Day 154 – Sunday 29th August –> Day 155 – Monday 30th August 2010
So after we had mastered the Condoriri Trek and the amount of food that followed, the four of us (I, Emilie, Dominik and Jonas) wanted to go see a 1st Division soccer match in La Paz. Bolivar La Paz played against Aurora. Both teams were in the middle of the league table and we were happy to settle for a fiery feast of football in South America on a sunny, but as always very cool Sunday afternoon. There was a 2 for one offer for the tickets and there were two seats on the grandstand for a good 5 € (the most expensive option). We wanted to be clever by walking to the stadium, but hills and construction sites eventually let us take a taxi, which was also not so easy since the city was quite dead on this Sunday and many roads were closed to cars. So you saw in the main streets instead of usually being filled with smoky minibuses and taxis, people cycling or children playing. The atmosphere in the city felt unreal, like being in completely other place.
Looks strangely familiar
Arriving at the stadium, we quickly went to the ticket counter, then it was 13:50 and that is to say 10 minutes before kickoff. The employee of course wanted to cheat and ask the full price, but we knew about the offer. Embarrassed, he pretended he had forgotten the offer. After we were checked very superficially by the military-clad security guards, we finally went in the stadium. The ranks of the relatively modern stadium were half full. So there were about 20,000 visitors in the stadium, of which were estimated zero viewers in the guest block of Aurora. So there was never any potential for riots. We took our seats and the possibility to enjoy the show, which was like a contest of the worst and most lackluster cheerleaders in the world. The six good-looking girls were walking around on the track and swayed here and there a little bit on the music and acted more like a fat child motivated in physical education.
Well regardless, the game began as far as I could judge the level was not really high. Jonas and Dominik, the great football fans were comparing it with the Swiss third division and voted to agree with my assessment. Contrary to our expectations, the mood in the stadium was disapointing. The few real fans, who were also dressed accordingly, could not even keep up with the 500 spectators in a game of FSV Lok Stendal. It was all in all a fun afternoon. A spectator behind us commented on the game all the time as though he was the coach. The real coach on the other hand looked very funny. With its jeans and sweater, his white running shoes and his (original comment by Jonas) Czech hairdo, a reminiscence of so many Eastern European coaches of the early nineties. The stadium again had even a large digital display, which reproduced the intermediate results of the other games. The game ended 2-1 in favor of La Paz.
The Stadium
Dramatic free kick scene
The fan crowd behind us…
The fan block of the other side
The true supporters
East European look alike trainer
Goal for La Paz – still not a reason to get too crazy…
We left the stadium frozen and went back with the other fans in the city center. We could see only two other Western in the audience, but otherwise there were only locals who attended the game.
In front of the Stadium
On the way back we passed in front of the Ministry for production, commerce and export, which look as clear as the economic condition of the country (see photo). We crossed the now somewhat more lively downtown and decided to go eat Indian. For about five euros per dish, we got excellent Indian food (with a local particularity: the choice of lama meat), drank a beer and then we were ready to go bed early.
the Ministry for production, commerce and export
“If there is no clients then I watch my Telenovelas…” (very typical scene in the street)
Music on the street
On Monday, we wanted to prepare for the ascent of Huayna Potosi. We went back to the Andean Base Camp shop and asked the Swiss owner for the details. Dominik and Jonas, meanwhile, set in the direction of Lake Titicaca and we said goodbye in the morning. In the base camp, we learned that the weather was only ok for the climb, as much snow was expected. It was possible to do it, but we were told that it would be better to wait. As we were now so long in La Paz and we did not want to wait any longer in the city, so after much consideration we decided to wait for the climb of the 6,088 m high mountain, and continue to drive towards Sucre. Even the cold climate in the 3800m high La Paz bugged us now and we were looking forward to go more South, to lower altitude and warmer Sucre. When asked which bus operator we should take, the Swiss recommended the company El Dorado with the statement: “You should already take one of the more expensive operators. There, the drivers are less drunk” Even concerning the Hyuana Potosi’s guide of our hostel he reported:“.. Ah, Miguel, yes I think he does not drink anymore during the climb” And Miguel’s son, who also was a mountain guide He said: “Yes his son, sometimes he leaves his customers earlier to watch football.” So we knew what to expet and that stood a good chance for another chapter of senseless “guides” in Latin America …
So we took the good bus company El Dorado and took the night bus to Sucre. We let ourselves to have some luxury and took “cama”, the 1st class, which cost us 14 € for the nearly twelve-hour ride. When we saw the bus we were very relieved because this was a brand new bus of Marco Polo (Mercedes Benz) and was comparable to those of buses in Peru. In the first class there were only three seats next to each other and there was enough room and enough leg room to get enough sleep. However, like so often, the ride turned out to be special again…
Off for a while 
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