We left La Paz this morning and caught a midday bus to
Copacabana, a town of approximately 50,000 people on the shores of Lake
Titicaca, the world’s highest altitude lake at about 3,800 metres above sea
level. I had a great time in La Paz but
I was really looking forward to leaving the hustle bustle of the city,
especially with the traffic and all the cars tooting every second. Bolivian (and so far South American) drivers
have no patience at all!
We head to the bus station and purchase our tickets. Waiting at the bus station were a Swiss
couple who we had met in our hostel in Potosi, and we had also seen them
wandering the streets in La Paz. We
started talking to them and we were on the same bus. They had been told the bus was leaving in 20
minutes so that was good. We continued
talking to them and time just kept on ticking.
The bus was an hour and a half late.
It didn’t bother me as the Swiss were nice people. When we finally got moving, we climbed our
way out of the La Paz basin and made our way to Lake Titicaca. When we arrived at the lake it was only half
way to our destination so we had great views for the second half of the
trip. About 30 minutes from Copacabana,
we arrived at a small lakeside town. I
thought we had actually arrived in Copacabana, in fact we all had to get out of
the bus and get into a boat and do a lake crossing! The bus also got on a
separate boat and crossed the lake. It
was only a 200 metre crossing but it certainly was a surprise!
When we arrived in Copacabana, the Swiss couple asked if we
would like to go to the hostel they were staying at. Their hostel was not in our Lonely Planet
travel guide so we followed them. We
booked into the hostel for 3 nights, Bs100 per night (about NZ$17) and
organised to meet the Swiss for dinner.
Our room is clean, has a bathroom and lake views, so not bad for NZ$17
per night!
When we had settled into our room, we went for a walk around
the town and down to the lakefront. It
is a nice wee town and the lake looks great.
I wanted to see how warm the lake was, but when I went to the water’s
edge, I learnt that sewage also was disposed in the lake. I decided to step back.
We then went out for dinner with the Swiss and
went out for a drink afterwards, home by midnight. When I got home I was not feeling well at
all, I had a fever. Plenty of water for
me tomorrow.Copacobana - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copacabana,_Bolivia
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