Posted 4:10 PM by MelanieandSteve
COPACABANA, BOLIVIA, 6-9 May

TA TA FROM TITICACA: Along the shores of the World´s highest navigable lake, in
Copacabana, Bolivia, we have seen big sea views, strode the sea shore, meandered
in markets, encountered Incan ruins, and revisited rituals both ancient and new.

BIRTHDAY IN BOLIVIA:

On May 6, we got to cold city of Copa, heated up a ´´hot cuppa´´ (English speak
for tea), and headed out for a warm dinna. We and friends Dan and Michelle
found a heated hole in the wall for food, and then took to the town. Thanks to
sudden rain, warmth and location were everything. Nemo´s, just two doors down,
was just the right place. It had space heaters, games galore including ´´Connect
Four´´, and live Afro-Bolivian beat with bongos, brass, and the ubuquitous
Charango guitar. ´´Finding Nemo´s´´ made for a fun birthday evening.

BECOMING FANS OF COPACABANA IN OUR LITTLE CABANA:

Our hostel´s top floor corner room with four beds, a tea table, and ten feet of
windows was one reason we became fans of ´Copa´. We overlooked a road lined with
faded brick buildings and a panorama of green rocky hills with a rock
outcropping in front where there once was the ´Horca del Inca´, the old gallows.

SITES OF ANCIENT RITUALS, TRIBUNAL DEL INCA:

A boulder outcropping near town once held the Tribunal Del Inca. Still evidenced in the rocks were a carved out throne for the old Incan king and places where golden monolyths once stood until taken by greedy Conquistadors. We roamed through the ruins speculating about carvings and cut rock when seven school children on lunch break came running. Ten-year-old
Dennis, who´s uncle was a tourguide, was full of knowledge. Dennis was a child
prodegy with perfect Spanish, infectious enthusiasm, and confident composure. He
explained the significance of structures, pointed out places of interest, spoke
of Spanish invasion, and lectured on lots more. Jumping from rock to rock, he
pointed out carved Incan calendars, grooved channels for sacrificed llama blood, and
hollowed out places for presenting sacrifices. This bundle of knowledge and six
of his friends were as adept at tour guiding as any adult. We gave them a token
tip, but took time to play before we called it a day. Steve began with a
handstand and before we knew what we had started, the whole crowd had turned
upside down too.

CATHOLIC COPA´S WESTERN RITUALS OF CANDLES AND CARS:

THE CATHEDRAL: A large Bizantean style catheral with colorfully tiled domes and
an open courtyard dominated the town center. What made this Cathedral
interesting were its unique and colorful rituals.

MASS BY STAR AND CANDLE LIGHT: It was nice to see Saturday night mass delivered
outside in the courtyard under stars with some candles. The church had an indoor
auditorium, but they brought folding chairs out to the courtyard for worship.

CAPILLA DE VELAS: Inside the church, in the Capilla de Velas or room of candles
was a dark corredor of tables with bundled up burning candles paid for and
placed there by penitents praying for blessings or luck. The black hall walls
were covered with graffiti and gobbled with wax, floor to ceiling. It felt less
like a church and more like a halloween maze or an underground subway.

CARS; BENEDICIONE DE LOS MOVILIDADES: In front of the church, street stalls were
splashed with colorful garlands, flowers, ornaments, and a painter´s palate of
possible purchases. Here the priest would bless people´s cars and other
instruments of mobility. Every day, people would purchase tickets for their
vehicles to be blessed. We saw busses, semi´s, SUV´s, VW ´Beatles´, and even a
gang of motorcycles. It looked like a wedding procession of all get-away cars
when people decorated their cars with garlands and lays. Then the priest
sprinkled holy water on both humans and cars. Women giggled as the water
dribbled down over their faces. Men popped open champaign bottles and sprayed
the whole cars, and families flung flower petals over the top while the priest
wafted incense from large iron pots. Then in front of each car boomed a
deafening display of firecrackers. It was one surprise after another for us.
After the ceremony was over, one woman flung flower petals on several other
people´s heads and many hugged and smiled and posed for pictures by their cars.
Safe roads ahead and the hopes of always having transport now awaited them all.

LAKESIDE LOUNGING AND SEASIDE SUPPING:

TROUT, THE ONLY TRUE FISH IN TITICACA: On the Copa shoreside, restaurants had
menues that were subdivided into ´´Meat, Fish, and ... Trout´´. Apparently
their specialty, Steve tried some and liked his Titicaca trout at a terrace by
the strand.

NOT RAINBOW TROUT, BUT RAINBOW SHORESIDE: What stood out more than the meal was
the scenery. Like a rainbow, bright colored rental canoes, peddle boats and
sailboats speckled the royal blue water of Titicaca´s shore.

MARKETS IN TOWN:

BUSTLING MARKETS ranged from a whole street packed with puffed wheats and corns,
to a modern mercado of new shoes and sweat suits, to rows of the usual alpaca
additions. They were good for a jaunt and people watching too and every sort of
sundry was condensed into a mere quadrant of town.

SIX O´CLOCK TO THE TOP OF THE ROCK:

WE CLIMBED THE STEEP CERRO CALVARIO hill, a short hike, but a super steep one.
At the top of the hill were lines of Christian alters and burning candles much
like the ones at the Cathedral, plus there were venders of more good luck loot
like fake dollar bills to sacrifice. On a tiny dirt terrace hidden from view
burned an abandoned campfire. We warmed our bones and watched the view. The
sunset over Titicaca and the city of Copa was golden.

THEN THERE WAS THE HIKE DOWN: The steep and slippery steps down were especially
precarious in the dark of dusk. We were tenuously taking each step at a time
when the well-practiced local women practically ran by. Done with their vending
that day they darted on by, undaunted by dusk or the difficulties of hauling
their blankets of merchandize tied to their backs.

DINNER ON THE TOWN:

ALL HERBAVORES BUT STEVE: We spent an evening out with Malina, Canadian Steve,
and Josh. These three veggies and Mel made four and for once Steve was
minority. Undaunted he ordered his carnivorous dish. The veggies tried Quinoa,
something seen all over Bolivia that we had not heard of in the states. Earlier
when we had driven the Bolivian salt flats, we came across acres of Quinoa
plantations.

SOUTH AMERICA´S ANSWER TO GEORGE FOREMAN:

OSCARS GO TO ... BOLIVIA: Here in touristy Copa, we didn´t meet too many locals,
but those that we did all seemed to have one thing in common ... At least from
what they told us, they all were named Oscar. This was just a funny fact for us
but maybe it was just something they would say to make it easy for visitors to
pronounce or remember their names.

BYE BYE BOLIVIA:

Our opinions may differ on different places, but we both agreed on beautiful
Bolivia. It was a blessed place both or its fantastically varied land and its
colorful culture. So far in South America, Bolivia´s best.

QUECHUA LATER:

NEXT TIME from Copa to Cuzco, from Bolivia to Peru, and the Quechuan navel of the
World.

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY MOMS and
HAPPY BIRTHDAYS TO: Mel, and Paeder.

Posted 9:57 PM by MelanieandSteve
LA PAZ AND HUAYNA POTOSI MOUNTAIN, BOLIVIA, 1 - 6 MAY

HI FROM HIGH IN BOLIVIA: Since May Day, we lingered a little longer in La Paz, loving it for its strollable streets, atmospheric hang outs, and lovely local flavor. We clamped on crampons to achieve new heights on Mountain Huayna Potosi. And we hopped on a bus heading North to Incan shores of Lake Titicaca.

LA P´S OF LA PAZ: PIGEONS, PALACES, PARADES, PAGES, PONCHOS, AND PICKS:

Start to finish, we loved it in La Paz. Some of the best times were the simplest; strolling the streets and feeling the Bolivian flavor. Some of the ways we spent our last La Paz days included:

*PRESIDENTIAL PALACE, PLAZA, AND PIGEONS: We walked through the central square packed with pigeons, seed sellers, and children feeding the flocks. Beside the square were the Senate House and the bullet-riddled Presidential Palace. Uniformed guards stood watch as armed troops ceremoniously removed a rolled up red carpet. We must have missed somebody special. The dramatic plaza view of the brick city rising on steep cliffs behind palace spires typified La Paz.

*PARADES: Demonstrations of May Day weren`t limited by date. In the following days we saw street corner protests and small parades. Their messages may have been important but sadly they seemed to be mostly ignored.

*PAJINAS PARA PASAPUERTO POR FAVOR (VOLUME 3): Once again, our passports ran out of pages, so we got twenty-four new ones sewn in in La Paz.

*PONCHOS AND PARAPHERNALIA: Sweet deals on snuggly sweaters in this chilly city made warm woolly purchases practically irresistible. Our alpaca wool acquisitions included Steve`s super soft poncho, snow beanies, and thick knitted socks.

*PERSONAL FAVORITE LA PAZ PICKS: We began to feel like regulars returning to some of our favorite night spots. Places with fireplaces, mellow atmosphere, and live local music kept us coming back for more.

HUAYNA POTOSI MOUNTAIN:

ATTAINING NEW HEIGHTS: The dramatic glacial peak of Huayna Potosi towered over La Paz at 6088 meters (19,969 feet), 193 feet higher than our last major Mount Kilimanjaro climb. We decided to strive for new heights and summit our first ´´Six K-er´´. Our 6K called for 2 guides, 2 nights, 2 refuges, and 2 glacier ice climbs.

GETTING THERE: The one hour drive to trailhead from La Paz was beautiful. First leaving La Paz, we drove up the steep hill and circumnavigated the brick blanketed valley by high road. We passed several different colored lakes on the way. One was such bright orange and red that it looked like a sunset. Next were three lakes in varying shades of green from deep emerald to a milky mint white.

PRACTICING WITH PICKS AND CRAMPONS: The first night at 4760 meters (15,416 ft) we stayed at a lake front lodge. We hiked to the nearby Glacier Viejo and tried out our harnesses, crampons, and ice picks on three increasingly difficult climbs. Then back at the lodge, we sipped tea by the fire and rested up for the next day´s ascent.

LITTLE ROUND RED REFUGIO ON THE ROCKS: The first leg of our hike was a three hour trek through trails and rocks to the lip of Huayna Potosi´s glacier. There on a rock outcropping was our little red storage-shed-looking but cozy inside mountain refuge. Inside the tin-sided windowless box were four mattresses and a camping stove. We set down our stuff, explored the surroundings, had a warm cup of soup while watching snow flurries fall outside the door, and then snuggled up in our sleeping bags. At 6:00 pm, we closed the door to block out the sunlight and fool our circadian rhythms into an early night´s sleep. Despite the attempt, Mel lay awake most of the night.

EARLY TO RISE: We got up at midnight to a clear starry sky and still quiet air. This was a bonus after our experience last October in Mt. Kilimanjaro with biting 40 knot winds. Here, our final five-hour ascent was entirely on glacial ice. We suited up in double-layered plastic boots, crampons, ice picks, and harnesses. We were tethered twenty feet apart by climbing rope in case of a hidden crevasse (large crack in a glacier) or a slip during a climb.

HARD HIGH HIKE: The air was thin, the hike was steep, and the night was cold. We often had to choose between resting to catch our breath and keeping moving to keep our warmth.

NIGHT LIGHTS: The summit hike was all in the dark of night., A shining Southern Cross, brilliant shooting stars, a crescent moonrise, and our personal ´´torches´´ (headlamps) were all we had to illuminate our way.

WALKING ON WATER (FROZEN): Walking on glaciers, our plastic boots constrained our movement much like ski boots do, so it took added effort to step uphill. Planting our ice picks like walking sticks, we pulled ourselves forward and up.

TWICE, ICE WALLS: Two areas of the mountain called for ice climbing. We hammered our picks into the hard glacial ice, kicked our crampon spikes into the wall, and hauled ourselves upward one hammer and kick at a time. The climbing was not technically difficult, but it called for lots of endurance. One climb was over 200 meters and took about an hour. It was like doing sixty straight minutes of stair-steps and pull-ups combined. But the physical strain was placated by the pre-sunrise glow on the horizon.

SUNRISE AND SHINE: We timed our hike well and sumitted 20 minutes before sunrise. We hooked into pitons screwed deep into the ice. Then, safely roped in, we relaxed and enjoyed the reddening sky over the white glacial valley. Our peak was an overhung cornice, wave shaped much like Tim Burton`s cartoon mountain in ´´Nightmare Before Christmas.`` To peer over the edge, we layed bellies down to distribute our weight and avoid falling off. The dramatic drop-off revealed distant lights of La Paz. The combined effect of orange skies, rising red sun, distance city lights, fading stars, rising crescent moon, and reflective pink glaciers was as ´´breathtaking´´ as the hard hike itself. The completion of a difficult challenge added to our emotion and there was something special in reaching a place so our own that hard work was the only way there. Even helicopters could not reach these heights.

GOING DOWN: Heading back down in the light of day, we rapelled on ropes where we had ice climbed at night. The first multi-pitch drop was 200 meters. Our rope was only 100. So we dug our picks in halfway down while we unclipped from old anchors and hooked into new ones. Then the hike down lit by the morning sun was totally different from the night´s dark climb up. Now we were surprised to see huge glowing blue crevasses covered with icecycles. Frozen waterfalls covered topaz colored cliff walls, and pristine snow and ice blanketed Earth as far as we could see.

DELICIOUS DREAMS: We dragged ourselves into the lakeside lodge by noon for some soothing hot soup. Then sleepless after the summit, Melanie dozed deliciously off on the van ride back to La Paz despite dusty cramped conditions and a bumpy dirt road.

FINAL PIECE OF ´´THE PEACE´´ OF LA PAZ: After napping away the afternoon in La Paz, we paid final visits to our favorite places. Fine food by a fireplace and card play by candle light topped off our time in that precious place. In the morning we would be once again on the road.

NEXT TIME: High Seas, high hills, and high priest´s thrones at Copacabana on Lake Titicaca.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Franz Joseph.