it would takes pages upon pages to type out all of the stories that came out of our little trip, so instead of spending so much time writing out all the probably boring details, i’ll just give you what would be the chapter titles and a quick description if i were to write a book about the trip:
- journey east on the death train- our journey from santa cruz to san jose de chicuitos on an eight hour train they call “the death train” for some unknown reason that only cost $3
a really cool picture i took while on the train (i think the train ride may have been one of my favorite parts!) - samuel, his classy taxi, and the town of san josé- in san josé we stayed an orphanage called padre alfredo (katie works at the santa cruz branch of the orphanage) for free and then went on a tour of the city with our taxi driver/guide samuel (see picture of him and his car)
the girls with samuel's sweet car. he jokingly told us that it was the latest model in san josé, but hey, it got the job done!
- three flat tires and a three kilometer hike later…- turns out we missed the only bus out of san josé for the weekend so we had to negotiate a cut rate taxi ride to the next town on the circuit, san Rafael, with our trust taxi driver Samuel. the 130 km bumpy, incredibly dusty dirt road took us about 5 hours to travel, including three flat tires, and finally having to walk the last 3 km into town because we had run out of spares and the car couldn’t drive with all four of us on a flat tire. this was definitely one of the most memorable of our experiences on the trip.
- the screams in hell must sound like roosters- we arrived (walking) to san rafael pretty late, got dinner, and then found a hostel. the hostel was really basic, but it wasn’t too bad… until the roosters started crowing 15 ft outside our door at 2:30 in the morning and didn’t stop until we left to catch our bus at 6:00 in the morning. none of us slept well at all and i now cringe at the sound of a rooster call.
- santa ana: the underrated jewel of the jesuit missions- the next stop was santa ana, a very rustic village with a cool little lake. it felt genuinely bolivian and was one of our favorite stops, but we were only there for the afternoon.
- luxury living in san ignacio… NOT!- next came san ignacio, the headquarters of the restoration project and the biggest town in the circuit were we stayed in a very cheap hostel. but we definitely got what we paid for. the pictures speak for themselves… but the town was really nice.
super classy place... - i’m now a bolivian cowgirl- while we were in san Ignacio we went horseback riding around the outside of town and around a big lake which was really fun, and super cheap. a little over an hour for less than $3!
- the first shower in four days!- the church in concepción was one of my favorite b/c it had really beautiful details, but sadly my camera decided to freak out just in time for me to not be able to take pics of it (luckily Aubrey got some great ones, but still really frustrating, b/c it’s still not working). we weren’t in concepción for too long, but highlights of our stay include the nicest hostel we stayed in (where we finally got to shower) and a couple great meals
- a long bus ride home- and then we headed home and all of us were squirming to get off the bus by the time we finally got back
the church in san ignacio
so there’s a few snippets of the trip! i can’t wait to tell you some of the full stories when I talk to you in person or when i get home in just over 3 weeks. oh how quickly the time has gone. i only have a week and a half left in bolivia. and in the mean time, the volunteer house has filled to the brim. i think we have 8 people in the house now and i’ve heard 3 are coming this week. a couple are leaving soon too, but still i’m not sure where everyone will go. i hardly know what to do with so many people around, but i think having such a full house will make for a fun last bit of time here. please keep praying for my relationships with my fellow volunteers and for the work that’s going on in the orphanage.
well i love you all and miss you so much. please stay in touch. i’d love to hear how life’s going at home!
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