After my many long bus journeys, the night bus from Uyuni to La Paz seemed the shortest, maybe because I knew it was the near last of my trip for a bit. I was almost at Lima where we would be spending a few months, and had crossed the continent. I was a bit nervous to arrive in La Paz though, simply for the arrival part, because everyone had warned me it was the most dangerous stop on my trip, and the cabs and anytime I gave even the slightest hints that I was foreign would be the most dangerous parts.
Very luckily, I happened to overhear people talking about Beyonce on the bus, saw one holding a Peru Lonely Planet, and knew that these were people who could give me a hand. The guys picked up my bags that I could only drag at this point and carried it all to the taxis.
One girl spoke perfect Spanish and gave all of our addresses to the driver. We're happy to help. Have fun! So yea, people are wonderful. They also told me a story in the cab of a couple they met on their last trip that was from LA.
They met in Nepal too cool , and the wife was a veterinarian for celebrity dogs and the husband was saving the world or something. I think as a post-grad backpacker I was way too basic in comparison. Many night buses and small towns had characterized my trip, and I needed to take advantage of the big city I was finally in.
I walked into the entryway and saw it was full of backpackers lounging in the courtyard using wifi, and many more checking in and out around me. A friend in Rio had told me that La Paz is like a giant bowl of red-stone buildings, and when you drive in, you spiral down into the bottom of the bowl like a vortex. Because I took a night bus, I arrived very bright and early in the day and decided to start exploring right away.
