Salt Flats we made our way to Potosi where we last blogged although we didn´t get to tell you about our silver mine tour there.
We hadn´t heard great things about the place so we weren´t expecting much but when we got there we were actually pleasantly surprised to find a lovely town with a beautiful church and square, a great hostel and sweet little cafe where we spent a lot of time!
The silver tour was brilliant, really interesting to learn about the history of the mines and be guided by an ex miner. We were also lucky enough to see and give presents to the miners at work. Before it began we were kitted up with all the gear: head torches, clothing, boots and neckerchiefs to protect us fro all the dust. Our guide was crazy which made it so fun and he was constantly reinacting the accidents that happened in the mines, collapsing in a heap on the ground of the tunnels and pretending to choke or break his leg! After we were kitted up and looking sufficiently ridiculous we went to buy presents for the miners. While being taught how to use dynamite we were made to take a shot of pure alcohol (at 9am) which the miners use to extract pure silver (all a superstition).
We spent two hours in the mines crawling around on our tummies. As we went further down it became hotter and harder to breath. We really enjoyed the whole thing and it was very interesting but after two hours we were happy to see sunlight once more and breath some fresh air.
La Paz was our next stop and we booked into a cool hostel where we ended up meeting lots more friends than we had expected. There were about eight Oundelians which was great. We had a bit of a spree at the market there but we did find that there wasn´t much else to do and the night life couldn´t compare to BA. So after spending two nights there we headed off on our jungle trip.
It was amazing as we arrived off our little plane in Rurrenabeque to feel the heat again! Their airport consists of a waiting room just off a grass clearing in the rainforest. We had one uneventful night in the town there before heading off on our tour the next morning. We had a long drive to the river where we met our boat and then a longer boat trip through the Amazon to our accomodation. Along the way we were spotting various birds, squirrel and howler monkeys and PINK DOLPHINS!!!!
As we arrived in our lodge we realised we had been put on the wrong tour as we booked Dolphin Travel, instead it was Inca Land Tours. The poor Bolivian guide had to deal with our complaints and confusion but we had great time all the same. While we were there we went piranha fishing although the clever b*****s kept stealing the meat we had as bait but managing not to get hooked. When people did catch them they were disappointingly small, they resembled gold fish. We also went anaconda spotting however in vain. We watched the pink dolphins swimming as the sun went down. When it got dark we went on the boat with torches to shine at the alligators eyes which was creepy. Poor Lucy got eaten alive my the massive mosquitoes.
Our final day was spent swimming with the dolphins which was amazing!!!! Toras dream!! It was quite scary as the alligators, anacondas and piranhas also roamed these waters, thankfully we survived that! We also found out later on that you can catch leprosy from the parasites in the water, fingers crossed!!
Once back in Rurrenabaque we went to have it out with Dolphin Travel and after a lot of arguing in Spanish they decided to compensate us for putting us on the wrong tour by paying for a night in a private ensuite room in a HOTEL and also paying for out supper out. We went to bed content!
The next morning after they had chased a stray pig off our runway we flew back to La Paz where we stayed another night, where it was Venetia´s birthday. Unfortunatly she was ill so it wasn´t quite as crazy as we had expected. Though it was nice to see the group all the same, Daddy/John Doug had arrived you will pleased to hear!
From La Paz we took a bus to Copocabana, our first glimpse of Lake Titicaca and from there we took a boat to Ilha Del Sol. It is the island where the Inca god is said to have created the sun, moon, stars and earth. While we were there we did a trek to the Inca ruins as well as the sacrificial table and sacred rock which had spectacular views of the lake and the snowy mountains behind. Two nights there were plenty and yesterday we fitted in a quick stopover in Puno where we got a boat to the floating islands.
The islands were so sweet and the residents, dressed in bright colours, sang for us and welcomed us warmly into their homes. We were taught how the islands were made. The reeds that grow there are what keep the island afloat. We are now Cusco waiting to check into our room in a fun hostel that even sells bangers and mash and shepherds pie!!!
We hope you are all well and after we have done macchu picchu we will be sure to update you all.
lots of love xxxxxxx
- comments
Peter Spence Love your stories. Godfather.
Jigs all the Koastal mini's are great little borads. My favorite is the Earth, I like the widness of the board and rounded nose to it. The Fire and the Water are almost similar except the water is a little bit wider then the Fire. So if your going back and forth between the Fire and Water I would go with the Water that board should work out great for you.