Traffic Zebras and the Death Road

On the death road (on the way back to La Paz)

When you have a few little things to do it is amazing how long it takes. A few days ago when we arrived in La Paz there was some general research to be done. This, and jobs, took most of the day and the list didn’t really get much shorter. Everything takes longer than it would at home.

                                                       

I am not sure if I mentioned that not only did I get my camera stolen, but then Spike lent me his little one and I broke it (it got wet mountain biking in Peru). I am getting a new one though. It has been ordered in NZ and is getting delivered in time for Gilbert to bring over (hopefully). Legend. (They turned out to be crazy expensive and rather average here).

I have never seen as many ‘riot cops’ as I have in La Paz. There are a lot of protests. Everyday. So the cops stroll around with their plastic boards. All we have seen as been pretty casual though. Students and older ladies protesting and never causing any trouble more than a few fireworks. It is no wonder the police are generally so relaxed.

One of my favourite things in La Paz has been the traffic Zebras. Mainly girls dressed in Zebra outfits holding signs and directing the traffic. Awesome. There is a photo on my facebook page of me with them, just couldn’t resist. They are so full of energy and bounce around all day directing traffic and being friendly with kids. 

The famous death road. A must for anyone visiting La Paz. Yes, people sometimes die on the road, but the real reason it has earned this title is that it was built by prisoners of war from Paraguay. I must admit, I was pretty nervous to begin with as I wouldn’t exactly call myself a mountain bike fan. But by the end I was having so much fun it was guttering to stop. You travel up for about an hour from La Paz to over 4700metres. It is pretty cold (but nothing like out mountain biking experience in Peru) and end up under 2000metres. We met some awesome people on our tour and have the low down for our next stop (Salt flats) which is handy. Choosing a company to ride with is a bit of a gamble. Balancing up price, reputation and what will be required. In the end we went for a middle/upper price with a well known company. Well worth every cent too. Full suspension on the bikes (which was needed!) and after the hours of riding down I am almost proud to say I have pretty good dose of ‘bike butt’ going on today.

The views were incredible on the ride. Once I gained some confidence (a couple of hours in) it was a real buzz flying down the hills with such amazing views. We rode through water falls and rivers and the cliffs were never ending. I didn’t fall off (amazingly) but did manage to fall down the stairs in the bathroom/showers after the ride. I was thinking it had been a while since I had fallen over.

We had yet another awesome jungle lunch and the host (a Hungarian man) took us around his plantation too. Showing and talking about the fruits and things he grows. Such an incredible environment to live in. He had almost everything and was so passionate.

We had to do something a bit different, so when presented by our guides with the option of driving up the death road on the 3.5 hour journey back to La Paz it was a no brainer. It was this drive when we really got to appreciate the scenery and the sheer drops below and landslides on the paths. Needless to say one of the girls in the van was a little nervous! Luckily I am fine with heights and have travelled many cliffslide roads at home (ok, I admit, nothing like THIS! But still!).

I saw my first group of chickens with feathers on their legs. It was pretty weird I must admit. I didn’t know chickens could get feathery legs. I wonder if it is some chicken version of the human equivalent of a sasquatch. Something all the other chickens don’t believe until they see their incredibly feathery counterparts.

We hoped to get out of La Paz the night we arrived back from mountain biking. Only we hadn’t booked any tickets and discovered the bus was full. Luckily the tour agent was a friendly guy and took us walking up the street, where we found an amazing deal for only 60Bs between us. It is always nice when someone goes above and beyond. The people in South America are generally very friendly and helpful.

Off to catch the bus to Uyuni.