#36 Superlearner Peru stole my heart

Superlearner Peru - the kids of Pamplona Alta

I have already written about Lima and my time spent there (over one month)! What I haven't written about is the pilot community project I became involved with. This project quickly became the main reason I decided to stay in Lima for so long.

I came across the project on the workaway website. After a conversation with Jorge (the creator of the project) on the phone he explained to me that the project was in very early stages and therefore it was a complete voluntary project, whatever time I could give would be helpful. My role would be in helping with English classes and providing some nutritional advice and education.

I remember vividly the first time I went to Pamplona Alta, a slum suburb located in the San Juan de Miraflores district. It takes an hour on the public bus from the shiny, sleek high rise apartments and restaurants in trendy Miraflores. Pamplona Alta, the last stop on the bus was officially created in the 1960's to move the poorer out of the hotspots in Lima that were seeing more and more people moving in. Built in the desert, it is hot and dusty with limited plumbing and running water. There is now electricity and various projects have built proper bright yellow stairs up the neighbourhood. At the bottom there is a small local market selling fruit, vegetables, limited meat, chicken and occasionally fish along with some street vendors. The children have access to a tarmac football court at the very top of the community which is surrounded by broken metal fences. There are no green spaces, no playgrounds or no centre for the kids to go and play in.

Pamplona Alta 

I got off the bus with Jorge, Jakob (a German volunteer helping with English classes) and Jessica (a French artist and photographer also volunteering). We started to ascend up the bright yellow steps leading up to the top of the neighbourhood, dogs randomly jumping out and barking at us, leading on to some more uneven, brick steps to Ivons house. Ivon is the mother of two girls aged 12 and 14 and is the main contact and helper for the project in Pamplona. She has given her house to us to use to provide classes. Her house consists of three rooms; the living space and two bedrooms one of which you walk through to get to the basic kitchen out the back. They have no bathroom and limited water. What struck me immediately was Ivons warmth, welcoming us into her home. Her youngest daughter Cielo was there and greeted us politely with kisses on our cheeks. After lunch Jakob and Jorge went to collect the kids from their houses to bring them back to Ivons where we held a basic English class. There were about ten kids in total that day. I initially felt overwhelmed and out of my depth but was totally humbled by how happy, polite and eager to learn the kids were. I knew from that first day that this was something I wanted to be involved with however I could.

Over the next month I continued to get the bus out every Tuesday and Thursday with the others, helping with English classes, art and music workshops and I started some nutrition research with the hope of implementing nutrition educational workshops in the future for both the kids and parents. I spent some time interviewing some of the parents (with Jorge helping as translator) to find out about their diets, budgets for food and where they shop. I also visited the local market where all the parents reported they do their shopping to review food availability and cost. I then provided a class to the kids using a homemade poster showing the different food groups with pictures of different foods. We also drew pictures of our favourite fruit and vegetables and talked about healthy eating. It was great to see the kids engaging with the class and talking about food with them.

Nutrition classes and players not woth the kids 

Over the weeks as more kids started to come, we luckily got access to the basic community centre where there was more space to hold classes and even play some games each day.

Apart from classes, Jorge and I also went out one Sunday and had a water fight with some of the kids (I somehow ended up saturated with the rest getting away lightly). Followed by another Sunday where Jess and Jorge organised mini buses to take 15 of the kids and two Mums to the beach for the afternoon. We did some painting in an abandoned skate part by the beach and then spent a few hours on the beach in the crashing waves getting knocked over with the girls clinging on to us and each other. Everyone had a really good time and it was great to be able to take them out of the dusty, hot Pamplona.

After a month of getting to know the kids, I travelled to Bolivia for a few weeks and was surprised at how much I missed the project. Thankfully when I got back I was able to go back out for an afternoon to play some games and say goodbye to some of the kids. I feel lucky to have been able to get involved with Superlearner at the beginning of its creation and I have no doubt that the project will continue to grow with the help of other volunteers like me, organisations, the parents  and Jorges drive to make it work and of course the kids enthusiasm and eagerness to learn. And who knows, hopefully one day I can revisit Superlearner Peru again.

My last day in Pamplona 

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Superlearner

#35 Searching for dinosaur footprints in Toro Toro

From Cochabamba, Leo and I decided to go to a small town called Toro Toro which is most famous for its national park also called Toro Toro. It is the smallest national park in Bolivia but is famous for its dinosaur footprints (yep), caves and canyons. It is about 45 miles south of Cochabamba in the east of the South American Andes cordilleras but it actually takes about four hours to get there due to the very windy, bumpy, dusty and sometimes flooded roads. We took a minivan (getting too used to these now) from Cochabamba for 35BS ($5). The minivans only leave when they are full but luckily we arrived about twenty minutes before it left. Our bags were tied to the roof and we squeezed into the very small minivan with eleven other local adults and three small children mostly from the rural village of Toro Toro. After an extremely bumpy bus journey we arrived in the small village at about 10pm and easily found a hostel that was recommended online (we had no reservation as there is no wifi in the village so we were unable to email ahead).We knocked on the door of Los Hermanas aware that it was very late for a small village like this. After ringing the bell a couple (maybe five) of times we were greeted by a small lady in her fifties who looked rightly put out at having guests coming so late, after we apologised for our late arrival she softened up and introduced herself as Lily and she showed us a basic room for two nights overlooking the small courtyard with a big garden leading off it which I later learnt was home to eleven cats (crazy cat lady joy)!

The next morning we got up early and headed for the national park office to pay the 50BS ($8) for park entry which gives you entry for four days. The bad thing about the national park is that you have to hire a guide to take you on one of the routes varying in difficulty and length. So ideally the best thing to do is to make a group (max six) to share the cost of the guide. After waiting a while (and getting egg sandwiches from the local market for 4BS (less than 70c)) we finally found two very nice French guys who wanted to do the same route as us (relatively short at 8km and cheap)! Our hike to Canyon Vergel was only 100BS between the group of four. We set off with our guide Samsel and walked to the national park just outside of town. It was a really hot day already and unfortunately I wasn't feeling the best with some random migraine punishing me. But the hike was beautiful and the national park was worth the visit. We reached the canyon after about an hour and a half followed by 300 rough stone steps down into the canyon where we found ourselves surrounded by waterfalls in the base of the canyon with clear blue sky above us. The national park was really like something out of Jurassic park and it did make the association and the dinosaur footprints more believable (I am a bit pessimistic) but it was interesting all the same! Our guide Samsel was a really timid young Bolivian guy but stopped to show us the numerous dinosaur footprints in the rocks ranging from pterodactyl to Tyrannosaurus rex footprints.

Walking back to Toro Toro 

Waterfall gazing 

Unfortunately by the time we got back from the hike (only taking four hours) I was suffering from the dreaded migraine and I had to go to bed for the afternoon. We did manage to have a wander around the small town that evening sitting in the main plaza (complete with various dinosaur statues)...definitely different to other plazas in South America I had seen. The local people in the town were very friendly with the women and men in traditional dress, the women wearing big skirts with their black hair plaited either side and complete wi top hats. The men in slacks and shirts, some wearing colourful bobble hats displaying a sign of hierarchy in their community.

Toro Toro main square 

Leo playing football with the locals 

The next day still feeling rough (Zika did cross my mind once or twice...that or some other undiagnosable tropical disease) we got up before dawn (5am to be exact) to take a minibus at 6am. We got there at 5.30am thinking the 6am bus would be busy with people needing to go to Cochabamba for the day. We arrived in the dark to no one else waiting for the bus...I at this stage was trying extremely hard to focus on not vomming everywhere knowing right well there was no toilet nearby...6am passed and the sun rose, 7am p assed and the shopkeepers started opening, 8am passed and the bin men came, 9am came and the school children came.....by 10.30am eventually every seat on the mini bus was filled, I had kept down a bread roll  and we could finally depart. Thankfully no vomit had departed me but I felt like I hadn't slept in days and had no energy. I was actually glad to get on the small, hot bus and somehow managed to sleep he majority of the way arriving back in very hot Cochabamba where I again had to sleep for the rest of the day...at least I'm making the most of Bolivia and whatever bugs are invading my personal space.

We had initially planned to get another bus to Sucre, a small colonial town south of Cochabamba but due to time and the fact that I couldn't even carry my backpack we decided to stay in Cochabamba for two nights before going back to La Paz. Thankfully I felt better after a day of recuperating and we ventured to La Cancha the next day, the biggest open air market in South America (supposedly) where we wandered around for hours and made friends with the local market women as they joked with us being an Irish/Peruvian couple. I decided that after a bowl of sopa de Mañi in the market I needed vegetables.....something that the markets are full of for very cheap but do not constitute much of the traditional meals. So we stocked up on lots of fresh vegetables, quinoa, spices, butter beans and (bright) purple potatoes for me to make a big vegetable and bean stew which lasted us two days all for $4...(vegetable joy)!

We had a really nice stay  in Hostel Jaguar in Cochabamba complete with two very playful kittens and I even took the plunge and got another tattoo (sorry mum and dad)! At least it's not a typical 'travel tattoo' from when I 'found myself' at a yoga retreat in the forest somewhere.......maybe I'll wait for Asia for that one.

Meow 

Next stop: La Paz and back to Lima
Food/Drink: cooked in the hostel, La Cancha mercado, sopa de mañi complete with pasta, meat and potatoes for 5BS (less than $1)
Stayed: Jaguar Hostel, $10-15 per night including breakfast. Hostel Hermanas in Toro Toro $6 per night.

#34 Bolivias City of Eternal Spring

After La Paz I said goodbye to Maisie, Harriet and Zoe who were heading back to Lima.

I met Leo in La Paz and we had planned to travel around Bolivia for a couple of weeks before going back to Lima at the end of the month. It was Leo's first time in Bolivia as well so we were looking forward to learning more about the country (and it was also very useful travelling with a fluent Spanish speaker and a Peruvian....certain things suddenly became slightly cheaper, maybe we were getting a discount on the usual 'gringo' prices). We spent a day in La Paz wandering around the city and eating in Mercado Lanza. All in all the Bolivian food isn't amazing but like every other Latin American country they do have good deep fried pastry street food in the form of Salteñas (oven baked pastry stuffed with a selection of meat and served with various sauces and relishes) as well as a favourite of mine, papa rellenas..basically a a ball of cottage pie, a fried ball of mashed potato stuffed with minced meat and onion again served with various sauces. Really delicious! And a bargain at 5BS (less that $1).

Questionable looking papa Rellena 

We took an overnight bus from La Paz to Cochabamba at 10pm which got us into Cochabamba at 6am the next morning and cost us $8 each. Cochabamba is a city in central Bolivia and is known for its year round spring like climate and good food (a nice change after cold La Paz and of course he promise of good food is always a plus). We got into the busy bus station of Cochabamba too early in the morning and took a taxi to an Airbnb we booked for two nights. We got to the house in what appeared to be a middle class, quiet suburb of the city and were greeted by the welcoming family of Monica and her husband Gustavo and their son Pablo who was around my age. Even though we arrived early they had a hugely appreciated breakfast spread and welcomed us immediately. We all sat down and had really good strong coffee (hard to find in South America), bread, cheese and fruit. They spoke Spanish so I let Leo do most of the talking and I contributed as much as I could! Over the next two days the whole family treated us like their own. Gustavo loved talking especially about politics, corruption and the drug problems in Cochabamba and indeed Bolivia. Pablo even took us to a local restaurant for lunch one day where we had a huge meal of salad, traditional vegetable, rice and meat soup followed by 'Costillas al jugo' translated as 'ribs to juice' which was well....slow cooked beef on the bone with rice, minimal vegetables and pasta (I thought Peru was big on carbs but in Bolivia triple carbs are common with meat/chicken often being served with pasta, potatoes and rice)!! We also had a litre between us of fresh apple juice which was served in a brown glass beer looking bottle. After the mountain of food we were also given a small jelly. The whole meal cost only $4!!
The owner obviously took my pale complexion and blonde hair as indication that he should speak English to me (his instincts were right) he spoke with an American accent and Gustavo later told us he worked in New York for many years where he had a restaurant. The walls of the restaurant were lined with photos of him with various famous people including Putin, Bill Clinton, Trump to name but a few.

It also happened to be a strike or 'Paro' of all buses and taxis that day so we didn't venture too far as all the roads were blocked and obviously there was no public transport. They were striking as the government had proposed a new law that stated if a drug trafficker was caught transporting drugs in a taxi or on a bus then the vehicle would be seized immediately. I can understand the outrage at this law threatening the drivers' livelihoods.

We also spent a whole day exploring the city of Cochabamba. A big highlight is that Christ the Redeemer statue situated overlooking the sprawling city in the valley below. The teleferico is the main way to access the statue as the neighbourhood below is apparently too unsafe to walk through. We arrived at the teleferico in the morning with the sun shining only to be told it was closed for maintenance (for one week which has now been one month...South American style) so we took the only other option of a taxi there and back costing $6 return. The statue is actually the second biggest in the world and is 44cms taller than the famous Christ the Redeemer in Rio.

Some of Cochabambas city views 

After enjoying the heat of the morning with Christ we took a colectivo into the city centre (the shared taxis here are the main way to get around and are actually mini vans or people carriers which are very frequent with up to 12 people squished in often with some standing (or bent over stance as there isn't much head space even for kids in these vans) they generally cost around 2BS for a trip ($0.28). There are also private taxis and some larger buses. We (of course) sought out a local food market to try some local food. We decided to go for 'Pique' a dish apparently local to Cochabamba. However it didn't live up to my expectations. Of course it revolves around carbs..in the form of papas fritas (chips) with chorizo piled high covered in tomato ketchup, mayonnaise and garnished with chopped tomatoes, onions and mint..a very random mix. I ate it all anyway despite it being cold and with a stray cat curled up around my right foot.  The market was buzzing with fresh fruit juice stands lined up along one wall and ice cream stalls on the other. We paid the 15BS ($2) for the meal which definitely did its job of filling you up.  Later that day we took another crazily packed people carrier (nine adults in one) to go and see another attraction called 'Palacio portales '. A large intricately decorated mansion with gardens and art exhibitions. The house was built by a wealthy tin baron who never even lived in the property. we decided not to take the guided tour of the house and wandered around the manicured gardens and free art exhibitions before squeezing into another overly packed van to bring us back to the Marquez family including their beautiful dogs Capitan and Botauke.

Palacio  portales 

After a lovely two days with our adopted Bolivian family we said goodbye and thanked them for their hospitality. We went and spent a night in the countryside of Cochabamba in a hostel that looked and sounded very good. It's own self contained 'resort' with pool table, swimming pool, bikes, ping pong, playground and gym. When we actually arrived at Las Lilles I felt like we had been given the pound shop version of what we expected! Yes it was the right place but I think we arrived ten years too late.
The place had really been let go. The pool was brown, the 'gym' consisted of a punching bag and a broken exercise bike in the garden, the pool table had no triangle and holes in the pockets, the room we had booked was flooded and the 'bar' consisted of dusty empty spirit bottles lined up on shelves behind a counter in the common area. The place had potential but at the time we arrived I thought it would be potentially shit. Anyway we resigned to one night there (which coincidentally was St Patrick's day)...I wasn't feeling optimistic seeing as there seemed to be only two other backpackers staying there. There was however a lot of space and it was a beautiful day. We went for a walk around the dusty lanes getting randomly attacked by rampant dogs (joy) and cooked a nice lunch in the kitchen (which was actually functioning)! We did venture into Cochabamba that night and sought out the ONLY Irish bar in the whole city...I just wanted some patriotism and an overpriced, questionable tasting. Guinness...when we strolled past the Na Cunna at 8.30pm when most Irish bars on St Patrick's day around the world would be busting at the seams and blaring Irish music...this one was...well was not. We could see in and there were two people in the whole bar (one of whom was a Bolivian bar man). I couldn't even bring myself to go in, not a good introduction for Leo to paddys day! We instead settled for the worst Mexican meal I've had ever and maybe the worst meal I have had in South America before heading back to our strangely eerie, dated hostel ranch on another overcrowded mini van! The next morning we wanted to take the free bikes they had on offer for a cycle to be informed by the owner that they now only have one bike as the other had broken (of course). So I ran and Leo cycled steering away all the crazy, barking dogs that seemed to be outside every house (petrified of these dogs), the countryside surrounding the hostel was really beautiful with the mountains framing every angle you went. Later that day I managed to stream the six nations (the wifi was actually very good) to witness Ireland beat England (it made up for a disappointing paddys day). Leo and I then headed to take another minibus to Toro Toro that afternoon. Bye Las Lillas....you strange place!

Las Lille's looking quite good actually in the sunshine 

Next stop: Toro Toro town and national park.
Food/drink: Pique - traditional to Cochabamba consisting of fried potatoes, chorizo, egg, some random salad and sauce in a local market for $2 (underwhelming...and also sadly cold). Papa rellena - deep fried mashed potato stuffed with minced meat and vegetables. Costillas (ribs) with rice/pasta/potatoes (or all three) and salad/vegetables at a local restaurant.
Stayed: air bnb, Cochabamba, las lillas, Cochabamba ($9 per night)

#33 The craziness of La Paz and lunging in the salt flats

My first stop in Bolivia was the administrative capital of La Paz and a well known party city. I took the bus from Puno in Peru with Zoe, Harriet and Maisie, three English girls I had met there. We arranged to stay in a Wild Rover (a well known Irish owned party hostel), I was a bit apprehensive but for one night it was an easy, central option. I had heard stories from many people about the questionable food hygiene in Bolivia and thought I should steer clear of meat and fish and go veggie for my time here. However on the first evening we went for a 'posh' CHIFA recommended by one of the staff at the hostel and I caved at first temptation and had chicken, vegetables and noodles (they also don't seem to have vegetarian options anywhere). We ended up having a few drinks in the bar in Wild rover after dinner and joined the karaoke night (I refrained from singing not wanting to risk being thrown off the stage for being so horrendous) but let others ruin already questionable 'hits'.

The next day we wanted to see some of La Paz and luckily it was a really sunny day making the sprawling city seem even more interesting. The main square where the presidential palace and Houses of Parliament were only a few blocks from the hostel. La Paz had had some pretty mixed reviews from people I'd met along the way but I got a really nice feeling for the city, yes it is chaotic but a lot less touristy than cities in Peru, people seemed friendly and can better it is ridiculously cheap! We set off first to take the red Teleferico line up to a area called El Alto. The teleferico in La Paz is modelled on the one in Medellin in Colombia and was built to make the centre more accessible to the poorer communities living on the hills surrounding the city cutting out hours from the usual daily commute through the horrendous traffic full of collectivos (mini vans used as cheap buses) and winding roads leading to the city. It only cost 3BS (about 50c) up to el alto. The day we visited was a Thursday and it just so happened that big market days in El Alto are every Thursday and Sunday just outside the teleferico station (we later learned it was the biggest flea market in South America). The market sold literally everything from car parts to army wear, underwear, dvds and food. Local shaman (witch doctors) were lined up in coloured huts giving people advise on every day stresses and 'curing' ailments. The views of La Paz from the top were great displaying the vastness of the poorer suburbs surrounding the city. We wandered around the market for an hour or two until the rain came so we headed back to the teleferico. On the way back down a Bolivian guy started chatting to us and it turned out he was a tour guide who was keen to hear about what our plans were for Bolivia telling us we had to do death road and showing us selfies of him with a puma he saw in the jungle (crazy guy). On our way down in the teleferico he pointed out a car that was wedged in the cliff below the main road entering La Paz. He told us that about five years ago the driver of the car was drunk and drove off the cliff with three of his friends in it...no one survived. Just as he was telling us this the rain got harder and the lightening came leading to the teleferico being halted for about five minutes until the storm passed. Luckily we were just passing through one of the sheltered stops but I imagine being stuck in one of the pods outside was nerve wracking. None of the locals seemed that bothered though and we got moving again quite quickly.

Teleferico, La Paz 

Selling cars in El Alto 

Again as I mentioned I failed terribly at trialling a vegetarian term in Bolivia and I love trying all the local street in the countries I visit so decided to just go for it and sampled the street food of chorizo in bread for 2.50BS (about $0.35) as well as the food in the local markets where you can get a big bowl of sopa de mañi (peanut soup with pasta in) and a main of meat/chicken grilled or stew with rice, potatoes and sometimes pasta (they love triple carbing in Bolivia) for about $2. Vegetables are also not widely used here despite the food markets being full of them. The main source of vegetables seem to be the big bowls of soup people have daily.

I also visited the 'Calle de los Brujas' (Witches market) selling llama foetuses (yep not a typo) to incense and powders and seeds for every ailment from appendicitis, cancer to impotence..being with three medical students and myself all coming from science backgrounds we found the produce on offer both interesting but hilarious! Next to the witches market was lovely artisan market with the typical alpaca jumpers but also beautiful fabrics in stunning colours.

Calle de los Brujas 

Cures for diabetics and even cancer 

We rounded off our first day in La Paz with the biggest open air food market in the city (Mercado Rodriguez) where I was delighted to find homemade pure peanut butter at a bargain price of $1.80 per pound (sad I know but peanut butter in the supermarket is so expensive and it makes for a delightful snack)! Later that evening we took our small backpacks that we would use for the next few days leaving our big ones in storage in Wild Rover and went to the bus station that evening opting not to book the overpriced options through the hostel to go to Uyuni. We ended up getting our overnight bus tickets to Uyuni for 65BS ($10) arriving in Uyuni at 6am very sleepy after being kept awake by a snoring Middle Aged Bolivian man sitting right beside me. As we stepped off the bus we were swamped by tour operators selling the same salt flats tours.

After a coffee and some breakfast we shopped around different tour operators and ended up booking a two night, three day tour with Lipza tour company for $115. Before we left we had some time to stock up on water and a second breakfast from the market of meat, chifla (corn) and potatoes in a bag for 6BS ($1)...may as well totally live on the edge with the street food. We met the two other girls in our jeep making us a group of six and our young, quiet tour guide/driver called Omar. The other jeep also leaving that morning consisted of six very muscly, young danish boys on their gap year! I was clearly the oldest of the bunch. When did this happen!

The first day was our day on the salt flats, first stopping off at the train cemetery which was basically a big adults playground where we could climb up on all the trains. Of course the Danish boys had their tops off within about five minutes to get their photos...this will be a long two days of pale abs and flexing. When we made it to the salt flats I was blown away by the vastness of the flat, white landscape. With it being wet season some of the salt flats were covered with a couple of centimetres of water giving the plane a mirrored effect which was mesmerising. We had time here to admire the scenery and take the obligatory tourist photos. Our 'girls' jeep were done after about twenty minutes getting bored of all the posing for the perfect tourist pictures however the boys were clearly in their element..tops off, shorts rolled up and dabbing like there was no tomorrow with their tour guide Domingo allocated as photographer. After the mirrored salt flats we went to the drier salt flats for some more photos, the girls and I opted to do a quick lunge/squat class while we waited for the boys (Again) to perfect their poses.

We had lunch that day in a salt hotel (if you hadn't guessed it's a basic hotel made out of salt). We had meat (ok so there's no way I'll be vegetarian in Bolivia), quinoa, vegetables and salad. We had planned to watch the sunset over the salt flats but unfortunately the weather took a turn for the worst and we headed back to Uyuni for the night where we had dinner and stayed in a basic hostel (no wifi, or running water) but cost fleece sheets and pillows.

Day two we set off early after a pretty basic breakfast of bread and coffee (our peanut butter investment came in handy here). The day was spent in and out of the jeep and was pretty jampacked but mainly consisted of stopping off at various rock formations and lakes. The landscape got progressively more rugged and beautiful the further south we went and the higher altitude we climbed. Bolivia is really surpassing all expectations. What I wasn't expecting to see either was hundreds of pink flamingoes in a vast pink lake (the lake is pink because of the algae in it). There were quite a few flamingo skeletons littering the rim of the water and Omar told us due to the water shortages in Bolivia as a consequence of global warming the flamingoes are dying (another reason lots of communities only have running water for a couple of hours a day).

That night we were staying in another basic accommodation in the Andina Eduardo Avaroa national reserve on the border with Chile. We paid $23 park entrance and entered the dusty reserve driving for about an hour gaining an altitude of 5000m and stopping to see some amazing geysers on the way in. We got to our lodge at about 6.30pm which was right beside some hot springs and at 4900m. Unfortunately two of the Danish boys were struggling with altitude sickness but thankfully the rest of us were ok and had a very disappointing dinner of spaghetti and sauce. However it was quickly forgiven when Omar and Domingo brought us out a couple of bottles of Bolivian red wine! After dinner we all got changed, grabbed some more beverages (because drinking Bolivian spirits in a hot springs at high altitude is a great idea) and headed to the hot springs about 200m from our hostel. We joined about thirty other backpackers and their tour guides in the Bolivian countryside beside a huge lake, surrounded by snow covered mountains and under the stars. We stayed in the hot springs into the night chatting and drinking until we ran out of alcohol and were shrivelled up like prunes.

The next day we dropped off Ellie and Anna (the two other girls in our jeep) at the Chilean border and Omar brought the four of us back the long dusty very bumpy roads to Uyuni to get a night bus back to La Paz (of course before we left Uyuni we had to indulge in some more chicharron de llama in a bag)...too tasty not to.

The morning we got back from the salt flat tour and the girls last day in Bolivia we decided to take a Red Cap Walking tour which left from San Pedro Square at 11am. It was run by two girls, Andy and Maricel. I love a good walking tour and this one didn't disappoint. Even though we revisited the markets we had already been to, it was really interesting to learn about the customs of the 'Cholitas' (indigenous) women that run all the market stalls. They are easily spotted by the way they dress. Their long black hair always plaited, they wear big skirts and wear leggings to cover their ankles. They also wear small boulder hats either to the side (if they are single) or in the middle of their heads (if they are married). We learnt that the women's calves are thought to be the sexiest part of their body and that only their husband should be aloud to see them! We also got to see the famous San Pedro prison which is in the middle of La Paz and which the famous book Marching powered is based on. This prison has capacity for 400inmates but has a total population of 2500 (prisoners, their wives and children). The prisoners run the prison and there are only fifteen guards which patrol the outside perimeter. Inside the prisoners run the prison themselves, most having small business inside to make money in order to feed themselves and their families as well as to earn money they need to buy 'real estate' (cells) whilst insider. Standing outside it seemed bizarre, children coming back from  school and entering the prison and seeing the prisoners standing in the open windows, polishing their belongings or just staring out st the bustling square! Only in Bolivia I guess.

San Pedro prison 

Stayed: Wild rover La Paz, $10 for dorm. Hostel accommodation in salar de Uyuni.
Food/drinks: Bolivian red wine (surprisingly good). Singani (Bolivian spirit distilled from grapes) with lemonade and limes as recommends to us by a local shopkeeper. Chicharron de llama (fried llama meat) with choclo (corn) and potato. Papa rellena (giant potato croquette stuffed with meat, onion and vegetables)- $1 Salteñas (bakes empanadas stuffed with meat/chicken) - $1 from the market.
Bars/Restaurants: wild rover bar. Mercado Lanza for typical, cheap food in La Paz. Writers coffee for really good (slightly more expensive) coffee.
Next Stop: Cochabamba, Bolivia

#32 The beautiful Lake Titicaca and leaving Peru!

Finally the time came to leave Lima (temporarily) to go and explore Bolivia. I had a flight booked to San Francisco en route to the Philippines from Lima at the end of March and Bolivia was one of the countries that was very high in my list to see. Seeing as I had been up and down Peru in a random squiggly way there was little that I hadn't seen yet so I reluctantly booked a 23hr bus from Lima straight down to Puno, the town on the Peruvian side of lake Titicaca towards the border to Bolivia.
After a surprisingly comfortable and even more surprisingly timely bus journey to Puno I arrived 23hrs after I set off from hot Lima. I checked into the aptly named 'cozy' hostel and feeling a bit disorientated I went for a wander around the small town of Puno. Puno is a traditional little town with the standard 'plaza de Armani's' complete with church, small town square and official town buildings. There were numerous tour agencies for arranging visiting the islands on the lake, a big supermarket (and surprisingly modern cinema) and a big local market.

I booked a day trip to the famous Reed floating Uro islands and Taquille island through the hostel for $19 to leave the next day. Taquile island is inhabited by roughly 2000 people and is less visited than the floating islands. I had heard the floating islands were a must see but very touristy so seeing a slightly less visited island sounded good. Taquile island Is about 45km offshore from Puno highest point of the island is 4050m. The islanders mainly speak Quechua and Spanish. There was a group of us going from the hostel and we got picked up from the hostel and brought the ten minutes drive down to the dock. It was a cold and rainy morning but thankfully after the three hour boat ride to Taquile it had slightly brightened up. We traipsed up the steep hill up to the main square of the island. It was difficult to get my head around the fact that the lake is the highest navigable lake in the world and therefore I decided that the reason I was struggling up the hill was the altitude and not my lack of fitness! The main square was very basic but had lovely (slightly rainy) views over the lake. We then had a beautiful thirty minute walk to a local families house over looking the lake for our traditional lunch of quinoa soup and bread, fresh rainbow trout from the lake and Muña tea which is thought to be good for digestion. I haven't looked up the evidence base for this but they use this leaf instead of coca leaves as they do not grow on the island. I wasn't overly keen on the Muña...think I'll stick to my coffee! We stopped along the way for our guide, Juan to show us the Cantata flower, the national flower of Peru.

Rainy plaza de Armais, Taquile

Traditional island meal 

After lunch we watched the family show us how to make soap with the Chukjo plant as well as how they weave their intricate belts and clothes. One belt takes a woman two months to weave! After lunch we set off the two hour journey to the floating reed islands, thankfully the sun was now shining so we were able to sit on the roof of the boat and enjoy the views and the sun (my nose is getting progressively redder...factor 50 all the way)! The reed islands were very impressive, we spent about forty minutes on the small island that has three small huts that house fifteen people. Thomas, the president of the island took us out on a large reed boat, cutting us reeds from the lake, peeling them back and giving us them to eat! Right! We dubiously took a munch of one and was surprised to really like it....tasting like cucumber/melon! After a brief demonstration of how they make the islands and the crafts they make we set back on the boat before more rain came and had a quiet night before setting off the next morning with three English girls from my hostel to make our way to Bolivia! The whole day cost $17 including our massive lunch and I really enjoyed seeing Taquile island.

Uros islands 

At 7am the next morning we took a bus to make our way to Bolivia, the twelfth country on my trip and unfortunately the last on my South American adventure! The bus would take us the whole way over the Peruvian/Bolivian border to La Paz. After three hours on the bus we crossed the wet border, queuing to get our exit stamp from Peru and then walking a few hundreds yards to the Bolivian immigration office. The bus company titicaca gave us all the forms to fill in for entry to Bolivia so it was straight forward once we got there. The Bolivian immigration office was hilarious, with balloons, bunting and flags littered all over the tiny office. A lot different to the Peruvian office with its white walls and strict officers hushing us whenever we talked in line....it was like being back in school. After entering Bolivia we had an hour in the small  town called Copacabana on Lake Titicaca, I had decided to skip it due to time. On reflection I was a bit gutted that I wasn't hanging around for a night. Yes it was very touristy with burger and pizza restaurants lining the streets by the lake. However we walked up away from the lake and found the most beautiful mosaic church with a huge courtyard. We kept on walking and found the local market, and a big hall with numerous food stalls manned by local women offering extremely cheap fresh lake trout! Unfortunately we were running out of time so we regretfully headed buck to our bus for the four hour bus journey to La Paz. This included a very interesting journey across the lake where we had to get off the bus and take a small passenger boat across the lake for 2 Bolivianos (about 30c) with the bus coming behind us in a ramshackle wooden structured boat. The drive from lake titicaca to La Paz was stunning with winding roads around the lake and then snow covered mountains as we entered La Paz from above. The sheer size of La Paz surprised us and we got to the busy city centre at 5pm (skipping an hour ahead for the time difference)! The day we arrived was international Women's day and it was good to see a big parade taking place through the city (much to our taxi drivers frustration). We checked into Wild rover hostel (yep it's a party hostel) but it was an easy option for leaving no our luggage for the salt flat tour we we're hoping to plan!


Next Stop: La Paz - Uyuni, Bolivia
Stayed: Cozy Hostel, Puno. $10 for dorm
Food/drinks: cooked in the hostel. Fresh rainbow trout and Quinoa soup on Taquile island

#31 Altitude sickness and water wars in Huaraz

After bypassing Huaraz on the way south earlier in the month I was determined to make it back to do some of the well praised hikes. Huaraz is located about eight hours north east of Lima situated at 3000m in the Cordillera Blanca mountain range. Seeing as I had been a month in Lima and needed to make my way down south towards Bolivia I decided to visit Huaraz first despite it being peak rainy season (may as well get the most wear out of my full body rain poncho and waterproof trousers after all).

Leonardo, a friend from Lima whom I had met through the Superlearner project we had both been volunteering on decided to come with me for the few days (I was shocked that he had never been to Huaraz so I dragged him along). We decided not to book a bus and just go to the bus station that evening to see what deal we could get.  Note: I would never navigate the public buses in the dark by myself to go and wander around a busy bus terminal full of locals...no other gringos in sight but as Leo was with me I felt that it was safe to do this especially with him being local to Lima. We got to the local bus terminal in the centre of town at about 7pm, a few hours before the last bus departed (the bus journey to Huaraz is about 8 hours so overnight buses are most common). The minute we walked into the terminal we were swamped by young locals trying to sell us tickets, shouting out the main tourist spots we MIGHT have been going to. Leo later said this never happened to him before (gringa disadvantage). We found a bus company that was offering a standard semi cama (bed) for 35 soles ($7). Which was not too much cheaper than if we had booked online (another gringa disadvantage). It was also the WORST bus I've been on in Peru. Our seats at the back of the bus on the second floor alternated between freezing cold or similar to a sauna (oh so stuffy) and probably even worse was that I was battling some form of tummy bug/flu symptoms. Being stuck at the back of a shitty bus full of Peruvians with one toilet downstairs that I didn't dare venture down led to a night of sweats, shivers, pain and minimal sleep. The bus also did not break tradition of all other buses in South America and ended up taking 11 hours instead of 8 and we also somehow managed to miss our stop for Huaraz (only just though thanks to a lovely woman sitting beside us reminding us we were supposed to get off). Overall.....not my best travel experience to date!

After a quick taxi ride back to Huaraz we got dropped off at the Airbnb we decided to book. It actually worked out a bit cheaper than a hostel and to be honest after living in a hostel for a month it was nice to just have some space and a really well kitted out kitchen that I didn't have to queue to use or sigh that someone had stolen half of my labelled avocado from the fridge (who does that)!?? Anyway the apartment was on the fourth floor of a large house with a huge terrace complete with hammocks overlooking the Cordillera Blanca mountains. Manuel, the host of the flat lived downstairs, had a small shop and was so friendly and timid with a bit so timid shaggy haired dog to guard the shop.

Views from our apartment 

The first day we got there was a complete write off for me as my undiagnosed illness took over and I slept/grimaced/visited the bathroom for the whole day (too much information sorry) while Leo went to the local market to get some supplies I'm (dry crackers for me). After managing some crackers that evening and feeling slightly better having slept for about 12 hours, Leo and I decided to look at what easy day hikes we could do the next day. We settled on an 'acclimatising' day hike to Laguna Churup which was also advised from blogs as being good preparations for Laguna 69 which is one of the most popular treks around Huaraz. The next morning we took our time and didn't get the 7am collectivo as advised by some blogs and instead found one in town at 9.00am (Leo) negotiating with the driver to take us to a nearby settlement called pitec for 10soles each ($3) taking about 50minutes. From here we walked about thirty minutes up a small dirt track and onto a trail (stopping to ponder whether we were actually going in the right direction) before finding a sign for Huascaran national park and the hundreds of steep steps up marking the start of the trek to Laguna Churup. The next hour and a half was a disaster for both us....this 'acclimatising' hike was not what it said on the tin (or in the blogs we had read). After only ten minutes walking up the steep steps the two of us were really struggling with the altitude and my legs felt like jelly anchored down with cement....my stomach was also still in knots. We both underestimated how much time we would need in Huaraz after coming from Limas sea level overnight. We made it about half way before sitting at a look out..totally out of breath, dull headaches plaguing and my legs on strike. We regretfully made the decision to turn back and instead walked another two hours down hill through small local villages, farms and dirt tracks to get another collectivo costing an impressive 1.50 soles (less than 50c) back to Huaraz feeling pretty exhausted and defeated.

The next morning we wandered down into town to go to the local market and see more of Huaraz. Little did we know that the day was called 'Agua de Guillera)' or in English the 'water war'! Apparently a yearly event for carnival where local communities essentially hit the town for a day long water fight. The first couple of hours were tame enough with a few groups of teenagers throwing water bombs and buckets of water at each other however later that day after spending a couple of hours in the local market having a fresh juice (hiding out) we quickly realised that this war was getting very serious, hundreds of teenagers flooded the streets later with adults, grandparents and even small children on rooftops throwing water on anyone that walked past with some even throwing paint, running in the middle of the roads and in front of cars and tuk tuks. Every street we turned onto was full with more groups of soaking youths with buckets in hand. We decided to flee back to the apartment to hide out for a few hours how ever on the way back a kid decided to throw a bucket of water over the back of me. It was getting out of control we ended up being under house arrest for the afternoon until hunger took over and we ventured out using the local police and security guards as shields to get to a local cafe for a menu Del dia and then ice cream after. Later that night after the water carnage had stopped there was a big stage in the square a few blocks from our apartment with local music, girls in traditional dress dancing marinara and lots of extremely drunk locals swaying around the streets. The music must have gone on until 4.30am...right about the time we had to get up to go to Laguna 69.

After a failed lake Churup visit I was slightly apprehensive about Laguna 69, a very popular day trip outside of Huaraz to a brightly turquoise coloured glacial lake in the Cordillera Blanca mountains, the hike reaches an altitude of 4600m.
But it was only a day hike and I decided not to let Laguna Churup deter me even though my stomach was still in a very unhappy state. We booked the day trip for 30 soles ($10) through one of the numerous tour companies in Huaraz.
At 5.30am the next morning we were picked up and joined 18 other sleepy backpackers on the bus where we had a three hour drive to a breakfast stop and a further five minutes to Huascaran national park where we paid 10 soles ($3) each entry. He drive into the national park was stunning with numerous vivid turquoise lakes with snow capped mountains surrounding the windy road into the park, it felt like a scene out of Jurassic park. Once the bus stopped our guide Edgar advised us to all set off and go at our own pace, he would meet us at the Laguna with coca tea for those who wanted/needed it and then we could make our way back to the bus in our own time. It was a beautifully sunny morning and we all set off at a decent pace. After about an hour in and we started to gain altitude we could both feel that dull ache in our heads and every few steps were a struggle. We took breaks every ten minutes and tried to drink plenty of water. It was reassuring that others in our group were also taking their time and we all ended up at the stunning turquoise Laguna 69 after about three hours of hiking. We sat and had lunch that we had brought with us while there were avalanches in the mountains above us and a freezing sleet scattering. Even though it was freezing, the lake was stunning and I can see why it is so popular. I had also heard that some people opt to have a quick dip in the glacial lake...no para mi gracias! Instead we took the obligatory awkward posing tourist pics, had some much needed coca tea enjoying the view before turning back for a much easier two hour trek back to the buses. Where three different people in the group experienced some vomiting and unfortunately Leo and I both got pretty horrendous altitude induced  headaches so the rest of the evening we took it easy, drinking plenty of water and coca tea.

Huascaran national park 

On the last day it was beautifully sunny and hot. It was also Leo's birthday so we decided to treat ourselves to a 'nice' restaurant (actually it was a pretty normal restaurant and pretty cheap compared to Lima but fancy compared to the market and cafeterias we had been eating in in Huaraz) and still extremely cheap compared to home for a traditional Peruvian birthday lunch. We shared a grill (parilla) for two of antichuchos (marinated skewered cows hearts), chorizo, grilled chicken and skewered vegetables with salad and chips. I also indulged in the first glass of red wine I've had in at least a month! We also had a lemon cheesecake to share complete with candle for Leo's birthday. We spent the rest of the day wandering around Huaraz and generally not doing a whole lot until getting our overnight bus back to Lima at 10pm that night. Thankfully our lovely host Manuel from the air bnb was extremely flexible and allowed us to stay in the apartment until we had to leave for our bus.

La brass roja grill 

Huaraz churches 

Thankfully our bus on the way back was much more comfortable (we paid $14 for first class on the way back not keen to relive the horrendous bus experience on the way to Huaraz)! I arrived back to Dragonfly in Lima for another two nights before venturing south for my last few weeks in South America.

Next Stop: Lima for two days then Puno in Southern Peru
Stayed: Air BnB in Huaraz for $6 each over night
Food/Drink: bought meat and vegetables in the local market and cooked spaghetti bolognaise for $4 each. Menu Del Dia - soup of pasta, meat and vegetables, main of chicken, rice, potatoes and very minimal veg, juice for $2.50. Fresh juice in the market - $2. Traditional Peruvian meal in braso Roja - $8 each including a desert and wine. Caldo de gallina - traditional soup of spaghetti, chicken, vegetables and boiled egg (huge portion) - $2