Enter Bolivia

From people who have never been to Bolivia but have heard wild stories about cowboys and poverty, we were advised to stay away. From those who have visited we heard that it was their favourite destination in South America and it sadden them to leave. With such contrasting view, we couldn’t wait to enter! It’s a country that has the worlds highest everything. It’s South America’s poorest country. It has the largest population of indigenous people at 60%. Bolivia’s languages are Spanish Quechua, Aymara and Guarani. It’s the world’s biggest producer of the coca leaf- but they´re not exactly cocaine addicts, prefering it in it´s natural form. They leave the cocaine to the Americans, who are the worlds greatest consumers. As for landscape, it has everything except beaches for the country is landlocked thanks to the War of the Pacific in 1879-83 when Chile annexed the 350km of Bolivia’s coast.

We caught a bus from Humahuaca to the Argentian side of the border, La Quiaca. We met an Israeli girl on the bus who was on our tour in Cafayate therefore we walked to immigration together, waited in the queue for ages and eventually enter Bolivia through a town called Villazón. We had lunch together before saying our goodbyes as she was taking the train to Uyuni and we wanted to make a stop in Tupiza before heading up there.

Tupiza

Wow, there was an instant difference between Bolivia and Argentina and that was with the roads. It was a rattling bumpy three hour ride with the roads still ‘under construction’. Every half an hour or so we would see a bulldozer or pipes waiting to be laid, but nobody there to work them; we think that they either ran out of money or were all on a long break.

Tourism seems to run Tupiza and there were a few touts waiting for us when we alighted from the bus. We found a nice room, half the price of Argentina and searched about town for a horse riding tour. We arranged an excursion for the following day, choosing a three hour trip, thinking our thighs and bums would thank us later, not to mention Mal’s manly parts! That night we ate at one of the many touristy ‘Italian Restaurants’ and after waiting for about an hour we had some surprisingly good pizzas. Afterwards I decided to sample the coca tea finding it to be not much different from green tea, needless to say, I liked it.

The next morning we presented ourselves at the tour company and found our guide waiting. He looked about 12 or 13. I complained to the tour guide that he should be at school and they should provide us with a non child-labour guide. He assured us that there was ‘no problem’ the guide was 14 and very responsible. Ha, a working adult at 14 the poor thing. I asked him his name and after the second attempt he remembered his tourist name and told us it was Daniel. Oh, please God let this be different to our other camel-back riding tour with the other ‘Daniel’ in the Indian desert!

We took a local bus to the stables and waited for the guides to select the horses and saddle them up. With us were a Manchester couple and an Irish guy who had opted for the full day- good luck to them! We requested the tamest horses and eventually mounted them rigged out in Sombreros and galoshes.

Thankfully the horses were as described and took it easy on us. We rode with the other three for half an hour and then it was just us and the guide. Daniel had disappeared, perhaps afraid of me and there was a 16 year old in his place. He had a pierced lip, baseball cap and would look out of place on a horse if it wasn’t for the face that he was so comfortable in the saddle, with a slight pull on the reigns the horse would do anything he suggested.

We stopped at a mound of rocks and walked up what once was a waterfall while our guide rested. It was beautiful, truly stunning scenery. Believe it or not, this was the actual stomping ground of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance kid. It was here they met their demise after a robbery just 40km from the area!


We returned via a different route passing a rock formation named the ‘Devils Door’.


We rode along the road for a bit and as a jeep passed I patted my horse and talked to her like a real horse whisperer, thinking I knew exactly what to do as I had just read ‘All the Pretty Horses’, but really the horse was tame and probably did this everyday. Mal’s horse was slightly wilder and nearly bucked when the guide grabbed the reigns and tried to drag her off the road. Before reaching the ‘main road’ there was a dead-end between some high rocks and a small ditch. I was wondering if the guide had brought us down a wrong path when the horse suddenly turned for the ditch and before I could freak out she jumped! I hardly felt anything on landing- in all fairness it was a small ditch. I quickly looked back to see Mal’s horse doing the same thing. The jump looks higher when you’re an observer. I actually got a slight adrenalin rush and was smiling all the way back to town.


Instead of taking the bus we rode the horses, or rather they led us back to town on the railway line alongside the road. Amazingly they knew every crack and turn in the rails and adjusted their hooves accordingly.

We hung out in Tupiza for another day and the town celebrated Independence weekend. Seriously all the men were drunk pretty early in the day while the women opened food and drink stalls all over town. We gorged ourselves and watched the parade in the main square. The female band members’ uniform was the shortest I’ve ever seen, on the prettiest girls in town. Mal made us watch the whole parade.


The rest of the women wore more traditional clothes and were slightly wider. They all balance bowler hats atop their heads just like the Bolivian women you see in the latest James Bond movie. Quite the fashion statement I think.