Bolivia

  • America,  Bolivia,  Country Guides,  TDM,  Tips

    La Isla del Sol on Lake Titicaca: How to get there, where to sleep, guide & tips

    Updated September 2019 : Following an economic conflict between the Center and the North of the island, access to the North and Center was blocked / closed for more than a year and a half and tourists could only visit the southern part of Isla del Sol, among the Yumani who remained neutral during the conflict (I see many articles and comments spitting at the southerners, but they did nothing. Many negative comments also come from people who did not do any research before coming, and are offended to pay the entrance fee to the island when it has always been the case) A peace agreement was signed in July…

  • America,  Argentina,  Bolivia,  Brazil,  Chile,  Cuba,  Our Itinerary,  Paraguay,  Peru,  TDM,  Tips,  Uruguay

    5 months in South America & Cuba: Itinerary & Transportation (Argentina, Chile, Peru, Bolivia, Paraguay, Uruguay, Brazil, Cuba)

    Update May 2017: Here is the latest version of our itinerary in South America, Cuba & the Caribbean. All that lasted 5 months… I found transportation a bit complicated to understand in South America, some border crossings are recently impossible (especially Los Antiguos – Chile Chico), I had to tear out a lot of hair to establish this itinerary. There are many land border crossings, especially between Chile and Argentina, make sure you have enough blank pages in your passport. Click on the button at the top left of the map below to access the list of destinations. CHILE Easter Island(round-the-world ticket) Santiago (round-the-world ticket) Punta Arenas (plane 160€/person) ARGENTINA…

  • America,  Bolivia,  Country Guides,  TDM,  Tips

    Bolivia in 20 days: Review, itinerary, guide and advice

    That’s it! We have just left Bolivia, a real “coup de coeur ” for us who did not expect much from this country (due to Antoine de Maximy’s report: I’ll sleep at your place). Our itinerary is a little chaotic since we had to go very quickly to visit Machu Picchu to take advantage of the last sunny days before the rainy season. Enough chatting, let’s go to the content. If we had to do it again, we would have visited Peru first and then go back down to Bolivia. Itinerary Uyuni and the salt desert (3 days): 9h bus from Calama in Chile. Visiting the salt desert flooded mid-January…

  • America,  Bolivia,  TDM,  Travel Journal

    Epic fail in Santa Cruz (Bolivia)

    Rarely has a day been so rotten.It starts with a long wait at the airport of Sucre: because of the heavy rain in Santa Cruz, our flight is two hours late. Having a flight to Paraguay the next day, our only wish is to arrive in Santa Cruz on time and not to miss our flight to Asuncion.The landscapes seen from the plane are incredible. I have never seen so many mountains (as far as the eye can see). Unfortunately we also see a lot of dry rivers.Arriving in Santa Cruz we discover a huge city, very very big compared to La Paz or Sucre.On Saturdays, life comes to a…

  • America,  Bolivia,  TDM,  Travel Journal

    Sucre (Bolivia): one week to learn Spanish

    Sucre, the white city, is world-renowned for its Spanish courses. Sucre is also home to Bolivia’s best university, which even attracts many Brazilians and Argentines. Sucre is the Bolivian capital but this pretty city is in a cold war with the current government, which prefers La Paz. Compared to La Paz or Santa Cruz, Sucre has a country feel, quiet, traditional, very pleasant to live in and not too polluted. Part 1: Travel Diary Part 2: Practical Tips Part 1: Travel Diary 12 hours from La Paz We take a cama bus (El Dorado) from La Paz at 7pm and arrive in Sucre around 7am. The bus stops near the…

  • America,  Bolivia,  TDM,  Tips

    Learn Spanish in one month to travel in South America: Tips, Tricks, Addresses

    Even before I left on my round-the-world trip, everyone was telling me that I had to hurry up and learn Spanish. Unfortunately, I couldn’t get started before, so I had to learn Spanish in express mode, just one week before arriving in Chile. Speaking a bit of Spanish is a real advantage here, since it was clear that few people spoke English here, even at the tourist office I found thatin one month, one could acquire enough vocabulary and grammar to travel safely in South America and deal with all situations related to travel. In addition, the French have the advantage of having a grammar and words quite close to…

  • America,  Bolivia,  TDM,  Travel Journal

    La Paz (Bolivia): pollution and chaos

    This is the second time we are in La Paz. This city still doesn’t manage to seduce us Part 1: Travel Diary Part 2: Practical Tips Part 1: Travel Diary From Puno (Peru), we take two buses: the first one to go to Copacabana. And a second one from Copacabana to La Paz. We were fooled by the name of the bus: Pullman Bus. In Chile, it is a very good bus company, but here, it is a local bus having the external appearance of a tourist bus. We are given the last places of the last row, so that during 5 hours, we feel every irregularity of the road.…

  • America,  Bolivia,  Peru,  TDM,  Tips

    Opinions on Bolivia Hop: bus hop-on hop-off in Bolivia and Peru

    In Bolivia, the quality of the bus is proportional to the price. So, if you want a good, comfortable and safe bus, you have to put the price. Most of the time, it’s just 2-3€ more. It isn’t much for you, but it is huge for Bolivians (it represents 2 meals) Even if we took local buses to get around Bolivia, there are two places that don’t reassure us much: The bus terminal in La Paz and the crossing of the Bolivia-Peru border La Paz and its bus terminal aren’t the most welcoming; and the crossing of the Bolivia-Peru border is a source of problems (corrupt police officers, pickpockets, buses…

  • America,  Bolivia,  TDM,  Travel Journal

    Lake Titicaca and Isla del Sol (Bolivia): cut off from the world

    Isla del Sol (Island of the Sun) is considered the cradle of Andean civilization. That’s all there is to it! Some even claim that Atlantis is swallowed up there. We will make a trek from the North to the South of the island, called “Sacred Road of the Eternity of the Sun”. This hike will cross 3 villages: Cha’llapampa, Cha’lla and Yumani. At the entrance of each village, you have to pay the visit fees for the different communities (between 10$B and 15$B/person) Part 1: Travel Diary Part 2: Budget Part 1: Travel Diary Finally a place where we are a little cut off from the world. Implied: no Wifi,…

  • America,  Bolivia,  TDM,  Travel Journal

    Copacabana (Bolivia): no beach but a nice city

    Copacabana is the gateway to Isla del Sol, considered the cradle of Andean civilization. Unlike Copacabana in Brazil, here there is no beach, bikini and hot water, but a more traditional atmosphere Part 1: Travel Diary Part 2: Practical Tips How to get there From Potosí, we take a night bus to La Paz at 9:30 pm, arriving in La Paz at 6:30 am. We will spend one night in La Paz (for practical reasons: I needed a good Korean meal too much). The next day, we take the bus at 7:30 am with Bolivia Hop to be in Copacabana at 11:30 am (Bolivia Hop is a hop-on hop-off bus…