tirsdag 27. september 2011
8th post.
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So. After 127 hours and somewhere between 5000 and 6000 km in various buses i´m finally in the capital of Ecuador (and maybe even also of the Equator). I was actually planning on going to Banos from Guayaquil for some horseriding(!) or whatever, but i decided i justed wanted to get the last leg over with. For those who know me; i dont have to tell you what a big relief it is to be back in the dry and somewhat chillier altitude of 2800 m above sealevel, as opposed to the 30 degree way-to-humid city of Guayaquil. It was a beutiful city, and actually one of my favorites so far in terms of architecture and sights (i have a few pics on fb).
Since this is the first of quite a few days in Quito, todays plans (at this time) include noe more than Champions League and beer. Im getting more and more accustomed to the not-planning thing for each passing day, which i think is a good thing to have achieved when i meet with Ane, my travel partner. I dont think the word ´planning´ is in her vocabulary, which is a great quality. Really looking forward to meet up with her in Panama City on saturday, and later on with some friends of her. And of course i cant wait till the day we stand on Havana airport with norwegian flags all over (as if) to welcome Aashild who will take part in the last part of our trip. yeah!
søndag 25. september 2011
7th post.
Shortly before midnight i arrived at Iguanazu hostal in the upper part of Guayaquil, Ecuador. A rare beauty with an outstanding view, good breakfast and a swimmin pool (not that i will be using it).
The busride here was as usual two hours longer than expected, which brings the total number of bus hours to a resounding 92. And the reason was the same as ever; the driver would make stops just about wherever there would be people along the road wanting to hit the city. Somehow, i managed to get some sleep. It lasted for about 20 mins, when the bus driver decided to crash into a road block. Maybe the burning trees along the road had caught is attention. Anyway - in the end, there was nothing more dramatic to this than a partly shattered front window. I was although baffled by the fact that there actually exists more "accident-curious" people than the norwegians. The bus was completely empty in literally no time; everyone wanted to have a look and their say about the ´chófur estupidó´.
Well, now im here in 30 degrees with a brilliant view. Its hard to tell, though, whether the weather is cloudy, or if its just pollution. Im thinking a mix.
laterz.
The busride here was as usual two hours longer than expected, which brings the total number of bus hours to a resounding 92. And the reason was the same as ever; the driver would make stops just about wherever there would be people along the road wanting to hit the city. Somehow, i managed to get some sleep. It lasted for about 20 mins, when the bus driver decided to crash into a road block. Maybe the burning trees along the road had caught is attention. Anyway - in the end, there was nothing more dramatic to this than a partly shattered front window. I was although baffled by the fact that there actually exists more "accident-curious" people than the norwegians. The bus was completely empty in literally no time; everyone wanted to have a look and their say about the ´chófur estupidó´.
Well, now im here in 30 degrees with a brilliant view. Its hard to tell, though, whether the weather is cloudy, or if its just pollution. Im thinking a mix.
laterz.
fredag 23. september 2011
6th post! The inka trail, and a couple of more things.
my, did there run many gallons of water through the amazon since the last time i gave you an update. Wi-fi reception seems to be fairly poor above 3000 m. for some reason. So here goes my update for the past 9 days. (I am btw writing this at an internet café, and that countdown clock is freaking me out, so for those who care about more details; you will have to ask for them later.)
September 14th
After one more night at Loki, i was set for hotel prisma and my first meeting with the group. Mr. cool guide Edwin held his first briefing at 5 this afternoon, which contained all the information we needed about the trail, and some more. From the options of renting walking sticks and/or an extra inflatable mattress, i chose to go only for the mattress, as i´ve never understood the point of the sticks. After packing no more than 6 (3,5) kgs into my duffle bag, i went bak to the Loki hostel to see if i could find my camera which apparently went missing somewhere between the ho(s)tels. Was it there? No. It was definately gone/stolen. Now, you guys are left with the low-quality pics from my phone. Too bad.
After one last game of pool and a set of good-byes, i went back to prisma for some sleep. The next days tour to the sacred valley required a 6:30 get-up the next morning, which turned out to be a comfortable sleep-in compared to the forthcoming days.
September 15th
We left Prisma with the most of our luggage and very few hours of sleep to hit the sacred valley. But first and foremost; the market, at which we met the alpacas, the lamas, and the locals who knew how to color their wool naturally and make blankets out of them. Some of us also learned that the effect of showing off their iphones or giving out their candy to the local kids, is not very different from the one you achieve by feeding the pigeons in the park.
After the short tour of this market, i purchased my first bag of coca leaves. They would turn out to have a magnificent (placebo) effect! Well, the lama convention was over. Off to the sacred valley.
Edwins speeches at the first of (very) many inka archeological sites were as always informative. The main plot included terraces with various purposes and the formation of people in the mountains and steps. A lot of steps. You could easily tell that he´d been doing this for five years. The day was concluded at the "pre-inkan" restaurant "the blue puppy", and i had already started to learn some of the names, which had to mean this was a good group.
September 16th - Day 1 of the trek
After waking up at 6, a bus took us to the starting point of the trek. The duffle bags were handed over to our porters, who were going to carry 25 kgs each over 40 kms (as opposed to earlier times, when the same number would be up to 50 kgs.)
After the 1st (out of 4) checkpoint stamp in our passport, we began to walk this popular trail which would take us to the first campsite after about 11 kms. The weather was real good before lunch. During our lunch, however, we were left hoping that the raingods would give in. But nothing could save us from the Grand Poncho premiere, which luckily didn´t last for long. At 4 pm, we arrived at the campsite. 6 red tents were lined up on the upper part, and our dining tent at the lower. That pretty much concludes the day 1 story. We were all trying to prepare for the wrath of day two. The whole in the ground they called toilet with a doghouse built around it was certainly a major motivation factor.
September 17th - day 2 (12 km)
A 5 am wake-up, followed by a ruthless start to day 2; the 1200 meter climb from 3300 m. to 4500 taking us up through the so-called dead-womans pass, started immediately with some killer steps. And the end of this elevation was totally gut-wrenching; once you could spot the end, it wasn´t the end after all, which happened twice before finally reaching the highest point of the inka trail at 4515 meters. After this, we started the 600 meter descent to the 2nd campsite. I was dead. A totally exhausting day. The rest was all about eating, having tea, eating some more, and compose a song to be sang for our porters the next day. Fortunately, our tent was soundproof..
September 18th - day 3 (17 km)
The longest day in terms of distance also started at 5 with the usual coca tea wake-up at 5. At 6:30 we started with a 300 m. elevation, upon which Edwin gave a speech about the dead womans pass, and how we could see her formation in the mountains across the valley. From there, the day 3 was all about our own speeches about "the tree of love" and "the cave of fertility" (don´t ask). And after lunch, for some reason, some of us came to notice a tall, german guy (from this point on only referred to as action man) with shorts, knee-socks, an orange poncho and of course, to tie the image off; the orange raincover for his backpack. While the other, exhausted members of his group were having their snickers bars and gatorades, he was busy running around on the surrounding cliffs, posing for whoever would wanna take a picture.
So, down we went after some laughs of this guy, to complete the day three. Some of us went ahead of the others, knowing that we after a while would reach a "fork" giving us two options; to take the long way and see the nice view in case of good weather, or the short way in case of something else. At this point, we had become fairly accustomed to the fact that the porters could run down the steepest descents without blinking. But after about a ten-minute walk, there was also another guy who wanted to take the running challenge. Who else than ACTION MAN! The discovery of this guy instantly became obsession.
Shortly before arrival at the 3rd and last campsite, we met action man, who replied our appreciation with a humble "i know", before posing with us for a decent photo.
The 3rd campsite was not at all as cold as the 2nd one. the jumper got a well-deserved break from my not so flower-smelling body. This was also the last day with our very nice and helpful porters, and it was time to sing our beautiful piece of art made to the tune of Bon Jovis "Living on a prayer". The performance was well-received, and you could certainly not put a finger on Daniels air-guitar solo.
September 19th - day 4
It was action time. My bell rang at 0350, ten minutes before the wake-up, without coca-tea this time. There was no time for anything but a quick session of agua caliente and breakfast. During the breakfast, we were all of course curious about whether the rain would stop before we started to walk towards the sun gate and Machu Picchu. "Probably not", was all Edwin could say. It actually stopped, however, during our waiting for the last checkpoint. The control guy had overslept, so we were actually quite dry when upon arrival to the sun gate two hours later. But the fog had struck the whole area like a big wet sponge, and our only comfort was that it still remained 5 hours till we had to leave the area. At the end of our guided tour through the city, most of the clouds had left the building with the fog, and our free-time walk to the inka bridge was almost sunny.
Well, there was no battery left in our cameras, so there was nothing else for us to do but to get our last checpoint stamp and catch a most-needed beer or three at the machu picchu bar. On our way home to Cusco we went for lunch at restaurant "Patchamama" (where else).
The last night with the gang was legendary and included a 3-course dinner and a visit to the irish bar, followed by a whole night of dancing (on the bar desk).
Since this, ive had two very nice busrides with a very nice 24-hour visit to Lima in the middle of them. This city certainly proved every bad rumour wrong. The 16th century Franciscan monastry and Dunkin Donuts were some of the highlights. Right now, i am finishing of my daylong visit to Piura; a little but very charming town in the far northwest of Peru. In about an hour, my bus will leave for Guayaquil, Ecuador. Noone knows what will happen next:)
September 14th
After one more night at Loki, i was set for hotel prisma and my first meeting with the group. Mr. cool guide Edwin held his first briefing at 5 this afternoon, which contained all the information we needed about the trail, and some more. From the options of renting walking sticks and/or an extra inflatable mattress, i chose to go only for the mattress, as i´ve never understood the point of the sticks. After packing no more than 6 (3,5) kgs into my duffle bag, i went bak to the Loki hostel to see if i could find my camera which apparently went missing somewhere between the ho(s)tels. Was it there? No. It was definately gone/stolen. Now, you guys are left with the low-quality pics from my phone. Too bad.
After one last game of pool and a set of good-byes, i went back to prisma for some sleep. The next days tour to the sacred valley required a 6:30 get-up the next morning, which turned out to be a comfortable sleep-in compared to the forthcoming days.
September 15th
We left Prisma with the most of our luggage and very few hours of sleep to hit the sacred valley. But first and foremost; the market, at which we met the alpacas, the lamas, and the locals who knew how to color their wool naturally and make blankets out of them. Some of us also learned that the effect of showing off their iphones or giving out their candy to the local kids, is not very different from the one you achieve by feeding the pigeons in the park.
After the short tour of this market, i purchased my first bag of coca leaves. They would turn out to have a magnificent (placebo) effect! Well, the lama convention was over. Off to the sacred valley.
Edwins speeches at the first of (very) many inka archeological sites were as always informative. The main plot included terraces with various purposes and the formation of people in the mountains and steps. A lot of steps. You could easily tell that he´d been doing this for five years. The day was concluded at the "pre-inkan" restaurant "the blue puppy", and i had already started to learn some of the names, which had to mean this was a good group.
September 16th - Day 1 of the trek
After waking up at 6, a bus took us to the starting point of the trek. The duffle bags were handed over to our porters, who were going to carry 25 kgs each over 40 kms (as opposed to earlier times, when the same number would be up to 50 kgs.)
After the 1st (out of 4) checkpoint stamp in our passport, we began to walk this popular trail which would take us to the first campsite after about 11 kms. The weather was real good before lunch. During our lunch, however, we were left hoping that the raingods would give in. But nothing could save us from the Grand Poncho premiere, which luckily didn´t last for long. At 4 pm, we arrived at the campsite. 6 red tents were lined up on the upper part, and our dining tent at the lower. That pretty much concludes the day 1 story. We were all trying to prepare for the wrath of day two. The whole in the ground they called toilet with a doghouse built around it was certainly a major motivation factor.
September 17th - day 2 (12 km)
A 5 am wake-up, followed by a ruthless start to day 2; the 1200 meter climb from 3300 m. to 4500 taking us up through the so-called dead-womans pass, started immediately with some killer steps. And the end of this elevation was totally gut-wrenching; once you could spot the end, it wasn´t the end after all, which happened twice before finally reaching the highest point of the inka trail at 4515 meters. After this, we started the 600 meter descent to the 2nd campsite. I was dead. A totally exhausting day. The rest was all about eating, having tea, eating some more, and compose a song to be sang for our porters the next day. Fortunately, our tent was soundproof..
September 18th - day 3 (17 km)
The longest day in terms of distance also started at 5 with the usual coca tea wake-up at 5. At 6:30 we started with a 300 m. elevation, upon which Edwin gave a speech about the dead womans pass, and how we could see her formation in the mountains across the valley. From there, the day 3 was all about our own speeches about "the tree of love" and "the cave of fertility" (don´t ask). And after lunch, for some reason, some of us came to notice a tall, german guy (from this point on only referred to as action man) with shorts, knee-socks, an orange poncho and of course, to tie the image off; the orange raincover for his backpack. While the other, exhausted members of his group were having their snickers bars and gatorades, he was busy running around on the surrounding cliffs, posing for whoever would wanna take a picture.
So, down we went after some laughs of this guy, to complete the day three. Some of us went ahead of the others, knowing that we after a while would reach a "fork" giving us two options; to take the long way and see the nice view in case of good weather, or the short way in case of something else. At this point, we had become fairly accustomed to the fact that the porters could run down the steepest descents without blinking. But after about a ten-minute walk, there was also another guy who wanted to take the running challenge. Who else than ACTION MAN! The discovery of this guy instantly became obsession.
Shortly before arrival at the 3rd and last campsite, we met action man, who replied our appreciation with a humble "i know", before posing with us for a decent photo.
The 3rd campsite was not at all as cold as the 2nd one. the jumper got a well-deserved break from my not so flower-smelling body. This was also the last day with our very nice and helpful porters, and it was time to sing our beautiful piece of art made to the tune of Bon Jovis "Living on a prayer". The performance was well-received, and you could certainly not put a finger on Daniels air-guitar solo.
September 19th - day 4
It was action time. My bell rang at 0350, ten minutes before the wake-up, without coca-tea this time. There was no time for anything but a quick session of agua caliente and breakfast. During the breakfast, we were all of course curious about whether the rain would stop before we started to walk towards the sun gate and Machu Picchu. "Probably not", was all Edwin could say. It actually stopped, however, during our waiting for the last checkpoint. The control guy had overslept, so we were actually quite dry when upon arrival to the sun gate two hours later. But the fog had struck the whole area like a big wet sponge, and our only comfort was that it still remained 5 hours till we had to leave the area. At the end of our guided tour through the city, most of the clouds had left the building with the fog, and our free-time walk to the inka bridge was almost sunny.
Well, there was no battery left in our cameras, so there was nothing else for us to do but to get our last checpoint stamp and catch a most-needed beer or three at the machu picchu bar. On our way home to Cusco we went for lunch at restaurant "Patchamama" (where else).
The last night with the gang was legendary and included a 3-course dinner and a visit to the irish bar, followed by a whole night of dancing (on the bar desk).
Since this, ive had two very nice busrides with a very nice 24-hour visit to Lima in the middle of them. This city certainly proved every bad rumour wrong. The 16th century Franciscan monastry and Dunkin Donuts were some of the highlights. Right now, i am finishing of my daylong visit to Piura; a little but very charming town in the far northwest of Peru. In about an hour, my bus will leave for Guayaquil, Ecuador. Noone knows what will happen next:)
tirsdag 13. september 2011
5th post.
So, after doing my tourist duties in La Paz, i purchased my ticket to Cuzco next day. Apparenetly, the only way to get there, was to change in Copacabana and then again in Puno. Leaving at 8 am the next day, we arrived in Copacabana at 10:30.The changeover for the next bus was about an hour and a half, so i and my new bus friend Magdalena wandered the streets of this very charming little town. On our way to Puno, we had to cross the amazing lake Titicaca. The list of the things i don´t have time to see just keeps getting longer..
A while after crossing the Peruvian border, we arrived in Puno. There was a very quick stopover, and after only 20 minutes we were on our wheels to Cuzco. The arrival time remained uncertain. The girl from which i bought the ticket, said it would be around 10:30 pm the same day. Magdalena was sure that i wouldnt be there till early the next day, while the buss driver changed from "11-ish" to "12-ish" to "1-ish" during the trip. After my last experience, i was dressed for everything. The ride was really bumpy and the seats were tiny. but at least the buss was half full, so it was possible to stretch your legs. That was until about 7, when we stopped at a terminal in the middle of nowhere to pick up half of the Bolivian population. They all had 10 bags each (no exaggeration), which - of course - all had to be brought on board. Along with the two sleeping grannys on the floor, these bags literally made it impossible to go out for a stretch whenever we would have to stop because of engine problems (no surprise, really). At about 8:30, the engine had had enough. The bus driver announced that we had to wait for another bus, and that it would take about two hours. Yay! Im gonna spare you the happenings of the next couple of hours.
The most important thing, was that we were back on the road at app. 11:15 pm. The actual arrival time in Cuzco was 4:30 this morning. Three other guys that i met on the bus, insisted on getting a beer and hang out until 7, so that we could save one night of accomodation. Not a bad plan, actually. I could then sleep till about noon. Instead, we went straight for breakfast, and now i´m just gonna take a very relaxed day until the fun begins tomorrow:)
peace.
A while after crossing the Peruvian border, we arrived in Puno. There was a very quick stopover, and after only 20 minutes we were on our wheels to Cuzco. The arrival time remained uncertain. The girl from which i bought the ticket, said it would be around 10:30 pm the same day. Magdalena was sure that i wouldnt be there till early the next day, while the buss driver changed from "11-ish" to "12-ish" to "1-ish" during the trip. After my last experience, i was dressed for everything. The ride was really bumpy and the seats were tiny. but at least the buss was half full, so it was possible to stretch your legs. That was until about 7, when we stopped at a terminal in the middle of nowhere to pick up half of the Bolivian population. They all had 10 bags each (no exaggeration), which - of course - all had to be brought on board. Along with the two sleeping grannys on the floor, these bags literally made it impossible to go out for a stretch whenever we would have to stop because of engine problems (no surprise, really). At about 8:30, the engine had had enough. The bus driver announced that we had to wait for another bus, and that it would take about two hours. Yay! Im gonna spare you the happenings of the next couple of hours.
The most important thing, was that we were back on the road at app. 11:15 pm. The actual arrival time in Cuzco was 4:30 this morning. Three other guys that i met on the bus, insisted on getting a beer and hang out until 7, so that we could save one night of accomodation. Not a bad plan, actually. I could then sleep till about noon. Instead, we went straight for breakfast, and now i´m just gonna take a very relaxed day until the fun begins tomorrow:)
peace.
lørdag 10. september 2011
4th post!
..but the Salta stay became much shorter than it should´ve been. After taking a walk around midtown, i sat down with the very nice people Allison and John, discussing everything from pancakes to Ricky Gervais.
The next day i was advised to get the bus to La Quiaca, a city right by the Bolivian border. On the bus i met a very nice british couple in their 60s. Upon arrival at 9ish pm, we helped eachother out getting to hostel "copacabana", where i got my private room. My, my, my! From there, we amazingly managed to find a supermarket, where we got ourselves todays dinner; pasta with tomato sauce and sardines. The most decent meal i had since Buenos Aires.
The next morning, we hit the Bolivian border, expecting to spend our next few hours in customs. But after showing our passports twice, and filling out our purposes for this trip, we were good to go. (A bit surprised that they weren´t more sceptical towards my norwegian passport..) So, after making our visit to the ATM in the all to densely populated city of Villazon, we headed straight for the bus station. The couple - let´s call them James and May (i hope they never read this) - jumped straight on the bus to Tupiza, while i went inside to check for departures for Uyuni. But since the first one wasnt until the day after, and that the train for the same city wasn´t leaving till 6 or so; why not jump on the 3 pm non-stop bus to La Paz? Because it was freakin FREEZING!
(just a little comma; after i purchased my ticket, a guy came up to me and presented himself as a "businessman from Cameroon". He thought i was wasting money getting a 90 boliviano (100 kr.) ticket. He would be very happy to drive me to La Paz for 10 BS. Unfortunately, my ticket was non-refundable. Otherwise, i`d be happy to..!)
I´d absolutely heard about the cold nights in Bolivia, but i thought i might take the chance. Especially since i asked whether the bus was heated and if there was a toilet there. Her answer? Yes and yes. the real answer? no and no! But i thought i might survive, as i wore a double layer of wool under my thickest sweater, as with the pants, and a wind breaker. The first three hours were all right, and the first two hours after sundown not all that bad either. After our 8 PM stop at "Restaurant La Paz" in the middle of nowhere, (whose soup wasn`t all that bad, actually!) i did my first attempt to go to sleep. At 10 i woke up feeling slightly cold, so i took out my silk linen/sheet (thanks, Silje). That lasted till about 11:30, when i woke up because my nose hurt. The outside temperature could not have been much higher than -5, AS ON THE INSIDE. Heated bus, thank you very much. After different ways of improvising, i somehow managed to get the feeling back in my toes, which lead to another three consecutive hours of sleep. "non-stop" was actually a bit of an exaggeration. About three times, the bus would stop, so that the driver could tell some jokes to his friends. They all had a big laugh for about ten minutes, until he was too cold to continue.
After one more hour of sleep i woke up at 5-ish, hoping that the bus would be on schedule (6 am). Surely, we entered the city at 6, but for no apparent reason whatsoever (baring in mind that the city´s total population is about 1,5 million), it took us about 45 minutes to get to the bus station.
I decided to leave my Karl Pilkington-attitude on the bus with the coldness and the non-existing toilet, and whistled my way to the Taxi line. After a short cabride, i was standing in front of what appeared to be one of the most promising hostels inn La Paz; Onkel Inn. oh yes! After a quick shower, i ran into one of my roommates, Stephan from Germany. He´s a spanish student (how`s that for convenience?), so we managed to the the city in just a few hours. First, i purchased my first genuine Alpakka garment; a scarf for 40 nok. After that, we did the famous Coca museum, which contained a fare amount of funfacts about coca leaves. About the possibility to make cocaine out of it (obviously), medical use, and of course; in the making of the worlds best-selling trademark. Then we went to a viewpoint/children park kind of thing where we could snap our obligatory tourist shots.
Although chewing my fair amount of the mentioned coca leaves, i still feel kind of tired, so this is why im now sitting down, being the most boring traveler in town, just so that i could update you guys on some of the latest happenings!
Have a good one, eh?
The next day i was advised to get the bus to La Quiaca, a city right by the Bolivian border. On the bus i met a very nice british couple in their 60s. Upon arrival at 9ish pm, we helped eachother out getting to hostel "copacabana", where i got my private room. My, my, my! From there, we amazingly managed to find a supermarket, where we got ourselves todays dinner; pasta with tomato sauce and sardines. The most decent meal i had since Buenos Aires.
The next morning, we hit the Bolivian border, expecting to spend our next few hours in customs. But after showing our passports twice, and filling out our purposes for this trip, we were good to go. (A bit surprised that they weren´t more sceptical towards my norwegian passport..) So, after making our visit to the ATM in the all to densely populated city of Villazon, we headed straight for the bus station. The couple - let´s call them James and May (i hope they never read this) - jumped straight on the bus to Tupiza, while i went inside to check for departures for Uyuni. But since the first one wasnt until the day after, and that the train for the same city wasn´t leaving till 6 or so; why not jump on the 3 pm non-stop bus to La Paz? Because it was freakin FREEZING!
(just a little comma; after i purchased my ticket, a guy came up to me and presented himself as a "businessman from Cameroon". He thought i was wasting money getting a 90 boliviano (100 kr.) ticket. He would be very happy to drive me to La Paz for 10 BS. Unfortunately, my ticket was non-refundable. Otherwise, i`d be happy to..!)
I´d absolutely heard about the cold nights in Bolivia, but i thought i might take the chance. Especially since i asked whether the bus was heated and if there was a toilet there. Her answer? Yes and yes. the real answer? no and no! But i thought i might survive, as i wore a double layer of wool under my thickest sweater, as with the pants, and a wind breaker. The first three hours were all right, and the first two hours after sundown not all that bad either. After our 8 PM stop at "Restaurant La Paz" in the middle of nowhere, (whose soup wasn`t all that bad, actually!) i did my first attempt to go to sleep. At 10 i woke up feeling slightly cold, so i took out my silk linen/sheet (thanks, Silje). That lasted till about 11:30, when i woke up because my nose hurt. The outside temperature could not have been much higher than -5, AS ON THE INSIDE. Heated bus, thank you very much. After different ways of improvising, i somehow managed to get the feeling back in my toes, which lead to another three consecutive hours of sleep. "non-stop" was actually a bit of an exaggeration. About three times, the bus would stop, so that the driver could tell some jokes to his friends. They all had a big laugh for about ten minutes, until he was too cold to continue.
After one more hour of sleep i woke up at 5-ish, hoping that the bus would be on schedule (6 am). Surely, we entered the city at 6, but for no apparent reason whatsoever (baring in mind that the city´s total population is about 1,5 million), it took us about 45 minutes to get to the bus station.
I decided to leave my Karl Pilkington-attitude on the bus with the coldness and the non-existing toilet, and whistled my way to the Taxi line. After a short cabride, i was standing in front of what appeared to be one of the most promising hostels inn La Paz; Onkel Inn. oh yes! After a quick shower, i ran into one of my roommates, Stephan from Germany. He´s a spanish student (how`s that for convenience?), so we managed to the the city in just a few hours. First, i purchased my first genuine Alpakka garment; a scarf for 40 nok. After that, we did the famous Coca museum, which contained a fare amount of funfacts about coca leaves. About the possibility to make cocaine out of it (obviously), medical use, and of course; in the making of the worlds best-selling trademark. Then we went to a viewpoint/children park kind of thing where we could snap our obligatory tourist shots.
Although chewing my fair amount of the mentioned coca leaves, i still feel kind of tired, so this is why im now sitting down, being the most boring traveler in town, just so that i could update you guys on some of the latest happenings!
Have a good one, eh?
onsdag 7. september 2011
3rd post.
All right! The day before yesterday is nothing to write about. Until in the evening of course. That´s when i took Rob and Jenna to El Desnivel, the steak house from saturday. And boy, is that a great beef. Makes it totally worth it smelling like one yourself afterwards. After that, we hit a very charming little joint a little further down the street. Also kind of a strange place in the sense of the Bloody Mary not being one, and that they played Mos Def(!). oh lord. Although the following party at the 2nd Milhouse hostel would end shortly upon our arrival, we were sent to the club further down the Hipolito street where the party continued like indefinitely. How could i give in any sooner than 6 AM when they played songs like Boombastic and Wannabe??
For yesterday i had no plans. Just knew that i had to leave town. So after a quick pizza breakfast, i went to the travel agency to purchase the bus ticket for 6 pm. Good! Still 5 hours to spend in BA. Decided to join Jenna and Rob for a bike trip through town in the search for a yellow fever vaccine for Jen. At the point when she found one, sadly, i had to leave for the hostel before she got back. Had to get on the subway at 5 in order to be at the Retiro bus station at 5:15. This would prove a greater challenge then i had imagined.
The first train who came on line C was packed like a japanese train during rush hour. Fortunately, the second one was almost empty, so i got on standing next to a guy who looked like he was looking for something. Now, the receptionist had told me to hold on to my stuff, so i really concentrated on doing so. When the train stopped on the next station, the guy next to me got up, and made a sign like i should move further to the right in order for him to get off. So as i take the hands out of my pocket to move my stuff, i feel another hand moving into my pocket. And not just any pocket. It was the pocket where i kept my phone and like 600 pesos (800 kr) in bills. God knows why i had the phone in my pocket. I had practically no use for it until i sat on the bus. Fortunately i could put the hand in my pocket soon enough before the guy got to take anything. This event was followed by him pretending like nothing and leaving the train. i had my large backpack on the pack and the small one on my stomach with both hands in my pockets for the rest of the search for my bus.
Upon arrival at the ginormous bus station of retiro, i had to ask like five different guys for the way, until the first person who could speak any english told me that i had accidentally reached the right platform area. It was 5:40 - twenty minutes before departure. He said that the bus was a little delayed, so i just stood there assuming he would make contact once the right bus showed - especially since i made contact twice before departure to make sure the bus hadn`t come. at 6:10, he came up to me and asked me why i hadn`t got on the bus. It had left five minutes ago. My god! He offered to drive me to the next terminal for 200 pesos. Pretty steep, but still cheaper than getting another ticket. So, in the end, i got on the bus. My first discovery was that the amount of aircondition was not at all short of the amount that i had been warned about. I sort of managed to fight it, although feeling a little groggy.
Well, anyhow, after a shower, and some re-packing, i`m ready to check out what salta has to offer.
later!
For yesterday i had no plans. Just knew that i had to leave town. So after a quick pizza breakfast, i went to the travel agency to purchase the bus ticket for 6 pm. Good! Still 5 hours to spend in BA. Decided to join Jenna and Rob for a bike trip through town in the search for a yellow fever vaccine for Jen. At the point when she found one, sadly, i had to leave for the hostel before she got back. Had to get on the subway at 5 in order to be at the Retiro bus station at 5:15. This would prove a greater challenge then i had imagined.
The first train who came on line C was packed like a japanese train during rush hour. Fortunately, the second one was almost empty, so i got on standing next to a guy who looked like he was looking for something. Now, the receptionist had told me to hold on to my stuff, so i really concentrated on doing so. When the train stopped on the next station, the guy next to me got up, and made a sign like i should move further to the right in order for him to get off. So as i take the hands out of my pocket to move my stuff, i feel another hand moving into my pocket. And not just any pocket. It was the pocket where i kept my phone and like 600 pesos (800 kr) in bills. God knows why i had the phone in my pocket. I had practically no use for it until i sat on the bus. Fortunately i could put the hand in my pocket soon enough before the guy got to take anything. This event was followed by him pretending like nothing and leaving the train. i had my large backpack on the pack and the small one on my stomach with both hands in my pockets for the rest of the search for my bus.
Upon arrival at the ginormous bus station of retiro, i had to ask like five different guys for the way, until the first person who could speak any english told me that i had accidentally reached the right platform area. It was 5:40 - twenty minutes before departure. He said that the bus was a little delayed, so i just stood there assuming he would make contact once the right bus showed - especially since i made contact twice before departure to make sure the bus hadn`t come. at 6:10, he came up to me and asked me why i hadn`t got on the bus. It had left five minutes ago. My god! He offered to drive me to the next terminal for 200 pesos. Pretty steep, but still cheaper than getting another ticket. So, in the end, i got on the bus. My first discovery was that the amount of aircondition was not at all short of the amount that i had been warned about. I sort of managed to fight it, although feeling a little groggy.
Well, anyhow, after a shower, and some re-packing, i`m ready to check out what salta has to offer.
later!
mandag 5. september 2011
2nd post.
Time passes! 5 days in BsA are already coming to an end!
Ÿesterday, i took a stroll in the city. The downtown area is ginormous. It takes 5 minutes just crossing the main street. Regarding security, i thought i was prepared for just about anything, but not today. Who might expect to be mugged in the middle of the day? One little lad came up to me and pointed at my headphones. So i guess thats lesson nr. 1; never flash anything that might look expencive. In the next second, someone grabs my camera which I'm holding in my left hand. For some reason, i manage to grab around it as a reflex. I guess the time of day proved helpful for me to be able to walk away without them following me or anything. But the camera still went into my pocket and my headphones in the backpack. Nothing's better then a lesson learned without any harm done.
WARNING! Football paragraphs coming up!
The first hours of yesterday were very calm. I just went to the supermarket (at which, apparently, efficiency are not one of the demands to get a job) and picked up a few things and walked a bit around to take some pictures of some street art, amongst other things. (wish you would see this kind of graffiti downtown in Oslo) The later part of the day was reserved for probably the biggest event to take place in BsA this evening. Last years winner of the Argentine top division against one of the biggest clubs in the city; Club Átletico de Independiente vs. Boca Juniors at Estadio Libertadores de Àmerica. The game itself wasn't the best one. The 1st half had really nothing to it, but a decent Independiente free kick somewhere in the middle. Otherwise, both teams seemed insecure and suffered from a total lack of disipline. This was a lack who would grow even bigger in the 2nd half, as Boca went ahead in the 50th minute or so (the stadium had a very large lcd screen, but no match clock, would you believe). One of the many fascinating factors about this clash, was the total silence that surrounded the stadium at the time of the goal. I wasn't exacly expecting applause, but you would think that 40.000 home fans would have at least some opinion about it..
But although the match wasn't much, the experience was of course great. There is no need for me to preach about the cultural differences between a south american league game and, say, a norwegian one. But some aspects need to bementioned. To assure that this event could go by without anyone being seriously hurt, or even killed, we had to wait for twenty minutes after leaving the bus that took us to the stadium area - twice! After the game, we had to wait for at least half an hour for the Boca-fans to leave the area. I believe that the total amount of waiting came to five hours if you include the somewhat delayed hotel pickup.
Tomorrow starts the rest of my trip. Many things point to Salta as my first stop, before heading to Cuzco. The original plan was to go to La Paz as well. But yesterday i talked to someone who were also going to do the inca trail, and that they had to pick up the ticket for the trek three days in advance. My voucher says nothing about this, but it seems like being in Cuzco three days ahead of the trail is not necessarily a bad thing. According to experiences of others i have talked to, you could need the days to climatize to the altitude, so maybe it's a good idea.
Ÿesterday, i took a stroll in the city. The downtown area is ginormous. It takes 5 minutes just crossing the main street. Regarding security, i thought i was prepared for just about anything, but not today. Who might expect to be mugged in the middle of the day? One little lad came up to me and pointed at my headphones. So i guess thats lesson nr. 1; never flash anything that might look expencive. In the next second, someone grabs my camera which I'm holding in my left hand. For some reason, i manage to grab around it as a reflex. I guess the time of day proved helpful for me to be able to walk away without them following me or anything. But the camera still went into my pocket and my headphones in the backpack. Nothing's better then a lesson learned without any harm done.
WARNING! Football paragraphs coming up!
The first hours of yesterday were very calm. I just went to the supermarket (at which, apparently, efficiency are not one of the demands to get a job) and picked up a few things and walked a bit around to take some pictures of some street art, amongst other things. (wish you would see this kind of graffiti downtown in Oslo) The later part of the day was reserved for probably the biggest event to take place in BsA this evening. Last years winner of the Argentine top division against one of the biggest clubs in the city; Club Átletico de Independiente vs. Boca Juniors at Estadio Libertadores de Àmerica. The game itself wasn't the best one. The 1st half had really nothing to it, but a decent Independiente free kick somewhere in the middle. Otherwise, both teams seemed insecure and suffered from a total lack of disipline. This was a lack who would grow even bigger in the 2nd half, as Boca went ahead in the 50th minute or so (the stadium had a very large lcd screen, but no match clock, would you believe). One of the many fascinating factors about this clash, was the total silence that surrounded the stadium at the time of the goal. I wasn't exacly expecting applause, but you would think that 40.000 home fans would have at least some opinion about it..
But although the match wasn't much, the experience was of course great. There is no need for me to preach about the cultural differences between a south american league game and, say, a norwegian one. But some aspects need to bementioned. To assure that this event could go by without anyone being seriously hurt, or even killed, we had to wait for twenty minutes after leaving the bus that took us to the stadium area - twice! After the game, we had to wait for at least half an hour for the Boca-fans to leave the area. I believe that the total amount of waiting came to five hours if you include the somewhat delayed hotel pickup.
Tomorrow starts the rest of my trip. Many things point to Salta as my first stop, before heading to Cuzco. The original plan was to go to La Paz as well. But yesterday i talked to someone who were also going to do the inca trail, and that they had to pick up the ticket for the trek three days in advance. My voucher says nothing about this, but it seems like being in Cuzco three days ahead of the trail is not necessarily a bad thing. According to experiences of others i have talked to, you could need the days to climatize to the altitude, so maybe it's a good idea.
søndag 4. september 2011
Argentine meat at its best!
lørdag 3. september 2011
fredag 2. september 2011
First post!
So. I`ve finally arrived at the Milhouse Hostel in the St. Nicolas part of Buenos Aires. After a billion hours on the plane, a ride through which I actually slept most of the time, it was nice to make the first steps on Argentinian ground at 8 am local time. sunny weather, 9 degrees and fairly windy already makes me feel a little better about not having had the time to visit Iceland this year.
I`ve already met a couple of nice people, and the mission for these 5 days in Buenos Aires is to look for someone who might join me on the bus to La Paz. When the Hostel receptionist heard about my plans to reach Cuzco, Peru and ultimately Quito, Ecuador by bus, he just laughed and wished me good luck.
After checkin, I took a stroll with my new dutch and english friends, to look for something for lunch. After one hour of finding nothing, we ended up in a very boring and international cafe. Guess we`ll save the specialities for later. On our way home, i learned that the most striking thing about the city center, is the trafical anarchy that results from having 10 lanes and only one traffic light in each direction. Well, not the Thai kind of anarchy, but still a huge mess.
Since i don`t want to exclude anyone, i`ve chosen to do the blog in english. But should you want to make comments, feel free to do so in your own language (as long as i understand it). So..ehm..no spanish..until later.
So, this was a fairly boring post, but there`s a first time for everything.
/I (who has never (nor will he EVER) applaud a plane landing).
I`ve already met a couple of nice people, and the mission for these 5 days in Buenos Aires is to look for someone who might join me on the bus to La Paz. When the Hostel receptionist heard about my plans to reach Cuzco, Peru and ultimately Quito, Ecuador by bus, he just laughed and wished me good luck.
After checkin, I took a stroll with my new dutch and english friends, to look for something for lunch. After one hour of finding nothing, we ended up in a very boring and international cafe. Guess we`ll save the specialities for later. On our way home, i learned that the most striking thing about the city center, is the trafical anarchy that results from having 10 lanes and only one traffic light in each direction. Well, not the Thai kind of anarchy, but still a huge mess.
Since i don`t want to exclude anyone, i`ve chosen to do the blog in english. But should you want to make comments, feel free to do so in your own language (as long as i understand it). So..ehm..no spanish..until later.
So, this was a fairly boring post, but there`s a first time for everything.
/I (who has never (nor will he EVER) applaud a plane landing).
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