Friday 9 February 2007

La Paz - by bus and taxi...

So we made it to La Paz in the North of Bolivia, but not quite as planned... Leaving Potosi on the 31st of January, it was fantastic to be back on my bike. It felt wonderful to be in the saddle after a week off, especially as the first day we just cycled 25 kms downhill to a thermal crater where we spent the afternoon relaxing. Watching the sun setting over the crater and surrounding hills was beautiful. The only blemish on a lovely day was the fact my lungs ached. A strange feeling I attributed to pollution in the Potosi and thought would go...

... wrong again. The next two days were hard. The road the first day was "fairly flat" we were told - always between about 3,200 and 4,300 metres in altitude, we climbed somewhere between 1,500 and 2,000 metres. Never trust anyone regarding road descriptions! The scenery was stunning, not in a particularly rugged way, but with lovely mottled rolling hills interspersed with little villages. And I discovered that when things were too much, the sun-baked road was fantastic for lying and dying quietly on. So nice and warm! After escaping a thunderstorm by staying the night in a wonderful Norwegian Lutheran mission, the next day became progessively less hilly and my lungs became progressively worse...

So, just 2 days into the 3 day ride to Oruru I had to give up cycling and rest. A bus to Oruru, two days lying in bed watching old films on tv, and then a taxi to La Paz. Not exactly how I´d hoped to get there, and typically I missed the easiest riding - 300kms FLAT, but nevermind. La Paz itself had a great atmosphere - I really liked it there, helped by the fact that some nice antibiotics (its fantastic that you can get anything you like over the counter here without any questions asked!!!) were succeeding in the battle with my chest infection. I´ll be back on my bike again yet!

Next stop: Ushuaia in Tierra del Fuego... did I say I wanted to go somewhere remote?!

4 comments:

Clare said...

Oh matey! Hope you feel better soon. I would love to come and join you in Ushaia: it's on my "Must Do Soon" list! Please make sure you post lots of pics!

Unknown said...

Hello Holiday Haworth!
Nice to hear your progress, hope you're feeling a bit better now and back in the saddle. Great pics - have you got a flickr thing set up yet?
Rachel made me swim til my legs turned to jelly this morning - all good training to give you a good whooping on your return. Oh yeah ;o)
Take care matey & keep the news coming x

Kate said...

Helen ROCK ON I'm loving the blog and oh my god the photos are AMAZING! Your stories about the quality (ahem, rather lack thereof) of the roads, among other challenges, has me simultaneously cringing and yearning for all things cycle touring. Hope the lungs heal swiftly and have a blast heading further south!

Gevalher said...

No pictures of La Paz!!!

I'm cheated, after a string of very good pictures, none of Oruro or La Paz, grrrr!