La Paz, San Pedro Prison, Presidents and the "Worlds Most Dangerous Road"

La Paz

La Paz

La Paz is a very pretty city built in a valley surrounded by mountain peaks. That is if you can just manage to focus on the mountains and not the unfinished run down buildings! You see if you actually finish your building, you have to pay tax on it... We wouldn't want to do that now would we.

Being that it is a big city, which we came mostly to bike the "worlds most dangerous road", we decided to do a city tour, and get the lay of the land. Red Hat tours is a group that run a free tour, just working off tips. Brilliant, as the tour was pretty good, and they have some good tips! In addition to showing us fruit and veg markets, taking us to get our bag of freshly blended fruit juice to go and giving a run down on the city in general. They also shared some bits that we found most interesting!

San Pedro Prison 

San Pedro prison is found pretty much next to the tourist area. If you have some time and are interested pick up the book "Marching Powder" and give it a read. The gist of the prison is this: It is entirely run by the inmates. The only place that you find any guards is outside!

Now to get into San Pedro, if you happen to be sentenced to there, will cost you 30 Bolivianos ($4 US). There is no free stays. And if you want a cell to sleep in? That will be more. Maybe you are a bit of an entrepreneur? You might want to rent several cells, and start running businesses out of them!

There is lots of room for scams out of San Pedro too! For example, you might want to start producing cocaine, and selling it on the street. Getting the equipment in there is easy enough, you just need enough start up money to bribe the guards to let your equipment in. Then you need a man on the outside, to toss your bag of cocaine out the window too. (Don't overthrow it though, as that seems to cause commotion with the tourists when a bag of cocaine gets thrown onto the square from the prison window.)

Maybe you are more of an extortion guy? Once again get a man on the outside. He steals the car, parks it, gets the licence number and brings it to you. From there you give the number to a guard, with a healthy bribe, and he runs the data. Now you have a name, phone number, address and other info on the car owner. Time for a phone call. We have your car. Say this car owner now goes to the police (after all the guy who called you is in prison, this is not right). Well the police are a bit short on man power, but some extra cash would go a long way. Ok now the cops can call the guards, hey whats going on here, you got some sort of extortion going on here? I'm going to need a cut of the fee or I am going to have shed light on the situation. Guard doesn't want to share his part of the extortion fee, so he needs more. The prisoner has to pay more? Time for another phone call. Listen up we know where you live, the names of your wife and children, where you work, where your kids go to school. The price to get your car back is now this, you better pay it. Now that it's a bit more serious, it's time to pay. Come to the prison. Money changes hands, a beat down transpires (don't talk to the cops next time), and a hand drawn map is given. Time to pick yourself up, get the map and get out. After finding the car, you realize its in perfect condition, nothing is stolen, nothing is damaged. Bolivians really are nice criminals. They will even give you bus money after robbing you, or give your sim card back after taking your phone. (you need your contacts after all).

You used to actually be able to get tours of the prison. These started after one prisoner bribed a guard, went out for drinks with him, the guard passed out, and the prisoner instead of running, picked up an Israeli girl, brought her back to his cell... The Israeli girl after getting a grand tour, asked to bring some friends back. As long as they pay that's ok...Word spread and San Pedro became a tourist attraction. This all quit after some video of tourists and prisoners doing drugs in the prison was brought to the media. Officially there are no more tours, but you can still get in. It will cost you to get in and to get back out however, and it's not recommended.

-My San Pedro source is what I remember from Red Hat tours. I plan on reading "Marching Powder" for a more comprehensive story. 

Presidency - A dangerous gig.

Apparently presidency is a dangerous gig in Bolivia. If the Bolivians don't like you, they have been known to throw you out the window of the presidential suite. (This has happened to at least two presidents). This may be done to cheering of the crowd, as you claim the presidency, only to go down as the worst president ever. (There's a good story of how the president rode the British Ambassador out of town over some funky food that was declined). Well the Brits are pretty powerful, and after erasing Bolivia from the maps in Britain for a period of time, they supplied Chile with some weapons, and oh, Bolivia no longer has a coastline. Or perhaps the people will lynch you just outside the legislative building. But... To be fair, it turns out that president was actually pretty good, so they did make a monument out of the lamp post where he was lynched. Crazy place. To this day the Bolivians protest everything. Really inconvenient for traffic, with all the road blocks and all.

Once again my source is Red Hat tours, confirmed by other people living here. Not sure where to read up more on the topic, but feel free to let me know.

The Worlds Most Dangerous Road

Most Dangerous Road

Officially called Yungas road. Named the "Worlds Most Dangerous Road" by Inter-American Development Bank, with 200-300 travelers dying every year when it was the primary road for traffic. Since being opened up to cycling tourists, only a mere 19 cyclists have been killed, with some amazing survival stories of people falling 80 m and coming out with a broken wrist, and with some unfortunate stories like the guide who went to the spot of death of a cyclist to document it, only to go off the edge himself and die.

So naturally, knowing that we were so close to the worlds most dangerous road, we knew that we had to bike it ourselves!

64 km of pure downhill (while being careful NOT to push limits too far on this one...) on downhill bikes down a windy single lane road with hairpin turns, and the occasional car or bus coming back at you made for an exciting ride. Oh to make it more exciting, traffic laws are reversed here. On this road you must stick to the left hand side, which means for bikers, you are riding on the cliff side! If vehicles pass you need to see how many inches you have to spare before your wheels roll off the cliff. Oh and no guard rails here. Bring it on.

Bus is stuck on under the waterfall.

We saw first hand some troubles that happen on this road when we ran into a bus broke down on a single laned corner (funny enough under a waterfall). With the need for our support vehicle to get by there was no choice but to push. At least that's what the Bolivians thought. What none of us understood was why we were pushing it up the hill to get it out of the way, instead of letting it roll down the hill with an engine that wouldn't start. Bolivians....

As we dropped from 4700 m to 1100 m the weather changes from fog shrouded freezing cold, to very warm as you get into the jungle. You pass along shear cliffs, through waterfalls, around hairpin turns, while enjoying some great scenery. Pretty epic ride.

To finish things off our bike company bought us all a beer, and we had lunch at a wildlife sanctuary before heading back home on the new road. (which is closing in a few weeks because of all the landslides and erosion tearing up the road. I guess new does not necessarily mean better!)

The Worlds Most Dangerous Bank Machine

The source of my single most frustrating experiences in South America has been Bolivian bank machines. Many simply are erratic, and sometimes work sometimes don't. But then some actually think that they have spat out money when they have not! I have had some good fights with Visa over this, and I hope that the charges get erased! It came to a head the other day when I went to the bank, and they told me I could use the atm inside their bank to get US cash, only to have it say that it gave me money when it didn't. The bank then didn't seem to see my concerns. Just go to another atm! Meanwhile Visa just keeps charging me! UUUGHHH!

In addition to this, atm's in the tourist area can have some slipped in counterfit money as the atm guards pocket some real Bolivianos in exchange for fakes for beer money later that day. Excellent.

To Read: "Marching Powder" by Rusty Young

Travellers Notes: We stayed at Cruz de Los Andes, for 17$ a person. It was nice, staff was friendly. There was not really a hang out atmosphere, and we only really connected with one traveller during our stay here. Also the wifi was good at times awful at others. This may have been more of a Bolivian thing then a Cruz de Los Andes thing. Was in a good location, in the tourists area. And had HOT high pressured showers. I would say definitely go there if you are looking for a quiet stay, otherwise maybe not.

Gravity mountain biking is known by everyone as by far the best bike company with the best bikes and guides. To do the most dangerous road, you should probably spend the money and use them.

Red Hat tours is a free tour, you can get there info in Gravity's office, as well as other places. They go twice a day, work off tips and give a great tour. Do this if you are looking to fill some time and want some fun facts on the city.

Banco Bisa gives USD out of their ATM, BUT they may not work and may charge your Visa anyway. Apparently Bank of Bolivia (BNB) will dole out USD at the actual bank.

Copacabana and Isla del Sol

Las Olas

Into Bolivia.

We had heard that the buses in Bolivia were unreliable, but breaking down 20 miles from the border? Come on.... After false hopes of getting the bus going again being dashed a couple of times, and an hour or so later, a local repair man figured things out and we were back on our way.

We arrived in Copacabana, and straight away marched up the hill with our 40 lb backpacks to our hotel. The hotel we were staying in was super cool. Annies all time personal favourite. It was the turtle room at Los Olas. It had a great view of Lake Titicaca, a huge king sized circle bed, a sitting area, plants growing through the floor, and another sitting area upstairs. Oh not to mention our own personal terrace. We blew the budget on this one. 48$ a night.

Las Olas

Wasn't too much to do in Copacabana, other then catch some beautiful sunsets. Very Pretty.
Two nights later and we were out of there, to stay a night on Isla de Sol. The people, and the pre-Incas worshiped the sun and the moon, hence the name. We were just going cause we heard it was nice.

It felt like the stairs at Huayna Picchu again, only with our big bags this time. Too many stairs! We finally found a beautiful hostel with a great view. Thank goodness for dri-fit shirts, because by this time I was a sweaty mess!

Isla de Sol was beautiful. It had ruins at both

Upstairs in Las Olas

sides of the Island, and people usually walk from the North to the South and then book it out, but we stayed a night at the south side of the island. The ruins were pretty piddly after Machu Pichu, but this is the origin of the Incas, so it had some significance. The views on the island were beautiful. You could see Lake Titicaca on both sides of the island from the top. We experienced an absolute gorgeous sunset! And the town was really neat too.

By the way the only method of hauling things around here is by donkey, no cars, quads, or bikes. Or you could haul things by hand. And if that was happening, it was not the husband doing the work, it was the ladies who did all the grunt work here. These local ladies are tougher then nails and stronger then the men. Incredible. Show a beefy calf and the men come running to these ladies. Ha!

After a night at Isla de Sol, we booted it out of there, and boarded a bus to La Paz. (We really want to get to

Sunset at Copacabana

Argentina, so Bolivia might be quick!

Travellers notes: Las Olas was sooo cool. But if you want to spend the 50$ for this neat place, you better book more then 1 or 2 days ahead, as it is always booked. Mira Flores is another nice hostel for 20 bucks a night. (per room) The Mirador at 15$ a room a night was just awful. The fact that it included breakfast was a very small consolation, as it was just fruit and bread. I suggest stay away.

Internet is terrible in Bolivia. Just expect it. And Bank Machines are even worse! (I am currently trying to convince Visa that I did not get money 2 out of the 4 times I tried. The bank thinks I did however. Pain!

We didn't think there was too much to write home about at Lake Titicaca, so we moved on out pretty quick.

Sunset at Isla del Sol

Down was easier than up!

The Jungle Book - Beware of Spiders... Big ones...

The jungle is a strange, scary place. But altogether fascinating.

As I rock in the hammock at our jungle lodge,  I can hear a macaw saying hola, a parrot making its noise, crickets, a bird (I think)  hammering on wood, a bird that sounds for all the world like a very loud water droplet dripping, and various other noises, from birds and insects that I can't identify... There can be peace here, but if you're looking for quiet you've come to the wrong place.

Enjoying the hammock

The Amazon Basin stretches from Brazil, through Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia. We entered through Peru, which is said to have some of the most bio-diverse jungle in South America. We came in through the town Puerto Maldonado.  At 9 AM on arrival, it was 35 degrees Celsius. From there, an hour boat ride down the Rio Madre de Dios (river), and we were at our lodge, at the border of the Tambopata National Park.

Our jungle lodge

It's now time to rest up, put on pants (you can choose death by sweat or death by mosquitoes... Bug spray hardly seems to phase them) and bug spray. In 1 hour we get our first introduction to the jungle. The jungle can be a strange and scary place. Knock on this tree and you get fire ants, chew this leaf and your tongue goes
numb, don't stand there or the army ants will get you... Plants that are poisonous, plants that act as Viagra, tree strangling vines, termites, stick bugs, praying mantis.... Oh and whatever you do don't put your hand there. Welcome to the jungle.

Stick bug

It's dark now, and we go searching for caimans along the river by boat. Their eyes glow in the beam of a flashlight. They look like small alligators, and can be found all along the rivers shoreline. As you near, they slowly submerge into hiding. One stays on the bank. Still as a statue it sits, waiting for our boat to pass.  It's a white caiman and can grow up to two meters long. Fully exposed, It's quite a site.

White caiman

We wake up at 4:30 AM. Breakfast at 5, and on the boat by 5:30. The jungle wakes up early. A short boat ride and brief hike bring us into Tambopata National Park, where you can find Sandoval Lake. Today we seek the giant river otter. On the way we see a tree lick for parrots and macaws.They get essential nutrients from the dead tree. Several macaws squish in to feed from the hole in the dead tree. Nearly 20 others sit on top or circle  the tree waiting for a spot at the table. The sound of howler monkeys in the background would scare the bejeebers out of someone who didn't know what they were hearing, sounding like something out of a horror movie. Actually the sound of the howler monkeys was recorded and used as the dinosaur roar in Jurrasic Park movie.

Red bellied macaw through binoculars

The rain forest is aptly named, we find, as we paddle through the channels into the lake. The sudden downpour discourages all but birds and a few howlers from surfacing. The river otter would elude us.

As night comes,  the jungle starts to show its scary side. Even the guides are nervous of travelling the trail into the jungle at night. Poisonous snakes are dangerous and plentiful. Here the bushmaster boa constrictor rules the night. Tonight we don't look for snakes.  No, tonight we hunt tarantulas. Tarantulas come out of there nests at night to hunt. We need not travel beyond the gardens of the lodge to find them. They nest in the palms right in front of our noses. The pinktoe tarantulas are big furry, and can be very aggressive if agitated.  Nothing sounds better after a tarantula hunt then a bottle of wine! Happy second anniversary sweetie!

Nesting pinktoe tarantula

In the morning, a short half hour walk from the lodge brings us to the parrot clay lick.  The parrots get there early so we head out at 5 AM. Once there we wait. As the minutes turn to an hour, suddenly a parakeet jumps to a nearby tree, another one, and another. One jumps to the clay, followed by two more... 5, 7, 10, 15. Up to 20 parakeets are now feasting on the clay. The parakeets will get their much needed nutrients from the clay before starting their day. After about 15 minutes of feeding, one wrong noise from the jungle and they're gone. Not to return. Time to head back for breakfast, then Monkey Island awaits.

Dusky Headed Parakeets eating clay

The government had a program to rid Puerto Maldonado of pet monkeys.  The next generation now resides on Monkey Island.  We get there and a feast of bananas are offered to the semi wild monkeys. The monkeys greedily come down to snatch them up. All but the lone squirrel monkey are fed.

one of 12 species of monkey in Tambopata

We spend the rest of the day learning about the culture of the indigenous people, and visit a local orchard. The day has been exhausting. The evening of free time is spent resting. Tomorrow I go back to the clay lick.

5 AM. We leave for the clay lick hoping to see different parrots or parakeets, sometimes you can see up to 50 at a time. A Brown Bugauti keeps the parakeets high in the trees as it takes the clay lick for itself. A noise. The parakeets are gone. They don't return. It seems we can't bend nature to our will.

Brown Bugauti slinking around the clay lick

Today is our last day and we leave after breakfast.  Its been a good trip. Birds, plants, rodents, reptiles and insects (not to mention the 8 roaches, 4 frogs and army of flying ants in our rooms - it was a nice place, honest, but this is the jungle...). The bigger animals (jaguars, capybaras, tapirs and giant river otters) have managed to elude us. This time.

To read: Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book

Travelers notes:

Corto Maltes was a very nice lodge with well maintained rooms and grounds. Its advertised price was $450 US for a 4d 3n stay, but the rule is the closer you get the cheaper it gets. We bought in Cusco. We paid $295 pp, probably cheaper in Puerto Maldonado.  Bring snacks, as meals are far between. Don't expect much from the indigenous tribes and farm you visit on the third day. Its not really anything to write home about. I wanted to see the macaw clay lick, but you can't get very close, and photos are very tough without a telephoto lens. With the parrot lick, you can get pretty close. I loved the jungle experience, and now I am inspired to go deeper. If you can do a 6 or 7 day tour where you travel further in, I recommend it! Happy travels!

The local macaw, Julio, charges . (He can't fly)

This tree features a giant ants nest!

This vine will eventually take the tree over.

The lodge was a bit of a refuge for macaws

Toucan

This trees spikes protects against the killer vines

Large spider webs can be found in the jungle

This cute little guy is hanging on for dear life!

Andrea enjoys the sunset over the Rio Madre de Dios

The night hunt

The possum hunts at night too!

The possums prey, unfortunately won't last the night.

To celebrate our second anniversary, a tarantula night hunt
followed by a glass of wine...romantic. 

Our lovely guide arranged an anniversary gift,
garden flowers and a fruit basket!

Andrea, our guide Jose and myself.

That's a big slug!

Peppers found at the farm

Back at the lodge we play with Lola the parrot.

Lola hanging out with Andrea

The Sacred Pilgrimage to Machu Picchu

The Inca Trail

We start the Inca Trail at kilometer 82

Last week Andrea and I started what used to be a sacred pilgrimage, in the Inca times, towards Machu Picchu by way of the ancient Inca Trail. This narrow road through the Andes from Cusco to Machu Picchu, was reserved for only the nobility of the Inca civilization. Last week we were able to follow in the footsteps of the nobility of the ancient civilization of the Incas.

Inca ruins on the river Urubamba, and train to Machu Picchu

We started the journey to Machu Picchu from kilometer 82, and hiked the last 42.5 km of the pilgrimage. The first day was a long but not too difficult 16 km hike. We quickly past Inca ruins visible on the other side of the Rio Urubamba. The site which was not on the Inca Trail  was believed to house weary travelers on the way to Machu Picchu. As we continued our walk we made our way through small Quechau settlements.

8 km into our pilgrimage we came across Llactapata. Llactapata is a site that is said was a "resting place and roadside shrine" for the high class Inca travelers on there way to Machu Picchu. It's farming terraces were most likely used to provide food for Machu Picchu, which would have been transported by llamas. The site also may have hosted military for the militaristic civilization.

View of Llactapata 

After lunch we started to receive some heavy rain. Rain gear and ponchos were put on as we started to climb up hill to our first campsite. We hiked the last 300 m up to Ayapata where we camped on night 1, our porters were already setting camp. They make amazing time on the trail, each carrying 27kg (60 lbs) on there shoulders. Each day they would run past us with all their weight. Incredible.

Day 1: 16 km, 600 m up.

Fog shrouded mountains, seen from our campsite

We woke up the first morning to the site of beautiful lush, fog shrouded peaks of the Andes. A view that was obscured by rain and cloud from the previous eve.

Glimpse of sun at Dead Womens Pass, elevation 4215 m

We set out on day 2 of the Inca Trail. We all knew that today would be tough.  Our trail today took us past "Dead Womans Pass", 1000 m above our current campsite. This would be followed by a steep and quick 700 m drop, and another 400 m climb followed by another 400 m drop.

It did not take long after we left for our porters to dismantle the campsite and run by us on the grueling uphill with all their weight.  They would be waiting for us on the other side of the pass with lunch ready. An amazing feat of strength and endurance.

As we forced ourselves up to the peak of the pass there was a celebratory moment emphasized by a moment of clarity in the fog that gave us a clear view of the amazing sites around us. And then it was gone, signalling us to move on before the rain hit, making the steep stairs down even more treacherous. At lunch we waited for our group to show up before leaving for our next campsite. With one member very sick, and for times being carried by our guide, and with another member struggling on the uphill in the altitude (at 4300 m a short walk can feel like a marathon). With the hours counting down, and a member still missing our group split up. We needed to get to the next site before dark. Some faster members waited for

Hiking to the second pass of the day

the last member. Just before dusk we reached the next Inca site, Sayacmarca. Our campsite was close and dusk was coming. A hundred steep steps took us to the Inca site which literally means "Inaccessible Town". The site is surrounded by cliffs and is quite inaccessible other then by going up the 100 steps.

Another half an hour brought us to our next campsite, and the view was covered by clouds, and it soon began to rain. Although those who had waited at lunch had reached the site before dusk, our last member was still out there.

Well into the night, pouring rain, our final member, and guide finally arrived to the cheers of the team. The dark rainy trek down the thousands of steps would have been tough and treacherous. We were excited for their arrival.

Day 2: 12 km, 1500m up, and 1100m down.

The third day of our trek brought us upon 2 Inca sites both very large and unique. The first site, Intipata,"Town of the Sun" was laden with farming terraces, used as an agricultural site for Machu Picchu, also likely had a strategic military function as well. An amazing view! It also boasted llamas which were pretty playful. Why does the llama want to kiss me? I guess I'm just that good looking...(Andrea here, he goaded the starving llama with apples the animal was desperate).  Before leaving a glance up at the ruins showed the silhouette of one very black llama, standing amongst the ruins watching our group descend to our last campsite.

Sayacmarca, "Inaccessible Town"

One last short day hike brought us to another large set of ruins, Winay Huayna. The site whose name means "forever young" in Quechua, will have housed many Inca people  and been used to produce food for Machu Picchu. This site boasted some very unique and ingenious bath houses. As dusk hit we headed back to camp to prepare for the final day. 

Day 3: 9km, and a drop of 1 km.

Intipata, "Town of the Sun"

The final day would start at 3 am. There would be a queue of groups waiting at the guard house to enter the final stage of our pilgrimage.  As we woke up we quickly got ready, downed breakfast and headed out to the guard station. 

The camps around us still slept as we stole through the night to secure our spot, to be the first group which would mean the first group to see Machu Picchu through the sun gate. A short walk secured our place in the queue as well as allowed us to have shelter as the rain poured down on those who started to

Winay Huayna, "Forever Young"

trickle in behind us. Now we wait for the ranger to open the gates for the final leg. Despite the lack of sleep there was an energy in the groups as they waited.

At 5:30 am the gates were opened, and our group set a quick pace fueled by adrenaline down the narrow path towards the sun gate a short 3 km away.

As we arrived at the sun gate, designed to allow the sun to rise directly through the gate and into machu picchu during the summer solstice, our pilgrimage to Machu Picchu had come to an end. We had completed the 40 km section of the Inca Trail that we set out on. Machu Picchu was just 2.5 km from the sun gate.

Fog shrouded view from the sun gate

Normally we would have walked through the sun gate to a beautiful view of the sacred Machu Picchu but at this time of year the mountains are shrouded with fog in the morning. So we descended the last stairs, and down the last 2.5 km to enter the city. We had completed the holy pilgrimage taken only by the upper class of the Incas, to the sacred city of Machu Picchu.

Machu Freaking Picchu!

As we explored the city, the fog burned off. We had one more leg to our journey and the view would be the clearest view we have had during the whole trek. Huayna Picchu. Only 1500 more narrow stairs cut straight up into the mountain (going down these would prove tougher then going up) stood in our way of getting to the inca site built into the mountain overlooking Machu Picchu with a 360 degree view of the breathtaking Andes. We had arrived, our last breathtaking view on the Inca trail was the best one.

Incredible.

After thorough exploration it was time to catch our train back home. Upon reflecting on our journey, I can't help but to have a deep appreciation for the Inca people who would take this journey through the mountains, all the way, not just 42.5 km, and for the incredibly organized set up of the Inca people. It was only incredible luck and bad circumstances that allowed the Spanish people to conquer the Incas.

To read: Turn Right At Machu Picchu, by Mark Adams

Travellers notes: Llama Path is a great company with great guides and porters. They are known for treating their porters well, and we had only good experiences with them.

Achepatas are placed by locals at the top of the pass for luck

Kiss me!

Smile!

Hot water and coca tea given at the campsite

Incas integrated new rocks with old in Machu Picchu

The Incas were experts at laying stone without mortar

Llama pose

We made it!

Stunning!

Breathing it in.

The last steep climb: Huayna Picchu