Hey guys!
We’ve decided to update the blog to make it easier to navigate and also took some time to make it look a little fancier. Unfortunately we aren’t able to move subscribers over to the new site, so you will have to re-subscribe. Please go to http://www.Yusevian.com and fill in your email address at the bottom of the website, then follow the directions that you receive in your email.
You make us feel special when you follow us, so PLEASE PLEASE continue!!!!!!
Thanks,
Yus & Nat
We got to San Pedro de Atacama after our tour of Southern Bolivia, and the first orders of business were showering, laundry, and enjoying warm weather at a paltry altitude of 2400 meters. This is the driest desert in the world, so by warm I mean balls hot. Most people do San Pedro in 2-3 days and jam pack all the popular tours, but we actually did the opposite. We stayed for over 4 days in order to relax and catch up with life and because we arrived on the day of full moon, we needed to wait at least three days to be able to do an astronomical tour which was high priority. And then because of bus schedules (no buses to Salta on Thusdays during this season), we had to wait an extra day. Overall, San Pedro (despite its small size and exorbitant prices by South American standards) has become one of my favorite stops based on the quality of the few tours we did do as well as literally being an ideal oasis to spend a few days and recharge.
Seems like spending two weeks per country has been our norm, and Bolivia was no exception. It is truly the Wild West of South America, a land of surreal landscapes, questionable infrastructure, and baby llama drama. Oh and the country is cheap, which is music to this backpacker’s ears. We hit up most of the main tourist spots–entering overland via Copacabana on Lake Titicaca, and exiting overland as well into San Pedro de Atacama, Chile. I think if I had some extra time (and in non rainy season), I would have tried to see Tupiza for the landscapes and Tarija for the wine, but neither is a regrettable miss at is point.
So here is our journey:
Salar the Uyuni, the world’s largest salt flat, is one of the most popular attractions in Bolivia. In the austral winter it is dry and the perfect spot for fun perspective shots. In the summer (now) it is covered with 30cm of water, is often impassable, but if you’re lucky and the winds are low, becomes the world’s largest mirror.
At 4,000 meters above sea level, Potosi claims to be the highest city in the world, but its actual claim to fame is Cerro Rico, a mountain where silver was discovered in 1546 and put Potosi on the Spanish Crown’s map. The wealth of the Empire actually seesaw’ed with the output of the mine and the Pirate activity in the Caribbean. It is even said that the Spanish have more wealth under the sea than in the country (definitely true for today’s Spain).
Sucre, the town where Bolivia’s independence was proclaimed, is still in the constitution as the capital of the country, but La Paz is actually the seat of government and treasury now. It is everything La Paz isn’t–beautiful, well planned, located at a tolerable altitude, quiet, and safe.
La Paz — the city where aesthetics go to die and adrenaline junkies go to live. This place has something for everyone from rock climbing and trekking the neighboring volcanoes to biking, abseiling, and just general merriment for those who like night life. La Paz looks like it has tried in the past to beautify, but now the random piles of rubble just make you wonder whether it is in the process of construction of destruction. Having said that, amidst the mess, there are a couple decent looking colonial style buildings and one street you might even describe as cute (Jaen, where the museums are). While we didn’t have any trouble, La Paz does have its share of tourist touts and many people had a story of mugging (not violent) so it is prudent to be careful, especially after dark. I didn’t leave the corner of Wild Rover/Loki past nightfall and am pretty happy with my decision.
After spending nearly two weeks in Peru, I feel like I’ve seen only a tiny sliver of the country. I can now check Machu Picchu off the bucket list (albeit sans the Inca Trail), but I have yet to see Nazca lines, Amazon rainforest, and a slew of other sights that Peru offers.
After Colombia, Yus and I met in Lima. I flew in, and he arrived overland via Equador through Piura. His way was much cheaper, but took more time, but that is a constant trade off in South America. Below is a list of places we saw along with some hopefully helpful logistical information. Read the rest of this entry »
Lake Titicaca was a nice respite between the more adventure-packed cities of Arequipa and La Paz. Plus, at 3800m, it was helpful to further acclimate ourselves to the high altitudes of the Bolivian antiplano. Puno (Peru) and Copacabana (Bolivia) are the main tourist towns on the lake, and we decided to just stay a couple days in Puno, including a home stay on one of the lake’s islands. Copacabana is a requisite stop on the way to La Paz and the nicest thing I’ll say about the town is that it’s a dump. Read the rest of this entry »
Colca Canyon, at 3191 meters deep, was once considered the deepest canyon in the world. Recently, however, that honor was bestowed upon the nearby Cotahuasi Canyon, which is 150 meters deeper. Either way, Colca is twice as deep as the Grand Canyon in the States, so we obviously had to trek it. Read the rest of this entry »
everyday we're crushin' it 