Tips for South America

A summary from a lecture in LAMETAYEL

BOLIVIA

The state has two capitals: La-Paz and Sucre.
It is a catholic (95%) state. LAnguages: spanish, ketchua. Economy: tobacco, gaz, ful, drugs.

Has an altitude problem - requires time to adjust. Includes the highest city in the world: Patusi.

Sucre: sleep at the youth hostel, visit the fod market.
Santa-Cruz (a city in the border between BRazil and Bolivia): get there in the train, ONLY in first class. Spend there one day.
Vila-Tunari: for animal-lovers. A farm where you can stay for 2 weeks to treat injured animals, while living in a communa.

Cochabamba - a city with missionairs that love Israelies.
Patusi: mining city, the highest in the world. Recommended: a tour of the mines, the coin museum.

La-Paz: many markets. Has an “Israeli” hotel called “El-Logo” - NOT recommended. The city hosts the witch-market, which is highly recommended. La-Paz is the place to do shopping, specifically flizes. It is also a base for many trecks.

Pampas - a swamp area.
Choro - a recommended treck (good trecks in Bolivia include Choro and the Salar).
Surte: a quite and tranquile town. Recommended hotel: the CopaCabana.

The Bolivia-Chile Border area - The SALAR (salt desert). Four-day treck that start in a city called SALAR-DE-UYUNI. A MUST.
Costs around 40$ - make sure mineral water are included.

Tupiza - a city with red rocks and horseriding tours: take a taxi out of town to see the atractions.

Lake Titikaka - at the Bolivia-Peru border. Worth a two-day tour at the floating islands.

Jungles: go either in Brazil (Pantanal) of in Bolivia (Pampas).

Indians: ONly in Bolivia, the indians believe photography steals their souls, so don’t take pictures of them in Boliva.
PERU

Plan for Peru around a month and a half. The peruvian jungle is called Manus.

Cusco - Inka capital. Close to it: Machu-Pichu - a MUST.
Aquas Calientes - a city near Machu-Pichu.
Inca Trail - a 4 day treck, from Cusco to Machu-Pichu.
Azangata treck - 5 day treck, same views only without the antiquities.

Lima - nothing there.

Cusco - base to a rafting at the Purimak river: hire only a european firm: swisRaft or Mayok.

North Peru - the Waiwatchel Treck. A hard 11-day treck.
Ika - a place to do sandboarding, on a huge sand dune (if you don’t do it at southern Brazil).

BRAZIL
Plan for 3 months.
Rio-De-Janeiro: a week. The Israeli hotel - Vitoria - is not recommended. What is recommended is to hire an appartment, from either George or Fernando. Their address is Catete 218. Beaches: Copacabana - redundant. Panama island - go at sunset. full of restaurants and nightlife. La-Blond: nightlife. Every Monday at 21:00 it is a meeting point for locals. Bahia - the most beautiful, a white beach. ShopingBehia - the largest mall in south america. View: the sugar mountain. Discoteks: plenty of black music.

Sau-Paulo: the biggest city in the world has absolutely NOTHING. maybe a few japanese restaurants.

Furianapolis - the central city of southern Brazil. The best beach is Bara de la Goa.

Puerto de Alegre - a state in the south where you can feel real brazilians.
Bahia - the state with the real carnaval. Be at the carnaval either at SAlvador de Behia or, better, at Puerto Segura.
Ariel de Ajuda - a peninsula near Puerto-Segura. Particularly good. hotel - Saudosa Maloca. Get there a bit before the carnaval, and stay there for the carnaval.

Moro de Sau-Paulo - an unspoiled island, the most expensive in Brazil. Beach 4: the most beautiful. Beach 3: the most quite. BEach 2: the most parties and israelies. Get there after the carnaval.

Salvador - an african city. The old city is especially beautiful at Tuesdays afternoons. It is found in a state called Lansois, and serves as a basis for trecks.

Resipe, Boliode, Natal - cities on the beach, can serve as a basis for amazonas trecks: NOT recommended. The amazonas is recommended at Peru/Bolivia/Equador. For a jungle in Brazil - go to Pantanal.

Chile and Argentina

Cold and Western. You mainly do there trecks.

Iguaso - best viewed from Argentina. Two-Three days.

Chile: The capital is Santiago. Climb to the view at San-Cristobal.
Mercado Central - a nice market. Santiago has a god subway, and it is a god city to buy copper things. The israeli hotel is called Indiana.

Fucon: the israelies Edy and Shay. It is the official holidat city in Chile. It has an easy treck - the Viarika Travers, in which you climb a volcanoe.

Bariloche: a holiday town in Argentina. Chocolate, Steakes, 7 lakes.

Puerto-Monte: a city in the south of Chile, has ferries to two islands with glaciers and animals - not recommended because it is expensive and the same things for cheaper exist in the south.

Caratal Estral - the way to the south, a road in the centre of Chile.
Puerto Natales - the base for the TORRES-DEL-PAINES treck, in the south of Chile. A MUST - even if it is the only treck you make in SA.

Ushuaia - the southernmost town in the world has excellent sunsets.

Patagonia - in Argentina. Stop at the city EL-CALAFATE for two trecks. Fitzeroy - a treck on a huge granit boulder; and the collapsing glacier - don’t forget an ear-cover.

Buenos-Aires: very western. Sleep at EL-Cashapaz. Walk in Calle de Florida if you want to buy western clothes.