Convento de San Felipe Neri
Thursday, November 26, 2009
After returning from Rurrenbaque, we grabbed a night bus (El Dorado) from La Paz to Potosi. It was uneventful and similar to buses we’d taken in Peru. In Potosi we made a split-second decision to spend two days in Sucre instead, since we were trying to get into Chile by December 1. Ultimately, it turned out we could have spent a day in Potosi because the Southwest Circuit ended up taking only 2.5 days instead of the 3-4 days we had anticipated. Oh, well. At the Potosi bus station, we had a brief transportation snafu when we accidentally purchased Sucre tickets for a bus that only had rooftop storage. Since we are overly concerned about the safety of our backpacks, we ended up going with a different bus and losing the $4 from the first bus. Lesson learned!
In Sucre, we searched out a few empanada restaurants. Unfortunately, they were only serving beef empanadas, and in the face of an escalating “turquoise” situation we ducked into the nearest pollo a la brasa joint. In the afternoon we walked around the historic center of Sucre and visited the Convent XXX. This a beautiful colonial building that is now a school. The highlight is being able to walk on the undulating, tiled roof of the convent. There are two bell towers, seats where the monks used to rest, and amazing views of the city. It’s easy to see why S ucre is nicknamed the White City. After the convent we took a coffee break at Bibliocafe, where a stray dog casually plopped down under our table. As we were leaving, the waitress asked if we had forgotten our dog. From there we stumbled upon a photography exhibit dealing with Bolivia’s natural wonders. Eventually, we made our way to the Museo de Arte Indigena. This museum focuses on the incredible weavings of the Tarabuco and Jalq’a cultures, describing the history, symbolism, and technique associated with these textiles.
Sucre is noted for its beautiful colonial architecture and numerous courtyards. During our wanderings we found several colorful courtyards, some with fountains. In the evening, we checked out the central mercado where we bought food for dinner – sandwiches and salad.
Friday, November 27, 2009
In the morning we tried some fresh made orange juice from a juice cart. Then we took the “dinosaur bus” (a tourist ranchero) to Parque Cretacico, a paleontological site and museum near the city. Decades ago, workers from the Concretec concrete plant discovered various sets of dinosaur tracks from the Cretaceous Period. Over time, the rock in which the tracks are preserved has buckled due to tectonic shift. As a result, the tracks are arranged in a vertical plane. Visitors are no longer allowed to approach the tracks as the site has applied forUNESCO World Heritage status, and the concrete plant is still active next door. Nevertheless, the small museum (including several footprint molds) and guided explanation were informative, and seeing actual dinosaur tracks from the viewing platform was impressive. There are also various full-size dinosaur models. If we had more time in Bolivia, we would have visited Torotoro National Park, where numerous dinosaur tracks and marine fossils may be viewed.
The afternoon was spent doing some blogging/reading at Cafe Amsterdam. For an afternoon snack we headed to the central market where numerous stands serve cheap and delicious fruit smoothies. We searched in vain for a peluqueteria (hairdresser) but instead discovered all the abogadas (lawyers) in Sucre. In the evening we took in a student piano recital at the Casa de la Libertad, followed by dinner at the Kulture Cafe, part of the German cultural center. The highlight was papas relleno (stuffed potatoes).