Hello Everyone! Sorry I have been so terrible about posting recently. Bolivia has been amazing and has left very little time to be on the computer but I am prepared to sit here for as long as it takes to update you all about the last few weeks. So sit down, grab a snack and get prepared for a long one.
Two weeks ago, we went on a tour in the Amazon region of Bolivia in an area called Las Pampas. It was supposed to be 3 day adventure complete with boat rides through crocodile infested rivers in the boiling heat but because this is Bolivia, nothing goes according to plan. We were supposed to take a small plane at 6 in the morning, but we arrived at the airport to find that our flight had been cancelled due to smoke. Bolivians burn their fields at the end of winter to prepare them for spring, adn the smoke was so thick the planes could not take off. Our tour was scheduled to start at 8 am so we knew we were in troube when we didn´t board a plane until 9. We loaded onto an 18 seat plane and off we went feeling good, until the pilot told us we had to make an emergency landing because the smoke was too bad again. That landing was one of the most terrifying moments of my life. The plane felt like it was going straight down and all you could see out the front was smoke, then all the sudden we made it through the smoke and could see the ground hurdling towards us until the pilot pulled up at the last second and we skidded across the dirt runway. After that harrowing landing, they led us into a small, practically abandonded military airport base. The pilots had to chase cows out of the building before we could go it, which was hysterical and made us laugh enough to feel less stressed about the landing. After three hours of waiting a bus finally came to drive us the 45 dust filled minutes to the town we were originally meant to land in. We made it to the small town and headed to our tour agency, who told us that because we were so late we would have to leave the next morning. We got that sorted out then headed back to the airline to change our return flights, then checked in to a cute little hotel for the night.
The next morning, we woke up bright and early to head out on our adventure only to find that it was pouring rain and very cold. We had been told that it would be between 35 to 40 degrees celcius the whole time and to bring nothing for cold because we would sweat to death. Sadly, we listened to all the other tourists and ended up being very cold for the next few days. Even though we had to boat through the rain, the views were still amazing and the animals were still out in force. We saw tons of crocodiles, caimans, capybara, birds of all kinds and even some pink dolphins. Because it is the dry season (or so we were told, despite the fact that it poured on us for 2 days) the watyer levels were low and we would have to get out and push the boat sometimes. The first time it happened our guide had just pointed out a huge group of crocodiles in the water, who all sunk under as they saw our boat coming. Then Jamie our guide goes, okay time to get out and push. Bianca was hysterical and told Jamie there was no way she was getting out when we just saw them swim towards us to get us, but we ended up climbing out and pushing anyway then frantically scrambling back into the boat when we hit deeper water.
On the second day we went in search of anacondas and snakes. I found the first one when it crawled over my shoe and made me shriek. Luckily it was just a skinny little guy about two feet long so my fear was unnecessary. After another two hours of walking in the rain we finally found an anaconda resting underneath a bush. We got some really good pictures of it then carried on our way back to our camp. That afternoon we went fishing for piranas. It was so fun, the rain had finally stopped and I actually caught one! We brought them back and had them cooked so we could taste them...it was not very good.
On the third day the weather was finally clearing up and we hopped in our boat excited about the prospect of swimming with dolphins, which was the agenda for the day. We were less excited when our guide pulled into the same exact spot we had been at the day before fishing for pirana and told us this was where we could swim with the dolphins. We laughed but no one really wanted to swim. Bianca did jump in, but it was still cold and the water was dark and murky, so I passed on the swimming. I did get to touch a crocodile though, and that was pretty cool. We then headed back down the river, and eventually back to the town we had to fly out of. Overall, it was a greta weekend and I was glad I got the chance to hang out in the Amazon for a while.
When we got back to La Paz, we hung out in the city for a while and enjoyed walking around and taking in the city. La Paz is huge and beautiful, and once again we made some friends and got stuck in the city for more time than we expected. We did a lot of walking around and eating at delicious restaurants. 1 US dollar gets you 7 Bolivianos so we have been having some amazing food for not that much money. The best night was the night we went to an all inclusive steak dinner that cost 130 bs for a shot of tequila to start the meal, a bottle of wine, salad bar, a plate of nachos, and then the main course was a huge plate of meat, including a steak, alpaca, a burger, blood sausage, chorizo and more, followed by the most delicious chocolate mousse I have ever eaten. All of that for less than 20 US dollars. It was phenomenal.
I am being kicked out of the internet cafe so I am going to have to finish this post later, but I hope this begins to satisfy your curiosity about what I have been up to. Hopefully I can post in the next few days. Hope everything is going well at home, and love you all!
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