By Alyssa Maunders
La Paz to Santa Cruz: hottest bus ride of my life. Santa Cruz is a big city, apparently bigger than La Paz, but because of its sprawl, it really doesn’t feel large. It’s just hot. We did get some decent Japanese food one night though, served up with huge cold, cheap beers. I’m pretty sure, however, that we stayed in a sex hotel. It was in our price range and came with the bare necessities including a side table, a working fan, a bed in the middle of the room (no feng shui about it) and a red plastic coca-cola chair. We left Santa Cruz quickly for a small town called Buena Vista on the outskirts of the nature preserve called Amboró. It was hot there also. Nothing to write home about and we found that we couldn’t really afford the guided tour into the jungle, unfortunately.
Hand Decorated Toilets
I was beginning to feel as though Bolivia had given me all it could for this trip when we arrived to Samaipata. Blessed Samaipata. Surrounded by green valleys and roses and the most perfect temperatures day and night, it literally was a breath of fresh air. We stayed at a hostel called El Jardin and it was perfectly in our price range as well as our fantasies. A green lawn, hammocks and an outdoor kitchen. A compost toilet and hand decorated buildings with recycled wine bottles built into the walls for natural light. Such a dream. We passed 4 days there without a second thought.
Due to the beauty and good weather, many foreigners have moved into this small, sleepy town. The real estate has gone up with tourism but it still has a very quiet feel. To our amazement, several really hip bars reside just off the plaza. One, La Boheme, is run by an American and her husband. The decor is full of patterns , wooden furniture, paper lanterns, a Labrador who always wants to play fetch inside and a list of tasty hip cocktails. They have food too, provided by a small restaurant across the street. It’s so close in fact, that when drinkers get the munchies the bartender takes their order and walks out the front door ten steps and hands the order to the owner/cook at La Cocina. It’s run by a young Israeli guy who got his start with a successful food cart in town. Now he serves up burgers, shawarma, falafel and really good, herby fries. There is even a small cinema in town run by a local 20-something and his girlfriend. They converted a room off their courtyard into a cute cinema cafe with small wooden tables, ashtrays, candlelight and a simple menu with beer and wine. The films cost nothing, 5 bolivianos, literally less than a dollar. True, this guy doesn’t have to battle rising prices for movie rights. What he is doing is probably worthy of beheading by Warner Brothers. He simply shows really good quality bootlegged films that he gets from the city or films he has collected in DVD. We watch Jim Jarmusch’s film “Coffee and Cigarettes” and laughed through the wine and free peanuts.
A small street market with Chilean used clothing, fresh yogurt and Santeñas ( a small baked bread filled with a mixture of meat and veggies) completes our Sunday morning. We even made our way to an animal refuge just 30 min. walk from town. We met some people at the bar out first night who were volunteers with the animals and they invited is for a visit. Several curious monkeys and a baby deer named Bambi later, we returned to town and packed for Sucre.
Broke in Bolivia
With a new-found realization that I am nearly broke, Leigh and I have started to do some serious hunting for volunteer opportunities and work exchanges. Though we are living on a budget of about $15 per day all the transportation and lodging add up. Damn you past Alyssa for your frivolity in La Paz!! Oh well, budgeting, like dieting, is something I simply haven’t wrapped my young brain around yet. This trip has been an amazing learning process though. From how to catch a cab to how to negotiate the 
price of a bundle of fruit, I have picked up something’s that I will certainly take with me on future travels. Budgeting included. All that aside, now it’s time to take advantage of all the great opportunities for shoestring travelers. We have recently received word from several hosts and families south in Argentina inviting us to do some work in exchange for food and lodging. Food and lodging, our two main expenses. Really, the only things you really have to worry about while traveling. And, if done right, two things that could always be cheaper or free.
Our next adventure is a trek across the Salar de Uyuni. The famed Salt flats of southwestern Bolivia. We are in Tupiza right now, awaiting the arrival of some friends from La Paz to do the 4 day 4×4 drive with us. Unfortunately it costs about $220, all food and lodging included. With a guide and driver. All in all, it’s an ok deal… But I’m broke. However, it is one of the things we have heard repeatedly is un-missable. You must do it. So, budget be damned (sorry mom) I gotta do it! Several of the next 6 weeks should be taken care of if we do some work exchange and it’s really no problem cause I’m getting used to my cucumber and tomato sandwich diet. No more beer though, gotta save our money for that Mendoza vino! Looking forward to some salty desert scenery, hot maté and Argentinian men, here we come!!
