ÿþ<html> <head> <style type="text/css"> body { background-color:black; color:white; font-family:bookman old style,times roman; font-size:105%} h1 { text-align:center; color:gold; font-family:Monotype Corsiva,times roman} h2 { text-align:center; color:gold; font-family:Monotype Corsiva,times roman} table.big { width:850; font-size:110%} table.left { float:left; width:1; font-family:arial; font-size:50%} table.right { float:right; width:1; font-family:arial; font-size:50%} table.small { float:right; background-color:AA5500; color:black; font-size:60%; font-weight:bold; border:red blank; width:225} tr { vertical-align:top;} td.time { font-weight:bold; width:70} td.odo { font-weight:bold; width:60} p { text-align:left} p.center { text-align:center} p.bottom { text-align:center; font-size:80%} b.gold { color:gold} b.aqua { color:aqua} b.white { color:white; font-weight:bold; font-size:110%} img.v { width:77; border:0} img.h { height:77; border:0} </style> <link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="d.css" /> <title>Inca -- Day 2</title> </head> <body> <p class="center"> <table class="big"> <tr> <td colspan=2> <h1>Day 2 -- 23rd Sep</h1> </td> </tr> <tr> <td class="time">Time</td> <td><td> </tr> <tr> <td class="time">8:55</td> <td> <p> After a good night of sleep, we had breakfast at the Hotel restaurant. </p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td class="time">9:50</td> <td> <p> <table class="left"> <tr> <td><a href="photos/DSCN8761.JPG" target="blank"> <img class="h" src="thumbnails/DSCN8761.JPG"></a></td> </tr> <tr> <td>Sunday mass at San Francisco.</td> </tr></table> <table class="right"> <tr> <td><a href="photos/DSCN8766.JPG" target="blank"> <img class="v" src="thumbnails/DSCN8766.JPG"></a></td> </tr> <tr> <td>Illuminated statues.</td> </tr> <tr> <td><a href="photos/DSCN8773.JPG" target="blank"> <img class="v" src="thumbnails/DSCN8773.JPG"></a></td> </tr> <tr> <td>Idols at Witches' Market.</td> </tr> </table> Our first stop of the day was again Iglesia de San Francisco, which was closed yesterday. Today we arrived at the end of the Sunday mass. And again, tourists (like us) were all over the place, trotting up and down the aisles and taking pictures. The priest and the congregation seemed quite used to these background commotions. </p> <p> A few blocks behind (and uphill -- the streets were quite steep) San Francisco was <b class="gold">Mercado de Hechiceria</b> (Witches' Market), which according to the tourbook featured such unusual merchandises like dried toucan beaks, llama fetuses, herbal potions, as well as all sorts of folk/occult artifacts. Unfortunately, we visited the market on a Sunday morning, when the pious witches went to church (or slept late), so all we saw were several stalls for stone idols and handicrafts. </p> <p> Further uphill, we came upon an open-air market, or more exactly, blocks and blocks of streets all lined with stalls selling food items. South Americans evidently believed in comparison shopping, as the spice stalls were all clustered next to each other at one place, and all the fish stalls were clustered at a different block, etc. Emily discovered a new (to her) kind of fruit, pods with sweet flesh with a cotton-like texture (natural light cotton candy in a pod). </p> <table class="right"> <tr style="vertical-align:bottom"> <td><a href="photos/DSCN8786.JPG" target="blank"> <img class="h" src="thumbnails/DSCN8786.JPG"></a></td> <td><a href="photos/DSCN8787.JPG" target="blank"> <img class="h" src="thumbnails/DSCN8787.JPG"></a></td> <td><a href="photos/DSCN8790.JPG" target="blank"> <img class="h" src="thumbnails/DSCN8790.JPG"></a></td> <td><a href="photos/DSCN8791.JPG" target="blank"> <img class="h" src="thumbnails/DSCN8791.JPG"></a></td> <td><a href="photos/DSCN8792.JPG" target="blank"> <img class="h" src="thumbnails/DSCN8792.JPG"></a></td> <td><a href="photos/DSCN8794.JPG" target="blank"> <img class="h" src="thumbnails/DSCN8794.JPG"></a></td> <td><a href="photos/DSCN8789.JPG" target="blank"> <img class="v" src="thumbnails/DSCN8789.JPG"></a></td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan=7>Open-air market. From left to right are stalls selling meat, fruit, vegatable, ceviche, dry food and chili. Far right: A pretty girl at the mercado.</td> </tr></table> </td> </tr> <tr> <td class="time">11:00</td> <td> <p> <table class="right"> <tr> <td><a href="photos/DSCN8799.JPG" target="blank"> <img class="h" src="thumbnails/DSCN8799.JPG"></a></td> <td><a href="photos/DSCN8803.JPG" target="blank"> <img class="h" src="thumbnails/DSCN8803.JPG"></a></td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan=2>Soup at Lanza, and pig foot at San Francisco.</td> </tr></table> Walking back downhill, we had a bowl of soup at <b class="gold">Mercado Lanza</b>, the hot food market. Then we walked a block back to Plaza San Francisco and stopped at a cart for something which looked like fried dough, which turned out to be pig foot. Quite an interesting lunch. </p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td class="time">12:10</td> <td> <p> We returned to the hotel. Siesta time! </p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td class="time">15:00</td> <td> <p> <table class="right"> <tr> <td><a href="photos/DSCN8813.JPG" target="blank"> <img class="v" src="thumbnails/DSCN8813.JPG"></a></td> <td><a href="photos/DSCN8810.JPG" target="blank"> <img class="v" src="thumbnails/DSCN8810.JPG"></a></td> <td><a href="photos/DSCN8811.JPG" target="blank"> <img class="v" src="thumbnails/DSCN8811.JPG"></a></td> <td><a href="photos/DSCN8816.JPG" target="blank"> <img class="v" src="thumbnails/DSCN8816.JPG"></a></td> </tr> <tr> <td>Park along Prado.</td> <td>Statue for Bolivar.</td> <td>Ice-cream!</td> <td>CK contemplating.<td> </tr></table> In the afternoon, we went out to look for <i>saltena</i>, a famous Bolivian snack. It turned out the saltena was a morning snack and we could not find any place where it was served in the afternoon. Leisurely we strolled down <b class="gold">Prado</b>, the main boulevard through La Paz. Between the ongoing traffic, <table class="right"> <tr> <td><a href="photos/DSCN8819.JPG" target="blank"> <img class="v" src="thumbnails/DSCN8819.JPG"></a></td> </tr> <tr> <td>Emily playing with her tea.</td> </tr></table> the median was a park with tree, flower beds and many statues (including Christopher Columbus and Simon Bolivar, after whom the country was named). <table class="left"> <tr> <td><a href="photos/DSCN8820.JPG" target="blank"> <img class="h" src="thumbnails/DSCN8820.JPG"></a></td> </tr> <tr> <td>Stylish facades.</td> </tr></table> Many busy cafes lined the boulevard; some even had long lines waiting outside. La Paz was not a prosperous city, but its residents were determined to enjoy life just the same. After an hour of walking, we also joined the locals at a cafe named Dumbo (after the Disney flying elephant) to have a drink. </p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td class="time">17:35</td> <td> <p> Back at the hotel again. </p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td class="time">20:10</td> <td> <p> <table class="left"> <tr> <td><a href="photos/DSCN8824.JPG" target="blank"> <img class="h" src="thumbnails/DSCN8824.JPG"></a></td> </tr> <tr> <td>Salad bar.</td> </tr></table> Following the recommendation of the receptionist at the hotel, we seeked out <b>Cafe El Layq'a</b> (we have no idea what the name means), a tiny inconspicuous little upstair place serving authentic Bolivian cuisine. Emily had assorted Bolivia fish (Titicaca Kingfish and Salmon Trout, the latter a trout not a salmon), while CK had llama: steak, kabob and jerky (finely shredded meat, deep fried to crispy). Everything tasted good, and the portions were so generous that we could hardly finish half of the food served. </p> <p> <table class="right"> <tr> <td><a href="photos/DSCN8831.JPG" target="blank"> <img class="v" src="thumbnails/DSCN8831.JPG"></a></td> <td><a href="photos/DSCN8834.JPG" target="blank"> <img class="v" src="thumbnails/DSCN8834.JPG"></a></td> </tr> <tr> <td>Big meal!</td> <td>Psychedelic decor.</td> </tr></table> After the meal, when we were sipping on our cocoa tea, the owner proudly showed us a large jar of clear liquor with a huge snake coiled inside. When we excitedly inquired about the price for tasting the liquor, she was quite surprised. (She probably did not know that Chinese also had snake liquor, as well as many other snake dishes.) Generously she offered both of us a drink, free of charge. It actually did not taste snaky as all, but the alcohol warmed our stomaches comfortably. </p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td class="time">22:00</td> <td> <p> Back in the hotel, we packed our bags for an early departure on the next day. </p> <p style={text-align:right}><a href="d03.html">next day</a></p> <td> </tr> <tr><td colspan=2> <hr> <p class="bottom"> <form name="nav" method="POST"> <div align="center"> Jump To: <select name="xfer" size="1"> <option value="../../private/index.html">CK's Home Page</option> <option value="index.html">Inca Trip</option> <option value="d01.html">Day 1</option> <option value="d02.html" selected="selected">Day 2</option> <option value="d03.html">Day 3</option> <option value="d04.html">Day 4</option> <option value="d05.html">Day 5</option> <option value="d06.html">Day 6</option> <option value="d07.html">Day 7</option> <option value="d08.html">Day 8</option> <option value="d09.html">Day 9</option> <option value="d10.html">Day 10</option> <option value="d11.html">Day 11</option> <option value="d12.html">Day 12</option> <option value="d13.html">Day 13</option> <option value="d14.html">Day 14</option> <option value="d15.html">Day 15</option> <option value="d16.html">Day 16</option> <option value="d17.html">Day 17</option> <option value="d18.html">Day 18</option> <option value="d19.html">Day 19</option> <option value="d20.html">Day 20</option> <option value="d21.html">Day 21</option> <option value="d22.html">Day 22</option> <option value="thoughts.html">Thoughts</option> </select> <input type="button" onclick="location = ''+document.nav.xfer.options[document.nav.xfer.selectedIndex].value;" value="Go!" /> <div style={font-size:75%}> (These pages were developed with Internet Explorer and may not align correctly in other browsers.) </div> </div></form> </p> <p align="center">Created on 24th Oct 2007. 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