Copacabana to La Paz

In the evening, we caught the bus to La Paz with Bolivia Hop and were told we would have a chance to grab some food an hour in, when we cross the lake. This was good, because we hadn't had time to get any beforehand, although we were a little sceptical of the quality we would be offered.

The views during the bus journey for that hour were stunning. The view from up high over Copacabana with the lake and the mountains was just beautiful, especially with the sunset. You couldn't help but gawp out of the windows as we ascended ever higher. We reached about 4300m and I started to feel a bit panicky again. Any little twinges of pain in my chest and I seem to go into immediate anxiety mode, which is exactly what happened as we started descending again. It would seem my anxiety causes me to hyperventilate, which in turn makes my breathing erratic and laboured, which leads to more anxiety, fun times! In hindsight, I think I was having panic attacks.

We got back to the level of the lake and we could see stalls with hot chips which looked very appealing, safe to eat and hot. Before we could enjoy them though, we were ushered onto a boat that looked far too small for all the people on the bus. I was so, so cold and shivering from the anxiety still but I managed to calm down once we were a little way along the lake. It was a surprisingly bumpy ride and we could see our coach floating across on its own raft, a little further along from us. We eventually docked and scrambled off the boat, trying not to fall in. We got to the town and were told toilets to the left, food to the right. We headed for food.

It wasn't great, especially considering there was hot food on the other side of the water where we had just been ushered from. Here we had the choice of dodgy hamburguesas or Doritos and cookies. Definitely not so appealing. The burgers were pre-cooked - god knows how long ago, and the chicken sandwiches available on another stall had probably been there all day. We opted for Doritos and cookies...nutritious! Sam and Sarah, who were going the same way as us, had found some chips and we were pretty jealous when they walked over holding the small plate. That was until they told us they were practically raw, they were so bad even the stray dogs wouldn't touch them.

After Rob finally decided he would just part with his cash to use the worst toilets he has ever been in, we hopped back on the coach that had made it safely over the water, thank goodness!
It was dark now and so there wasn't much to look at outside, just the odd groups of half finished buildings with a glowing light inside. Chatting to Sarah and Sam, we learnt that there is a law here that means a finished property warrants more tax, or something similar, which explains why so many building look unfinished. They have foundation wires sticking up out of the top corners of the square shaped houses, ready for the next family member to build on and so they never really end up complete. I doubt the government predicted this work-around as I can't imagine they were hoping to have towns that looked half finished everywhere. We also learnt that, in certain places, their version of the Mafia will claim land by building random simple houses on it, which could explain the randomly placed concrete huts we saw all over the desert on the way to Paracas earlier.

We were told the journey would be bumpy due to road works and so we prepared to be thrown about a bit. My anxiety was now a little better too, having been able to get off the bus earlier.

We were just having a munch on our Doritos when something awesome happened...we were given some popcorn and a drink and then the greatest thing of all...Mrs Doubtfire started playing on the telly! Ok, so maybe it wasn't that great...but it shows how much we were in need of some comfort. I haven't seen this film in so long and I think the whole bus was feeling nostalgic and excited for what was to come! I had forgotten just quite how much I love this film and it certainly got rid of any anxiety I had left. Most of the rest of the trip was spent laughing at Robin Williams and, for a surprisingly small stretch of road, clinging on to the seats a little whilst we rocked through the extremely big pot holes.

We arrived into La Paz as the film finished, but it was going to take another half an hour at least to make our way through the notorious traffic here. The view was crazy, so many lights that were interrupted by black silhouettes, where mountains interrupted the city. We were up high, looking down into a bowl of lights that stretched half way up the mountains we were riding on, all of them twinkling orange and blue.

It was strange because, on the way in, there was such a mix of large brick houses that looked almost British and then there were lots of unfinished looking houses again with graffiti everywhere. The power lines were insane, an absolute maze of wires and Sam was telling us how they were similar in Thailand, where he watched people connect houses to existing lines in with amazement. They just brought them down with wood, sliced and reattached them with tape. He used to work for an energy company and was astounded that they weren't injured, as people try and attempt this in the UK to save money and usually get toasted, as he put it. The people here are crazy, but clever!

It was soon time to start dropping us off and it felt a little like Russian roulette as to whether you were going to be dropped in a danger zone. Sam looked nervous as this was only the second hostel he had been responsible for booking and the last had been a shambles. I have to say that when they called their names for their stop, we were probably in the dodgiest part so far and there was nervous laughter as we said goodbye to them.

Our stop required a further taxi ride, so we were sorted into a taxi by the bus guide which was good. It certainly didn't feel safe to hang around waiting so we were glad to be with a group.
We arrived at the hostel eventually, after driving through a slightly nicer area and past what must have been the business district full of tall skyscrapers. Our hostel had no sign so we were a little unsure as to whether we had been conned at first but the bell was answered and we were let inside.

It was so lovely inside, flowers and plants everywhere, particularly Peruvian Lilies, and little antique touches that made it feel really homely. It wasn't huge, just three or four rooms and a really nice courtyard area, that I imagine was once open to the sky but was now covered by an iron roof that spanned the whole building. There was a piano, a bar area/kitchen and plenty of comfy chairs and tables, warmed by the patio heaters they had out. They had really managed to bring the outside in and it was so nice and cosy.

It was too late to order a pizza from them and, to be honest, we were so tired and knew we had to be up for our Death Road tour at 6am, so me and Rob hit the hay whilst Rich went to find a snack on the advice of the hostel owner. We had a quick chat to our fellow room mates (one was going to climb up to almost 6000m!) and then clambered up the very difficult to manoeuvre bunk bed ladders and into bed.

The bunks were comfy, with a great duvet, and as soon as I shut my privacy curtains I was out like a light.Read more