big al's big wander: I love La Paz

Even though I am travelling for 5 1/2 months in South America, I´m still moving pretty fast. It is rare that I spend more than 3 nights in any one place. I stayed in La Paz for almost 2 weeks. I think it was a combination of loving it because I stayed so long, and staying so long because I loved it. Raced there from Peru to meet my friends, Muz and Brooke, and made it just in time for a big Christmas Dinner at the hostel! Had a great time, and Christmas Eve is, apparently a big night out on the town - who knew? So, of course, we did our part. My first week was a little more of the same (after 3 weeks of travelling a good deal by myself and staying in non-hostels, often in my own room, I was ready for some socializing!)... then I got sick, which took me down for a few, then I went to the jungle (see previous blog.)

But it was my second week in La Paz, after I returned from the jungle, when I really got to know the city and grew to love it. Oh, where to begin. First of all - the market. Now, I´ve been to plenty of markets in South America, but this one is something special. And it was even more grand because it was Christmas time! It goes on forever and ever. One of my favorite areas was the dessert area - churros, and all kinds of sugary concoctions. But what they were selling was not the reason I liked it. There was stall after stall, 15? 20? all decorated the same way - lined with furry blankets with giant animal pictures on them on all sides of the stall, and then they all had TVs playing the same cartoon - I think it was the Lion King, actually. Like it´s own trippy little world in there. Then, there is the witches market up the street. It smells like anise when you walk by. There they sell all kinds of herbs and potions and little mini shrines of things that you want to wish for in the coming year, all things in minitature - cars, etc. And, let´s not forget the llama fetuses, which are a bit disturbing. Not sure what they do with those.

But you can really buy anything in the market - and it´s all in sections. I needed some new shoes and got lost in the shoe section which stretched for block after block. Many of the stalls sell random things, each for under a dollar. I bought some things, just because I could - batteries, etc. Wish I bought more - as I am now writing this from expensive Argentina! And on every corner

you can get fresh Salteñas - these little empanada like morsels with a meat ste

w and a sweet sauce inside, delicious! One of my favorites was this guy right down the street from my hostel who was there every day shouting over and over, un Boliviano KlEEnex (one Boliviano is 1/7 of a USD).

OK, besides the market - I loved the contrasts
that I got to experience there. For most of the time I stayed in a hostel in the Centro, right near the market. It´s busy, it´s sort of organized chaos, it´s dense. You risk your life walking across the street each day. It´s fabulous in that dense city life sort of way. Mostly indiginous people, the women in their bowler hats and their poofy skirts. And then, I got to experience the Zona Sur. Wow - is this still La Paz? The daughter of my mother´s friend lives there and I stayed with her for 2 nights. It was great seeing her life, which is full and quite interesting. She is a teacher in the Zona Sur and also runs a volunteer organization in a village called Sorata outside of La Paz, coordinating medical care for the people that live there (their website) http://www.prosorata.org/. She is a mountain climber and has lots of mountain climbing adventuring friends, and teacher friends, and Bolivian friends from Sorata. Such an interesting and full ex-pat life!

But let me get back to this neighborhood which blew me away, coming from the Centro... I felt like I was in L.

A. Fancy clothing shops, fancy restaurants, fancy salons (OK, I admit I did get a cut and color while I was there...), fancy cafes. The streets are wide and clean, not cramped and filthy like the Centro. On the street where she lives there are guards in front of all the houses, and big fences around them. People drive SUVs. There are packs of trendily dressed teens hanging out in front of the fancy shops. Amy´s house is lovely, and it was so nice to be in a place that felt like a real home.