Hi Everyone!
This is going to be the first of many blog posts chronicling my past week of adventures through South America! As I create blog posts from my trip, don't forget to to check out my instagram page for even more photos from my journey.
From Cusco to Bolivia: Crossing the Border
On a Thursday night, my best friend and I caught a taxi to the private Bolivia Hop terminal in Cusco, Peru. There, we checked in, got our wristbands, and boarded our very comfortable double-decker bus. Our tour guide, Natalie, explained how the next 24 hours would proceed, and then we bundled up in the blankets they provided and fell asleep.
The ride must have been pretty smooth, because the next thing I remember was waking up to Natalie's voice over the microphone around 5am. "We have arrived in Puno. Please prepare to get off of the bus for breakfast. You can leave your items on the bus". We all jumped off and walked to the restaurant that had a breakfast of juice, eggs, toast, tea, and coffee. It cost S./9 and if you wanted breakfast, you reserved it on the bus. My friend and I chose not to buy breakfast and just sat in the restaurant. They had a restroom and wifi, so we were content.
After re-boarding the bus for a 15 minute ride to the lake front, we hopped off once again. There was an optional tour of the Uros floating islands that lasted 2 hours. I chose not to go, as I had already visited the Peruvian side of Lake Titicaca the previous weekend. We were allowed to leave our belongings on the locked bus, and passed the 2 hours walking on the boardwalk along the lake front and watching the sunrise. We also bought an egg, cheese, and avocado breakfast sandwich on the street for S./3.
As we meandered around the awakening town, a sense of peace surrounded us. The beauty of the lake at sunrise cannot be explained in words. Around 8am, our group returned from the tour. Those who were staying in Puno for the night, transferred their bags to another bus while the rest of us re-boarded.
We spent the next 4(ish) hours riding to the Bolivian border. When we got there, they stopped at a money exchange house for those who need to change their money. The Bolivian Boliviano is worth S./0.50 or ~$6 USD. Then, they led us to the Peruvian immigration where we got our exit stamps. Afterwards, they walked us through filling out the entrance forms for Bolivia. If you are American, you need a visa BEFORE you get to Bolivia and it costs $160 USD. Luckily, there is a consulate in Cusco, so we had our visas well ahead of our departure. After our forms were completed, we took our luggage and walked across the border.
Once in Bolivia, we had to go to immigration (a few steps around the corner), where they took our forms and stamped our passports. They gave us back a small white section of our completed entry forms but understated their importance. We needed them later when we went to exit the country.
After everyone in our group obtained permission to enter Bolivia, we hopped on a new (smaller and hotter) bus to take us to the Bolivian shores of Lake Titicaca. It just so happened that the day we arrived was the Bolivian day of mourning their loss of access to the sea (which happened in the Pacific War, read more here). As a result, there was lots of music and song on the shores of the lake. After grabbing lunch in Copacabana (which felt like a beach town), we headed off to the optional 4 hour tour of Isla del Sol.
The boat ride lasted about 45 minutes and we got to sit on top, which was nice. The island itself is fairly desolate on the side we entered. After a self-guided hike up and across the island, we encountered a village with vendors and a fantastic view of the lake. The walk down was much easier than the walk up (which wasn't all the bad for someone coming from Cusco). At the bottom, we took in the views a little longer before boarding the boat once again.
I must say, my favorite part of visiting Isla del Sol, was meeting the other travelers in our group. There were 3 friends from England and a girl from Canada who we continually ran into during the rest of the week. There was also a teacher from New York, so it was nice to talk to someone from the US. On our boat were also Argentinians and Portuguese.
After reaching Copacabana once again, we boarded the bus to head to La Paz. After a few hours, we had to get off the bus to get on a boat and cross a section of the lake. Unbelievably, they also put our bus on a boat and crossed the lake. I couldn't believe my eyes. On the other side, there was a lively town with music where we used the bathrooms and got dinner. I got a street food sandwich of sautéed onions and tomatoes (the woes of traveling vegetarian!) and tea in a bag.
After this final brief stop, we headed to our final destination: La Paz. Our guide came around and asked each person where they were staying and we were dropped off at the door, which was a pleasant surprise. I stayed at The Wild Rover, and our guide gave us coupons for free shots there. We were dropped off around 10pm to our hostel where we prepared for our day in La Paz.
Overall Thoughts on Bolivia Hop:
Overall, I am left highly impressed with Bolivia Hop. I recommend this company to anyone traveling across the border. They were super helpful and the busses were comfortable. On top of that, their trips are very reasonably priced. The link to the specific trip I took is HERE. They also have trips throughout Peru that I am considering for the future given my wonderful experience.
What's Next:
This post covers just day one of my journey. I have so much more to share! Stayed tuned and subscribe for notifications about my upcoming blog posts.
I'll be talking about...............
-A Day in La Paz
-Salar de Uyuni Tour (3 days, 2 nights)
-From Bolivia to Chile: Crossing the Border
- My Mollendo Beach Town Day Trip
-Semana Santa in South America
-Colca Canyon and its Condors
-The City of Arequipa
-A Day in San Pedro De Atacama, Chile
XX, Didi
Comments