Samaipata

01.06. - 06.07.11

The beautiful village of SAMAIPATA (1.650m) is set in the stunning wilderness in the foothills of the CORDILLERA ORIENTAL in Bolivia. A perfect base to chill, hike or explore the numerous sights e.g. the mystical pre-Inca site of "El Fuerte".

I left Santa Cruz just after I had my last "Spanish Lesson" with Gladys on Friday morning, 01.07.11.
The only way to get there was by taxi. So I waited at the "Samaipata Taxi Company" until we had five passengers together. Well, I thought, four passengers in a quite big car that's quite comfy! But I should have known it better when the taxi driver picked up a view people on the way. So at the end we were 9 people and a dog on the way to Samaipata. Next to me I had a very old Bolivian guy who was probably in his eighties, smelled like rotten Banana and took out his false teeth every half an hour.

But apart from the weird passengers the taxi ride was amazing as we drove along the windy roads through the beautiful mountain scenery. Three hours later we arrived in Samaipata where I checked into the "Hostel Andorina". Later on when I came back from a stroll and a nice hot chocolate at the French Bakery I met Belem. Belem is from the north of Spain but told me that she has been working on a governmental project in Asuncion in Paraguay. And as I just came from Paraguay as well we went over to a nice restaurant where we exchanged our experiences about this interesting country.

The next day, Saturday, 02.07.11 we walked to the "Refugio and Zoo of Samaipata". A swiss Lady and a few Volunteers are looking and taking care of abundant and sick animals which have been delivered to them. Well, we were impressed about the amount of animals they looked after….monkeys, turtles, wild cats, wild pigs, rats, parrots, fox, many dogs etc….but unfortunately we weren't really impressed about the state of the refugio/zoo…..as it seemed quite messy and dirty. However we had a great afternoon, interesting talks with the volunteers and a nice picnic over there.

As Belem was leaving on Sunday, 03.07.11 and the Hostel Andorina didn't have hot showers; I decided to move to the Hostel "Pusada del Sol". It was amazing how quickly the weather had changed within one day. Saturday it was sunny and warm and the day later it was freezing cold and overcast…..just about 5 degrees!!!

My plan was to go to the pre-Inca site "El Fuerte" but a few other travellers recommended me to wait until the weather changes in order to enjoy the view from the top of the mountain where "El Fuerte" lies! Ok….and as there was nothing else to do on a cloudy and misty day, the other travellers and I decided to watch some DVD's. What a great idea ….in front of a nice fireplace with a hot chocolate and some pancakes. But later on it was so hard to go to bed as it was freeeezing cold in our dormitory. We could even see our own breath!!!!

Thank God the weather cleared the next day (Monday, 04.07.11) and it was a bright nice day. So Rochin from England, Sevana from Australia and I took a taxi to the site of " El Fuerte". We walked around the site for nearly 2 hours, had a picnic with stunning views over the CORDILLERA ORIENTAL and the PARQUE NATIONAL AMBORO and hiked back to the village at about 3pm. The hike was beautiful and took us only 3 hours.

Later on in the village I went to the Tour Company "Raodrunners" where I met the German owner Frank. He was just chatting to Christina and Saskia from Hamburg.The two girls wanted to do a hike to the "Cerro Cathedral" the next day and ask me if I wanted to join. As Frank promised us that it will be a very nice and sunny day I signed up for it.

So Frank picked us up at the "Pousada del Sol" just after breakfast and off we went in his old and antique Jeep. We drove for one hour until we reached the foothills of the "Cerro Cathedral" (1.880m). When Frank pointed out the mountain we were about to climb up… we thought it would take us five hours to get to the top. So we took our backpacks and started walking. The hike wasn't too difficult; just a few parts where quite narrow but we couldn't believe it when we reached the top after two hours. Wow….and what a fantastic view over the Cordilleras. Before we sat down and enjoyed our picnic I took quite a few amazing photos. Check them out on my photo album "Samaipata - Cerro Cathedral".

When we came back from our 4 hour hike a local boy informed us about a flat tyre of Frank's Jeep. But for sure it wasn't a problem for Frank to change it within no time. So off we drove back to the main road where Frank stopped at a little local shop and Saskia and Christina bought us a nice cold beer. Further on we stopped at the "CUEVAS". A few waterfalls along the river, the tallest about 25 meter high and beautiful white sandy beaches next to them. Must be a great spot during the summer but now in winter it was a bit too cold to jump in the water.

When Frank dropped us off at about 6pm at the "Pousada del Sol" we agreed on a time and restaurant to meet for dinner. The restaurant was managed by a couple from Austria and the food was absolutely delicious. After dinner we exchanged email addresses and thanked Frank for the beautiful and funny day.

The next day, Wedenesday 06.07.11, I left Samaipata and took a taxi back to Santa Cruz!! On my last afternoon in Bolivia I went shopping and bought a few toiletries as it is the cheapest country in South America.

On Thursday, 07.07.11 I took my flight at 7am in the morning directly to LIMA in PERU.