that's worth a free tshirt

So, what happened next?

At some point along the ride I crashed my bike, and broke my face. The good part is I don't remember anything, thanks to the concussion.

Basically,  poor sweet Casie was my hero! No one saw me wreck,  just found me on the road in agony.  Ask Casie all about it ...

I was out of it for the entire van ride back to La Paz (several hours) and Casie answered my questions over and over:

"What happened? "
"You wrecked your bike."
"Oh no, that's why my hand hurts, and my head. Did anyone see it? Did you get pictures? "
"No."
"Awe man!"

We were supposed to meet up with Dave and Stacie at the end and go to a nature reserve where we would stay in a tree house surrounded by birds and monkeys (I know, right?!) But they just took us back to the office in La Paz. On the way, not knowing how to get in touch with the Mancinis,  Crasie happened to see out the window two hitch-hikers, that were our very own D and S! Her yelp woke me from my "distant" state, and I heard "PA-RE!! Amigos!!" [STOP! My friends! ]

I remember hearing Dave and Stacie's voices and thinking,  good job Casie! They were able to ride back with us,  and get me to a hospital.  Our tour guide didn't help at all! He made mancinis pay for the ride, and refused to get me a taxi to the hospital. Jerk [TripAdvisor got a livid review]

So, since I needed more of the Bolivian experience,  ER visit and 2 days in the hospital added that finishing touch.  Stacie's words hit hard: "No monkeys today." Ugh, you win Bolivia! I give up! I don't know how Dave and Stacie handle it so well,  they never missed a beat.

Hospital fun

The only monkey I saw

We had one last night in La Paz,  we rode the other cable car to the other side of town and had dinner.

Then the 20 hours of airplanes,  in a neckbrace. I think the customs officer in Miami felt too bad to grill me, he just stamped and let me pass. It was rough getting around the airports. But, casie is the best nurse! Haha she is probably glad to be rid of me.

So we are home!

S.O.C.K.S.

The Road of Death! The Most Dangerous Road! We finally came to see what all the talk was about! We rode bikes along the roads, the cliffs, the waterfalls! (downhill, hehe)

Good call, Stacie, for recommending a tour group that offers full protective gear and helmets- we needed it! The first guide rides in front, then another behind us in a van. The bikes were mega-mountain bikes, and they had to give us a tutorial first so we don't flip over the handlebars from the quick brakes, or unbalance our weight on turns and slide over. We can pace ourselves to our riding level.

It was great! The view was awesome! The road was paved at the top, and got more treacherous along the way  with loose gravel, rocks and water along, even opposing traffic!

to be continued ...

Terifico Teleférico Telerifico

We are in La Paz!

The bus station was jumping last night, as we got out of our taxi and headed up to the gate 50 people are shouting at to sell us bus tickets. "La PAZ! La PAZ!" "Santa Cruz! Santa Santa Cruuuz!" "La-pa-la-pa-la-paaaz!" I felt like someone being hounded by the press. Inside the terminal it is just as exhausting,  people everywhere (it's 9:45pm) just doing stuff (like breast-feeding) and we have all our bags and suitcases so we were extra alert to not lose anything. Things get stolen easily in a crowded place like that, and they target tourists for sure.

We had no problems,  cuz we're just that cool. Our bus seats reclined and we could sleep the 7.5 hr drive in the stuffiest, hottest bus ever. I just tried not to move and went to sleep to not create any more heat!  We got here at 5:30am, and went right to our room- Stacie found an apartment we could rent for a day. It's cheap, 3 bedrooms,  2 bathrooms,  come and go as we please.

Room with a view

The Mancinis had visa business to handle,  so off they went. Casie and I slept again until it was a decent hour to be out. Like,  8.

Yesterday I had looked up things about La Paz on Pinterest,  and saw a cute llama street art. I showed it to Crasie and hoped to see it.  As we left the apartment to walk to a café,  there it was exactly next door! Cool

So La Paz is so different from what I expected,  it's an upgrade from Cochabamba.  The business area downtown is pretty, people are businesslike, they wear real clothes (not sweatpants) and  they have somewhere to be. At breakfast we sat and watched people from the cafe window: running through traffic, carrying cakes, unloading Coca-Cola,  shining shoes, moving carpets,  cholitas doing their thing, etc- it never slowed down.

We made it to the San Francisco church/museum, it's old and neat on the outside but we didn't get go in. 

It's right next to the Witches Market, where we had to go book our bike ride for tomorrow. At one time the market was probably full of witchcraft, but now it's mostly the same stuff we see everywhere: knitted, fabric and leather things. We did pass by a few stands that featured the dead llama fetuses, idols, incense and other items that are sacrificed to pachamama (mother earth). And I think on other streets you could find much more, but we kept moving...

Something brand new to the city is the cable cars! It's a fast, quiet, clean and inexpensive (about $0.45 one way) ride up the hill.  Several more will be built.  

The city has expanded up the mountain sides,  the traffic is already crazy,  and how can you add more streets? Stacie pointed out as we reached the top how the streets sort of end, and you're left with stairs. And it's a definite drop in temperature at the top. I think it was a great idea,  functional and a great way to see the view. And an aerial view of this random parade!

bye cocha

Today there was a blockade, a strike of the bus drivers.  Typical Bolivia. It shut down traffic near the downtown area. So we stayed to the high streets and preached all morning. It's exhausting, the uphill walking on uneven cobblestone streets, in the sun. Harrassed by countless street dogs. But we are not stopped!

It's our last day in Cochabamba. We are all packed and ready to catch our 8 hr bus ride to La Paz. We were worried the  strike would affect our getting to La Paz, but so far traffic is back to normal.

It's time to play Name that Fruit!
yes, it was a banana phone.
Today our fruity snack is my favorite! Who can tell me what we're holding? Also the Spanish name is required to win!

Gringas

We got to go in the ministry this morning, I was excited because it is the invitation campaign and my speaking in Spanish part is very simple: "Tengo una invitacion para usted."

We are packing up our things, tomorrow we head to La Paz. It's been fun Cochabamba. Like, taking the tiny van-buses to run errands this afternoon. If you think my head is cramped for room, my legs were definitely bent in wrong ways.

Tonight we had a "gringo" night, some of the other Americans here came over to play cards. Susan and I wiped the floor with the rest of them! And the popcorn, nachos, veggies & dip, and chocolate chip cookies were the perfect snacks. We had a blast!

They taught us a new game, called Pitch, and it wasn't too hard to catch on. Next card party,  that's what we're playing!

Speaking of games, it's time to play Name that Fruit!
Tricia gets the point, she was the closest. It was actually a dried peach, that they put in a peachy beverage. That one was tricky, so here is an easy one, inspired by the local cell phone company ad.
Who can tell me what Casie is holding?

 

yep

We have one week left in Bolivia! Aaahhh

Not too much happened today, did laundry, took a nap, - my tummy is ill.

We went to the meeting tonight and had to say goodbye to everyone, since we are headed to La Paz in a few days, and won't see them again. Everyone was so sweet and requested that we come back again when we can stay longer. One sister even remembered "Bob" and sends a greeting to him.

No pics for today, but I did manage to add many more to the blogs from our trip, so be sure to check them out! The Salt flat pics are the best.

No one is even close on the fruit, so I'm giving everyone another day to guess. hehehe

Mirador

Today we walked up the hill to the Recoleta, an old monastery that has a beautiful view of the city.

Walked up this

  We found the museum of indigenous art, and went through. No photos allowed.  It was a nice museum and it focused on their handwoven textiles. As expected,  each region has its own patterns and colors, and techniques. Some represent the sky and sun, some the land, some the devil. Actually,  the further along through the museum we went, the more clear the devil worship became. They also highlighted their traditional dances, and dancing outfits. These dances were for specific times of the year ... around modern day Carnaval. The dances were purposefully chaotic and at times vulgar and animalistic. The brightly contrasting colored outfits with masks and hats also encourage chaos reminiscent of demons.
One region's weavings were always black and red, and each character depicted was a spiritistic being of the underworld. They clearly were deep into pagan worship, and loved it. More modern weavings included churches and crosses right along with the demon figures.

It was incredibly interesting to see all of this plainly,  in woven art and documented tradition. And this type of worship is still extremely common - promoting the devil and making burnt sacrifices to him and "mother earth", in spite of most Bolivians claiming to be Catholic.

After that, I looked closer at the woven items being sold at the markets, to be sure to avoid anything connected to that!

We had lunch at the cafe at the overlook, which was a lovely way to spend the afternoon.

Then it was goodbye Sucre, we flew back to Cochabamba.  It was the shortest flight I've ever been on, about 30 minutes. The other option was a 12+ hour bus ride.


Everyone wins a point, I gave you an easy fruit,  fig! Oh the fig jam is delicious.
Now a hard one, literally.
It's time to play Name that Fruit! Who can tell me what Stacie is holding?