Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
La Casa del Turista
Next to Hostal Panchita on the plaza.
Skip past the array of pizzas and
pastas, and plump for one of the more interesting Mexican options: there are well-prepared
tacos, enchiladas, quesadillas and nachos. The restaurant itself is cluttered with paintings,
wall hangings and reed boats, and has a surprisingly well-stocked bar. Mains Bs15-28. Open
daily.
El Ceibo
Muñecas.
This first-floor restaurant is probably the pick of the local joints, serving
standard Bolivian fare at moderate prices (mains Bs15-30) in a rustic, low-lit dining room.
The filling set
desayunos
,
almuerzos
and
cenas
are all good options. Open daily.
Pete's Place
Esquivel 8, just off the southwest edge of the plaza.
This keenly priced gringo
favourite specializes in authentically spiced rarities like chicken and vegetable curries, as
well as the full range of more familiar Bolivian meat and vegetarian options. The eponymous
Pete is a good source of local info. Mains Bs15-50.
DIRECTORY
Banks and exchange
There are no ATMs, though Prodem (daily except Mon), on Plaza En-
rique Peñaranda, can give cash advances to credit card holders and changes money at its
usual prohibitive rates.
Horseriding
Staff at
Reggae House
organize horseriding trips (Bs105-140).
Internet access
Slow access (Bs10/hr) is available at several internet cafés surrounding
Plaza Enrique Peñaranda.
Laundry
Residencial Sorata
charges Bs10/kg.
Post office
The post office is on Plaza Enrique Peñaranda.
Telephones
ENTEL on Muñecas.
The Yungas
East of La Paz, the Cordillera Real drops precipitously into the Amazon lowlands, plunging
through the
Yungas
, a region of rugged, forest-covered mountains and deep subtropical val-
leys. Blessed with fertile soils and watered by plentiful rains, the warm valleys of the Yun-
gas produce abundant crops of coffee, tropical fruit and coca for the markets of La Paz and
the rest of the Altiplano; indeed, long before the Spanish conquest the peoples of the Andes
maintained agricultural colonies here to supply the Altiplano with coca and other subtropical
products. Several of the sturdy stone roads that originally transported the leaves - and linked
the Yungas outposts to the main population centres - today provide some of the most scenic,
challenging hiking in the region.
Even if you don't hike, the journey down to the Yungas from the Altiplano is truly spectac-
ular. The original road from
La Paz to Coroico
is widely considered the
most dangerous
