The Los Angeles of South America

The two of us and our lovely English traveling companions hopped on a plane to La Paz, Bolivia in order to avoid the most uncomfortable busses that South America has to offer and the unpaved roads that Bolivia is known for. It was absolutely marvelous! I never thought I would like flying so much in my life...but to watch all those mountains and dirt roads just fly by below I felt wonderfully at peace.



As we flew over La Paz it was quite a spectacle! It looked like either a pile of garbage or as if all the rooftops connected as they floated over the hills and valleys that make up this incredibly large city. La Paz is very different from the other cities we've visted in Bolivia. Tupiza was very poor and smelled of coca and rancid meat. Uyuni was slightly more advanced with wide streets, slightly more showy buildings, and a smattering of tourists (especially in the pizza place owned by a guy from Western Mass!). Potosi is the highest city in the world (at 4000 and some odd meters) and once the richest because of it's mines. The slender streets had a colonial feel, proper businesses were easier to come by and taxis nearly took you down at ever corner. Sucre, our last stop, is the actual capital but La Paz has taken over as de facto. Sucre has a very Spanish feel to it with huge white churches, amazing architecture, and giant squares of palm trees. We actually came across a supermarket here and civilization seemed to be creeping back up on us. Now back to La Paz.... as we flew through the crowded streets on our microbus Jeremy and I both agreed that if L.A. got rid of all the white people and if the Scientologists shined shoes instead of giving stress tests then it would look like La Paz. The streets are bustling with people, the traffic is nonstop, the medians are lined with palmtrees, prices are higher, and in the distance all you see are hillsides lined with houses. Don't get me wrong, L.A. has more money that La Paz will ever see, but the feel is somewhat the same. Oh what I would give for some chicken and waffles and some Californian-Mexican food right now!!