Monday, Sept. 22, 2003 - 1:22 a.m.
Back to La Paz
I had breakfast with Emma, Imke and Forest that morning just before they left on their adventure. I was sorry to see them go, but excited for them too. Then it was time to say goodbye.
They had the jeep loaded up, they were riding in the car for about 5 hours. Lter, they would camp and spend a few days building a raft to take along the river. We hugged and said well wishes and then they were gone., a heavyness in my heart. Once again I was traveling alone.
That morning I also ran into the Australian lady Sue I'd met my first night in Rurre. She too had been to the Pampas. She told me that the protests of the locals was still going on and that 3 police officers had been killed in the conflict in La Paz (I learned later it was in the nearby village of Sorata) She also said she had a flight that afternoon, back to La Paz, but she was considering staying in Rurre a little longer if the protests were going to prevent leaving La Paz.
Soon I was on a flight back to La Paz. I wasn't as nervous this time on the plane. This time, after take off, I got a slipse of Rurre from the iar. Its a small pleasant town. I could've stayed a few more days.
About 45 minutes into the hour flight I started to notice my fingers and toes were tingling. sometimes I had to take a few deep breaths, as if I was one breath behind myself. Then the co-captain got on the speakers and said "let us know if anyone needs oxygen" (!) I thought about it, but I didn't want to be the only person who needed oxygen, besides the flight was almost over. Then I felt incredibly sleepy. I sat back & closed my eyes and almost fell asleep, but it was too hard to breathe! Fortunately, the flight was almost over and soon I was back on solid ground.
I took a city minibus (only 4 Bolivianos, about $0.60) back to my hostal where I'd left my excess baggage in storage. This time I was able to stay in the dormitory room, which had 4 beds. Here I met another traveler, Caroline, from New Zealand. She'd been in La Paz awhile and wanted to do volunteer work for a month in a local hospital. That evening I joined Caroline for dinner and we met some of her Israeli friends at the El Lobo restaurant, a popular Israeli restaurant and hostal. During dinner at one point Efrat (from the Pampas & Jungle tours) walked in and we chatted briefly. She mentioned that she planned to go to the town of Uyuni that Saturday.
Earlier, after returning to the hostal and confirming that the protests had heated up and roads out of La Paz were closed I decided to go biking down Death Road, "The World's Most Dangerous Road" the next day. This time I borrowed Caroline's alarm clock to ensure that I would wake up in time for my tour.
