Denouement Diaries

Essentially the ramblings of two adults that probably require adult supervision.

As usual, follow along at:

And...here. Anyway let's get into it:

6/4/23 - Day 57: Iguazu Falls (but more wet)

Roll out of bed
Rainy day
Buffet breakky
We wanted to get one of the boats up to the waterfalls but yesterday was told at the ticket office that we could just book on the day
Sent our taxi driver a message to come and get us
Her husband picked us up in his taxi
Got to the entrance to the park
He helped us do a bit of chatting with the ticket office but we were happy to just sort it out
Got our park tickets and boat ride tickets
Then got back on the Iguaçu bus down towards the waterfalls
Off at the boat stop
Bought the tickets
Then on to the little electric golf buggy trailer thing for a ride through the jungle to the river
I annoyed Casey, because I am annoying
We are already very wet
Stopped at a couple of trees along the way where the tour guide said some stuff
Then Casey walked along the path for the last little bit
I stayed on the cart
Raining and we were very wet already anyway
To the boat stop
I got a locker and stored our stuff and shoes
We got on the boat barefoot
I was literally the only person without a poncho or spray jacket
I was to be vindicated...
Boat was cool
Drove into some waterfalls
Completely soaked
No remaining dryness
Back to the dock
We got a Coke and Doritos to chill for a minute as we drip dried
I took my shirt off and wrung it out over the sink in the toilet
Electric buggy back
Bus back
Cab back
Completely soaked the whole time
Hot showers at the hotel
Chilled in the lobby cafe with coffees and a chocolate Easter egg from Gramado and hot chips
Cruisy afternoon
Tried to dry our clothes for the travel day tomorrow
No success
Buffet dinner was excellent
Casey was fretting because her Instagram post didn’t get enough likes...

7/4/23 - Day 58: Iguazu --> Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia

Travel day
Up a bit earlier and packed up
Breakfast buffet as usual
Then went and grabbed our bags and checked out
We had organised another taxi but they couldn’t come - they told us like 10 minutes before they were to pick us up
So the reception got us another one
Arrived straight away
Off to the airport
Easy check in
Short flight in an exit row with lots of space
To São Paulo airport which is absolutely massive, just huge
Eventually found the international check in
Back through security
And to our gate
Got some chicken bites and coffee from Starbucks
Couple of girls with crazy plastic Brazilian bums floating around
Then on to the flights for a few hours
No issues
Out through immigration
Then just found some ATMs in Santa Cruz de la Sierra airport to get some cash out
In to a cab
Then in to the city
We have decided that, almost universally, the cab ride in to a city gives one the worst represtation of said city
The place looked dank
But we realised that the streets were quiet because it was good Friday and there were parades planned in the centre of town
So as we got closer to the centre, less quiet
To the hotel
Easy check in
The place is very modest, and not a luxury complex in the Iguazu-adjacent jungle...
Went our for a walk, went the wrong way first, but then easily found the centre square
Packed with people observing mass
A priest and the whole gang of altar boys and nuns were all dressed up and doing their thing
Keen for dinner, we found a fantastic Italian place off the square
Excellent pizza and lasagna
Then stopped off at a crazy busy kids place/dinner place/family place/ball pit thing on the way home
Nice coffee and ice cream and rainbow cake for Casey
Then back to the hotel and did a lttle bit of booking
We are thinking we will jump on an organised tour of Peru as a shortcut to making sure we get a Machu Picchu ticket

8/4/23 - Day 59: Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia

Breakfast in the hotel was a bit shit
So had a couple of coffees then wandered into town
Looked around the town square
Then to a caffee for good coffee and a pastry
Wandered up to another little park in Santa Cruz with a lake in it
Back towards the plaza
Found a shop that does great Acai bowls
Then wandered back home via a couple of shops - Casey bought a couple of new tops
Read for a little while in the sitting area downstairs of our hotel
Then got sorted for Casey's pole sessions - she had been invited to host some classes here
Uber'd to the Pole gym
I waited around with Casey until she was sorted and had a finish time
Then I walked back home via Starbucks for a coffee
Read and pottered
Then Uber'd back to pick her up after a couple of hours
Had to wait outside for a little bit because all the students wanted pictures with her!!
Then Uber back into town to the same Italian place - we weren't in the mood to hunt tonight
Then wandered home
Sleeps

9/4/23 - Day 60: Santa Cruz + Animal Sanctuary

Sleep in
Skipped hotel breakfast
Just went to one of the crazy kid's places for breakfast - was fine
Then wandered into the Centro for some coffees
Slow day
Eventually decided to go to a hotel/conservation park thing - Biocentro Guembe
We got there a little before 1500 - which is when the entry price is half price
We refused to go in
We sat and waited until 1500...to get half price entry
It was quite good
There are a bunch of pools for hotel/weekend people along with a couple of big aviary/butterfly enclosures among many hectares of jungle gardens
Was alright
Uber home then had dinner at a Harry Potter themed restaurant - the food was average but the decor was fun
Walked home
Watched 'Polar' on Netflix

10/4/23 - Day 61: Santa Cruz --> La Paz, Bolivia

Travel day
Had a coffee and some fruit at our hotel breakfast
Packed up and checked out
Strolled in to town and got some good açai bowls for a proper breakfast
Then across the road to Starbucks for a good coffee and to use their internet for an Uber
Uber to the airport was quite easy
Then easy check in
Made camp and got some snacks
Flight was only about an hour
Amazing mountain scenery coming in to La Paz
Landed
Realised we were at about 3500m elevation
Do I feel short of breath already?
Had to get some cash out
The ATM took my card for about 10 minutes and wouldn’t give money
Slightly concerning
Another ATM was fine
Cab into our accomodation
We descended about 500m just driving into town
Amazing
Checked in
Then had a wander of the streets
Did some housekeeping - got some deodorant and new toothbrush etc
Saw a protest going on - heap of riot police, fireworks being let off, someone lit a fire - nothing too drastic though
Then found an alley of restaurants
Awesome burger place - we happened to be really hungry
Then a pastry place afterwords for a coffee and a snack
Chilled and reading at home
Am I already tired from the altitude?

11/4/23 - Day 62: La Paz

Woke up and had some breakky at the hotel
Then wandered up towards the San Francisco Basilica
Had some time to kill before a walking tour
So had a coffee in a cafe on the side of the square
An American was bellowing a conversation at some poor Brtitish woman
Lord give me the confidence of a young American Tourist explaining how the world works...
Anyway we found our tour guir, Fernando, who was ecellent, and the few other tour members
The tour was excellent
La Paz is a striking city, elevation changes of 500m in the cross city Teleferico
After the tour finished we grabbed some lunch at a little hole in the wall
It was very bad food...
Anyway we wandered back towards our unit
We followed the riot police on the way to the next riot...
Chilled at our unit for a bit then went and grabbed a coffee and some pastries
Casey got her nails done
Then around 1800 I dropped Casey off at her next pole class
I vegged for a while
Then we went to a Japanese restaurant for dinner
Was excellent

12/4/23 - Day 63: Lapaz + Tiwanaku

Tour day
Up a bit earlier
And went to the hotel breakfast early for a coffee
Then walked up the road to near where Casey's pole class is as the pick up point
Van came
Lovely fellow took our ticket
And we piled in with the rest of the tour
About 2 hours out to the site
La Paz traffic must be some of the worst in the world
Just endless mountain cutback streets in the inner metro
Got out to the site
Very nice
It was called - Tiwanaku
Very history
We think the guide was probably leaning a little too much into Bolivianism with his estimates of the age of the site at many thousands of years but fine
Wandered around
Saw some cool monoliths
Lunch at the little village out there
Not too bad
Then toured the museum
Then back to La Paz
More awful traffic
Walked home and chilled for a bit
Then went for a coffee at a place I had spotted - the Selina hotel
Had a heap of tourists in it
But very good coffee
Best coffee since Ana y Juana in Ushuaia we think
Casey went straight to her next pole class from there
I came home and sorted some global roaming and watched a movie - 'The spinning man on prime
Went and picked up Casey at 2100
Got a street burger on the way home
It was awesome

Stay tuned...