The other Copacabana
Trip Start
Mar 27, 2008
1
9
42
Trip End
Jun 30, 2008
Copacabana,
Bolivia
Thursday, April 10, 2008
The journey here was by bus, so you travel mostly by road, although at one point you need to catch a ferry to get to Copacabana, which is on a peninsula. This can be a little disconcerting, as firstly all the passengers must get off the bus. The bus is then loaded onto the ferry, which proceeds to sail away taking all the luggage with it. All`s well that ends well though, as the passengers then take a different ferry, so passengers and possessions are reunited about 15mins later, as it`s only a short crossing.
Copacabana is a place of pilgrimage, and every Easter the town is packed with Bolivians who come to pay homage to the statue of the Virgin of Copacabana (also known as the Dark Virgin, or Brown Madonna), which is housed in the town`s Basilica
Sunrise - Corderilla Real
. Depending on the date, or religious festival, the town also plays host to Peruvian and Argentinian pilgrims. I`m afraid it didn`t do much for me though - the statue reminded me of a C16 fairy off a Christmas tree. You can`t take photographs in the church, so the best I can do for you is this (scroll down for the Virgin):http://images.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=http://www.sacredsites.com/americas/bolivia/images/virgen-candalaria-500.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.sacredsites.com/americas/bolivia/copacabana.html&h=500&w=329&sz=84&hl=en&start=19&um=1&tbnid=-Y59FPLU3PKrvM:&tbnh=130&tbnw=86&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dcopacabana%2Bbolivia%26ndsp%3D20%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN
Copacabana is also a resort. Bolivian families make their way up here from La Paz at the weekend to sail in pedalos, eat trout, and buy popcorn (for some reason you can`t go home without the stuff).
The ferry from Copacabana to Isla Del Sol takes about an hour (although ferry is a bit of a grand term - it holds about 20 people). There are two major islands near here, the Island of the Sun and the Island of the Moon. Both were sacred to to pre-Inca and Inca people, who believed that the Sun and Moon were born here. I travelled there with Sophie, a Social Worker from Montreal, and our guide David, a Bolivian from the city of El Alto which is near La Paz
At Tiquina - ferrying the buses
.We sailed to the North of the Island, then trekked back to the the South, which took about 5 hours. This was tough going, not only because of the altitude and terrain (which were bad enough), but the Sun is pretty fierce at this altitude, and it was unrelenting as there was no shade at all on the path we took. I managed to burn not only my elbows (not sure how that happened), but also my scalp (Ged, I know this all in a day`s work for you, but for me it was a first).
Sophie and David returned to the mainland in the evening, but I opted to stay on the Island overnight. Although this involved a 1.5 mile walk (uphill) to my accommodation, Iīm glad I did as it was probably one of the nicest places Iīve ever stayed - Eco-lodge La Estancia. The setting is stunning, as it overlooks both Isla de la Luna, and the high Andes (Cordorilla Real de Bolivia). Everything about the place was just tickety-boo.
Isla del Sol has no cars, so you can hear the birds and the wind. When night falls, there are no street lights (there arenīt really any streets), so the stars actually come out. Children play outside for some reason. As far as I can see, the favourite kid`s game here doesnīt involve Wii. It doesnīt require kids being ferried half way round the country so that their parents get to abuse a referee either. The favourite game here is .............wait for it............marbles
....and then the passengers
. Wow.I`m not naive enough to think that this is some sort of rural idyll, and I can see that life here can be bloody tough, but people here do seem to have managed to hold onto something we lost a long, long time ago - I`m smitten.
Random Bolivia Stuff:
If you think you can hear gunfire when youīre lying in bed in La Paz, thatīs exactly what it is. Theyīre firing blanks though, and youīre being invited to join the strike (thereīs one most days)
Nobody smokes here. In a reversal of UK society, only the rich smoke in Bolivia
There is a bar in Copacabana owned by a chap from Martock, Somerset
Bolivia is only 1 of 2 landlocked countries in South America (the other is Paraguay). It still has a Navy though, which patrols Lake Titicaca and stops the Peruvians stealing all those fish
Lake Titicaca is 145 Miles Long and 65 miles wide at its widest pont. It isnīt the largest freshwater lake in the world though - Iīm taking you there in a month or two.
Bolivia is a country of great mineral wealth, but the average Bolivian doesn`t see any of it
Stations of the cross
. At the end of the 16th Century, Potosi in Southern Bolivia was one of the richest cities in the world - the Spanish took the lot, thanks very much, and set a precedent that`s been followed pretty much ever since. The election of Evo Morales two years ago (the first indigenous President in the country`s history) gave some reason for optimism, but don`t hold your breath - there are some very powerful vested interest groups lined up against him and I can`t see much changing very quickly, if at all. Another thing that will probably become a big problem in this region fairly quickly is global warming. The water supply of La Paz, and Lake Titicaca itself (which supports an entire ecosystem), is primarily fed by glaciers in the Corderilla Real - they are receding rapidly.On that cheerful note, time to move on. The only regret I have about coming to Bolivia is having to leave again. I could quite happily have spent a month or more here, but onward and upward I suppose. Tomorrow I get the bus to Peru.
Gracias y buenos noches......
Comments
Wow
If this is duplicated I apologise as send through a few hours ago but as everything I touch ast present..
Fooled u !
Looks like you are throughly enjoying views, culture and experience.
Question: My nehpew has just returned from walking to Everest Base Camp etc and is thinking of Inca trial next year. Are you visiting this soon?
Believe whichever way u will have another convert to blogging in future
Keep up the excellent work
Re: Wow
Hi Neil.
If your nephew has done Everest Base Camp, then the Inca Trail should be a breeze. The highest point reached on the trail is 4,200m (13,750ft), not much higher than the altitude Iīm at as I type this. Machu Picchu itself is a lowly 2,430m (8,000ft). It gives the illusion of being high because of itīs situation, but itīs actually much lower than its neighbours. Everest Base Camp on the other hand is much, much higher 5,400m (17,500ft).
One thing I would say though is that the Peruvian authorities have clamped down on the numbers walking the trail, so heīll need to book early. The weather is another factor. Choose the right time of year - he wouldnīt want to arrive in the mist now would he?
Iīm going to Machu Picchu myself later this week. No time to walk the trail though - Iīm letting the train take the strain. Itīs great being an old fart......