Ill, again, in Tupiza
Trip Start
Jun 12, 2008
1
19
28
Trip End
Nov 20, 2008
Tupiza,
Bolivia
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
Arrived at exactly 4am and after a little detour by me (my map reading skills arenīt great at 4am!) we checked into our hotel and got some sleep.
Tupiza is a lovely little town, nice and warm, the locals are very friendly and there is a good atmosphere. We were hoping to stay for just a few days and go for a hike, or maybe even a horse ride(!), in the surrounding countryside which is supposed to be like the Wild West, only better. It was just outside Tupiza that Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid met their end. However, our tummies had other ideas.....
Yes, we have both been ill. We had one relaxing day in Tupiza and then Dom was struck down, then just as Dom was getting better I got the bug. So we havenīt been able to do much in Tupiza apart from buy each other antibiotics (ah!), have meals on our own and watch loads of TV. Luckily we had cable so weīve watched lots of sport and films and I saw my first Grand Prix since I left the UK!
In other news, the riots in the east of the country are continuing (so we never did make it Sucre). People are now blocking the airstrips so places are running out of provisions and lots of towns donīt have diesel so buses are stranded. There has been a road block around Potosi (mines place) so we got out of there just in time! And what, I hear you ask, is Evo the President doing...well...Evo has been on a trip to Iran of all places!!! Heīs gone to discuss how Bolivia can help Iran with itīs energy programme, Bolivia has lots of Uranium to sell...yikes! The USA said it took "a very dim view of the trip", which Evo said meant he was "now in the axis of evil". Uh, oh...Evo, you really donīt want to go around saying things like that!! I think Bolivia is trying to get back in Americaīs good books though, because the other day there was a proud news story about how the army had seized 118 thousand kilos of cocaine (yes, you did read that correctly!) that would have apparently ended up in the States. All the restaurants we have dinner in have TVs and all the locals are glued to the news channels. The news channels are so good that we have been known to get our dictionary out in restaurants so we can keep up with current affairs!
Didnīt take any photos in Tupiza though.
So tomorrow we leave Bolivia and head to Argentina. I have loved Bolivia, despite the tummy troubles, we have met some wonderful people (except the spitter in La Paz!), seen some truly amazing places and had plenty of "only in Bolivia moments". I will really miss the Andes and the indigenous people; but I canīt wait to get to Argentina, safer water, no roadblocks and....steak! steak! steak!!
