It has the most crazy traffic I have ever seen. Buses which are really like VW vans, with people hanging out of them just shouting where they´re going. No such thing as right of way. No such thing as red light means stop. Just beep your horn and go.
Crossing the road is fun, as you can imagine!
I like it though. It´s full of exhaust fumes and very poor people, but it feels alive and people spend most of their time on the streets. Selling dodgy food that smells amazing, or shining your shoes, or persuading you to buy llama fetuses. (More on that later)
We did a city tour, which gave some idea of the sheer size of this place. We took in Moon Valley, in the south of the city (the rich, posh area) which was strange. Part of the valley is made up of white stone, which over the years has eroded into a strange moon-like landscape. We also visited the witches´market, where you can buy strange things such as llama fetuses, herbs, sweets and talismans which are used in ceremonies to Mother Earth.
We´ve spent much of our time here exploring the markets, both the touristy ones and the local one (bit dodgy. We were the only gringos there. A friend of ours nearly got robbed! Super cheap though.) We also visited the gold museum and the coca museum. Both tiny and very interesting.
All in all, a good chance after all of the action of the past two weeks (five flights, eight or nine boat rides and countless bus journeys) to relax a bit and re-charge our batteries.
It´s very apt that La Paz means ´Peace´.
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