La Paz

La Paz was one of the most intense cities we’ve visited; a manic 24 hour city, which is loud, dangerous, smoggy and busy. At 3660m, you certainly feel the altitude as well as everything La Paz throws at you. Set high in an Andean valley, the main street (El Prado) runs through the centre, with the city growing up the mountains on either side. This makes navigating quite simple as wherever you are, you simply walk down hill to El Prado and find your bearings. Walking also makes a lot of sense as the roads seem to be constantly blocked with traffic (one 10 minute taxi drive took us literally 5 metres round the corner before we gave up!), however the steep incline of the streets can make going anywhere impossible on a hangover!  Protests, apparently, are a daily occurance and cause complete chaos by closing one half of ‘El Prado’. The city’s architecture is mostly dull, decaying and dusty, but is contrasted by colourful people (particularly the traditional ‘cholita’ women) and numerous markets. The Withches Market was particularly worth visiting to see the Llama foetuses and other oddities on sale for use in ceremonies. La Paz is known as a bit of a party town, so we took the opportunity to take in some nightlife with other travellers.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.