Greatest Hits: First Half

Amazingly enough, we have survived the first half of the trip. We've been gone over two months, and have just under two more to go. I finally got access to a decent internet connection and computer, so thought I would put up some highlights and favorite pics from the first half (these are just off of one of my memory cards, not counting Zack's pics, or my other cameras... there are quite a few more where these came from). It has flown by and I am sure the next half will be even faster. Looking through all these makes me realize how far we've travelled and how massive and diverse this continent is. I feel we haven't even scracthed the surface. Speaking of which, we are in Quito preparing for a week long trip into the rainforest. Should be a few more pics to come...

Lima, Peru

Ok, second post in a day... this is what you all get for bugging me about why I haven't done a blog in "forever". We flew from La Paz to Lima, most flights anywhere connect through Lima, so we decided to stop through on the way to Quito, Ecuador. Those of you with maps in front of you might be wondering why we are going backwards, which is a logical question, but long story short we have to be in Quito by March 20th and it just worked out this way, ok? Many people had said Lima sucks, but we have quickly learned to ignore most people and judge things for ourselves. Luckily for us, we had been put in touch with a friend of a friend, a girl named Kara, who lives in Lima and would be happy to show us around. She has been a great host, taking us to great restuarants and bars, giving a walking tour along the coast (as seen in the pics), and connecting us with the locals, and a bunch of American twentysomethings.

Randomly, Kara had yet another friend of a friend come through Lima for the night, 4 bros newly graduated from USC on a one week trip to do Machu Picchu and connecting through Lima for the night. They bought drinks like they were free, rocked V necks so big I didn't even know existed, and sweated profusely while dancing on the local Limenas. Their flight was to Cusco at 6 am, so they went straight from the bar to the airport. Not sure if it was because it was their first night in South America, the fact it is just one week away from work, or the fratacity still running through their veins... but they went nuts and entertained us all. Thanks fellas, you make me feel young again.

Maybe its because we have had a local show us around, maybe its because we haven't really left the only nice parts of Lima (Miraflores and Baranco)... but I have thoroughly enjoyed my time here. It certainly hasn't sucked. It's been the closest I've felt to being back in the states, even California, as the fancy shops and restaurants line the Pacific Ocean. I've eaten well, gotten some sun and had a few drinks. Huge thanks out to Kara for being a great host. Next stop, Quito, Ecuador to prepare for the journey into the Amazon.

Lake Titicaca

I've fallen behind a little bit, it was bound to happen. We went to Lake Titicaca last week, the day after doing The World's Most Dangerous Road. The two activities couldn't really have been much different, the former being dangerous and heart pounding while the latter was about as slow paced as you can get. While it was scenic and relaxing and for sure a great place to go, I can't say this entry will be long or mindblowing by any means. Anyway, we took a 4 hour bus from La Paz to Copacabana which is on the Bolivian side of the lake (Puno being the Peruvian side), managing not to get stuck in any rivers this time. The boat ride from Copacabna to Isla del Sol, the main island in the middle of the lake and supposed birthplace of the Incas, takes about 2 and a half hours. My guess it would be just slightly longer if you were to swim, judging by the boats leisurely pace. We hiked from the North end of the Island to the South which took about 5 hours and caught the boat back to Copacabana. The next day we headed back to La Paz. Ok, this is the last time I get to do this. "Titicaca"... hahahaa.

The World's Most Dangerous Road

Mom, I may have mentioned I was doing a "bike ride" the other day, but I intentionally left out some details of where this bike ride would be. There's a road about an hour north of La Paz known as "The World's Most Dangerous Road" or the "Death Road" that you can actually pay to bike down, so we did. Used as an actual main highway from La Paz to Coroico since the mid 1940's, there were many deaths due to cars plummetting off the 2,000 foot drops from the narrow road with little to no guard rails. There are all kinds of contradiciting statistics about the numbers of deaths and stuff, but what I can tell you from my own experience is that it is a very long, steep, narrow road with many winding turns and dropoffs that cars really have no business driving on in one direction, let alone both directions. Admittedly, it has gotten safer in the past few years due to the "New Death Road" they built on the other side of the valley which greatly minimized the amount of car traffic on the Old Road. After arriving in La Paz and hearing it was one of the highlights to do in Bolivia, we set out to find a reputable company that would let us bike down the road and experience it for ourselves.

We decided this wasn't the type of thing to try and go budget on, so we went with the biggest company called Gravity, which is a little bit more but we decided was worth the price. We heard stories of people paying half what we paid and having the back brakes fail, so we felt good about the choice. The bikes are all new with full suspension and disc breaks, and well maintained. The guides are well paid and experienced. A young English couple, Joe and Lucy, who we met and befriended through our Salar de Uyuni trip joined us. We boarded the bus in the morning and headed up and out of La Paz to the top of the road at about 15,700 feet where we pleasantly discovered it to be snowing heavily. We bundled up and got a saftey lecture from our guide, boarded our bikes and headed down the road. Over the course of 4 or so hours, we dropped about 10,000 feet in altitude over about 40 miles of road, mostly dirt, with very little pedaling. The road wound along the cliff side, under waterfalls, and past many crosses and memorials to those who managed to not stay on the road. The temperature went from near freezing to sunny and sweltering heat. We arrived at the bottom to enjoy a cold beer and buffet lunch at an animal sanctuary and resort in Coroico.

It was a great feeling to know we survived, but it wasn't really until the ride back up the road in the bus that we realized what exactly we had just come down. We stocked up on some cervezas for the three hour ride back up the Old Road we came down. It had been a few weeks since they drove back up the road due to mudlsides, so we were told it was quite a treat to go back up. Despite the snow storm at the top, we were also blessed with one of the clearest days in a long time, allowing us to see all the way back down the valley to see the road, as well as up to the snow capped crags up the valley. We stopped to take a few pictures, as well as for a bathroom break, and though I contemplated peeing off the ledge, I got scared. We arrived back in La Paz exhausted, surprised at how much riding a bike without pedaling can wear you out. So Mom, I am alive and well, don't worry. Our next stop is not quite as dangerous, but has a much funnier name... Lake Titicaca.

Oh and when I walked into the bar in the hostel the other day, a girl yelled "THIS IS SPARTA!!!" at me, so I guess the beard is doing just fine.

Salar de Uyuni and Bus Adventures

We finally got to experience the South American bus system we had heard so much about. With no particular plans of any sort, and hearing rumors of a pretty cool salt flat in Bolivia, south of La Paz, we decided to embark on a few overnight buses from Cuzco, Peru through the south of Peru and into Chile. Two overnight buses in three days turned out to be not as bad as we expected, it was the return home where we saw all the rumors of the Bolivian bus system come to reality... more on that in a minute. The town of San Pedro de Atacama, Chile was unexpectedly awesome, looked like a mini Santa Fe, New Mexico full of mountain bike rental shops and great restaurants. We rented bikes and cruised around, and booked our three day tour into the salt flats of Bolivia.

The Tour consists of three days and two nights of driving across the desert in an old Land Cruiser 4x4. We were told there would be max of 6 in a car, of course we had 7. And every guy was over 6 ft. Needless to say it wasn't all that comfortable, but we made it work. You get out about 12 times a day to see crazy colored lakes with flamingos, rock formations, hot springs you can swim in, and a lot of desert. The drivers dont speak english, and drive whereever they please since there aren't any particular roads. There are a few places where the water is a tad deeper than it appears, as you can see (in my picture with cool effects) our driver just slightly misjudged that one spot. We got towed out in a minute or two by the other car.

The big day was on the third day, where we woke up at 330 am to see the sun rise from an "island" made of coral over the salt flats, or the Salar. It had rained the night before, which was a mixed blessing. The good thing was that it puts about an inch of water on the salt flats so you get a perfect reflection of the sky. The bad thing is it was cloudy and we didn't get the full effect of the bright reflection. With the endless white of the salt flats, you can also set up some cool pictures with the perspective. I guess you could do this anywhere with a flat surface, but everyone does it here so... when in Rome, right?

Our tour ended in Uyuni, Bolivia where the real adventure began. We had heard horror stories of the bus ride from Uyuni to La Paz being the worst ride ever, with tipped over buses and long delays, but with little choice, we made the adventure. We got used to the constant rattling of the bus, like the worst turbulance ever, as we rolled over the rough dirt roads and were actually able to fall asleep. We stopped at about 3 am for a few hours, not sure why, and when the sun came up I went outside to see. There were two trucks and a bus stuck in the river, one of many you have to cross. After about 4 hours, they got the one bus out and it was our bus's turn. Our driver revved the engine, and gunned it, only to get stuck as well. One thought went through all our minds, DAMMMMMMIIITTTTTTTT!!!! There were about 100 people working together, well sort of, with no particular leadership. If this had been America, the police, fire department, CHP, and CalTrans would have been on the scene. But no, its Bolivia and if you can't get your own bus out of the river, you aren't going anywhere. With a combo of a car jack, rocks, boards, and straw, we lifted the bus up and built a road across the river. After 9 hours of work and waiting came the moment of truth. The driver gunned it and we were out. I went ballistic, high fiving the drivers and hugging old Bolivian women. There is a video out there somewhere, that I hope to someday post, of the celebration. We then drove 8 more hours to La Paz where we are now. It was a 24 hour journey in all, and it sucked while doing it (big time), but it was all worth the story. We have about a week here to see Lake Titicaca, do a bike ride, and see this crazy city. Bolivia, what a country.

Oh, and a few more pictures....