Hi there all. After getting over my little problem the day before we got up early and headed to the local bus stop to try to get a bus accross to Copacabana on the shores of Lake Titicaca. Since the 1st May, Bolivia had been having sporadic problems and we'd been advised that there may be some problems getting out of La Paz at the moment. We took our chances and apart from an extra hour on the bus to get around some blockades (it was a 4 hour trip) we arrived in the beautiful Lake Titicaca. We checked into a hotel with views over the lake (the highest navigable lake in the world at about 4,000m). We had planned a few days here before crossing the border into Peru, but it was looking like it might be a few more from reports coming from the other direction and newspapers. A town a little further north named 'Ilave' had been having a few problems with their Mayor whom they had (as the reports go) hung and burned a few days earlier. The Mayor was (as seems to be extaordinarily common here) completely corrupt and the locals had given him 4 days to 'get outta town'. He made the mistake of ignoring the opportunity. Understandably the police arrested a lot of people over the incident, however the local community decided this was a little unfair and shut the town down and effectively the border crossing. The only way was to get off the bus at the start of town and take the one hour walk through town to to get another bus at the other end. Reports from people coming accross from Peru varied from 'no trouble' (usually those that made the crossing very early) to 'pretty damn scary' to 'we ran into the river as we got caught in crossfire'. So while it (hopefully) settled down, I went and camped out on the Isla del Sol (Island of the Sun) for a night. The Inca's beleived this to be the birthplace of the sun (it was reaalllllyy sunny there) and is the site of a number of great ruins. It also has a small local farming community which was very entertaining to watch going about their business (as are most Bolivians generally). I camped on my own little beach and wandered the island until the next afternoon where I got a boat back to Copacabana. When I got off the boat I walk up through the town toward my hotel. The town was strangely boarded up. I checked my watch and it wasn't siesta time or Sunday. I had a look on one of the shop doors which had a sign saying they wouldn't be opening again until the current conflicts had been resolved. Sounded interesting. I got to my hotel and asked Martin (the owner) for the story. Apparently I was also in a town with an unpopular Mayor. The day before some farmers (close friends of the Mayor) had come into town and decided they would blow up the local radio station (who had apparently given some unfavourable reviews of the Mayors conduct). The local community are generally intimidated by the farmers, but this was apparently the last straw. They rallied in the town square and then made their way to the Mayors house (which happened to be the house in front of my accommodation) where the farmers had already stationed themselves. As is the way here, stones, explosives and gunfire were the tools of choice. The Mayor managed to survive the night (all reports are that the locals were ready to provide a similar end to the Ilave incident). Whilst gunfire was heading up the hill towards my hotel, I was quietly dozing in my sleeping bag on the Island. Lucky. However, while we were eating dinner that night Martin joined us to tell us the police where on their way to arrest the Mayor. He said there was a good chance the farmers would arrive soon (usually drunk) to defend the house again. He said the locals were also gathering in the town square again. I peered over the balcony at the Mayors house (which he undertandably hadn't moved from since yesterday) and all looked peaceful. Then I saw someone run past, then another, and then they all came. It was the locals arriving for round two. Martin went and tried to arrange for some police protection for us while the locals starting the rocks and blasts again. 3 police arrived shortly after and positioned themselves. Then the police from La Paz arrived, looking the goods in full riot gear with guns, tear gas etc. Apparently their arrest order for the Mayor did not include entry into his house, so the locals were doing their best to encourage the Mayor to come out. Amongst a few hours of chaos including all sorts of deafening bangs, screaming, chanting and eventually setting fire to the surrounds of the Mayors house (remembering this was only 30m from my room) the Mayor finally surrendered. Martin came and told us everything had settled down and all was safe (although the fires were still burning and the locals were still pretty crazy as far as I could see). I timidly joined Martin out front and saw the police now protecting the house as the locals made demands to burn it down. Everyone there thankfully knew Martin well and one local (who had very little voice left) told us of the exploits of the Mayor. He was lucky to get away as he did I think (and that the police refused requests to parade him at the town square). It took a little while to sleep that night as the locals partied on at the Mayors house. I thought about giving them the names of Howard, Abbott and Reith to work their magic, but I can't afford their airfares, and I'm not sure which sewer Mr Reith resides in anymore. The next day was the trip through Ilave into Peru. Fingers crossed I'd seen my share of excitement for the week.