Bolívia: Sky is the Limit

Bolívia: Sky is the Limit

March 2016, Bolívia

Visiting Bolivia - one of the most isolated and the same time interesting country in South America. 

The western part of the country is covered by the Andes Mountains, bordering with the wetlands in the Amazon on the east. La Paz, the de facto capital of Bolivia, stands high in the mountains and its metropolitan area with El Alto has an elevation of more than 4000 m above sea level. I was always wondering what does the life looks like there, so finally I got an opportunity to visit Bolivia.

Getting here

There are daily flights from Madrid to Santa Cruz de la Sierra, the biggest city in Bolivia. It is the most developed city and the business center of Bolivia. The city is located on the eastern slopes of the Andes, at the Madeira Basin, which is one of the biggest tributaries of the Amazon. However, many tourists enter Bolivia from the neighboring Peru, where more than 1.5 million people per year are visiting Machu Picchu, some 500 km to the border. I entered to Bolivia by bus through Kasani border at Titicaca lake, located between Puno (Peru) and La Paz. This entry point requires to make a stop at Titicaca lake and change the bus, so it is a great option to explore the world’s highest commercially navigable lake. Coming by plane from Peru is easy from Lima or Cusco, arriving at El Alto International Airport, which is, not surprisingly, the highest international airport in the world. The entry process itself could be tricky, especially if you need a visa. Citizens of some four EU countries (Cyprus, Malta, Bulgaria and Romania) still need to obtain visa prior to arrival, so I had to prepare many documents in advance. The most important is International Certificate of Vaccination or Prophylaxis (ICVP) for yellow fever, as other kind of proofs for vaccination are not accepted. The vaccination is valid for 15 years and should be done at least 10 days prior to arrival. The rest of documents include return ticket, proof of funds, hotel reservation and itinerary. All these papers granted me a visa in the Consulate of Bolivia in Cusco.  However, there are still other rules that need to be respected upon entering in Bolivia. One of them is the condition of your US dollars, as if they are somehow crumpled you can’t exchange it to local Peso boliviano. The card payments are not widely available so I had to keep my fingers crossed until got accepted at the ATM withdrawal.

La Paz

After completing the entry and money requirements, I am able to enjoy my Bolivian journey, starting with La Paz. The city is located in the western part of Bolivia, covered by the Andes Mountains. La Paz offers many options for good and pleasant stay, and I rented an Airbnb in Edificio V Centenario, which is in the Downtown area. Its Saturday morning and my program starts with a tour in Mercado Rodriguez – the largest food market in La Paz, looking for fresh local food. The Bolivian cuisine is meat-based in general, so as a pescatarian I wasn’t able to try it. However, I found some fresh fish from Titicaca, like Trucha (Trout), Karachi (Orestias), Pejerrey (Odontesthes) and Mauri (Trichomycterus). Don’t forget to try Trucha frita (fried Trout), well served with rice and salad! Like any Latin American market, there are plenty of fruits and vegetables, some of them I saw for the first time (e.g. the red bananas). Many products are coming from the neighboring region of Beni, located east to La Paz and part of the Amazon basin. Of course, the market offers a lot of spices, fried dough foods and pastries, so just make sure you will arrive early in the morning during the weekend, to find more varieties. Next to Mercado Rodrigues is located another interesting market, which is one of a kind - Mercado de las Brujas, or Witches’ Market. It doesn’t matter if you are looking for spells or not, here you could find potions, medicinal plants and spiritual advice. Located in the tourist area of La Paz, many people stop by here, proving that the indigenous majority keeps the tradition alive, despite the Christianity. Another popular market is Mercado Negro, where you could grab many bargains for any kind of stuff – from clothes to tableware. My journey in La Paz continues to the best viewpoint over La Paz - Mirador Killi Killi, where the altimeter hits 4000 m above sea level. It is located in a neighborhood Villa Pabón, close to the Downtown area. Another interesting spot in La Paz is Calle Jaen – one of the few streets with preserved Spanish colonial houses. Actually, they all are around Downtown, but not renovated like on Calle Jean. There are two main squares in La Paz, called Plaza Mayor and Plaza Murillo, both being a center of social life in the city. Plaza Murillo is around the government buildings while Plaza Mayor offers bigger space and many events are held there, so take a look what’s going on there. At the day of my arrival, there was a football game for Copa Libertadores between local Bolívar and Boca Juniors (1-1 after a late goal for Argentinians), so the square was full of fans watching the game.

Indigenous coca culture

Speaking of markets, there is another one-of-a-kind marketplace, called Mercado de Villa Fatima. It is just outside of the Association of Coca Producers (ADEPCOCA) in La Paz. Here, many farmers from Yungas region sell their fresh-picked coca leaves every morning. It is one of the two major regions of coca plantations, as the other one is called Chapare, near Cochabamba. The coca leaf is legal in Bolivia, unlike the cocaine which is strictly prohibited. Evo Morales, the indigenous president of Bolivia, once was a coca farmer before enter the politics. He is famous for chewing coca leaves during his international appearances to remind for the plant’s origin as a traditional indigenous medicine. Morales has strong support among the population, winning the elections with large margin and his portraits are everywhere. However, last month 51% voted on constitutional referendum against president reelection. Anyway, the coca culture is everywhere, as you can find numerous food and drinks with leaves. Staring with the morning Trimate tea, having a pizza with coca leaves for lunch, drinking a mojito cocktail without mint (guess what is instead) or just take a shot of Agwa liqueur at the night club. Some foreigners, mostly arriving by plane, is highly possible to get an altitude sickness due to the higher elevation in La Paz. Last year, the Pope Francis had to drink tea of coca leaves on the plane to Bolivia upon arrival at El Alto Airport, to ward off altitude sickness. In fact, many people have to do it, otherwise they risk to get an unpleasant sickness with headache, loss of appetite and other symptoms. So do I upon arrival, after understanding the medicinal abilities of coca leaves and its difference to their famous derivative, the cocaine.

Sky Ride to El Alto

High is a state of mind. The metro in La Paz is not underground like we are all used to. Metro Teleférico connects La Paz and El Alto by gondola lifts, covering the elevation of more than 400 m between two cities. I took the yellow line (Linha Amarilla) from Sopocachi in La Paz downtown to Mirador and a ride back from 16 de Julio station in El Alto to Central station in La Paz by the red line (Linha Roja). This scenic ride is the only transportation for more than 100 000 people daily in the metropolitan area and is rapidly expanding by construction of new lines. At the time of my visit, there was only 3 lines in operation with 8 more coming, so in the near future these gondolas will be the major form of transportation, reaching hardly accessible areas all around La Paz. This is also the longest aerial cable car system in the world. However, it comes with a price – more than US $700 million, which is quite a lot for one of the poorest South American country. The ride costs less than 20 cents, which makes its social impact stronger, as many poor people live in poverty on the hills around La Paz and the cable cars is their opportunity to reach the downtown. The social inequality is very obvious - you will see it immediately the gap between rich and poor upon entering El Alto. More than 70% of people here live in poverty, so be prepared if you want to have a walk. It is not only the poverty, that makes the difference as people from El Alto, called alteños, are mostly indigenous. They speak Aymara language and their culture requires to sit on the floor, to be in contact with Pachamama (Mother Land). It is generally safe in El Alto, but still very chaotic and definitely not among most interesting things to see. I went there only to visit the statue of Ernesto “Che” Guevara, who was captured by Felix Rodriguez in La Higuera, Central Bolivia and killed. However, next to the statue there is one more interesting thing here – the colorful bávaro-boliviano churches designed by the German priest Sebastian Obermaier, like Iglesia Amor de Dios. It is one of the latest-works, built in 2001 and together with more than 30 schools, 70 churches and 6 kindergartens, he is memorized as the “architect of El Alto”. Iglesia Amor de Dios is located just next to the 16 de Julio station of the red line so it’s easy to reach by cable car.

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Valle de la Luna

Just 10 km south of La Paz is located a canyon with surreal sights, called Valle de la Luna or Moon Valley. Its landscape is composed by eroded limestone rock formations, creating a stalagmites carpet in the desert-like area. There are even blooming cactus flowers from the native San Pedro cactus (Echinopsis pachanoi), known for its hallucinogenic effects. It contains more mescaline than the famous Peyote cactus, so if you want to intoxicate yourself for a psychedelic experience – be careful! The easiest way to come here is by taxi – its cheap and you can negotiate with the driver to wait for you outside the valley. He/she would not be allowed to enter with you, as the valley is open only to foreigners. I was asked to show a non-Bolivian ID (as my broken Spanish wasn’t enough proof of that), in order to visit the site. I didn’t understand why the entry for locals are not welcome at that beautiful place. The entrance is quite cheap (less than US $2). Once there, you will see two main tracks – a long one which takes around 45 mins and a short one, which is just 15 mins. The tracks are marked and secured, but you will need comfortable shoes and of course good weather - It won’t be the best place to walk when raining.

Camino de la muerte: Yungas Road

Another famous spot nearby La Paz is the Yungas Road, known as the Death Road. It is the most dangerous road in the world, connecting La Paz with the city of Coroico. The road starts at elevation of 4650 meters above sea level in La Paz and ends at 1200 meters Coroico for a distance of 60 km. Hundreds of people travelling between two cities dies yearly, on northern part of the road. Many buses and trucks were swallowed in the years, especially during the rainfall season. In 2007 the government closed the road for buses and built a new section to bypass the most dangerous part of the road, thus reducing the fatal accidents. Today, this section of North Yungas Road is a bike route for extreme travelers and many tour agencies in La Paz will provide you a bike with an equipment and guide to the most dangerous road in the world.  However, the fatal accidents remain, as tens of tourists died in the last couple of year, some of them while making selfies. Professional and amateur mountain bikers from all over the world are coming here. If you plan to visit the road, just stick to the group and avoid the edge of the road track. The day trip from La Paz costs up to US $90 and don’t even think about to save money on renting cheaper bikes!

This article was originally published in The Economist's magazine Bulgarian issue No. 25 of June 2016.

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Costa Rica: Pura Vida

Costa Rica: Pura Vida

March 2016, Costa Rica

Costa Rica is a nature-rich country with amazing wildlife and beautiful beaches as a background.

Despite its small area of 51 100 sq. m, Costa Rica has one of the largest ranges of climates and climate zones in the entire world. The most popular resorts are located on the Pacific coast in Guanacaste and Puntarenas provinces, where the climate is tropical savanna, hot and try. This is where the tourist go when it comes to a beach vacation in Costa Rica. On the other side, the climate at the Caribbean coast is equatorial, without dry seasons and raining all year round. Inside the country, there are several mountains with peaks above 3000 m., in a strong subtropical highland climate. On the top of the mountains are located more than 200 volcanoes, half of them active. Tropical monsoon winds blow just around the mountains and form one of the tens of different microclimates in Costa Rica. In other words, there are so many different places you could see in this small country (e.g. It’s smaller than a half of Iceland). Unless you have unlimited time and cash, visiting all these places is impossible at once. It is better to find out which part of Costa Rica would like to go and how to get there.

Puerto Viejo
So here am I in Bocas del Toro province in Panama, next to Costa Rican border. There are transfer options to various destinations in Costa Rica, leaving from Sixaloa/Guabito border. Considering the ongoing peak season in beginning of March, I decided to ignore the crowded luxury resorts in Guanacaste and Puntarenas, and visit the laid-back Caribbean coast, a forgotten part of Costa Rica. I came there on my own changing 3 separate buses (Panama City – Changuinola, Changuinola – Guabito and Sixaloa – Puerto Viejo). On my way back I found a shuttle minibus called Caribe Shuttle that bring me back to Bocas del Toro with organized border transfers. However, the border is only for pedestrians, so you need to cross an old railway bridge, which probably was never in service as there are no railways around. Another transportation option could be flying to Limón and then take a bus / car to Puerto Viejo de Talamanca, a major tourist destination at the Caribbean coast in Costa Rica. Due to its proximity, the town is more open to Panamá, than to San Juan, the capital of Costa Rica and most of the tourists here are visiting Puerto Viejo en route to / from Panamá. Even the locals go shopping in Panamá, where is cheaper due to the higher taxes in Costa Rica.

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At night, Puerto Viejo becomes a party center, as many party hostels are welcoming American and European backpackers, but not only. I met also South American tourists that were discovering this hidden paradise. There also a lot of bars and restaurants near the beautiful black sand beach Playa Negra. It is located at the entrance to Puerto Viejo and could not be mistaken by its unique volcanic sands and an old rusted barge, once carrying out cacao and bananas, standing today as a lone reminder to the past.

Playa Chiquita
Puerto Viejo is under protection of Costa Rican Maritime Zoning Laws, so there are no any tall buildings, neither international chains (hotel or restaurant). Moreover, it is a gateway to Gandoca Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge, a home to some of the most beautiful scenery in all of Costa Rica. Everything here is very nature-friendly so coming to the Caribbean coast means to forget the amenities in five star beach resorts. I stayed in Playa Chiquita, nearby Puerto Viejo, in the cozy Jungle Green House, surrounded by rainforest and just a short walk to the beach. It rains every night (luckily not in the day), so the mornings are fresh and the best part was to woke up by the sounds of the jungle – in my case, it was by a toucan, hidden in surrounding trees. I learned to left a slightly open window, otherwise I could miss the alarm. Once in Playa Chiquita, it was easy to reach Punta Uva and Manzanillo by rental bike.


Punta Uva
Punta Uva is one of the best beaches in Costa Rica, without doubt. Its coral reefs and beautiful sands stands next to the surrounding rainforest from Gandoca just next to the beach. Palm trees from the coastal rainforest have fallen on the beach and so create stunning sights. However, it is not crowded and the place is calm. There is a river coming from the rainforest and flowing into the Caribbean, so taking a kayak is the best way to explore the nature. For its short distance, they kayak journey pass through coast full of cliffs, caves, lagoon and finally the amazing rainforest. The wildlife there includes monkeys, sloth, river turtles, iguanas, toucans and other colorful birds. My host warned me to look on my feet as poisonous snakes also could appear.

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Manzanillo
The coastal road ends in Manzanillo, a small village known for its great surf spot. The beaches here offer waves for all levels, so it is a great place for everyday practicing, even for beginners. In fact, most of the locals do surf in their free time. Not only surfers come here, as more and more divers are visiting Manzanillo, as one of the best diving reefs in Costa Rica. Its proximity with the rainforest boosts also the marine life, so snorkel divers could spot here blue parrot fish, angel fish, sea anemones, urchins, Venus sea fans, shrimps, oysters, sea cucumbers, lobsters and sponges. The whole area is protected under Gandoca Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge, including the land area and the reefs in front of the beaches. It includes nearly 25,000 acres of jungle, marshland, lagoons, reefs, coves and coastline. The refuge is not easy accessible and the best way to explore is getting a guided jungle hike.

Pura Vida
Costa Rica is probably the most stunning country in Central America. Everyone who visited this country would like to return, while many foreigners are living here, either expats or retirees. Sometimes, Costa Rica is called the Switzerland of Central America and there is a strong reason behind it. Tens of thousands Europeans and Americans have chosen Costa Rica for their current home. Many others are coming, as they already bought a property here and only waiting for the retirement day.
All of these people are living the way of life, known as “Pura Vida” or pure life, literally. This phrase is Costa Rica’s unofficial moto which symbolizes the idea of be happy and enjoy the life. It is one of the happies countries in the world by both Gallup and the Happy Planet Index. It is the most common used word here, meaning also hello or goodbye.
Vanesa and Ronald, a couple living here for many years, were my hosts so they helped me to understand the meaning of “Pura Vida”. Ronald explained me why the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica is not as developed as the Pacific coast. It is divided by huge mountains to country’s capital San Jose and historically it took centuries to establish any links. In 19th century, the famous Costa Rican coffee from Central Valley was export to Europe by the Pacific ports, instead from Caribbean coast to the Atlantic. It means tens of thousands kilometers more for the ships, so the government decided to build an ambitious railroad. Mostly Jamaican laborers worked on the project, starting from 1867 until the 1890s, when the construction of the railroad to the Atlantic was finished. Today, their descendants live all around the Caribbean coast, so do Ronald. Beside the railway, nothing has changed so much. Natural economy is still alive here, as it is not a rare someone to exchange bananas for cocoa, so Ronald is growing them. This is how they understand the meaning of “Pura Vida”! Hasta luego, Costa Rica!

This article was originally published in The Economist's magazine Bulgarian issue No. 17 of April 2016.

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Titicaca: Ocean in the Mountain

Titicaca: An ocean in the mountain

March 2016, Peru/Bolivia

At an altitude of 3812 meters above sea level, Titicaca is the highest commercially navigable lake in the world and the largest lake in South America.

Titicaca is a must see destination, if you pass by Peru or Bolivia. So do I and went to the both sides of the lake, but what impressed me most was located a few kilometers off the lake shores.

Peruvian side

Most of the people reach Titicaca lake from the Peruvian side. The biggest cities here are Puno and Juliaca, linked to Cusco by daily buses and Lima by air. I took a bus ride from Cusco to Puno, as the distance is less than 400 km. However, the overnight trip is long due to the mountain roads passing through. I took the bus from Cusco to Puno, which is the biggest city on the shores of Titicaca. It was not hard to notice the big change upon arrival. The city is located at more than 3800 meters above sea level thus reducing the oxygen in the air and lowering the pressure. And the second change was the inhabitants, as I saw many Aymara people and signs in Aymara language, which is official here. In fact, Aymaras first established themselves around Titicaca lake, both in Peruvian and Bolivian sides. That’s why today they are the only locals, that enjoy visa-free travel between Peru and Bolivia. For all these indigenous groups living in the mountains, a hundred-thousand-city like Puno is their entry point to the modern world. The city is growing rapidly but there is just a short flat area between the lake and the mountains, so people are building houses on the hills. Puno is welcoming a lot of tourists due to its proximity to Machu Picchu and you can enjoy many different tours around. Puno is also a good option to get your Bolivian visa in advance, if you are planning to continue your trip to the other side of the lake. The reason is that visa on arrival would cost more than US $50 while visa in the Bolivian consulate in Puno would be free. However, before continuing to Bolivia, it is worth to stop at the port in Puno. It is available for small and medium crafts so it is a great option to make a boat trip to the islands of Taquile, Amantani and Uros, or Titicaca National Reserve.

The Uros (Uru) people live on these artificial floating islands at Peruvian side of Titicaca lake #lago #Uru #Titicaca #perutravel #peru #puno #worlderlust #travelstoke #travelingram #travelgram #instatravel #instatraveling #instapassport #igtravel #traveltheworld #travelbug #travel #travels #mytripmyadventure #mytinyatlas #lonelyplanet #travelblog #travelblogger #travelawesome #iggers

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Uros: The Floating islands

I didn’t had time to explore Taquile and Amantani islands, but I went to Uros (it is almost impossible to skip them while in Puno). It is easy to reach them once the port in Puno or just ask some tour agency to do it for you. The islands are just 5 km east from Puno port so the journey is short. I joined a tour group with English-speaking guide. As we were approaching the islands, we saw the totora plant growing in the lake. The totora reeds are the most important element in the Uros people life, it is their food, medicine, tea as well as a construction material for reed boats and island ground. More than 70 artificial islands were built on bundles of dried totora reeds, where around 2 000 Uros people still live here. Upon arrival in Isla Santa María (the biggest island), the guide showed us a mini structure of the island model and explained about their story. The secret of the living on a floating island is to add more and more totora reeds on the top of the island periodically, as the ones on the bottom are sinking. However, this is not the only fear locals should survive, as the they need to protect themselves from freezing and of course to get a food. Thanks to their trade relations with the indigenous people from the coast, they are surviving. Today, the tourist business is the main income here, so you will be offered to buy souvenirs, place a passport stamp and get a tour on the so called ‘Mercedes Benz’ boat, which is their ‘luxury’ version of reed boat. You will able to visit a local family house and discover the conditions these people live in the 21st century.

Under the water: Atlantis

The depths of the lake have been explored by archaeologists who found remains of mystical metropolis. The underwater ruins lead to many speculations and hypothesis, including the lost city of Atlantis. Divers had discovered U-shaped walls, paved roads and sacred labyrinths in the depths of the lake. Many ocean fossils were also found around the lake and some of the fish species here are saltwater ones. The most mystery evidence found under the water is the ruins of an ancient temple, built of stone blocks. The remains of the city of Tiahuanaco in Bolivia, nearby Titicaca and Nazca lines in Peru, are somehow related to the whole hypothesis of Atlantis in Titicaca lake, but since there are no any evidences, it is just another part of the mysterious puzzle from the Pre-Colombian era in South America.

Bolivian side

My journey around Titicaca continues on the other side of the lake, which makes part of Bolivia. The lake is pretty much the same, however the feeling is different as Bolivia is quite isolated country. It is one of the two landlocked countries in South America, other being Paraguay, but Bolivia has stricter border control. Located between the Andes mountains and Amazon basin, Titicaca lake is of great importance to Bolivia and you will quickly notice this. I am entering the border town Copacabana, which doesn’t have anything in common with the famous beach in Rio except the name. It is home to some 6000 people, working in the tourism, agriculture and fisheries. Upon arrival, we were warmly welcomed with fried trout fish from the lake and tea from coca leaves. The trout fish here is always fresh and is a popular dish for locals and tourists, while the coca tea is something you can’t skip. While climbing Cerro Calvario, the highest hill of the city, my altimeter hits 4023 meters above sea level. However, I didn’t feel any altitude problems, probably because of the tea – the locals are drinking it every day as a medicine for altitude sickness. After spending more than an hour at Cerro Calvario enjoying the stunning view above the city and the lake, I witnessed a religious ritual on the top of the hill, which is popular site for pilgrims with its 14 Stations of the Cross. Copacabana is a sacred place for Incas and Catholics as well – on the Island of the Sun (Isla del Sol) nearby the city is located Inca’s Temple of the Sun (Tiwanaku), while at the city center you will notice the great 16th century Spanish colonial church Basílica de Nuestra Señora de Copacabana. It is really amazing how such a big church was build so high in the mountains five centuries ago. The tourist area is mainly around Avenida 6 de Agosto reaching the shores of Titicaca, so here you will find everything you need. Copacabana is not linked to the other part of Bolivia, so reaching the rest of the country involves taking a ferry through Tiquina strait. In order to see more from Titicaca lake, I took a hop-on-hop-off bus that made several stops at both sides, but unexpectedly it got broken shortly after leaving Copacabana and it caused a long delay of my journey. The bus lights went off shortly after the sunset, so the driver drop us to the closest city, without using any lights along such a tiny mountain road. It was a reason to get an extra time in San Pablo de Tiquina, a small city on the Tiquina strait, until the next bus arrives from La Paz. The city is really small and has nothing interesting to offer, but its ferry service through Titicaca lake. However, crossing the lake at midnight was a ferry to remember, as the temperature here often falls around and sometimes under zero. It pointed out the conditions, in which people from Titicaca lake are surviving everyday. Living so high and far in the Andes mountains is definitely not for everyone, and despite the recent tourism development, Titicaca reminds all of us to respect the power of the lake.

This article was originally published in The Economist's magazine Bulgarian issue No. 23 of June 2016.

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