The bus ride to La Paz had been lovely. We had seats that nearly fully reclined and loads of leg space but it was the entrance into the capital which I will never forget. At first the landscape was flat, with mud brick houses lined military straight. I thought this was odd for a capital. Then we turned the corner. Completely encircled by the mountains, La Paz took over every space of ground there was to see. Mud brick buildings jostled for space as they flowed down the sides of the mountains and into the valley, where even more buildings competed for space. At 3660m above sea level it was a city to literally take your breath away.

Ironically, the night bus got us into La Paz sooner than the people taking flights would arrive. We therefore had the opportunity to catch up on some sleep and wander round La Paz before meeting up with the others for dinner.

As a group we booked on a city tour. First stop was the Valley of the Moon. Just outside the city, the landscape has been eroded, to - well - look like the moon. Having seen a Valley of the Moon in Chile this was very different and makes you wonder what people really do think the moon looks like! We drove up over the city to see on high how much the buildings cling to the canyon sides and dominate the valley. It was breathtaking. Next we saw the Cathedral and Presidential Palace. All very lovely but more intriguing was the square and the locals. Again traditional dress dominated and made it an interesting sight. Our final stop was at the Witches Market- so known because you can buy potions and herbs for any problem as well as offerings for the various gods. There were dried llama foetuses and other varieties of dried dead animals, stone carvings and so on. Our guide tried to explain what would be used where and for what. It was quite interesting.

After the tour we attempted to visit San Pedro prison. I had read about it before I got there and wanted to see inside. Inmates at San Pedro have jobs inside the community, pay or rent their accommodation, and often live with their families. The sale of cocaine to visiting tourists gives those inside a significant income and an unusual amount of freedom within the prison walls. We were told to wait for someone to approach us to assist us into the prison. Duly enough an American appeared and told us we needed to go to the police station first and pay some money. Oddly enough he ran off with our money never to be seen again!! We approached the prison guards and tried to get them to let us in but it was a no go. It certainly didn't help when more tourists turned up and started taking pictures. Knowing we now had no chance we gave up and walked off.

Our next day in La Paz was to bike down the famous Death Road. It is 61 kilometres of downhill and so known because it was estimated that 200 to 300 travellers were killed yearly when it was open to vehicles. The road goes from 4,650m above sea level to 1,200m. It is a single lane road (some parts not wider than 3.2m) with sections having a drop off of 600m. One of the local road rules specifies that the downhill driver never has the right of way and must move to the outer edge of the road. This forces fast vehicles to stop so that passing can be negotiated safely. Also, vehicles drive on the left, as opposed to the right like the rest of Bolivia allowing the left hand drive vehicle's driver a better view over his outside wheel, making passing safer. The road has since been closed as a through road and very few vehicles traverse it since a newer, safer road has opened. It is therefore perfect for the bike fanatics.

We rose early to be kitted out for our adventure. Overalls and helmets complete with mountain bike were all we required. A van took us to the start of the road and after a few minutes practise we were ready. The start of the road is tarmac which was fun to go down. It was also two lanes which meant that the sheer drop offs were not as scary. We could not go that fast though, which when we were trying to overtake slow cars made it hard. We had to flatten ourselves out as much as possible to gain more momentum.

The first hour whizzed past (literally) and we soon had to stop to pass some check points. It was also the end of the tarmac and the start of the real Death Road. From here on in it was rough gravel. The vibration of the bike was really unpleasant and I must admit that I did not totally enjoy it. The road also became single lane and the drops more dramatic. I was quite scared about skidding off the bike as we took the sharp corners. The view was amazing but I was not able to take much in as I concentrated so hard on not coming off.

The group was split into two and I was in the latter group. In the first group, a girl came over her bike and the shock and scrapes she received meant she was not able to continue and rode in the vehicles which followed. We were also told that someone had died a month ago by coming off and two months before that a guide had died!! This made me even more cautious.

After a while I did get more confident, but then there were some flat bits which took the fun out of the downhill. There was only one more minor accident in the group when Philip tried to win the race the boys had started and scraped himself when he came off. After 5 hours the bike ride was done. We had gone through streams and waterfalls, and bumped our way all the way down. The vibrations had been a bit too much for me and I can not say it was my favourite thing, although I am glad I did it - and survived. We were rewarded with lunch and a swim. I made sure a rum and coke was in order!

The bike ride also signalled the end of the first part of my trip and so we ended with a goodbye for those who were leaving including our tour guide. It was a perfect way to end the day.

On our last day in La Paz we took a tour out to Tiwanaku, which had been thoroughly recommended to us. Tiwanaku is most important precursors to the Inca Empire and is the ruins of an ancient city state. Unfortunately our tour was too long and we all lost the will to live. Our guide tried hard but repeated the same thing over and over again. The impressive temples we expected did not live up to their reputation nor did the subterranean temple. It was a shame. If it had a been an hour long we would have been interested, but it took all day and all of our will!

The second part of the tour started that evening and with it we met our new tour leader who would take us into Peru.

Bolivia has been an amazing country, full of colour and delight. It has managed to maintain tradition with a mix of west. The countryside alone was worth the visit. For an extremely poor country, it certainly ranks highly on my list of places to visit.