The highest seat of government in the world
2 days later I took the bus to La Paz, where the Bolivian seat of government is located and therewith the highest in the world because the city is located at a height of more than 3600 metres. Also this city is surrounded by snow covered mountains (up to 6000 meters high) and at the entrance from above, it is like a huge favela, as most of the houses are unplastered and the red bricks shine through.
Chaotic traffic
Due to the altitude, the weather in La Paz is oftenly wet-cold and rainy. However, the probably worst thing of La Paz is not the weather but the traffic. As a pedestrian it is extremely difficult to cross the road. Countless small minibuses are circulating in the city and there are no scheduled stops. One holds out one's arm and the bus stops. Thereby, over and over again, the cars behind them have to stop and the traffic only progresses very viscously. There were even some attempts to introduce "zebras" into the traffic of La Paz in order to make it easier for the pedestrians to cross the road.
Conservative Bolivians
Moreover, a few years ago the government tried to introduce buses with normal stops. A total failure! The Bolivians are extremely conservative. Changes are not welcome here. Also Che Guevara fell on deaf ears with his revolutionary ideas among the Bolivian farmers and finally perished in Bolivia. Many Bolivians today still live as they did many centuries ago, sitting at the roadside with their traditional robes, which vary from state to state. The women mostly wear a colourful dress and a top hat. This is one of the reasons why Bolivia is such a great travel destination, it has retained much of its traditional culture.
a central square full of doves
In La Paz I visited the Plaza de Armas Murillo, the central square in Bolivia, near which the political life takes place. The square was covered with a huge flock of doves. I also visited the chic quarter Sopocachi in La Paz with its many high-rise buildings. Walking in this city is not easy as there is not many oxygen available at 3600 Meters so I chew on coca leaves the whole time which are said to prevent the effects of altitude. They are legal in Bolivia.
A witch market
I went on to the witch market. The fascinating stalls there offer everything from amulets and herbal remedies to clothing and handicrafts from the Andes. Perhaps the most fascinating thing on the market are the mummified llama fetuses offered by the "witches" from the Andes. When building a new house or business, the owner buries a fetus under the foundation stone as a sacrifice to the Andean deity Pachamama (Mother Earth). The belief is that Pachamama will protect the workers and bring good luck to the company.
At the side of the street I often saw bags with work titles like "electrician", "plumber" or "painter". Right next to them sat the respective craftsman's journeyman. So if you need one of these workers, you just go to him and you have your electrician or plumber. In my case I needed a tailor, because my trousers were broken. I had already tried to get them sewn in Argentina, but from them I got only impudent answers "no" or "not for another 2 weeks". Here in Bolivia the tailor repaired my trousers within 2 hours - easy, cheap and uncomplicated. And the trousers still endure today.
Cable car ride into El Alto, the even higher neighbouring city
The next day I visited El Alto (The High one), the highest city in the world at over 4100 meters above sea level. It is practically the neighbouring city of La Paz. Due to the unfavourable topographical situation there are only a few wide main roads between both cities, which often causes traffic jams and thus a long driving time to El Alto. Since 2014, the two cities are also connected by a cable car built by the Austrian company Doppelmayr. An almost continuous ropeway network of almost 33 kilometers in length is to be built by 2020.
The even poorer people live in El Alto and the huts here look correspondingly modest. I only took a brief look at the city and returned by funicular.
Watch your step!
Unfortunately there are many criminals in La Paz. I heard about a traveller who was robbed after withdrawing money. One of them stumbled over a rope that was stretched especially for him and then his money was taken away. I also heard from 3 other travellers that they each were caught in a fake police control. Bolivians posed as police and forced the people into the car and then drove them outside the city where they had to hand over their money at gunpoint.
In La Paz I also made a mountain bike tour to the Yungas road, the road of death, which is described in another article.
Stomach problems because of altitude?
After the tour I checked into the Loki-Hostel, which is known for its parties. Two of my room mates sniffed a little bit of cocaine in front of me. But I did not feel like partying. I had to fight Montezuma's revenge and my stomach felt totally bloated. I had to give up my plan to visit Lake Titicaca. I rested for a day and it did not get any better. I suspected it was because of the altitude.
Although I was still pretty exhausted, I decided to leave La Paz and fly to Santa Cruz one day earlier than I had planned. I had a soup for breakfast to at least strengthen myself a little. My taxi took me to the airport in El Alto, which took quite a while because the Bolivians were on strike again. Almost every day there was a strike, either for the then president Evo Morales or against him. But I was not under pressure to go to the airport anyway, because I didn't even have a plane ticket. I bought it for the first time directly at the airport. A bus ride of almost 20 hours to Santa Cruz would probably not have been possible with my bloated stomach.
