China (Pingyao, Xi'an, Chegdu, Shanghai) and Macau

I took a trip yesterday to this tiny, tiny island off the coast of Hong Kong called Macau. It was once the silk trading post of Asia and one of the most important trading posts in the world. That's until the rest of the world clued in, into the value of silk, and started colonizing islands near Macau...i.e., the British and Hong Kong.

It was discovered by the Portuaguese back at the start of the 16th century and today you can still see many remnants of Portuguese life..such as the food (LOVE my Portuguese custard tarts), the architecture (colonial buildings), the religion (Catholic churches) and the language (signs in Portuguese and Cantonese; Portuguese is still considered an official language). But who are we kidding? Macau is 99% Chinese today. Didn't really run into many Albertos youknowwhatImsayin?

Anyways, enough of the history lesson. Today the 2.5 sq km island has become bastardized and is full of Casinos and hotels. The Casino magnate, Steve Wynn, is building the exact same hotel he has in Las Vegas. The duty free port is turning into the Las Vegas of Asia. Nice place to get away if you gamble and like to spend money. It's about an hour away from Hong Kong. You take a high speed Jet Foil (no not like a hovercraft - I was 'confused' as well). It's basically a ferry that goes really really fast and has two skis in the front. Picture putting two skis in the front of a boat and there is your Jet Foil.

One thing about China, is you have to carefully read the signs and expect the minimum....because if you take all their propaganda and signage litterally, you may be disappointed. Like calling the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvest in the Temple of Heaven (Beijing), "civilization's most precious treasure". Whoa. Really? I did not know that.

Or how about the Oriental Pear Tower, pictured here, declared the tallest tower in the world at around 468 metres. Really? In the World's Most Famous Towers display at the Oriental Pearl Tower, where was the CN Tower (at 553 metres) or the Eiffel Tower, or Empire State Building for that matter. BUT they did have Mexico's Torre Mayor on display (at 225 metres).

Anyways, my point is not to rant about the Chinese. I thoroughly enjoyed the experience in more ways than I could have imagined. It's a culture in transition. I take back the comment on China becoming the next empire however. After being there, you realize that their market operates in La La land. Its currency is not traded internationally and is pegged against the Hong Kong dollar. There is really no quality control in China, like the rest of the Western world which drives up the bottom line costs on our product. If China wanted to compete globally, there is no way that other countries would say, "yeah sure, we'll continue following the rules, while you guys do what you want". That being said, are the Chinese going to fall in the demonic trap of North Americans that constantly want more goods and better technologies...for no other reason...other than why not? If no, then China will do ok. If people are happy with the basic necessities then China doesn't need the rest of the world. But who are we kidding? The Chinese are going to want more 'things'...just like the rest of the world.

Anyway, my trip in China lasted a couple of weeks. I was in Pingyao (pronounced Ping-yow), Xi'an (pronounced She-an) , Chengdu (pronounced Chang-do), Shanghai...well you know how to pronounce it. I liked Pingyao the most by far because it was a 'quaint' village of 1 million people unlike the other cities of 5-17 million people. It reminded me of the village, Parmistan, in the 80's movie Gymkata. Yes, I did go Gymkata to all you ninja fans out there.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0089243/

All the places in China I visited were on the Mid Eastern interior and the Eastern coastline. I will draw up a map one of these days to track my route. I liked Pingyao the most because it was this really ancient city that STILL felt ancient. Apart from all the Chinese tour groups waving their flags and taking their pictures with me (like I was a celebrity), I felt like I was taken back in time. It was all about the people watching. There's nothing quite like watching a cart full of hay and human caca ('the morning soil'), first thing in the morning, being carried down the street to be sold as fetilizer. Or taking pictures of a wedding parade go by, as the firecrackers dragged behind the electric carts snake towards me and almost explode at my feet. Or saying Nee-how and nee-how ma and watching the expressions on the Chinese faces.

Anyways, Chengdu was all about the Pandas and Xi'an was all about the Terracotta Warriors. Here are some pics. Shanghai was all about the smog and the freakin congestion of people and getting a new credit card sent to me. Don't ask. Didn't lose my card this time. Just some good ol' fraud happening at a tea house I visited in Beijing.

I traveled with this really cool Aussie for most of my trip. Paul, 48 and from Australia, had done and seen it all. It was good to have somebody to talk/ complain to on the night trains, as someone was hawking a big loogie next to you or some little kid was peeing in between the train cars. And what better way to spend a good night's sleep crammed in a 6 bunk bed compartment with 5 other Chinese dudes and no air conditioning. Mmm mm mmm, is that eau de onion I smell?

Finally, I have some important news to make. While traveling, Caroline, my ex-girlfriend (affectionately known to me as 'Bunny'), and I started talking again. After many emails and phone calls I am happy to say that we are back together again. She is the love of my life and I know now what I truly want. I want to be with her and only her. Can't wait to see her again to SHOW her. BTW, use Skype at http://www.skype.com/ and download it for free and buy credits to call land lines or cell phones from your computer...dirt cheap...like C$3 for three hours to Canada.

I am still have two months left of this trip and I am looking forward to Europe. I am flying to London, England tonight and will be staying with my ex-girlfriend Lisa Sanguedolce for a few days as I check out the UK. After that, we'll see. Germany, France, Sweden, maybe Spain, maybe Eastern Europe. It's all up in the air. Day by day, I'll take it from there.

Hope everyone is well. Talk to you soon.

p.s. Pictures to come later. I got to go catch a train. Ciao ciao

China (Beijing)

I am getting ready to leave Beijing....my train is at 7:45pm tonight...it should be interesting. I am traveling with this Australian bloke who has traveled all around the world before. China is old hat for him. The guy knows Mandarin so it should be ok.

Going to this freakin old city called Pingyao...good example of Ming and Qing architecture I was told...like I know what the difference is so don't ask. Anyways, it's been around for 1000 years or something like that...and is relatively well preserved so it should be cool.

I have been in Beijing since Thursday. This city is massive. Surprisingly, it is fairly easy to navigate (as long as you have a Let's Go guidebook...Lonely Planet sucks...Let's Go is the way to go) but it just takes a long time to get anywhere. Hostals are cheap (C$7/ night) and you can eat for about C$1.50 and be splitting at the seams.

I visited Tin'amen Square, Forbidden Palace, a part of the Great Wall (the part was called Mutianyu), and Temple of Heaven. The whole city is getting ready for the Olympics...everything is being refurbished. Everywhere you look, new buildings are being put up...especially to hide the old inner city (the slums) that the government doesn't want you to see.

Of all the places I visited I guess I liked the Great Wall the best. It just didn't have the same impact that I thought it would. I mean who doesn't think of the Great Wall when they are a kid??? The Wall itself is unreal when you think about it (7200 km stretching across China, and you can see it from space) but a lightening bolt didn't hit me 0r I didn't fall to my knees and start crying. The aura, I guess, lost its appeal when I saw a small amusement park next to the Wall...made it feel like Disneyland. Anyways, I climbed it (well not really, I walked a few hundred metres and turned back) and will post pictures later.

The other sites were cool but basically huge parks of cement, buildings or trees and nothingness. One can only take so many pictures of Temples and trees. Plus, yes all the places are very ancient, but sometimes you wonder how a 900 year old temple look so sparkling new...hmm. Pictures to come later.

I guess the thoughts of Beijing, that I will leave with, will be the following:

1. Its immensity (buildings are huge and stand on their own...not crowded like Toronto or NYC...so it makes everything seem statuesque)
2. The hustlers (wherever you go, you are gonna get hustled...number of times somebody asked if I had been to the Great Wall (20+), number of times somebody told me they were a student and wanted to practice their English and asked where I was from (15+), number of times I told them Earth (5), Beijing (2), Oooga-Ooga Booga Land (3) Uranus (5))
3. The hawkers (not really sure how to spell the word, but it's basically the green/ yellowish substance that builds up in your lungs when you have a cold aka mucous. Whether you are on the bus, walking down the street, waiting for a subway, or in a restaurant..."it don't matter, hawk away"!
4. The people (all in all the people are great here...other than the people trying to rip you off, everyone is warm, outgoing and are always willing to help. I admire their healthy and balanced lifestyle in that you will see people exercising in the park or riding bikes all around the city...young and old. They love Canadians and a lot are just starting now to learn English. Tons of Canadians here)

Anyhoo, it was nice to finally visit Beijing. Will I be back? Who knows...probably not. But never say never. I definitely think China will be the new world empire very soon...it will hit the rest of the world like a Tsunami. Education is becoming more and more prevalent in the household and it's only a matter of time before they copy our technology and have their infrastructures in place. Chinese may be the new language of the future. A billion people...hard to compete with that. My two cents.

See ya in a few days. Stay safe.

China (Shenzhen, Beijing)

Nee-how, I am in Beijing now. I took a train this morning at 7am from Hong Kong to Shenzhen, got fitted for my tuxedo, and then grabbed a cab to the airport.

The language barrier has proved to be somewhat of a challenge, as anticipated. My conversation with the cabbie went something like this, "Airport". "Airport, ok". "Fast, me late". "Airport, ok. 250 Yuan, ok"? "No, not ok. Put meter on". "Huh? Ok, airport. 250 Yuan. We go". "No, we no go. Put meter on". "Huh, we go now, fast". "No, me go fast out of your cab if you don't put the meter on". "Ohhhhh. Ooooon. Meter on. Oooook (as he muttered something under his breath)".

I did love the fact that I could walk into the airport and purchase a plane ticket for Beijing that day (1000km)...for a little more than C$100! Albeit, it was more difficult than the cab...but worth it.

Anyhow, I know the hello, good-bye, where, how are you, and have you been to the races lately, but that's it. This language is tough. It doesn't follow the conjugation structure of the Germanic or Romantic languages...as for the writing...riiiiiiiiiight. All this has made me appreciate how difficult it must be for Asian people to live in our culture...I was just imaginging myself driving here, trying to find the right exit...I have trouble finding the right exit in English let alone in Mandarin. It's going to be interesting. Checking out Tin'amen Square, Forbidden Palace, the Great Wall, and Temple of Heaven while I am here. I'm winging it thus far so we shall see what happens.

Hope everyone is well. Will be emailing soon. Here is a clip for a good laugh, that my friend Bruce Pon sent to me...recognize anyone?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BIeIWkK0t4s&search=evolution%20of%20dance

Hong Kong and on my way to China

Ok, so the long and drawn out posts are now over. However, I still have about 3 weeks of new posts. Will try to keep it succinct...

Currently on the Asia leg of my journey. Arrived in Hong Kong on April 19th of April. Staying with my cousin Peter a.k.a. Cousin Pete, who I have known most of my life and who lived up the street from me. He's been living in Hong Kong for about five years, working here as a high school teacher at the Delia School of Canada (a Canadian school that follows the Ontario curriculum).

I've been here for almost three weeks, at my cousin's place in Tai Koo (on Hong Kong Island). Peter lives with his lovely fiancee Gloria Tsui, who is from Hong Kong. They are getting married this summer in Halifax - one of the primary reasons I am returning to Canada on August 9th.

Loving Asia thus far, largely due to my great hosts in Peter and Gloria. Nice to be around family again, this time on my father's side, after a long flight. They have spolied me rotten with some delicious meals. They have also taken me sight seeing all over Hong Kong and introduced me to some Hong Kong culture (Dim Sum - lunch, Yum Cha - brunch).

Hong Kong is a city to shop and make money so if you like to shop and make money, come to Hong Kong...you will not be disappointed. In terms of sightseeing, I've seen some cool things (Victoria Peak, 10,000 Buddhas, Hong Kong city skyline, baboons on trails) and some over-rated things (world's largest sitting Buddha built in 1980's).

First impressions: fast-paced international city with a high Canadian content (some neighbourhoods remind me of Toronto ), nightlife that won't quit, hot but humid (I've grown accustomed to the three shower/ day routine), excellent transport system (two subway/ train lines, trams, buses, ferries, cabs are reasonable), super clean considering the amount of people on a tiny island, wealthy (Bentleys are old hat here), tall, chaotic yet peaceful (lots of parks here), friendly (anyone I have asked for help, has gone out of their way to help me), large expat contingent...

I've nestled in nicely to this place. Partied with an old friend from highschool/ university days, Sukru Kesebi, who has been living in HK for two years working as a lawyer for Deutsche Bank. Guy flew up from Singapore to join us for a week of partying in Lan Kwai Fung and Wan Chai. Props to Sukru who is also a fabulous host. He knows the town like the back of his hand. Speaking of backhands, I am taking Kung Fu classes (a southern Chinese form called Hung Gar) and I've also tried out Muay Thai (kickboxing). But it's beginning to feel a little too much like home so I must depart now...

For China. First stop...Shenzhen (was already there with Guy for a brief two day trip), just past the Hong Kong/ Chinese border for a tux fitting and then I will grab a plane to Beijing. Will make my way south, hitting Shanghai along the way. We'll see where my journey takes me. Bought a Let's Go China guidebook this time...appears to be better than Lonely Planet. Who knows

See you on the flip side. Tzie way!

Argentina (Buenos Aires) and on my way to Hong Kong - Last of the DDD Blogs

Ok, this is the last blog for South America. Also, I have posted pictures to most of my previous links so enjoy and here we go...

My flight to BA was not direct. I had to connect through Santa Cruz, Bolivia, which is in the mideast of the country. Unlike, La Paz (picture below is La Paz), Santa Cruz is characterized for its low elevation (500m), tropical ambiance (the amazon is next door), and warm and humid climate. It also has a good nightlife. Unfortunately, I was not able to visit Santa Cruz this time around. Most people told me that once you go there, you don't want to leave. Well, I got there and I wanted to leave...I was anxious to get to Buenos Aires...the city that I had originally intended to spend a month in. That intention turned into 4 short days.

Arrived in BA at around 2pm. Man, I was tired. Had no hotel booked as per usual. The airport was a ghost town..as was the city - it was a national holiday. After getting jammed for changing Bolivianos to Pesos (reminder: spend all your Bolivianos before you leave Bolivia), I grab a bus to my hostal. The airport in BA is far! I arrive at my hostal an hour and half later after all the bus connections. Check into my hostal which is located in Palermo. Palermo and its neighbouring district, Recoletta, are considered the ritzier districts of Buenos Aires. I stayed in San Telmo when I first arrived in Argentina, two months prior, and I wasn't feeling the vibe there. Palermo was nice. This is where you really see the European side of BA.

Buenos Aires went by so fast...it felt more like a dream. As I only had aboput 3 and half days in BA, I wanted to make sure I accomplished the following:

1 see a Boca Jrs. soccer game at Boca Stadium,
2 take a tango class or see a tango show, and
3 go clubbing

I shared my dorm room with a couple of Australians, Tipper and Johnny. Tipper was built like a brick shithouse, a carpenter, who at first I thought built "steak houses" maybe shithouses too...I later found out that he was saying "staircases". He was traveling the world with his skateboard for one year. Johnny was built like an ox and was a farmer. Both of these guys were from some little village in the outback (finally, I meet some Australians that aren't from Sydney and Melbourne). Cool guys.

We join the rest of the hostal, for an asado that evening...which basically consists of pounding back as much steak, wine, and salad as you can, until you either want to throw up or pass out. I pass out. Wzke up at 2:15am to the tune of..."knock, knock". It's Tipper..."Let's go mate, the bus is waiting, the bus is waiting"! Huh? Who, what? The bus that was taking us to one of BA's more famous nightclubs, Pacha (same club as in Ibiza, Spain). So I get up, breath smelling real gooooood, clothes, that I have been wearing all day, smelling equally as goooooood. Jump on the bus with all the other drunk hostal monkeys.

We arrive at the club at 2:30am. Place looks decent but no different than a Guvernment in Toronto or Space in Miami. Walk in...the classic techno beats are radiating from the speaker. I'm finished drinking for the evening. I pound back a cheap imitation of Red Bull called Speed. Tastes like cough medicine. The club is jammed. Can barely move. Good times. Hit the floor. Tipper is doing a dance that I have never seen before...seems more like convulsing, like he's having a seizure attack. He appears to be growing more and more bitter to all the Argentenians sporting mullets and aviator glasses and dancing on the speakers. I can't figure out whether his frustration lies with their style or he wants speaker priority. The music was actually really good. Techno downstairs (packed)...crappy house upstairs (empty). Club stays open...I leave at 5:30am. I was wiped.

Wake up at noon, or so, the next day. Can't remember. Stumble around. Decide I will go to see a Boca Jrs game that evening for 140 pesos. I later find out from an Israeli staying at the hostal that bleacher seats (where all the hooligans are) cost only 14 pesos. Feck. Actually, here is six degrees of separation for you. First, the Israeli, looked like my friend Bruce Pon (Brucey Bruce)...except he wasn't Chinese. Second, the guy spoke excellent English (Canadian no doubt) because he studied at Delia School of Canada in Hong Kong, where my cousin happens to teach. Daft. Anyway, Boca Jrs is this famous soccer team in Argentina (think Montreal Canadiens in hockey, New York Yankees in baseball, LA Lakers in basketball, etc.). The reason they are so famous, is not only because they win all the time but because the great Diego Maradona played for them (think Wayne Gretzky, Michael Jordan, Babe Ruth). Anyway, I had yet to see a soccer game in South America and what better way to end a trip.

After going to the city zoo up the street for a couple of hours (a most excellent zoo - blows Toronto's away), while Johnny explained Outback farmlife, which included how to gut a Kangaroo to catch lobster (by the way, don't eat Kangaroo...filthy animal...full of worms), we grabbed the bus to Boca Stadium. Boca stadium lies in the district of Boca ("mouth") next to San Telmo. It is considered the blue collar district of BA and many tourists are apprehensive of going there alone. I went with a tour group so it was all good. It is nearly impossible to get seating other than bleacher seating, unless you have season tickets or have corporate tickets. The first level behind the goals are bleachers (standing room only). The second level behind the goals, are dedicated to fans who cheer on the team. These fans get paid by the Boca Jrs. to travel arounnd the country to cheer for Boca, setting up banners, singing songs, cheering, etc. That is all they do. That is their job. Nice gig. The entire third level is for season and corporate ticket holders as is the rest of the stadium except a private box at the center line, which is where, you guessed it...el Diego sits. The stadium was plastered with portraits and signs of Diego Maradona. Cool, but kind of weird how this guy is worshipped. I sat in the third level and I nearly froze. It was now autumn in BA and temperatures had dipped to 10 or so. What a difference two months made, when it was 35 degrees Celcius upon arriving in Argentina.

The game was actually pretty freakin boring (like this post). The most exciting part was watching the fans jump up and down, sing, and go crazy when Boca scored. I actually ran into Ramiro, my Argentenian roommate in Mendoza. His seats were next to mine. I thought I lost contact with the guy after losing his email. Small world. Anyway, made plans to go out the following night.

The next day I woke up early. I had yet to really explore BA since arriving. So I hit up Avenida Libertador and decided to walk from Palermo to the Centro ("downtown") disctrict. Boutiques and exotic car dealerships lined the streets. I must have run into 10 parks and 5 or 6 museums in the course of three hours. Parks and museums are abundant in this city. It was such a beautiful day. I just tried to step back and take it all in...so I took a snooze in one of the parks.

BA just has so much going for it...the food, music, people, culture. I wish I spent more time in BA. It is one of my favorite cities. I highly recommend it to anyone. It is basically like going to Europe, but you eat, sleep, and party like a King or Queen (as long as the C$ keeps on tearing along).

That night I went to see a Tango show in Centro (Michael Angelo - cost $60) since I did not have time to take lessons. The place was a dinner theatre...it was pretty formal...I was lookin' good in my backpacker attire of course. I went with this cool American couple that reminded me a lot of my friend Mark Knodell and his wife Erika. Bill was from Pittsburgh. He had married Marcela, who was from Costa Rica. They were only in BA a couple of weeks on vacation, which is a perfect place to go for couples. Saw some amazing Tango and had an an even better steak dinner. It must have been 24 ounces. Again, wine was all you could drink. Left the show feeling fat, drunk and allllright. Met up with Ramiro for a drink. It was a Monday night so not a lot was going on, other than drunk Brits trying to pick up Argentenians with plaitnum blond hair. Gee, I wonder what they are doing on a Monday night.

Tuesday was my last day in South America. Woke up, packed my stuff, had a big breakfast and hit Florida Street with Bill and Marcela (one of BA's more popular shopping districts) for some new threads. I wanted to buy a leather jacket...so I did. After getting harrassed by a half a dozen street vultures, to come look at leather jackets two blocks away from their actual store, I found my jacket. I widdled the guy down to $150. So I am now lugging around a leather coat, with my backpacker gear and of course my Kriss Kross pants, around the world. Makes sense. After a full day of shopping, we hopped in a cab to the airport. My flight to Hong Kong was at 8:20pm.

Don't cry for me Argentina..I'll be back

In total it took me 30 hours of flying time to get to Hong Kong. I flew through NYC and London to get to HK. Flew American Airlines to NYC on Tuesday. Sat next to an elder Uruguayan lady...talked about the movie Alive, the only piece of jibberish I knew about Uruguay. 12 hours later we arrive in NYC. Ran to Terminal 7 to catch my connecting flight...with my 10 kilo, burnt rasberry, pleather - 1970's ol' school luggage - full of souvenirs - in hand. Flew British Airways to London from NYC. 6 hours. Arrive in London at 9:30pm. Connecting flight to HK at 10:15pm. Run...again, with my handsome piece of luggage...through Heathrow terminal...de ja vu? Seemed like the labrynth of Heathrow would never end. Run Lola Run. I make it to the gate as everyone is boarding. Fly British Airways again to HK. I don't mind...stock up on movies, music, candy and wine. 12 hours. Arrive in HK at 5:20pm on Thursday...what happened to Wednesday?

Cousin Pete is waiting for me at the airport...

with a Jamon y Queso sandwich in hand...

feckin' Jamon y Queso!!!

Almost there - Bolivia Part IV (La Paz, Santa Cruz)

I'm back. The Dear Diary Death Blogs are almost over. Only one more to go after this one...and then pure randomness. As promised, here is the last part on Bolivia...

We drive into La Paz (City of Peace, but discovered in the 1500's for its gold and then later its silver) from El Alto. Incredible. Nestled in a valley over the crest of the mountain is this imaginary city...a Shangri-la...well, maybe not quite, but it was amazing anyway. I couldn't get over how the city had ever come to be...a city of 1.5 million people, 4000 metres above sea level. Think of a cereal bowl...just cereal...no milk. Right.

Ok, so the bus drops me off next to the main bus terminal. Gates are closed because of the strike. Great, where to now?

I start walking. It's almost impossible to get lost in La Paz. I say almost because I am capable of getting lost anywhere. Basically, if you are lost..you walk toward the centre of the city (el Centro)...which is downhill. So I start walking downhill. Run into a cop. Judging by her hair and makeup, she's ready to be on the cover of Cosmo. I ask her where downtown is. She points me in the direction, and tells me to be careful..."La Paz has a problem with fake police". Basically, the real police are dressed in green uniforms and the fake police are not. So, if somebody approaches you and asks for your ID, and is not wearing a grean uniform, run. Right. So after that nice reminder, I jump in a cab and head to my hostal (which I later find out was only a 10 minute walk away). I get jammed 20Bs...or $2.50...I get over it...

Call my Uncle Miguel, who is my mother's eldest brother. He looks more Bolivian/ Arab. My mother looks more Chilean. I first met him when I was 12 or so on my first visit back to Venezuela...he called me "el flaco blanco"...the skinny white kid. Yeah, I loved that. The last time I saw him was in 2002 in Caracas. He had recently moved to La Paz, Bolivia so I thought good time as any to catch up. He tells me to come visit so I jump in another cab. This time it only costs me 12Bs for a 30 minute cab ride. Transportation is plentiful and cheap in La Paz. No subway...but you can take a mini-bus (basically a mini-van), a collectivo (a cab that has a mapped route), or a normal taxi. Make sure you use radio-taxis...the ones that have phone numbers on the side...the non-radio taxis are the ones that mug you. Got it.

My intention was to stay at a hostal in the centre of town, while I went on excursions around and outside the city. Well, those plans changed when I arrived at my Uncle's doorstep in the Zona Sur, which is the affluent suburb of La Paz. The Zona Sur (Southern Zone), is about 400 metres lower than el Centro. Zona Sur and el Centro are like night and day in appearance and bustle. It's also easier to breathe in the Zona Sur and the temperature is slightly warmer. Actually, it only rained a couple of times while I was there and that might have lasted an hour or so. Generally, the weather was cloudy in the morning and sunny by noon. Temperature ranged from 0-5 degrees at night, and 10-20 degrees during the day. The sun was still intense so it was easy to burn if you didn't put on sunscreen.

Back to the story. After traveling for almost two months, it was nice to see some family. My Uncle and I got caught up. I couldn't get over how young my Uncle looked for his age...71 but he looked more like 61. The guy just doesn't age even though he used to smoke two packs a day. South Americans age well. I don't know if it's the altitude or what. Or probably their diet. Who knows. I think I may have counted five bald guys on my entire trip thus far. For all those going bald, forget Hair Club For Men, South America is the answer.

After, I met my Aunt Cecilia, who I had never met and my two cousins, Orieta, 23, and Cecilia, 22. I also met my other Aunt Isabela and my Great Uncle, who had fallen very ill in recent months. The six of them lived on one floor of the house while my other Uncle, Antonio, and his family lived on the level above. The house was massive. Most houses, which is common in South America, are surronded by walls and gates. My family's was no different.

It was cool to finally meet my extended family and learn about my roots in Bolivia. My great grandfather, Miguel Sara Alan, was from Palestine (which would make me 1/8 Arab?...whoa). He moved to Bolivia and had six kids, including my grandfather, Ismael (who was also the eldest). My grandfather, at the age of 21, moved to Santiago, Chile where he met my grandmother. There they had 9 kids (my mother was the middle child). My grandfather later moved to Caracas, Venezuela...where my sister and I were born. My sister now has two children, both born in Canada. Who knows where my kids will be born....not quite there yet. Anyway, all this made me realize that I really have no ties to Venezuela other than having lived and being born there. I feel I have stronger roots to Bolivia and Chile versus Venezuela. Anyway, at the end of the day, I am Canadian and proud of it, eh.

My Aunt and Uncle invited me to stay at their house so I went and got my stuff at the hostal in el Centro...of course I had to pay the hostal 25Bs even though I never stayed there...$3...again, I got over it. Gave my cousin an opportunity to show off her driving skills. If you can drive in La Paz, you can drive anywhere. It's not uncommon to be stuck in traffic on a 40 degree angle hill, flanked by buses inches away, while pedestrians are yelling at you to move or stop. Orieta has been driving since she was 13...she learned from my Aunt Cecilia, who is an even better driver. Anyway, it was an eye-opener but fun. We passed Evo Morales's house/ compound, the president of Bolivia and the famous San Francisco church along the way.

Over the next few days, my family introduced me to some really delicious Bolivian food. Bolivian food staples are basically meat, potatos, and aji (a really spicy salsa). Every meal consists of meat and potatos...more or less. The difference is, is that it has kick. Breakfast (papaya juice...yum) and dinner are light, while lunch is the big meal. Soup is often an accompaniment. Dessert isn't really common...I guess because you are so full by the end of the meal. My Aunts and cousins are amazing cooks (so is my Uncle, when he wants to be) and I can't do them just here. All I can say, is that I packed on more pounds during my stay in La Paz than I have anywhere else. I turned into el gordo.

In total I spent ten days in La Paz. My family took me on a lot of sight seeing adventures. Some of them included: Mercado Rodrigues, which was by far the largest open air market I had ever been to. Cholas from all around were selling their goods, "Hey, caballero, don't you want to buy?...hey, mamita, buy this and take it home". I give Cholas a hard time, I know, but that's because a lot of them have attitude. There are nice ones that get taken advantage of by selfish tourists. But there are also those, that know how to play the game. They know the value of the ol' mighty dollar. Most of them have two or three businesses going at the same time and are driving Land Rovers or Toyota 4runners, which would be considered elite vehicles in Bolivia. These women are considered rich by Bolivian standards, so sometimes it's hard for me to sympathize when they are pumping out cash and not paying any taxes. Anyways, enough generalizations...

I also checked out the Black Market and some other local markets around town. Clothes, electronics, music, movies, housewares...you name it. It's all here. And cheap. I bought a pair of "Gap" jeans that Guy likes to call my Kriss Kross pants, for $15. The made in Peru jeans are still holding up. I bought most of my souvenirs at the Witches Market. Stayed away from the Llama fetuses to bring me good luck (no joke...it was gross). I tried pig ear and Queso Chancho (pig cheese) with my Uncle Miguel. There's nothing like chewing down on a piece of pig cartilidge...not this kid's favourite.

I visited my cousin Cecilia's university. She invited me to see some class presentations (for her Communications class) on the History of Communications in Bolivia. Skits were played out and bands played later on. Yeah, not sure why I really went. At least the class was outside. Met her friends. I was paraded around like a mascot. All in good fun, right?

My Aunt took me to see Valle de la Luna and Mecapaca, a small remote village outside of La Paz. My ears popped as we reached the village, 2800 metres above sea level. The countryside reminded me of Las Vegas and southern California. Sooooo quiet and peaceful. It was a weird senstation. Pretty soon, this countryside will be taken over by the urban sprawl...sad. My Aunt also took me to her coffee factory in Villa Fatima, where her family has been making and exporting Bolivian coffee for over 80 years. Really cool to see how coffee is processed and packaged.

I went to Copacabana. Not Copacabana, Brazil. Definitely not. Copacabana, Bolivia is another little town nestled in the mountains (about 3 hours outside of La Paz) along the coast of Lake Titicaca, where you can eat delicious trout, buy some souvenirs, check out a big church or go to Isla del Sol...which I did. Isla del Sol was an island that was discovered over 10,000 years ago (before Titicaca was a lake) and later used as a sacrificial ground for the Incas. Guess who I met there sipping on a double espresso...you got it...Buddy (see Bolivia Part III for a more detailed description). His name turned out to be Jack and he actually was a pretty cool guy. This was his third round the world trip. His system consists of working for a while and then traveling for a year. He's obviously been everywhere. Made me think...it's actually cheaper to travel than to live in Toronto..if you do it right. He gave me some good pointers anyway.

I traveled down the "World's Most Dangerous Road" via mountain bike, from La Cumbre to Coroico (20 min outside La Paz). It is known as the World's Most Dangerous Road because people and things go flying off of it every year. One guide told me since 1945, 80,000 people have died. I heard it's more like 20,000 (300 people or so * 60 years). Busloads of people have gone off of this mountain. Ex-presidential candidates have been executed and thrown off the mountain. Most recent tour fatalities included a French girl in 2002 looking at some birds in the sky one minute and then next minute, woops, right off the mountain. Or the Israeli girl a couple of years ago who complained about her brakes. The tour company said, don't worry about it..it's all good. Well, it wasn't all good when her brakes gave out and she went flying off. The day before my tour, a girl had gone off the edge because she was freaked out by an oncoming truck. She fell about 3 metres. Had she adavanced 25 feet more, it would have been bye bye. So, I went on a tour with the very reputable Gravity Assisted Mountain Biking. 64km of downhill mountain biking madness and 3600m of vertical descent. It took five hours to get to Coroico. Luckily, we had good weather. My total experience mountain biking ever...once, twice??? Growing up, my mountain bike was for my paper route and driving on pavement, not actually for going down a mountain...AND...I had no clue what all the gears did. Anyways, I got a primer on that and learned quite a bit about the sport that day. It was one of the most intense and exhilerating experiences of my life. Best $60 I had spent thus far. Compton, you would have lerved it.

I actually tried changing my ticket to stay in Bolivia a little longer and extend my time in Buenos Aires. It was a no-go based on the restrictions of my round the world ticket. Unfortunately, for me, getting out of Bolivia was not so easy. American Airlines is the only international carrier that flies into La Paz, like I mentioned before. Although LAB (Bolivian national carrier) and Aerosur (South American carrier) also fly in and out of La Paz, I could not find a flight out of the city from the 11th to the 17th. That would have given me all but one day and one night in Buenos Aires...definitely not enough time. Man, I fecked this up.

Lucky for me, I had an Uncle, Alejandro, who lived in Santa Cruz, Bolivia, and who also happened to be one of the chief pilots for Aerosur. His wife, Marlena, had her own travel agency. Mo-neeeey. With the help of my Aunt Cecilia, they graciously found a ticket for me, out of La Paz to Buenos Aires on the 15th. It cost me US$300 but it was well worth it. I was sad to go. Almost cried but held back. I had grown quite attached to my new extended family. I really enjoyed my time in Boliva and I am definitely going to return, sooner rather than later. Still a lot to see and do.

The next morning, with my Uncle, I grabbed a 5:30am taxi to the airport. "Do You Think I'm Sexy" and "I Ran" by A Flock of Seagulls were some of the song selections that the cabbie chose for me. Of course. What North American does not have that in their cd player right now? Said good-bye and thanks to my Uncle Miguel and grabbed my 8:00am flight to Buenos Aires...the city that never sleeps.