July 4 – 5, 2015

I’m taking off from work for nearly the month of July.  It is the longest that I have ever taken off work.  I’m meeting my friend Taylor who is cycling the length of South America over 18 months.  My plan is to join him through the rural high mountain passes of the Andes from La Paz, Bolivia to Cusco, Peru…a route I have been salivating over for years.

I land in Cusco, drop some personal items with a friend then hop on a flight to La Paz  with the intent of cycling north back to Cusco to retrieve my items and fly home to Boulder.  The taxi picks me up for the airport for the 45 minute flight to La Paz. This should be pretty easy. I arrive at the airport 2 hrs early, only to learn that due to clouds and weather, as we are told, the Cusco airport is shut down. This lasts for about 4 hours. The weather clears but we learn that the plane has not even left La Paz yet due to snow. I suppose it is winter and that airport is at 13K ft. Taylor reports that he has seen nothing but blue skies for 3 months straight and blames me…clearly and indication of the next 4 weeks.

While waiting, I meet Francesca. She’s a Toronto journalist who is a producer for “16×9”, a Canadian show similar to our 60 minutes with a socially conscious focus. At check in, I’m told that my bags are over weight and will require $90 CASH be paid to the ticketing agent. Cash seems…odd. I take a chance and don’t pay him, hoping he actually checks in my bags. Luckily he did. I land in La Paz, nearly 5 hrs late. Taylor meets me at the airport. It’s good to see an old friend after nearly 7 months. We take a taxi down from El Alto where the airport is, to his hostel in La Paz, quickly drop off my bags, and rush down to the town center to catch the end of the Copa America futbol match, where thousands of people are gathered to watch on a giant screen. I definitely feel like I’m in SA.

La Paz is the capital of Bolivia, with a population of about 2.3M.  It is built into the hill side with altitude ranging from 10,500 to 13,500 ft.  Acclimating in La Paz is interesting.  Think of San Francisco but bigger, way bigger.  It is either up or down in every direction. I was anxious and  originally wanted to head out today and get the tour going however, I quickly learned it was better to spend a day and acclimate (more on this later).

Taylor has been here for nearly a month waiting for me.  We take a tour of his “neighborhood” where he’s been living. There are streets that have endless blocks of whatever you may want. I found this similar to to Hanoi, VN. There are 4 city blocks dedicated to cell phones for example and they all sell mostly the same thing. We come across a street that sells lama fetuses, dried. Eery and odd. We learn that they are good luck and buried in the foundation of houses. After walking around, we are approached by a person handing out fliers for wrestling. Bolivians LOVE wrestling. It costs $10 including transport and VIP ring side seating. Men wrestling men, wrestling women, wrestling the ref. It is truly entertaining. Welcome to Bolivia.

Illimani. 16,350ft peak towering over La Paz

Llama fetuses

Bolivian wrestling is legit

Bolivian wrestling is legit

The VIP treatment with the Cholitas