Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
ACCOMMODATION AND EATING
There are plenty of
food stalls
around the bus terminal and inside the
covered market
on the
east side of the plaza, and a number of cheap fried-chicken restaurants on the way down to
the border along Avenida Internacional.
Hotel Plaza
Onthemain square 025963535.
Thebestplace tostayinVillazón istheclean
and comfortable
Hotel Plaza
, which has si
mple
rooms with shared baths and slightly more
expensive ones with private baths and TVs.
Bs80
Residencial Mirador
02 5962492.
If you are on a really tight budget, head to Av Repub-
lica, which has a string of shoes
tring
hotels including Residencial Mirador. Rooms are super
basic but acceptable for a night.
Bs50
DIRECTORY
Exchange
Several cambios change dollars and Argentine pesos; some also change travel-
lers' cheques, though only fora steep commission. Ifyou're heading into Argentina, it'sbest
to get rid of your Bolivian pesos before you cross the border.
Tarija
In the far south of the country, hemmed in by the high Altiplano to the west and the cactus-
choked hills that drop down into the impenetrable forests of the Chaco to the east, isolated
TARIJA
feels a world away from the rest of Bolivia. Indeed, the country's two biggest cities,
La Paz and Santa Cruz, are both 24 hours away by road. Set in a broad, fertile valley at an
altitude of 1924m, Tarija lies at the centre of a rich agricultural region known as the Andalu-
cia of Bolivia on account of its sunny climate, vineyard-filled valley and the arid mountain
scenery that surrounds it. Indeed, so striking are the similarities with southern Spain that Luis
de Fuentes, the conquistador who founded the city, named the river on whose banks it sits the
Guadalquivir, after the river that flows past Seville.
Laid out in a classic grid pattern, Tarija has few obvious sightseeing attractions - its appeal
lies more in the easy charm of its citizens and the warm, balmy climate. Although the pop-
ulation has mushroomed to over one hundred thousand, the city remains provincial in the
best sense of the word: small enough to get around on foot and culturally self-contained, but
open to foreign influences and welcoming to outsiders. Moreover, Tarija's
Carnaval
is one
of Bolivia's most enjoyable fiestas.
