The next morning we went up early to go with the morning ferry to Isla del Sol. The boats are old and slow though, so it takes quite some hours to get to the northern part of the island, where we started our trek. We started by walking up to Cerro Tikani at the height of 3936 meters, where there is an amazing view over the island. On the way there, you go pass the Titicaca rock (Rock of the Puma) and the Chincana ruins. The Titicaca rock is not really impressive, and makes one wonder why they believe their first emperor rose from this stone… The Chincana ruins are a bit more impressive, and looked awesome from the view of Cerro Tikani. I can only recommend people going up there, since there is no tourists and an amazing view of the island.

Then we took the route down to the south end of the island, which takes about 3 hours to walk. On the way it features a lot of great views, and most of the time you can see both the Bolivian side with the small town of Copacabana, and the Peruvian side with the much bigger town of Puno. It is an amazing small trek, with a lot of really nice views of the lake and the island. It ends up in the small town of Yumani, where there are a lot of hostels and restaurants. Most of them feature terraces with fantastic views over the lake, the perfect spot to relax with a cold beer after the trek. Of course we were followed by the carnival again, so most of the restaurants where closed because the people were dancing and playing music around the island. At this point I was getting a bit tired of all the carnival music, dancing people and closed places because of this one-time-a-year event – it is really a big deal in Bolivia.

We took the ferry back to Copacabana early the next morning, so I was able to catch an overnight bus in the afternoon to Cusco. I spent the last afternoon walking around Copacabana, shopping a bit of souvenirs and drinking some beer until my bus left. Copacabana is absolutely just a stop on the way to Isla del Sol, and recommend staying as little time as possible in this boring little town. Next stop Cusco, and the famous Inca ruins of Machu Picchu.

You can see more pictures from Isla del Sol and Copacabana here.

Road going under waterfalls

The road going down from La Cumbre to Coroico near La Paz is rumored to be “The Death Road”, because of the dangerous conditions, narrow road and not less than 3345 meters of vertical descent. Though the road isn’t as dangerous anymore, because they build a new highway, and closed “The Death Road” for traffic, so now it is pretty much just bikers and the buses following the bikes going down the road.

That being said, the road is definitely worth mountain biking down. There are many companies in La Paz offering this trip, each with different prices, bikes and reason why you should choose these. I can only recommend the company DOWNHILL MADNESS, which seems to be in the middle of the price-range. They use Canadian Rocky Mountain bikes, and have English-speaking guides, just as all the other companies. Including in the price, you get the T-shirt (“Death Road Survivor”), and a CD with pictures and videos from your trip.

Ready to go down the Death Road

You start in the morning by getting the equipment you need in the right size (helmet, pants, gloves etc.) and then you drive up to La Cumbre (4640) where the trip starts. In the beginning the road is paved, and downhill on the asphalt you can go pretty fast. Then you go through a Coca checkpoint, where the police control for stuff that can be used to produce cocaine. Shortly after that, there is a short stretch where you have to go uphill – but because the weather was pretty bad this day, our guides decided just to put all the bikes on the bus, and drive to where the downhill started again. I wouldn’t mind going uphill, but being rainy and foggy, I didn’t really miss the challenge either.

From there on, The Death Road really started, going downhill on the unpaved and sometimes very narrow road. Makes one wonder how they actually where able to drives cars, trucks and busses on this road, in BOTH directions! No wonder their calling it the Death Road, when there was once traffic in both directions of the road. However, this is absolutely one of my best mountain biking experiences. Since it was rainy season, the weather was quite bad the first part, so unfortunately it was impossible to get a good view of how far down there was.

View from the hotel in Coroico, showing the new road back to La Paz

But on the lower part of the trip we got better weather, and luckily some nice views. In a distance of 3-4 kilometers, the weather changes from being ass-freezing to being hot-ass-hell. One moment everyone is wearing big jackets etc, and the next moment everyone is going in T-shirts and shorts.

The trips ends at Yolosa in a altitude of 1295 meters, where you can buy a cold beer and relax, knowing you “survived the Death Road”. After a little while you go to Coroico in the bus, to relax a few hours at a very nice Hotel, with big buffet and a very nice pool. The perfect ending to an amazing downhill experience. I can only recommend everyone doing the Death Road, if going through La Paz.

More photos from the Death Road, La Paz

Carnival show in Oruro

This weekend was the big carnival in Oruro, la Diablada, one of the biggest carnivals in the world. We left Sucre Thursday night, and got to the apartment we were staying in at Friday morning. Since it was impossible to book a hostel (we tried several times, but each time they cancelled our booking), we found a guy who rented a floor in a big house with no furniture. We had to sleep on the floor, but at carnival it doesn’t really matter, as you don’t expect to get much sleep anyway. It was only 50 boliviano per night, compared to hotels charging between 60 and 100 dollars per night, with minimum 3 nights.

The carnival was amazing though; the big parades started Saturday morning, and kept going most of the night. It was fantastic with all the dancers in costumes, big bands, music and happy people everywhere. No wonder people from the entire world travel to Oruro to see the carnival.

Chicas at the carnival in Oruro

During all the day, when the parades go on, there is constantly water- and foam-fights going on, so don’t bring a camera you worry too much about – it’s a good idea to bring a old camera, so you can still take pictures, without having to think about the risk of the camera getting wet.

After 8 o’clock in the evening, it is not allowed to throw water anymore, and the only “danger” is the foam that people still spray on each other. That’s a nice thing, because it gets pretty cold, and you won’t be able to dry from the water.

At Sunday the parade starts over, and you have a chance to watch it all again. We did not stay for all of Sunday though, since we spent all Saturday watching the parade.

Unfortunately this is also a great opportunity for thieves, as you a lot of times have to pass really big crowds, where it is easy for them to pick your pockets… I’ve never gotten anything stolen before, but this time someone got to my phone. I was in a crowd for like 10 minutes, and after my phone was just gone. I had to go to the police station at Sunday, before leaving Oruro, to get a paper from the police, for the insurance. I met a lot of other people there, who had lost cameras, passports etc. – so it’s very common during the carnival.

Also watch out for people working together doing scams; sometimes they spray foam in your head and eyes, and then try to pick your pockets. There are a lot of thieves and people trying to scam in Oruro during the carnival, so always beware and keep an eye out.

Tips for carnival in Oruro:

• If you want a cheaper hostel, book and pay at least a month in advance. (make sure you pay in advance too, otherwise they usually cancel your reservation later)
• Remember to book seats to watch the parade. Costs 100 boliviano for Saturday and Sunday – Calle 6 de Agosto is a good place to watch the parade.
• The show is beautiful all day, but the mood gets much better in the afternoon of Saturday, when people have been drinking some more beer and gets ready to party all night.
• Take much care of your stuff – the city is full of thieves and scammers. Bring only what you “can afford to lose”, but don’t be scared or paranoid.
• Most important: enjoy your time at one of the best carnivals in the world!

You can see photos from the carnival in Oruro here.

Mirador over Sucre

I found a nice gym right in the plaza, on the top of a center. It’s pretty cheap, 75 Bolivianos for a month, including entry fee. Compared to Denmark, it is really old equipment, mostly just weights and bad/broken old machines. But it got most of what I need, and it is nice to train with weights again. Otherwise I’m mostly just doing pushups and exercises for the stomach in the hostels when I’m travelling around. The gym has the most amazing view over the Plaza and the city, and walking up all the stairs is a nice warm-up exercise…

This weekend I went out eating at Los Balcones, a restaurant at the Plaza, with a lot of the other students, because it was the last day in Sucre for a guy at the school. Afterwards we went to Locots as usually, where they have happy hour from 22 to 23.
Rest of the weekend, I spent some time walking around town, and taking some pictures. The Mirador was really beautiful in the nice weather; it gives a really good view of Sucre. I also love spending time in the plazas and at the big market.