Train and bus to la Paz
Topic: Bolivia
Our carriage on the train bound for Oruro was only partially occupied - some locals, some Canadians and us. the Canadians and I swapped photography tips and took it in turns to sit at the open window to get the best shots of the incredible scenery outside - massive gorges, fertile planes and tiny villages. The rest of the passengers preferred to sit with their shutters closed watching Pirates of the Caribbean followed by Dr Doolittle on the TV. Even when it went dark, I enjoyed looking at the gorges illuminated by the full moon. I didn't get much sleep. I kept wriggling about and snuffling (the effects of the Yellow fever jab I suspect). The sun rose about 6am and the scenery had changed dramatically. It was now hills, green-tinted salt lakes and hundreds of improbably pink flamingos reflected in the lake. Many of the other passengers watched Bolivian folk videos in the dark.
The train arrived in Oruro 15 and a half hours after leaving Villazon. We bought tickets for the bus to La Paz and had time for a quick cup of coca tea before we left.
One of the Canadians got his wallet stolen from a vendor on the bus. he called for the police who weren't at all helpful so in the end he just gave up and got back on the bus. I felt really sorry for him and the other Bolivian passengers were really embarrassed and sympathetic. We reviewed our security practices - it could easily have been us.
The bus journey was 4 hours through the Alti Plano including a stop to change the flat tyre about halfway there. The villages along the way looked very poor and people seemed to have nothing to do except sit on big piles of rubble watching the buses and trucks go by. We tried not to fall asleep even though we were so tired. We played a game we had invented in Sri Lanka where you have to spot things (remember that 1970s game? you tick off things like humpbacked bridge and level crossing?). Our Bolivian version included the following:
- Woman in a bowler hat hundreds)
- Llama (none as it turned out)
- Load of lads in a back of a truck (a few)
- Live sheep strapped on a roof rack of a bus (2)
- An abandoned adobe house (loads)
- An adobe house with a tin roof held on with rocks (loads)
- A donkey (loads)
- A car (one or two)
- A thatched roof (a few)
- Political graffiti (loads)
- A political demo (3 - the elections are on the 15th)
- Women playing soccer (1 game - classic! They play dressed in their massive petticoats and are pretty skillful)
When we weren't playing that, we watched a made-for-TV movie called "Substitute Assassins" dubbed in Spanish or listened to one of our fellow passengers give a sales pitch. One started "Your health is the most important thing. Now I have your attention...." and went on to explain how her teas could cure everything from cancer to AIDS because they purify the liver. It was a pretty successful presentation as lots of passengers bought some.
Finally, we approached El Alto region of La Paz (a fast growing city in its own right) and then descended 500m into La Paz which occupies a giant crater. Home for the next 4 days.
Posted by jo mynard
at 12:01 AM
Updated: Wednesday, 1 December 2004 12:37 AM