Upon Arrival

As I am writing this, I notice that the title of my blog, "The Bolvian Blogger," is a bit of a misnomer...as I am neither Bolivian....nor really a blogger....however...I was rushing and couldn't seem to think of anything more creative. So, with that said....


Upon arrival....WOW! Granted, I was a bit travel dazed from no sleep given the less-than-roomy comforts of the boeing 747. And It was dark when I arrived, but as we decended into La Paz and the sun rose, the sheer rock cliffs jetting upward and reflected orange in the morning sun, really took my breath....perhaps it was the altitude, but I'm pretty sure it was the scene.

The flight from Charlotte to Miami was uneventful. Thanks Alberto for the ride to the airport and for looking after my car while I'm away. There was one brief, scarey moment on this smaller plane as we were preparing to land at Miami when is suddenly seemed to fall, quite a bit from its 30,000 ft. crusing altitude. There was some screaming from the back of the plane somewhere, and I will admit to gripping the seat a bit tighter...as if that would do anything...but we landed without incident, and I spent a few hours in the airport enjoying the fine delecacies available....Miami's finest.

The next flight was longer and it was dark, but it passesd easily. Then at the airport in La Paz there was a brief luggage scare, but my two HUGE bags finally popped up. I am reticent to say it...but I packed like a girl...and should Mariel and I decide to stay here, I should have more than enough clothes to wear.

Mariel and her parents, Percy and Wecky, met me at the airport with some Coca tea that is said to help with the altitude adjustment...it must have worked because I have had no problem. It was so great to see Mariel after 4 long months.

The airport in La Paz is situated at the highest point in the city...only some 13,000 feet...give or take. The drive down into the city is AMAZING...I was turning my head in all directions so as not to miss a thing. We drove down into the city from El Alto, which best as I can describe, is like driving down into a canyon. The city is surrounded by the Altiplano mountains, but I have yet to see its tallest mountain Illimani...a triple-peaked mountain that dominates the area (9th hightest in the Andes if you're interested). The morning fog blocked it from view. Soon enough....I will post some pics too. Mariel did point out to me the beautiful, if kind of scarily named, Molar del Diablo, the Devil's molar. It does indeed resemble a molar and shoots up into the bright sky very near Mariel's house. And Thank goodness Mariel's father was driving. I remember a few early adventures of trying to drive in Germany, but I wouldn't want to attempt it here. The traffice rules as Mariel describes, aptly, seem to be more like suggestions. "Get there first" seems to be the dominate rule of the road. Or maybe it's more like "create your own right-of-way." Still, it didn't bother me too much as I was too facinated by the scenes of the city.

When we got to Mariel's house we had a small breakfast of fruit and bread (and OH MY GOSH the bread...EXCELLENTE!) Then, I slept...then got up and ate some more...then slept some more. I felt a little more like myself after the nap and Mariel and I went into the city. So many things are so differnt from what I am used too it's going to take me some time to mention them all. But as of Day 1...all is well. Yo estoy muy contento y muy felize! I can't say how wonderful it is to be back with Mariel and to meet her family; they are gracious and generous, and have made me feel right at home. This is going to be a great two months.

OK, there's a few things left to mention, but I will wait until I have some pics to add. Check back.