Farewell - sadly

Time to pack. There's not a lot for me to take home. A box of salt crystals is probably the main item.
The last four days passed in a flash although we've mainly be sitting at the kitchen table talking and eating – they claim I don't eat a lot... Usually in the afternoon I go to the girls, where Angelica is taking care of her siblings as her mother is in Santa Cruz with her sick mother and Betty is out with her friends. One afternoon they are looking at the pictures of the trip on her “new” laptop. Their room is neatly in order. They all contribute – if a thing is put back, it is put back right.
I wish the place was closer.
At 17.45h after the mandatory tripod pictures in front of Sakurai's house I depart sadly. Aya rides with me as she has to attend university tomorrow in Santa Cruz. It's about 1.5 hours with little traffic but the difficulty that at night the road dividers are hardly visible, the cars are blinding, etc. The dorp-off procedure at Avis takes about 45 minutes during which the car is inspected closely (incl. from below). I get the lift to the airport where there's a huge line at American Airlines – high season. Families travel with suitcases in sizes of chests that the Spaniards used to take out the silver coins. Time to check-in probably also takes about 45 minutes. From there on things go on schedule with the biggest delay being the flight to Zürich (from 10 to 40 minutes).

Wet feet

After a heavenly sleep I'm woken up at 9 by “breakfast is ready”. I peel out – it's warm again – and go eat. Afterwards I suggest that we go down to the river and see the pot holes (pozos). This is an instant hit for everyone. Mr. Sakurai goes plant hunting and the kids start to wade in the water then they get wilder, start splashing and Betty even jumps into the water in her cloths. They try to catch fish with their hands. And the food Mrs. Sakurai took along against the will of all (not necessary!) turns into a success as it serves as fish food.
Since we are not rushed to check out we get back to the cabin and Mrs. Sakurai starts to cook the food we've been transporting for over 2000km and we have lunch in the moist heat of the jungle.
The drive back home is easy. In this beautiful light the green of the forest surrounding the road stands out. Our only issue is to get gas, as there are long lines on the gas stations (surtidores) so we keep going till we run out or get lucky. The latter is the case (if the former were the case you can always asks taxi drivers if they sell “gasolina en bidon”).

Gas hint: Get gas right then when you think you could also do it tomorrow. Tomorrow there could be a shortage (in a land that produces oil) or there could be a power blackout. You learn to deal with all kinds of possibilities why there isn't any gas at the pump.

Free fall of 4000m

After a light and cold breakfast on the top floor of the hotel I leave to find the car (yesterday I probably found all parking lots, estacionamientos, around the hotel as they were all full). It's still there and I manage to get it out of the tight parking lot and to maneuver it to the hotel. The streets are completely empty on Sunday morning so there is no rush to pack the car.
The way out of Oruro is nice (highway level) and slightly climbing till it gets steeper and higher. Every 100 m there's a dog sitting at the side of the road. It still makes me wonder how they survive at these altitudes where there is basically nothing. The “summit” of the road is at 4500m! The views on the mountain chains are fabulous as the weather is good. It is amazing how people seem to be able to survive at the conditions here – freezing at night and decently cool during the day.
We kill some 2000 m to Cochabamba where we drive to the plaza to check if Mrs. Sakurai's cousin is at her shop (Cosmos pharmacy). By look I see someone slipping in so we knock on the metal curtains. We leave Mrs. Sakurai and Aya with the cousin and split up to meet again in an hour. Mr. Sakurai goes to the market with his son, and I take the girls for a stroll and an ice-cream around the plaza. At exactly 15.30h we meet again and depart for Villa Tunari which should be close now.
However, it's an uphill drive a first (to 2700m) where we meet the clouds again and we dive into the jungle as we know it from the book. At the same time the road gets really bad again. The traffic is heavy especially with heavy trucks crawling up or downhill. Additional delay is caused by trucks that have broken down and are being left right where they stopped working. There are also two accidents where trucks have slided off the road or simply tipped over and left their load on heaps. And finally it is getting dark which makes the drive even harder as the visibility in general and in the dust specifically is not the best. We need to descent another 2000m to our destination at 300m over sea. At some point the breaks start to fail on the car because they overheat and for some time we use second gear to slow down.
Eventually we pass the gate of Villa Tunari. There are more hotels and restaurants than I remembered from two years ago. We check out two or three but they are on the expensive side and not all really that great, so I suggest to go to El Puente which is outside but in the middle of the jungle. The place is deserted as all guests had left to go back to work on Monday and there is no problem getting a cabin.
We make a quick drive back to the village for dinner (as I feel hungry again) before we hit the sack in a surrounding of those sounds of wilderness.

The great white plain

Getting up in the cold reminds me of the army in winter. There's quite a good breakfast that increases the energy levels. After a while I can even get the car out of the car park – as there is a car blocking the exit. At 8.45h the guide arrives and we head for Colchani, one entrance onto the lake that at this time of the year is dry. It is an amazing feeling to drive through a white plain that is hard surfaced (not like White Sands). Since you have no references (just white flat salt to the horizon) it is really difficult to estimate distances and sizes: the cars seem close at the same time they are so small that you KNOW they must be further away (seeing is not believing).

The island with large cactus is impressive and offers of course some great Kodak (or SanDisk) moments. On the way back we get to fish for salt crystals. Mr. Sakurai has a long stamina to keep his arm in the ice cold salt water and to try to rip out some of the sharp crystals. However, we are surprised that the tour is basically over and that we could make it to Oruro the same day. We strike a deal at the hotel and head out as fast as we can.
Tour hint: a one-day tour of the lake can be easily compressed into half day. Skip the souvenir shop in Colchani, you won't find anything worth buying and head right for the salt piles and then to the now closed salt hotel in the middle of the lake (the new salt hotels are built along Colchani's lake side), then to Isla Incahuasi, where you'll walk around for probably at least an hour. On the way back stop at the holes to pick salt crystals out of the ice cold highly concentrated salt water (bring your tools!). If you leave early you'll be back just around lunch and have time to drive to Oruro without stress and in daylight.
Another advantage of getting up early for the tour is that you will basically be alone on the salar. On the way back we literally cross dozens of 4WDs heading into the lake - all of them heading to the same places.

Smothered by blankets (conchas)

The water in the patio of the hostal is frozen and it's really slippery. At freezing temperatures we have a good breakfast (BTW bring your sleeping bag as you'll be warmer and more importantly will not be killed under the weight of the blankets, e.g. you may have as many as five of them, disabling any easy moving of your feet under them).
According to Lonely Planet the casa nacional/real de moneda is one of South America's finest museums – the king of Spain thought that it was built of silver when he saw the bill for its construction at the time. It's a huge mint that was used to make coins from the silver of Cerro Rico behind Potosí for 200 years. The entrance fee covers the guided tour through all the vaults. Indeed the building and its exhibitions are impressive.
Before we leave though, we have to buy some Salteñas (like an empanada) for Mr. Sakurai's happiness. We leave for Uyuni at around lunch time - we loop a few times to find the right street, and have to ask several times.
Then over the ridge all of a sudden the salt lake reveals itself with the mountain backdrop: Salar de Uyuni. The entrance to Uyuni is not very pleasant, actually Sakurai's are quite shocked how messy it is (large areas covered with garbage, mostly plastic bags).
After two stops we find rooms in the Toñito Hotel which is supposed to have heated rooms, except that there aren't any anymore. It is bitter cold in the evening and we rush to the restaurant. Just before we book a guide to ride with us to the lake (35 USD) – a one-day tour. We decide that we'll be back on Tuesday so we have enough time at Uyuni and we also agree to meet the guide at 8.30h next morning. Later we find out that usually the tours start at 10 or 11 o'clock.
As I am still not at my digesting capacity I don't remember the food, but the open fire offered some warmth – or the impression of it.

Resetting definition of cold

The morning in Sucre is for sight seeing after a rather cold night in unheated rooms. First thing we do is to visit the museo historico militar just off the iglesia de San Francisco (and it used to be part of the convent). The inscription to visit this museum is quite a procedures in itself as all our details are written down by hand – must be as the Bolivian army will reveal it's weapons of mass destruction in it. However, the wait is worth it as we get a personal tour by a soldier: “This is a canon of 105mm caliber used in the war of …, this is a canon of 85mm caliber used in the war of …”, and so on. Most of the weapons were gifts from other governments around the globe and most didn't seem to really work. The soldier tries hard to demonstrate the strength of the Bolivian army but there's only so much he can twist to display a long history of military defeats and losses.
The mudéjar ceiling of the iglesia de San Francisco is closely inspected, before we get to the highlight of the town, the casa de la libertad where the declaration of independence of Bolivia was signed almost 200 years ago, on August 6, 1825. It's a beautiful building with some interesting displays.
As we decide to walk around a bit we attack the hills and slowly climb higher and higher till we reach the museos de la Recoleta and de Niños. Both we skip but have a look at the plaza Anzures. It's also where the Café Mirador is that offers a great overlook of the town and since it's past lunch time we sit down and eat. It' not until 3 o'clock in the afternoon that we start to think to make the next stretch – to Potosí. It's a 2.5h trip on a good road, and as such an easy ride to the highlands at almost 4000m!
As a man you learn to ask for directions in Bolivia as there are basically no signs and street names. On of the people asked was especially helpful, Alan. He offered to ride with us after he finished his business in the copy shop just on the street. But as we already have full-car he shows me with great knowledge of places and streets where we are and how to get to the center and the hotel (Hostal Compañia de Jesús). We get there without any problem winding the big car through narrow one-way streets. Later on we see Alan again almost right a the hotel – he had to make the long way by foot! Another lecture of the day: Don't let the somewhat mean looks of the locals fool you, if you talk to them they are in most cases very friendly and helpful (and will be able to show you what you are looking for and if necessary also say if they don't know – not like in other areas of the world).

Now Potosí is a cold place – winter cold and not summer cool. We pull out all our cloths before we look for a restaurant, but we end up at the one close to the hotel that looks warm and actually has good food, too.
Warm shower? 24 hours? Yes, but not in the morning as the water freezes over night! In the evening then, but only if you are patient. It seems we didn't know how to do it as the water stayed cold – in the morning I discover the main power switch that was set to off for the shower head (remember: the warm water is produced in the shower head electrically for an extra frizzing shower).

How long, how long?

It's a sunny day when we get up. Till we have packed up and loaded the car it's almost 10 am. We drive into the village to get breakfast that we eat in the car on the plaza.
Road conditions deteriorate to just Epizana where we branch off to Totora and I gain hope that not all roads will be so bad: There's a stretch of excellent road, then it turns into one of pave stones to Aiquile, where it's back to dirt road in a decent conditions. Luckily Mr. Sakurai is driving who definitively is used to it and time's running out. Although it is supposedly just 300km we'll end up taking 12 hours with mere breaks for picture, bath and gas only.
About 90 km before Sucre it's paved road but in such bad condition that we actually are not any faster on it. Mrs. Sakurai doesn't mention it (until after the trip) but she sick from fear on the roads. Actually she feels saver when it's dark because then she doesn't see the dangers luring everywhere: trucks stopped in the middle of the road, cliffs with no railing, others driving on our side of the road, … So luckily in Bolivia at 6pm the world goes pitch black (when there's no moon) as reflectors or street lighting are a rare thing and drivers are very energy conscious and save on having their headlights on.
With all the up and downhills we had to do, it was amazing to see the temperatures change from 74°F to 54 and up again. Heights are constantly changing from 1500m to 3000m. At some point we reach the clouds blowing over the ridge and converting the rather arid vegetation to the dark green dense rain forest.
We stay in the Hostal Charcas right opposite the main market. As it is late we end up eating in hole in a wall as all other places are closed. I don't eat really as my stomach is bothering me.

A lasting memory: Roads

I get up fairly early to be ready in time. We start to fill the car and although it's an 8 seater the little space for luggage is too little. We'll use just one of the jump seats and they'll sit four on the back row, hey, this is Bolivia and we could probably transport 12 people in it. At 11 o'clock we pick up Angelica and Beatriz go to the school to get their ID card and we're off. Akihiro has to cramp into the third row, with the food basket and my heavy photo bag falling on him in every curve... Aya doesn't allow for him to complain ;-)

Once again I get stopped by a cop in Santa Cruz de la Sierra that says there's a sticker missing. After a chat with him, he let's us go without a fine of 280 Bs. Lucky? Not really as at Avis they say it's all ok, there is no such sticker anymore and they hand us a fake receipt of a fine of 20 Bs. Just show it, the guy tells us.
We have lunch at a restaurant in Santa Cruz with a buffet and then head for Samaipata again. The road gets worse every year it seems and definitively feels like it. The drive is funny as Aya and her mother keep giving their father/husband a hard time – for once I'm off the hook. Just after 5 pm we arrive, the clouds have opened and there's sunshine. As usual again, we try the Cabañas Traudi and get a great cabin for 7 (45USD). For the kids it's great as it has some tiny rooms under the roof. As those who have been to Samaipata know, we'll go to Cafe Latina for dinner. Till then the girls have to do homework.

Cloths at last

In the morning I pick up Angelica and Beatriz to drive to the airport and get my suitcases. They are so well behaved – it's amazing and sweet. My two suitcases are securely looked away and ready. The lady from customs just has a quick look and off I go. We look at an airplane so they can breathe some of the wide world. Then we head back. At home I check the suitcases – everything is there. US Customs just opened the flash light again, not as carefully as the Swiss though: the gift wrapping is gone for sure. Mr. Sakurai and I spend the next two hours fixing the flash light. Then I did what I knew would be difficult: Giving them the laptop. After another hour laughing and teasing about it they happily accepted it. Again I violated Japanese customs: you are only allowed to bring little things...
Slowly we also start to pack. Slowly only applies for me though because Mrs. Sakurai has it all ready including an emergency food stack with a gas cooker that she says her husband wants by any means. She tells me she just wants to make sure that she can cook at midnight when her husband gets hungry – I live in the wrong place or do not get the joke (I'll see).
We also decide that Beatriz and Angelica can come along with us. It's a surprise for them.
At midnight I go to bed ready for the trip.

Great dinner

My lost suitcases have arrived at the airport. However, I cannot pick them up because the airport closes till night time and Mrs. Sakurai has invited friends for tonight.
It's a quiet day. In the afternoon I go to visit the girls again. I take them to the square and take a few pictures.
At 7pm the friends from the school start to drop in. There's a buffet of delicious little dishes and Mr. Sakurai is bbq'ing outside – his famous meat on a stick. It's a great evening where everyone tries to talk to me – the only one how cannot speak Japanese. We have good laughs about cultural differences that in many ways aren't that different. Then we talk about culture in Europe and I start to sweat because I know less than they do... And as usual we have some Paceña beers all along.

Okinawa, Bolivia

Drei Stunden zu spät, aber nach einem angenehmen Flug komme ich in Santa Cruz de la Sierra an. Leider habe ich jedoch Aya verpasst, die um 8h auf mich gewartet hat und dann zurück an die Uni musste. Jemand von Avis steht bereits da, wobei ich selbst noch auf mein Gepäck warte, das nicht da ist. Ich habe den Eindruck, dass dies nicht unüblich ist und so erfasse ich das Formular und lasse mich nur mit der Fototasche bestückt zum Avis-Office bringen, wo das für Bolivien im Autovermietungsbusiness übliche Interpretieren der Rates losgeht. Diesmal bin ich aber vorbereitet, so dass ich einen riesigen Toyota LandCruiser (8 Plätzer, V8, 4.7l, Verbrauch wird sich zeigen) zu einer günstigeren Kategorie und zum fast richtigen Preis erhalte. Aufwand ca. eineinhalb Stunden.

Den Weg nach Okinawa kenne ich ja und finde ihn auch fast direkt. Schon praktisch natürlich werde ich wunderbar von Frau Sakurai verköstigt – alles schön in Plättchen zubereitet. Am Nachmittag gehe ich auch die Kinder begrüssen, wobei Angelica alleine mit ihren jüngeren Geschwistern ist. Als die Mutter eintrifft gehen wir Beatriz bei einer Freundin heimholen. Vorher kleiden sich Angelica und Cecilia noch anders an (dressed for success). Die Mädchen haben sich sehr verändert in einem Jahr.

45 Minuten Umsteigezeit

Um 7.30 h holt mich das Taxi ab, da ich keine Lust habe, mit Zug und Koffern (22.8 und 23.8kg) zweimal umzusteigen, um an den Flughafen zu kommen. Marquita ist zudem bereits wieder mit den Handwerkern beschäftigt.
Rasant habe ich eingecheckt und gehe durch die Sicherheitskontrolle. Hier packe ich meine Fototasche fast vollständig aus, dann im Röntgen-Bild sieht man nur einen schwarzen Block... Anschliessend schlendere ich noch ein bisschen durch die Duty-Free-Läden und staune wie tief in der Schweiz die Mehrwertsteuer sein muss, wenn ich hier die Preise betrachte. Die Steuer ist zum Teil sogar negativ, denn preislich bekommt man wohl praktisch alles zu besseren Preisen ausserhalb des Flughafens – vielleicht nicht an der Bahnhofstrasse...
Der Flug verlässt Zürich relativ pünktlich. Ich richte mich zum Dösen ein und bin froh, dass ich meine Beine gut verstauen kann. In JFK hat's viele Leute vor der Immigration, aber eigentlich geht's auch da eher zügig voran. Das obligate Gepäck-In-Empfang-Nehmen-Und-Durch-Zoll-Bringen-Und-Wieder-Abgeben geht problemlos, inzwischen kenne ich JFK wirklich (der Flughafen scheint mir halb so schlimm wie der Ruf).
Nun muss ich mir fünf oder sechs Stunden Wartezeit um die Ohren schlagen. Als die Boarding-Zeit erreicht ist, aber niemand einsteigt, wird's spannend. Der Flug wird um 30 Minuten verschoben, weil das Flugzeug in Buffalo noch nicht abgeflogen sei. Wo ist denn Buffalo? Weit kann es nicht sein, wenn der Flieger in 30 Minuten bereits wieder abflugbereit sein sollte. Wie auch immer. Es heisst wegen schlechtem Wetter hätte nun der Flughafen geschlossen und tatsächlich blitzt es ein paar Mal und doch klärt sich der Himmel rasch wieder.
Da ich in Miami aber nur 50 Minuten Umsteigezeit habe, erkundige ich mich, ob die Anschlüsse abgewartet würden: Der Flug nach La Paz sei auch um 2 Stunden verspätet und fliege erst um 1am ab. Die Abflugzeit wird nicht mehr angepasst und plötzlich steht uns an einem anderen Gate ein anderes Flugzeug zur Verfügung. Die Massen verschieben sich, der Abflug ist nun um 20.30 angesetzt – ich kann es noch schaffen. Der langen Rede kurzer Sinn, der Flug verspätet sich aus Wetter-Mechanik-Wartezeit-Gründen noch weiter, so dass ich erst um 1.45h in Miami ankomme und mich schon in die ellenlange Schlange stellen will für den Customer Care (weil das Wetter Schuld ist an der Verspätung übernimmt die Fluggesellschaft keine Haftung), als ich mich kurz nach dem Flug nach La Paz erkundige – und siehe da: ich habe Glück. Er ist für 2.30h angesetzt.
Off to Bolivia also!
Nochmals zur Fototasche: In den USA musste ich nur noch den Foto-Apparat und den Laptop herausnehmen.

Bereitschaftsgrad: Hoch

Gegen 16.30h räume ich meinen Arbeitsplatz und gehe heim, denn es gilt noch fertig zu packen. Mit den Kleidern, die mir meine Schwester geschickt hat, und den vielen “Chocolädli” und kleinen Geschenken habe ich meine Mühe, alles in zwei Gepäckstücke zu verstauen, die wiederum nicht mehr als 23kg schwer sein dürfen. Aus der kristallinen Ordnung wird eine amorphe: Schliessliche hat alles bis auf den 1.5-kg-Sack “Nussstängeli” Platz.
Marquita kocht mir ein letztes feine Steakdinner, da es dies ja in Bolivien nicht mehr geben würde. Nach dem Essen widme ich mich der Fototasche. Obschon ich aufgrund der Reiseart diesmal nur das 18-200mm-Objektiv mitnehme, benötige ich den grossen Fotorucksack. Dieser füllt sich mit Netbook, kleinem Drucker, Blitz, Harddisk, iPod, Bose-Headset, Bolivien-Buch, Lesestoff, 20 oder mehr Batterien und den zahlreichen Ladegeräten und -kabeln. Auf den Inhalt komme ich nochmals zurück. Zu einer vernünftigen Zeit gehe ich ins Bett.

Descrubir Bolivia - Intro to Blog

Este es mi tercer viaje a Bolivia. En mis viajes anteriores no logre ver el Salar de Uyuni por varias razones. En 2009 lo hago junto con mis amigos de Okinawa.

Das Land fasziniert immer wieder. Es gibt Zeiten, da will man dem Staub, den unwirtlichen Aussenbezirke der Städte oder der Kälte entfliehen. Doch just in dem Moment spricht man einen Bolivianer an und entdeckt immer wieder die Hilfsbereitschaft der Menschen. Und alles ist wieder gut.

Meine japanischen Freunde haben natürlich das ihre zu meinen tollen Ferien beigetragen: Mitten in der topfebenen Landwirtschaftszone der Region Santa Cruz entdeckt man einen Flecken japanischer Kultur mit ihrer Gastfreundschaft.

A long story short: On our first trip through Bolivia we couldn’t reach the Salar de Uyuni because my travel companion got altitude sickness. So we headed to the Jesuit Missions circuit. On our way we passed a Japanese colony – Okinawa - and had to ask for directions. We met a Bolivian family. Eventually we decided to support the two oldest daughters and send them to the Japanese private school. This initiative got me in touch with a Japanese family that we visited the year after. Due to public unrest (road blockages) we got stuck out in the nowhere and had to return to Okinawa where we were welcomed again. And we had further delays because our alternative route to the missions was also blocked for two days. That was last year.

This year I decided to visit my newly found Japanese friends and make a third attempt to reach the altiplano with them. Tightly packed in a huge Toyota Landcruiser we made it. In record time of 7 days we travelled over 2500 km and saw many of the highlights of Bolivia – with a pleasant splash of Japanese cuisine and Bolivian kid’s talk. Gravel roads, narrow roads, freezing nights make this an adventure worthwhile.

No será la última vez de visitar estos sitios. Hay mucho más para descubrir en el país y conversar con mis amigos.