A short while after we started or walk in the morning, we saw a few hills that were riddled with white veins - silicium. Playing around with the stuff was quite funny because it breaks really easily, and so we ended up crumbling pieces in our fingers. A couple of minutes later, there was another hill with silicium. Only this time, pressure had made the silicium a lot harder so that it appeared like glass, very pretty:
A little later we crossed a swampy area with paths laid out with lots of stepping stones:
For most of the day, we hiked along a big red river, and the scenery on the other shore was amazing:
These spectacular rocks with hats were next to the river, too:
Our lunch spot was in front of this house. The family who used to live here abandoned it when they went to Argentina in search for better paid work.
After lunch, we crossed the river and started climbing up to the crater of Maragua. Halfway up, we were rewarded by seeing this magnificent cactus flower:
The geology in this area makes some rivers flow in a strange way - note the 180° change of direction in the following picture:
Geology also leads to a wide spectrum of beautifully colored mountains, like in this valley:
By the time we finally made it to the Maragua crater, my legs were killing me... But the view of the crater and the village within was definitely worth it!
While we were having a short break to admire the crater, a couple of donkeys came running along. At first, they seemed to be alone - I only noticed later that there was a girl looking after them, following them in the fields just off the road.
There are three theories how the crater of Maragua could have been formed: some say it used to be a lake, some say a volcano, some say it is a meteorite crater - but nobody seems to know which theory is true. Anyway, the rock formations inside the crater were wonderful:
Just before dinner, I did a little hike on my own (because the others didn't feel like doing more hiking), to a spot the volunteer Renee had suggested I see. The path first led to a small waterfall:
But the real attraction was a rock formation called Garganta del Diablo - the devil's throat. What an amazing sight - it actually really looks like there's a devil about to eat you!
We spent our second night in a village called Irapampa. With about 100 families, Irapampa is a pretty big village, and there is a school with 250 pupils who come here from as far as three hours of walking away. The school is supported by condor trekkers: they help buy meals for the kids who stay at the school during the week, and also buy pencils and paper for the school.
In the evening, our guide talked a bit about tribal customs in Bolivia. Apparently, animal sacrifices - mostly llamas - are really common.They are done as an offering to the earth mother Pachamama, to ask for luck, or good crops, or similar things. It is also considered good luck to bury a llama fetus in the ground just before building a new house.
I already knew all this, but what I didn't know was that apparently there is also one tribe that sacrifices newborn babies by burying them alive, a custom they may have inherited from the Inca. The previous president made a law prohibiting this, but under the new president - the much-supported Evo Morales - the law is not enforced. I just can't wrap my head around why, in a country with low life expectancy and high child mortality rates, it should be considered lucky to kill a healthy, living newborn. Doesn't it go against all good common sense?
A little later we crossed a swampy area with paths laid out with lots of stepping stones:
For most of the day, we hiked along a big red river, and the scenery on the other shore was amazing:
These spectacular rocks with hats were next to the river, too:
Our lunch spot was in front of this house. The family who used to live here abandoned it when they went to Argentina in search for better paid work.
After lunch, we crossed the river and started climbing up to the crater of Maragua. Halfway up, we were rewarded by seeing this magnificent cactus flower:
The geology in this area makes some rivers flow in a strange way - note the 180° change of direction in the following picture:
Geology also leads to a wide spectrum of beautifully colored mountains, like in this valley:
By the time we finally made it to the Maragua crater, my legs were killing me... But the view of the crater and the village within was definitely worth it!
While we were having a short break to admire the crater, a couple of donkeys came running along. At first, they seemed to be alone - I only noticed later that there was a girl looking after them, following them in the fields just off the road.
There are three theories how the crater of Maragua could have been formed: some say it used to be a lake, some say a volcano, some say it is a meteorite crater - but nobody seems to know which theory is true. Anyway, the rock formations inside the crater were wonderful:
Just before dinner, I did a little hike on my own (because the others didn't feel like doing more hiking), to a spot the volunteer Renee had suggested I see. The path first led to a small waterfall:
But the real attraction was a rock formation called Garganta del Diablo - the devil's throat. What an amazing sight - it actually really looks like there's a devil about to eat you!
We spent our second night in a village called Irapampa. With about 100 families, Irapampa is a pretty big village, and there is a school with 250 pupils who come here from as far as three hours of walking away. The school is supported by condor trekkers: they help buy meals for the kids who stay at the school during the week, and also buy pencils and paper for the school.
In the evening, our guide talked a bit about tribal customs in Bolivia. Apparently, animal sacrifices - mostly llamas - are really common.They are done as an offering to the earth mother Pachamama, to ask for luck, or good crops, or similar things. It is also considered good luck to bury a llama fetus in the ground just before building a new house.
I already knew all this, but what I didn't know was that apparently there is also one tribe that sacrifices newborn babies by burying them alive, a custom they may have inherited from the Inca. The previous president made a law prohibiting this, but under the new president - the much-supported Evo Morales - the law is not enforced. I just can't wrap my head around why, in a country with low life expectancy and high child mortality rates, it should be considered lucky to kill a healthy, living newborn. Doesn't it go against all good common sense?
