Today me and my friend Dorte, who also works at the orphanage Para Los Niños, went to check out the Sunday market 16 de Julio in El Alto (the city next to La Paz). To get there you simply find a bus or car going to El Alto, and there are always people going to the marked too so it is not hard to know when to get off. This market takes place every Thursday and Sunday, and it is supposed to be even bigger on Thursdays!! Can you believe it..
The 16de Julio- market is the biggest one in Bolivia, and it is easy to understand why; it's huge! And they sell everything from what I personally would call garbage, to furniture, clothes, electric stuff such as mobiles, radioes earplugs etc etc, basically anything you can think of. And they do sell both new and used stuff here as well, so even though some parts of the marked looks like a garbadge dump they also have a lot of nice things for sale if you know what you are looking for. The market is divided into areas that specifies in different stuff, so if you find the right area you're good to go;).

People leaving the market as we were arriving.

I had heard that there are some problems with pickpockets here, so I didn't dare to bring along my normal camera cause it is so big. Fortunately my iPhone takes usable picktures as well..

Going up to the market from the highway; there are a lot of people and also a lot to buy here as well. Not to mention the amazing view!!

Used shoes, anyone? The quality varies a lot so you have to search for what you want..

There are people selling things everywere, and you can find both new and used stuff here.

You can find anything at the 16. de Julio market.. Fortunately the cliff to the right makes it easier to find your way back too..

From the market you can see La Paz as well

Also, just the view from the marked itself is worth the trip! Also worth mentioning is that this is not a tourist market; I think we saw two-three foreigners during the time we spent here. This is where the locals go. And like elsewere in Bolivia you don't have to worry about bargaining. I bought a pair of Timberland shoes for 160 Bolivianos, which is about 127 NKR/23$/1770円. Although they are used you can't really tell..! So good for the environment and good for me! ;D

They also sell fruits - a lot of fruits..

After the trip to the market me and Dorte checked out the shopping centre north of the San Fransisco square; this place is quite new and the sell all sorts of stuff. Most were closed since it is Sunday, but you can find some cheap places to eat that are popular among the locals. We ended up with a lunch that coated us 10 Bolivianos each.. And the rooms aren't that big, so you basically sit in the kitchen and watch the staff as they make your food. It was very special:)

Dorte with her dinner. Just the tabel itself takes half of the area of the restaurant..

The kitchen seen from my seat in the restaurant

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Beautiful dances and costumes

This Saturday my friend Shirley invited me to come join her family, who was going to watch a parade taking place close to the place she lives.
In La Paz, many of the streets are named after dates, for instance the avenue 16. de Agosto which goes through the city center. And the great thing about the names of these streets, is that they tell you exactly when you can expect to come across great celebrations at these places!

These festivals are a good chance to take a look at both local and more international dance styles, and also a lot of nice costumes. Here you can see everything from dancing devils, girls in mini-skirts (which you never really see here in Bolivia.. I think..) to dancing cholita ladies with costumes that costs thousands of Bolivianos (and which I guess are extremely expensive for an average Bolivian cholita lady..)
The parade started at 12 in the afternoon and lasted until 2 a.m, but I "only" stayed for about 5 hours or so. Though the dancers aren't supposed to stop during the parade this does happen from time to time when family members wants to take pictures, or perhaps help them get their costumes right etc. Also, the family members usually brings beverages to the dancers, and the later it gets the more alcohol is being consumed also among the dancers themselves. I guess it probably gets more entertaining the longer you stay.. :p Anyway, here are some more pictures and movies from the parade:

Some of the more traditional outfits?

Boys dancing with bells on their feet! You bet they made a lot of noice!

Shirley and her sister:)

Some guys with weird masks..!

I was forced to join too.. Haha.. Here with one of Shirley's cousins.

One of the banners representing a new dancing school/a new dancing style

Dancing cholitas!

Some.. Warriors perhaps..?

Some of the musicians in more traditional costumes

One of the dancers getting helped with his costume. He doesn't seem to mind:)

The parade was divided into smaller groups, which all represented different costume- and dancing styles. It was really amazing!

Details from one of the devil costumes..

I also got to try out some local food, and it was great just to be able to enjoy a normal day at a Bolivian festival. Haha..
In the evening we had a hail storm ruining a bit because it became quite cold, but all in all it was a great day.  Thanks, Shirley! ;D

A festival for all ages, and not only for devils.. Here they all dance side by side:p

A car decorated with.. Spoons and plates?!

Fiesta for everyone:)

Related blogposts

Sightseeing in Bolivia: Cycling The Death Road

Sightseeing in Bolivia: Salar de Uyuni

Bolivia's National Day and Sightseeing in La Paz

Hotel Booking:

Hotels in Bolivia
Hotels in La Paz

Local woman walking down the street in the Witches' Market

At the Witches' Market (mercado de hechisería/bruja) you can find typical Bolivian products, as well as locals ladies sitting on the sidewalk selling their products, or just knitting or sleeping while waiting for customers.

A nice way to spice up your guitar, or..?

A shop selling alpaca yarn

One of the things they sell a lot of in La Paz is yarn or products made of wool, more specifically yarn from the alpaca. You can make some good deals here, I bought a sweater for 90 BOB, but I doubt that this one is made of 100% alpaca wool though.. Still, its going to be handy with another warm sweater here, cause it is really cold in the evenings.

Dead lama babies apparently brings luck if you burry them under the foundation of your new house..

It is no wonder it is called the Witches' Market when you look at some of the stuff they sell here. According to Camilla this varies a bit with the season, but for some reason this seems to be the season for dried Llama-babies and fetuses.. Yuk!

Here you can see the San Francisco square, which got its name from the San Francisco basilica to the right.

After passing by the San Francisco square we stopped by a cozy cafè/restaurant called Pan de Oro (which means Metal leaf) for lunch. Though the architect and the atmosphere is really nice, the prices are a bit high compared to restaurants aimed at the locals. But still I have to add that it is quite cheap for me, since the prices I am used to from both Norway and Japan are much higher. And.. The menu also comes in English btw.!

The entrance to Pan de Oro

I decided that I wanted to try out something new, and ended up eating a llama-steak to the neat price of 55 Bolivianos (which is about 8 dollars/600 yen/43 kroner). And the taste was good, specially the sauce.! Haha.. The llama was.. Alright. :p

Lama steak!

(The address of Pan de Oro is Genaro Sanjines 451, 591 - 2 La Paz, Bolivia)

We didn't come across any parades today, but by the Plaza Murillo we did however see some signs of the celebration. For example, as you can see on the pictures below, some of the buildings were draped in the colors of the Bolivian flag.

The cathedral at Plaza Marillo. Doesn't seem to be anything out of the ordinary, but..

In front of the cathedral there were some flower arrangements placed there in honor of the national day. Actually there were quite a lot of them, but of course you can't really tell by this photo..

And then there was the Palacio de Gobierno, which was draped in flags and with symbolic pictures.

Related blogposts

Sightseeing in Bolivia: Cycling The Death Road

Sightseeing in Bolivia: Salar de Uyuni

Bolivia's National Day and Sightseeing in La Paz

Hotel Booking:

Hotels in Bolivia
Hotels in La Paz

View from my bedroom window

 It has already been 4 days since I arrived in La Paz, Bolivia, but I have been so busy I haven't had the chance to update my blog yet. I arrived quite late in the evening on Monday, and got to see the magnificent view from El Alto before going down the valley side to Casa Alianza, my new home for the upcoming months. Currently I'm the only Norwegian volunteer living here, so I have the 4th floor all by myself. The standard is good, as you can see on the picture below. In the evenings, however, it does get very cold. This is due to the high altitude of La Paz, which makes the climate change from day to night quite big.

My living room at Casa Alianza

The altitude in La Paz varies from around 3000-4100 meters, and as a result of this altitude sickness is quite common among tourist the first couple of days. I must say that I have been quite lucky, cause I haven't had any big problems when it comes to this matter. I've had some problems sleeping, but I think that might be just jetlag or something.

In case you get problems breathing there is always an oxygen-mask available.. ;)

Yesterday my Spanish lessons started, and I'm going to have 3 hours spanish lessons every weekday for 4 weeks. My teachers name is Franck, and he is a really funny guy who makes learning fun.
Though I've never had any Spanish lessons before I did practice it by myself in the summers when I was working at the souvenir shop Nilssen paa Bryggen in Bergen, and that has helped me a lot. Besides my lessons in the morning I also spend a couple of hours in the afternoon reviewing and practicing; there's really a lot to learn..

View towards the street from Casa Alianza

Besides my Spanish courses I also work at an orphanage just 15 minutes walk from where I live. The organization I work for is called "Para los niños", which means "for the children", and the home I work in is a residential home for kids called Virgen de Fatima. Here we are working with kids up to eight years old, and since I have my Spanish lessons in the morning I spend the afternoon in the orphanage looking after the kids with other volunteers.
In the afternoon the kids gets to try out different activities every day. For instance we have a sports day, an art day, and today we had music day. The kids seems to love both the activities and us volunteers; they are not shy at all so it is easy to have a good time together with them. Unfortunately there aren't enough volunteers to let all the kids participate in the activities every day though. It is sad, cause the children doesn't have that many opportunities when it comes to contact with grownups or activities that can stimulate their creativity. Volunteers are really important for institutions like this!

The Calle 10 next to Casa Alianza

Besides my Spanish lessons and the work at the orphanage I haven't had the chance to see much of the city yet. But now weekend is coming up, and then I might have the chance to see more of the area. I'll definitely be back with more blog posts from Bolivia. Hasta la proxima!

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Here in Los Angeles I'm staying at a place called Adventurers Hotel. It is centered at Century Blvd not that far from the airport. It is a bit far from everything else though to be honest, but luckily they've got a couple of services that makes staying here a bit easier.
First of all they have a free shuttle bus that takes you to the hotel or back to the airport for free.
When I arrived I asked the lady in the tourist information for help, and she called them for me. After having called for pick-up you have to go out of the main airport building and turn right (if your flight was from abroad) and there will be a place where all the hotels have their shuttle services. Just stand there and wait and they will be there sooner or later (it does take quite some time so just be patient)
The shuttle bus has the hotels logo on the side so it should be easy to spot.
Also, the shuttle bus can drop you off at the metro if you want. The only problem is that the number of shuttle busses are limited, and that they are popular as well. As a result of this you probably have to wait up to half an hour for a shuttle bus if you are unlucky, and you might also end up not getting a seat on the shuttle bus when it finally arrives.
I must say though that all the drives I've had has done a great job, they are so nice and friendly. I do however think that they need more drivers in order to make the system go smoother.
The receptionists are a little bit more stressed out I think, probably because of people who are calling them from the airport who sometimes seem a bit confused about where to go for the shuttle bus to pick them up (I overheard a conversation where the receptionist was talking on the phone, desperately trying to explain to the guest that he/she had to ho outside to the shuttle service area for the bus to pick her/him up)
Still, when I asked about how to take the bus back to the hotel from Hollywood and the receptionist answered me that she didn't know because she had a car (which she said in a way that made it sound like only stupid people would use buses) and that I should ask the bus drivers instead it made me feel like the service wasn't really like it should be (I mean, when you work at a hotel you should be able to tell your guests how they can be able to get back to the place.. If she felt the bus system was lacking she could have given me an alternative.

Besides this, however, I did not have Ny negative experiences. The hotel area is quite big, and they have a pool, a restaurant, bar etc.
And like I mentioned earlier they have a lot of free services that really makes the place good.
You get a free champagne a day (if you are over 21) at the bar, and they serve free dinner and cake at certain hours, free popcorn all day long +++..
Today I was having my free dinner at the restaurant, but still the waitress came and asked me if I wanted a glass of water. So even though you get food for free you still get the service as well. Of course it is not a 5-star meal, but it is free and good (enough).

Ok, I guess that's all I have to say for now! Like I mentioned in my previous post I'm typing on my iPhone, which makes uploding photos and editing what ive written a bit difficult. I will fix this as soon as I have access to a normal (free xP) computer..!
Tomorrow it is time for my next flight! I'll probably spend a couple of hours at Venice beach before going to the airport though. Better get up early tomorrow.. See you later!

 Hi everyone, here comes my first blogpost from Los Angeles!
I arrived in America two days ago after a veery long trip (Kyoto - Tokyo by night bus, and then Tokyo - Taipei (Taiwan) - Los Angeles by plane. Arriving in Los Angeles it took me about 2 hours getting through the security procedures, and then another thirty minutes waiting for the shuttle bus to pick me up.
It was a fairly long and tiring trip, but then again I got to relax a couple of days in America before I'm heading towards Bolivia so I'm happy none the less:).

The Grauman's Chinese Theatre

Grauman's Chinese Theatre up close

Yesterday it was time to explore the city, at least the touristy areas.. To be honest, I'm not that fuzzed about celebrities and stuff, but I guess being in LA it is something I just had to check out (This is actually my second time to LA though, me and my family stopped here during our roundtrip in America about 8 years ago).

Along Hollywood Boulevard you can see people dresses up as various famous movie characters, like Jack Sparrow..!

Michael Jackson's star is still one of the most popular stars on Hollywood Boulevard

 This time, however, I had bought myself a Hollywood City Pass, which made it a easy for me to decide what to do. I started out doing one of the Kodak theatre tours, which I already had experienced once before with my family.. 

The entrance to the famous Kodak Theatre

This time I have to say that it was better though, cause a group of the dancers from Circus de Solei were practicing for their evening tour at the stage, so we had some good entertainment. Not to mention that the guide told us a lot of interesting facts and stories from the Oscar shows and everything, she seemed to like her job a lot.!

The square next to the Kodak Theatre

View towards Hollywood Boulevard

 After my little visit to the Kodak theatre the next post was a tour with the Starline busses giving you a tour to Beverly Hills etc where the stars has their homes.
Though of course it is a bit limited what you can see, because most of the houses are hidden by huge walls and hedges.

The gate to Ringo Starr (The Beatles)'s home.

Poor celebrities, I felt like we were on safary and that they were the animals we all wanted to see.. :p Anyway we did see one more or less famous guy but I have already forgotten his name.

View from the car

We also drove through Rodeo Drive, which is the street where celebreties likes to go shopping.

We also passed the Beverly Hills-sign..

And this was the closest we got to the Hollywood-sign. Did you know that the sign originally read "Hollywoodland"?

Checking out the view of Los Angeles

The last thing I did was to check out the Madame Tussauds. It was alright, but I have already been to the one in London so I guess I wasn't overly excited about it. Haha.. I might be mistaken, but I got the feeling that the one in London is a bit bigger..

A Marilyn Monroe-statue from Madame Tussauds in front of the entrance to the metro

Anyway, I had a free ticket through the City Pass so at least I got the chance to use it.

There was another ticket as well for another kind of round trip, but it was getting late and I decided not to bother. I think it was a pretty interesting day, and I am definately glad I had bought the City Pass in advance.