Crossing the border into Bolivia was absolutely painless and went by suprisingly quickly. I am glad to be Canadian, all Americans have to jump through hoops to get into the country, ultimately paying a total of $135 to cross the border. I believe the Bolivian Government does this simply to even the score because of the difficulty which Bolivian citizens go to to enter the United States. Likely from the United States ¨War On Drugs¨.
Anyways, Copacabana was very relaxing, that much was clear immediately upon getting of the bus. I had a chance meeting in the Puno bus station with a couple who was in my group on the Inca Trail. We bothed laughed at the coincidence, we were coming from completely different directions! So when we got to Copacabana we found a hostel together and settled in. That day was spent wandering the small pedestrian filled streets of Copacabana. The streets were full off hostals, restaurants and street venders. Much like Peru, except here the street venders would not constantly harrass the passing tourists to spend spend spend. This made it much more appealing to actually shop and look around at the products, my neck felt a bit cooler without an expectant old Peruvian man or woman breathing down it constantly. After lunch I felt exhausted and slightly off. I went back to the hostal and had a nap. When I woke up I was freezing and struggling to warm up. I threw on all my clothes and after a short period of time was waay to warm. Long story short, I spent the rest of the evening in bed, with a fever, too weak to move.
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December 5th - Copacabana - Bolivia
This sickness has got me down but not out. It is a dopplegange, changing at all times, coming and going in different forms, what else is there to experience!? The last months I have been through it all. All forms of wretched sickly induced despair. My spirit continues to hold strong suprisingly, although for how long, I can never be sure. You never know what will be thrown at you next. The joys of travel! To fight and win. The winning is key, even when you may be losing, you must still win, somehow. I have faith... if that faith is ever lost, thats when you´re in real trouble....
From Journal
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Anyway I didn´t get much sleep either, sore tonsilitusy throat and throbbing ear make pain relatively constant. The next day, my friends, Guido and Laura went to the Isla for the day. I relaxed in the morning and felt up to taking the afternoon boat there. I bought some antibiotics and anti-inflammatory for my throat. The pharmacies in peru are small, but you can find anything in them for cheap and buy it quickly and simply over the counter. Gotta love that.
I spent the next 24 hours or so on the Isla, which was very amazing at times and frustrating at times as well, just from not having a lot of energy to do as much as I wish I could have. I took the boat to the north side of the island and stayed over night in the small town there. The island has a very flowing shape canstantly forming bays and peninsulas, one after another after another. Sand beaches can be seen from below with steep rock faces that shoot up to high view points. Sitting and watching the sun set on this magnificent sight, dark blue waters extending towards the horizon, with shore or other islands poking through the mist miles away. Sitting in an old Inka Labyrynth as the sun turns the sky into a multitude of different shades of pink and orange. Walking back through the winding path by flashlight was tranquil. Coming across few other people on the path ever. The night silence was very tranquil as the almost full moon practically made the light unneccissary. The next day I woke early and walked to the south side in about 4 hours to the south side. I relaxed for the afternoon and read in the sun. Arriving back in Copacabana was nice, although if I had had more energy and time I would have happily stayed on the island for longer. It was cheaper to stay on the island, plus if you brought a tent, there were plenty of places to pitch it and stay for free. A very beautiful scenic island.
I returned back to Copacabana and changed hostels to something cheaper, so in dollars, that cheaper than cheap...cause its Bolivia. I spent around 5 dollars for the night, and thats not even the cheapest that could be found. I befriended some Norwegan youth and we went out for dinner and beer. Great conversations and laughs took me late into the night. I went to bed content although dissappointed that these guys too would not be around for long. The kinds of guys that I would be happy with spending the next 4 months with. But different directions and plans stop that from being a reality. Felt a bit alone again as I hopped onto my bus that would take me to La Paz, the capital of Bolivia, highest Capital City in the World. Although I had planned in advance to meet my German friend from Nazca, Karl and his friend Johannes there. I had ran into them briefly and randomly in Cuzco on my last day there, another chance encounter! Gotta love those.
La Paz, home of the worlds most dangerous road, which travellers pay and take mountain bikes down for the day. I was looking forward to that!
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