La Laguna Colorada – or Red Lagoon – is one of the many
unusual natural phenomena you can see as part of a jeep tour in southern Bolivia. The water is dyed red by the sediment and pigmentation of some algae.
Showing posts with label Bolivia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Bolivia. Show all posts
5 Tips for Beating Altitude Sickness in La Paz
Altitude sickness is a strange beast; it can have little to no
effect on some people but leave others gasping for breath and feeling like
they’ve aged forty years overnight.
This was certainly the case for me when I arrived in La Paz, a
city precariously perched at 12,000 feet above sea level in the Bolivian Andes.
Whilst my girlfriend was blissfully unaffected by the sharp increase
in altitude, as soon as we left the plane at El Alto Airport in La Paz I could
feel the altitude taking an effect. By the time we were in a taxi on the way
into the city, I felt noticeably sluggish.
By following these tips, you can lessen the effects of altitude
sickness in La Paz, and get to see more of this fascinating city.
1. Drink Coca Tea
A popular and cheap method
of dealing with altitude sickness in La Paz is chewing coca leaves or drinking
them in a tea. The effect of the tea is mild and in no way comparable to coca in
its illegal powdered form. Whilst this won’t transform you from a groggy to
energetic state or alleviate the problem, it does take the edge off. Many
hotels and hostels will provide coca leaves free of charge on request. In Cruz
de Los Andes where we stayed twice the leaves were freely available in the
breakfast room.
To prepare this, crumble
the leaves up in a cup and then add boiling water. The flavour isn’t
particularly pleasant, but then again neither is the overpowering lethargy of
altitude sickness.
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| Coca tea - all legal and helps take the edge off altitude sickness |
2. Don’t Exert Yourself
La Paz’s near vertical
streets can be challenging at the best of times, and can feel an impossible
challenge under the influence of altitude sickness. It’s important to pace
yourself when walking, especially uphill.
3. Stay on a Lower Floor of your Accommodation
This may seem
tongue-in-cheek but it genuinely helps, particularly if you are staying in
lift-free accommodation! Our move down from the top (fifth) floor to the second
floor definitely had a positive effect – not least because of the gruelling slog
up five stories of steps! In the room itself, I felt tangibly less short of
breath, my head stopped pounding and the tingling fingers subsided to some
extent.
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| La Paz's higher reaches viewed from our hostel |
4. Eat Sensibly
Eating a heavy meal is
proven to worsen altitude sickness so resist temptation to gorge on the
Bolivian staple of fried chicken. Eat something light in a sensible portion-size
instead.
5. Avoid Alcohol & Drink Plenty of Water
La Paz isn’t renowned as a party city but there are more
bars and hedonistic hostels beginning to spring up. Bear in mind that a
hangover at altitude is a normal hangover squared. High altitude can cause pounding
headaches anyway, especially lying down, so avoid alcohol until you’re
accustomed to the elevated height.
Flying into La Paz from Santiago was a gamble which, if we’d had
the luxury of more time, we probably wouldn’t have taken. It took about two
days in La Paz to adjust, after which I felt no repeat of the symptoms in the
weeks after, even at a higher altitude in Quito.
Have you experienced altitude sickness in La Paz or any
other city?
7 Tips for Enjoying Your Bolivian Salt Flats Tour
Every year more and more backpackers head to southern
Bolivia to see the Bolivian salt flats and the various other natural wonders scattered
between the mining town of Uyuni and the Chilean border.
The only way to take in these sights is by 4x4, with tour lengths
ranging between one and five days. We chose the three day option which took us
over the salt flats, past the red lagoon and down to the thermal baths near the
Chilean border before returning via San Cristobal.
Whilst there are some amazing landscapes to see, with large distances to travel, basic facilities
and extreme temperatures it can be a challenging experience at times. Here are seven tips to help you get the most out of
your Bolivian salt flats tour.
1. Do some background research on tour companies
Online message boards are rife with stories of less than
reputable companies taking tourists into the desert from the dusty town
of Uyuni and drivers' lack of sobriety is an issue that crops up again and
again. Our driver from Empexa Tours (who as far as we know was as
dry as the salt flats throughout) made light of this himself, asking me if I
was worried he was going ‘to go off and get drunk’ when he picked up on my
anxiousness to be back in Uyuni in time for our night bus.
Clearly its hard to establish the trustworthiness of a
driver prior to the tour but by doing some background research you can at least
have an idea of two or three well-known companies in Uyuni to choose from, even
if you’re not planning on booking in advance.
Our tour with Empexa was very good, apart from some confusion at the beginning when there was no driver or jeep for us! We think this was the fault of the third party site we booked with (boliviatravelsite.com.
2. Choose the right length tripOur tour with Empexa was very good, apart from some confusion at the beginning when there was no driver or jeep for us! We think this was the fault of the third party site we booked with (boliviatravelsite.com.
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Driving through the desert on Day 2 |
The majority of tour operators will provide a choice of three different tours and largely follow the same route down to the border with Chile and then back again in a circle. If you’re just interested in seeing the nearby salt flats, the ‘one day’ option will be fine. This is usually combined with a visit to the train cemetery.
Most two day tours will take in the Ollague Volcano and perhaps one of the flamingo lakes. Although pleasant enough, for us, these were some of the less essential sections of the tour. Many of the must-see attractions like the Red Lagoon, thermal baths and the Tree of Stone are down towards the Chilean border and only inclwuded in the three-day option.
Unless you’re really only interested in the one day salt flats option, go for the three day rather than the two day tour. For the sake of one extra night it would be a shame to miss so many fantastic sights.
3. Prepare for lack of Wifi
Technophobes and old-school travel purists will love it;
everyone else will hate it. The Bolivian salt flats and the surrounding areas are some
of the most remote places on earth and Wifi is still a mere pipedream. Organise
any important texts/emails/blog updates in Uyuni and then embrace a rare
opportunity to disconnect from the technological world!
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| Definitely no heating or Wifi here |
4. Pack clothes for all temperatures
For most, one of the main allures of the Bolivian salt flats
and their surroundings are the wide open expanses and unspoilt natural beauty.
But, with any wide open space there are some strong winds which can be
chilly, even when the sun's beating down.
With much of days two and three of the longer tour spent in desert
terrain, temperatures fluctuate hugely. Days can be very hot and there is little
to no shade. As soon as the sun sets, the mercury plummets; it’s bitterly cold
until sunrise and unless you’ve paid extra, the accommodation will be very
basic.
Our accommodation on the second night was barely any warmer than outside.For such a wide range of temperatures, the best option is to have multiple layers to hand and just remove or add them as needed.
Our accommodation on the second night was barely any warmer than outside.For such a wide range of temperatures, the best option is to have multiple layers to hand and just remove or add them as needed.
5. Have everything you need in the jeep at the start of each day
Depending on the amount of available space in your jeep,
your rucksack may be secured under a tarpaulin on the roof during the day, so
remember to have everything you need for the day inside the jeep. I left my
bathers and towel inside my large bag on day three and could only go knee-deep
in the thermal baths.
One essential in-jeep item is sun cream. Whilst it doesn’t
always feel particularly hot in some of the more windswept parts of the trip, there
is no natural shade and you’ll soon end up the same colour as the Red Lagoon without it.
Wet wipes are also a lifesaver. There are no guarantees of a
shower at any point (unless you’ve splashed the cash for better accommodation) and
deserts are generally pretty dusty places.
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| Have anything you need during the day in the jeep - not on the roof |
As impressive an array of sights as there is to see, with
such huge distances to cover there will still be a lot of hours spent rattling
along a dirt track with not a lot to keep you amused. Between us and one of our
tour companions we had a decent selection of music..until he left to catch a
lift to Chile during the third day and our phone batteries died.
Our driver seemed happy to rely upon less than ten
songs-worth of Bolivian pop music for the rest of the trip, but after the tape
had been repeated multiple times we were beginning to question our sanity. That
said; it was arguably still better than chart music in the UK.
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| Heading out onto the salt flats on Day 1 in our jeep |
In an attempt to save time we decided to catch a night-bus
to and from La Paz directly either side of our three day tour. This proved to
be one of our bigger mistakes!
A night bus in Bolivia is not the relaxing experience that it
might be in more developed countries. Bolivia’s roads are primitive at best,
resulting in a jarring, bumpy overnight ride - definitely not conducive to
a good night's sleep. An unwelcome 3 am breakdown and bus change in Oruro also didn’t
help.
Having barely slept, when we arrived in the blinding morning
sunshine in Uyuni the last thing we wanted to do was spend three days in a
jeep. Similarly, after spending said three days in a jeep, the very last thing
we wanted was a sleepless nine hour bus ride back to La Paz!
A far better option is to spend a night either side of the
tour in Uyuni. If money’s not an issue, you could even consider flying in and
out from La Paz.
Read the full account of our three day tour here > 3 Days in the Wild: Salar de Uyuni and Southern Bolivia
3 Days in the Wild: Salar de Uyuni and Southern Bolivia
From the red lagoon, geysers and thermal springs, there is plenty to make the sometimes arduous three day round trip well worth it. After all, nothing easy is worth doing right?
Day 1 - Uyuni - Train Cemetery - Salt Flats - Incahuasi Island
We arrived bleary eyed in the small town of Uyuni on the edge of the
world’s largest salt flats at 7am after a bumpy and largely sleepless
overnight bus ride from the city of La Paz in the north of Bolivia. The
blinding sunshine jolted us from our semi-consciousness and we tried to
identify our tour salt flat tour company from the collection of similar
businesses dotted along the dusty main street.
Having finally found Empexa Tours we introduced ourselves to
Marisa the owner with the confidence of having arranged everything in advance,
albeit through a third party tour operator. It gradually dawned on us - over
the ninety minute wait in the office with an increasingly agitated Marisa –
that our confidence was misplaced, and we’d been forgotten about.
Eventually another tour group arrived and we squeezed into the back of the jeep and made our way onto the edge of the desert. Our group consisted of a middle aged Belgian couple, a rather introverted Chilean couple and a lone-travelling Dutch guy in his mid twenties. With seven of us plus luggage, it was cosy to say the least.
Eventually another tour group arrived and we squeezed into the back of the jeep and made our way onto the edge of the desert. Our group consisted of a middle aged Belgian couple, a rather introverted Chilean couple and a lone-travelling Dutch guy in his mid twenties. With seven of us plus luggage, it was cosy to say the least.
After stopping at the ‘train cemetery’ – a collection of
disused steam trains around 15 minutes outside Uyuni - we entered the blinding
white expanse of the salt flats, the uninterrupted sunshine intensifying the whiteness yet further. Salar de Uyuni was once a huge fishing lake which dried up leaving a huge expanse of crystallised salt. On our visit it was dry; this meant no large-scale ‘mirror’ effect but an otherworldly, glowing whiteness stretching out to the horizon.
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| A dry day on the salt flats |
We stopped for a lunch of lama steaks and rice on the middle
of the salt before José - our driver
and guide - demonstrated his potential as a professional photographer by
arranging us in some imaginative takes on the traditional salt flat perspective
photos!
After a visit to Incahuasi Island - a cactus-covered former fishing spot affording panoramic views across the salt flats - we headed off into the surprisingly early sunset, for a fairly comfortable night at the salt-brick Kachiwasi Hostel.
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| One of many perspective shots |
Day 2 - Ollague Volcano - Hedionda Lagoon - Tree of Stone - Red Lagoon
We awoke around 7am to another gloriously sunny day and left
the salt flats behind, gradually ascending into the mountains to the south. We
stopped at the foot of the smouldering Ollague Volcano before having lunch at
the scenic, flamingo filled Laguna Hedionda (Hedionda Lagoon), backed by snow
capped mountains. It felt more crowded than the previous day with around
fifteen other jeeps sticking to the same route.
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| Flamingos at Hedionda Lagoon |
It was at this point that José mentioned in passing that
time was of the essence as all the other jeep drivers were effectively racing
each other to get to that night’s accommodation. We were not, he explained,
guaranteed a room for the night and if we were too late we risked a night in
the jeep; that’s seven of us in a jeep, with temperatures plummeting to past
-10°C
after dark.
We were therefore somewhat preoccupied for the rest of the
afternoon which included two of the most famous parts of the tour; firstly the Dali-esque Arbol de Piedra (Tree of Stone) – a boulder sculpted
over centuries into the shape of a tree. Then, La Laguna Colorada (Red Lagoon) - a large lake dyed a deep scarlet
by algae with swathes of bright white salt around the edges. Impressive as they were, by this point we were anxious to make it to
the underwhelmingly named ‘Hauchipato Shelter’ for the evening.
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| La Laguna Colorada (Red Lagoon) |
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| El Arbol de Piedra (Tree of Stone) |
Upon our arrival there was chaotic but ultimately successful scramble for the remaining rooms. To be fair, our accommodation for the night did provide shelter, but little else. Even having put on literally every item of clothing we had brought, we were still bitterly cold. The blood stains on the sheets were also an unpleasant discovery, but I suppose at least we weren’t in the jeep.
Day 3 - Geysers - Thermal Baths - Dali Desert - Valley of the Rocks - San Cristobal - Uyuni
Day 3 - Geysers - Thermal Baths - Dali Desert - Valley of the Rocks - San Cristobal - Uyuni
We got up in pitch darkness at 4am so that we could arrive
at the thermal springs near the hamlet of Agua Brava, around an hour and a half
away, for sunrise. Normally such an early start is the antithesis of everything
I stand for but it was a relief to leave the shelter after a largely sleepless night.
On the way to the springs we stopped at Sol de Mañana
(literally ‘sun of the morning’), a collection of geysers spraying hot steam
skywards. It was still bitterly cold at this point - José estimated -5 °C
but it certainly felt colder – and we took the opportunity to warm our frozen
hands in the blasts of hot air. In the distance, amongst the plumes of smoke,
the sky began to take on a faint orange hue.
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| 5 am and unbelievably cold at Sol de Mañana |
We arrived at the thermal baths just as the sun began to
rise across the steaming water before us. We were the first group to arrive and
had the place to ourselves. We watched the various birds make their first
forays of the day, darting over the face of the water. A dip in the brilliantly
warm water was the perfect rejuvenation after a day’s worth of desert dust
without a shower.
After half an hour or so the other tour groups arrived and began to pile into the water. It was at this point that the male half of our Chilean couple –almost painfully reserved until this point – suddenly cast off his inhibitions and stripped naked in front of several jeeps-worth of people in his attempts to dry off.
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| Sunrise at the thermal baths |
After half an hour or so the other tour groups arrived and began to pile into the water. It was at this point that the male half of our Chilean couple –almost painfully reserved until this point – suddenly cast off his inhibitions and stripped naked in front of several jeeps-worth of people in his attempts to dry off.
Mysteriously though, his omnipresent hat remained on. Our
Dutch friend left at this point to make the short journey to the Chilean
border, sadly taking his I-pod with him. As good a guide as José was, his
enthusiasm for loud Bolivian music wasn’t shared by the rest of us.
The rest of the day was spent driving through the barren
red-soil terrain of the Dali Desert, before beginning the long journey north.
We stopped to marvel at the Valley of the Rocks; a collection of rocks bearing
an uncanny resemblance to various animals including a hawk, parrot and a bear. Thankfully
photographic evidence was taken to assure us it wasn’t some sort of desert
mirage.
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| Two of the 'animals' at Valley of the Rocks |
It had been a tiring three days but the truly mind-blowing
array of natural wonders we experienced really did make the discomfort and
wildly varying temperatures worth it.
Read my essential tips for getting the most from
a Bolivian Salt Flats tour.
5 Things to do in La Paz
Precariously perched in the Andes Mountains at between 10,500 and 13,500 ft, and practically in the clouds themselves, La Paz can be a tiring city to navigate. That said, the de facto capital of Bolivia has some unique attractions that make its near-vertical streets well worth visiting. Here are five things to do in La Paz to get the most from your stay.
Look over the city from El Alto
Flying into La Paz does certainly have its pitfalls (altitude
sickness isn’t much fun, even with coca tea to take the edge off!) but the
view over the city from El Alto is certainly a plus. La Paz is a city full of
dramatic photo opportunities but for the most impressive view over the city,
the higher the better.
Bucking the usual trend that dictates that the higher the area, the richer it is, La Paz’s highest districts are actually its poorest. From up high in El Alto however, the full sprawling mass
of La Paz is fully visible stretching into the valley below. Anyone flying into
La Paz airport during daylight hours will be treated to a spectacular view
on the descent into the city and again on the taxi/bus ride down the mountain (main image).
See Moon Valley
La Valle de la Luna (Moon Valley) is found at the bottom of
La Paz in the Pedro Domingo Murillo Province. Whilst it doesn’t compare to the
scenery of the Salt Flats, it makes a nice change from the hectic city streets
and is just a short bus ride from the centre of La Paz.
There are some wonderful photo opportunities of the clay and
sandstone monoliths which can change in appearance as the sun moves across the
sky. It’s best to follow the trail that winds between the otherworldly rock
formations.
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Cholita Wrestling
Whether you’ve any interest in wrestling or not isn’t really an issue. Seeing two middle-aged women in traditional dress doing battle in the ring is certainly not an experience you get in every city around the world and is an interesting way to spend a Sunday evening. Yes, just like WWF it’s a bit of a pantomime - complete with mock arguments and even flirting with crowd members - but it’s a fun evening out.
Visit the Witches Market
One of La Paz’s most photographed areas is the el Mercado de Brujas (Witches Market), a colourful hotchpotch of small shops and stalls on Calle Jimenez and
Calle Linares in the Rosario district. The market sells all sorts of unusual
things like soapstone figurines, aphrodsiac remedies and the ubiquitous dried lama
foetuses – customarily buried in the foundations of new buildings as an
offering to the goddess Pachamama.
Tucked away just between the stalls is the Coca Museum – a small
but comprehensive homage to Bolivia’s most notorious export. The museum also
includes a café selling various coca-related products such as coca cake and sweets.
Grab a Street Market Bargain
There are some weird and wonderful bargains to be had on the
streets of La Paz outside of the Mercado de Brujas. Taking a lung-busting walk
up the almost vertical streets of Rosario, there are lines of small market
stalls selling some bizarre football shirts amongst other things.
More intriguing
still are the frail old women that perch on the pavement of the city streets,
selling the kind of items you’d expect to see in a chemist rather than a street
corner. There’s toothpaste; shampoo; soap; stationary; all at a bargain price
on the kerbside. These street side entrepreneurs have embraced the digital age
too; I picked up a cut price USB stick which is still serving me well.
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