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What a shock to the system - going from the most developed country in South America to Bolivia one of the least!!
Santa Cruz is the second largest city in Bolivia. It´s set up in a series of ring roads and has expanded so fast with very little thought to the actual planning of it. Because of this the city really doesn´t have a true centre or a vibe to the place. We spent a few hours wandering around the main square, cathedral, and local markets but didn´t venture too far into the outer areas.
We took a day trip to Samaipata about 2.5 hours from Santa Cruz. We got a taxi for 25 bolivianos (about 2.50 euros for 2.5 hours!) each on the way there - great value!! However it did have one addional cost of pushing the car to get it started again after we stopped in a petrol station to fill up. Cars here are a little comical and the roads are down right dangerous. Unmarked speed bumps all over the place so big they would rip any axle from car or truck if hit at speed. Particularly funny (or worrying depending on how you look at it) is that they´re all left hand drive cars with the steering column ripped out and put on the passenger side along with the foot pedals just leaving all the gauges and speedo and a big hole looking at the engine and right where i was sat!!! There seemed to be a lot of cars and trucks along the side of the roads with tires missing or getting repaired, which we can understand given the road surfaces. Bit uncomfortable, none of the cars here would be allowed on any road outside this country.
The main attraction in Samaipata was El Fuerte, a UNESCO World Heritage site which was a holy place in pre-inca times and used by the Incas for ceremonies. The altitude was only about 2000 metres but the view of the surrounding areas from El Fuerte was outstanding as its just at the base of the Andes. We walked a 2km circuit around the ruins to see all the remains and the impressive carvings on the huge rock surface dating back to the Incans. Some were not visible from the viewing platforms that they have constructed sadly. Up until about 5 years ago people were allowed to just walk over this scared place to examine whatever they liked but too many people started leaving their own names and symbols carved into the rock ruining it for everyone else. It was amazing to see the hollows carved out of the rock most likely done to house statues of gods or elders.
We also had a bit of a run in with the local wildlife and encountered our first live wild snake on the path around the site. It was very quiet up there with only one group following us so we were a little surprised by our vistor but the snake just decided to leave us be and headed off into the bush again. As well as the wildlife the locals in their traditional dress were everywhere, women with long plaits, fancy hats and bright skirts and even brighter cloths strapped around them fastening their babies to them. It´s great to se that the traditional dress is actually worn and not just for tourists.
We made it back in one piece to Santa Cruz and headed straight for some home comfort in the cinema. A brief glimpse of normal life!
After seeing the roads and hearing the bus ride was 18 hours to Sucre (our next stop) we decided to fly - only 30mins and 30 euros each - bargain!!
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