It was our last day in La Paz. We had done pretty much all we had planned. Our flight to Quito wasn't until 5:15PM. We had hours to kill, but not enough to do anything significant.
We found a roof top cafe on Ave. 16 de Julio, drank beverages, ate lunch and played cards. I had purchased the Marching Powder book on Kindle last night. We each took turns to read the book out loud to each other. It is a really gripping book and helped to pass the time for sure.
Since we had a great experience with the minibus yesterday, we decided to take it to the airport. Big mistake! At 4 bolivianos (0.60 USD), it sure was much cheaper than a taxi. With our big packs, we made our way next to the San Francisco museum where all the minibuses seemed to gather. It was pure chaos. People and cars weaved in and out, hop on and off amongst traffic. We flagged one down. But we were signaled to get on a bit further up the street. We ran up to the minibus in a panic. The handler I called him, is the guy who gets the customers and collects the money. The handler grabbed our bags and hurled them on top of the minibus without strapping them down at all. We were very concerned that the bags would fall off, but he assured us it was no problem.
We were shoved into the bus just as the police came over to tell the bus to move it along. We settled into our seats and I noticed I was missing a bag, a bag contained 7 chullo hats we bought a few hours ago as gifts for friends. I hate losing things even if it was 105 bolivianos (15 USD) worth of hats. I instantly regretted the decision to take minibus. There are just certain experiences I don't need to experience no matter how interesting or cheap it is.
The ride itself was smooth and it only stopped two or three times. We were at the airport in 30 minutes with our luggage intact.We had to pay 25 USD airport tariff (for international flight) each.
I enjoyed my time in Peru and Bolivia. But I am looking forward to some warm weather and ocean breeze. Tomorrow we will be in paradise and I am excited!
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http://rubyroads.blogspot.com/2011/09/waiting-for-galapagos-day-17.html
The trip was not only memorable for the amount of animals we saw but also for the people and accommodations at the two camps where we stayed. Our first guide, BK, was a wealth of information about the animals, landscape and down to the plants and what they were used for. Everyday out was a learning experience with him. All the people at the camps were gracious and the food was excellent.
Our second camp in the Okavanga was just as good as the first as far as the staff, accommodations, food and animals. After our experience at the first camp we amazed that the high quality remained the same. Our guide, G, made sure we were able to enjoy every experience including a rush through the bush to witness a cheetah and an ensuing hunt that he heard over his radio.
In both camps there were enough guides out that if they saw something the other guides were informed which helped in seeing as much as possible. It was also nice that the concessions were large enough that we did not have vehicles following each other throughout the day.
Normally there is always something in a trip of this length that we think could be improved upon but this is the rare case where we cannot think of anything. From the time we left the States to when we returned it was one of the most hassle free vacations we took.
Perhaps emphasizing the use of the laundry facilities at the camps would be useful because of the luggage restrictions would be the only thing I can think of as an improvement to future clients.
Kenneth Dropek
1 day ago
Mary was so pleasant and professional. She made sure all of our questions were answered.