Day 2: From the City to the Jungle

La Paz: I started the day bright and early with a brisk walk to my double decker red sight seeing bus. I know, they are cheesy, but the only thing I love as much as boat rides  are open decker bus rides.  Me and a group of German tourists started off at the Plaza de Estudiante for the hour  and a half journey. Among the highlights were:

• For my reverse racist friends: I learned that the Bolivian population is made up of one percent  white people.
• The average annual income in Bolivia is 1,100 Bolivianos a year - which is about $157 a year. The average Congressman makes about 4,500 Bolivianos a month. That is one of the reasons for the intense political unrest here, according to the tour guide.
• La Paz has the highest soccer field in the world, and apparently,  futbol players hate coming here because of it. I don´t  blame them.
• Our scenic point today gave us a panoramic view of La Paz. I´m glad we got to go up there because a fifth of it was wiped out last week from a landslide.
• Speaking of landslides, Eucalyptus trees are planted  in the hillside as a way to help stabilize the foundation.
• Bolivia seems to have constantly fought with its neighbors because of the rich minerals  the country contains. And it was particularly depressing to me to learn that Bolivia lost a war to Chile about 60 years ago, and in the process Chile took its access from the ocean away.
• We passed one of the traditional Andean markets, where my favorite hat ladies were pouring out unidentified drinks, selling soup, and just chillin on the side of the road. I love those ladies.

That's all I can remember.

My Spanish, meanwhile, is really crappy. I thought it would come back to me, but I do not  sound fluent. But it hasn´t stopped me from getting by.

My flight to the jungle is at 5,  so I´m off.