First impressions count, and for me the huge differences between Peru and Bolivia were almost instantaneous.

We arrived on a Sunday in pouring rain, through the crowded streets of El Alto. Horns going, stop, starts then down the hill to the bus station at La Paz. Unlike Peru baggage collection was a free for all. And with the damp of the rain came a mix of pungent odours, not all pleasant leaving an impression of WTF have I got myself into here.

It had been a very early start up at 4am, arriving 11 hours later we were given 30 minutes to drop our bags to attend the final planned inclusion of the tour , a walking tour of La Paz. Just around the corner from the hotel is the witches market , witchcraft is practiced , although I’m not sure that is really the right word for it. But it’s a definite tourist oddity. We entered the shop and again the smell hit me.. I wasn’t alone and across the lane a couple of the crew had spied an Irish bar called the lucky lama , ( luckier it would seem than the many dead and preserved lamas in the witches shop) and peeled away from the group.

Ten minutes later we joined them too for a beer. We stayed for one, went and had a nap had some dinner and joined the rest of the crew for a farewell drink. Things were catching up with us after an action packed few weeks.

So rounds of goodbyes and trading contact details, we’ve been really lucky I hope the Bolivia group is as good as this one and we were off.

We booked a tour to catch up on what we missed the day before. Before it started we decided to have a look at the central square. As we approached we could see a police cordon. So we went had a coffee. Then we started to hear popping noises, which increased in intensity. No one else around us seemed bothered, but when I had a look out the coffee shop door I could see a noisy protest approaching the armed Police cordon and we were right in the middle. Time to get out. Quickly.

The miners are protesting the removal of a fuel subsidy, but it turns out there was some seriously shady deals going on with the subsidised fuel being onsold by the miners union at a large markup outside Bolivia. All very shady. Anyway, the popping sounds was fireworks, but that soon escalated into dynamite being let off. Basically full scale explosion sounds which put our nerves on edge but did not seem to have the slightest effect on everyone else as they got on with their day.

The tour itself was amazing, for $10us for 3 hours. We started nervously ( with the bloody dynamite sounds going off ) at the central Cathedral first built in 1540, a walk up a few hills ( still tough at this altitude) and then onto the cable cars. Which were so next century. They criss cross the difficult terrain, cost about 50c Nz a ride and seem almost other worldly. Wellington could do with these.

It’s an incredible piece of public engineering like nothing I have experienced before. And sits in such contrast to other parts of public infrastructure that appear to be under invested in.

Sound seems to be different at Altitude? Crisper and clearer like you have super hearing. In the cable car you could hear a bird singing, a dog barking from a long way away and it seemed like it was nearby. Quite bizarre.

We then headed to our Airbnb and what a relief it is to actually unpack for a bit. To put the suitcase away, have access to a kitchen and washing machine. Very modern place, awesome views and quite cheap at only $75nz a night. Score!

We are deliberately having a complete day off. Nothing. nada. A big sleep in, long shower and a coffee down the road. Back into the adventures tomorrow….and another special dinner planned for New Year’s Eve. It’s going to mean more food pics!