Lake Titicaca is a real oddity. Imagine a lake 170 km long and 60 km wide sitting at a lofty 3800m above sea level and surrounded by mountains. At places you cannot even see the other side, just the curvature of the earth. Copacabana, Bolivia (9/2004).

Lake Titicaca`s floating islands are made of reeds (a type of plant) bunch together. The whole thing floats and if you dig a hole, you will hit water and will fall in and drown.  Floating islands near Puno, Peru (9/2004).

Things work differently in other countries. On a boat trip across Lake Titicaca, 2 French girls take over the helm while the driver sleeps. Soon enough, everyone is asleep as the boat continues to chug along across the lake. I just watched and laughed. Once in a while I`d wake them up when I thought we might hit something soon.  On route to Isla Amantani, Lake Titicaca.

People say that there are few pictures of myself on the website....here you go. Copacabana, Lake Titicaca (9/2004).

La Paz, Bolivia`s largest city, is one big street market. People just plop themselves on the roadside and sell stuff.

Footballs................shoes.........llama fetuses.........you can buy anything on the streets of La Paz.

The 70 km road from La Paz to Coroico descends 3400m from the high altiplano to the Amazon jungle. It is called "The worlds most dangerous road" for the number of vehicles which have plunged off the side. Since the road was built the casualties are in the thousands. Such a route makes for a fantastic mountain bike descent. Coroico (9/2004).

More proof that I do not always stay at crappy cheap hotels. Hotel Esmeralda, Coroico (9/2004).

The Andes is the 2nd highest mountain range in the world but a distant 2nd to the Himalayas of Asia. Its really a series of rounded mountains and brown dry hills with the occasional large snow-covered massif. Nevado Illampu, Sorata (9/2004).

Bolivia has amazing mountain bike potential. There are hundreds of routes from the high altiplano to the jungle below. This particular 2 day descent was 4000 vertical metres of high-speed un-interupted downhill. Near Sorata (9/2004).

2 day moutain bike descent from Sorata to Mapiri (9/2004).

Gun, dog and ghetto blaster, typical luggage waiting to be loaded onto a boat. Rural Bolivia is a real frontier cowboy country. Rio Mapiri (9/2004).

There are thousands of alligator and caymans in the Bolivian pampas wetlands. Rurrenabaque.

Pampas wetlands near Rurrenabaque (9/2004).

Rio Mapiri, Madidi National Park (9/2004).

Lots of beautiful pristine jungle lakes in Madidi National Park.

The capyabara is the worlds largest rodent (ie. rat). Pampas wetlands, Rurrenabaque (9/2004).

Pampas wetlands, Rio Yacuma near Rurrenabaque (9/2004).

Eat or be eaten. There really isn`t that much useful meat in a piranha. Check out the gnarly teeth. Piranha fishing in the Rio Yacuma, Rurrenabaque (9/2004).

Lots of funny looking cacti in the hills of Southern Bolivia, near Tupiza (10/2004).

When I arrived at the guest-house late one evening, there was nobody around except an 8 and 9 year old sister and brother. Their parents were away that evening. No problems, they checked me in and cooked me dinner ! When the parents came home later on I joked with them, "...kids that age in my country can barely tie their own shoelaces on their own.."...(which is not far from the truth). Sajama village (10/2004).

Silver and other metals have been mined at Cerro Rico, Potosi since the 1500`s. At one point, this pock-marked hill supplied more than 1/2 of the worlds` silver and bankrolled the Spanish empire. Potosi (10/2004).

Tourists can pay for the privilege of joining the 8000+ miners still working there today to crawl on their hands and knees through the mines to breathe toxic fumes and get really really filthy. I could barely squeeze through some parts of the mine shafts and I am a pretty slim dude. After 4 hours in "hell" I tapped the guide on the shoulder....OK, tour's over, now get me out of here !!!!  Inside the Potosi mines (10/2004).

Every 10 minutes or so my horse (with me on it) would wander off to the side to chomp on a bush or some grass...and of course, nobody elses` horse did that. I had a good laugh, it kind of reminded me of me ! Tupiza, Bolivia (10/2004).

After the Galapagos trip in May, I have been patiently waiting for the next big outstanding mind-blowing highlight of this trip. That moment came during the 5-day jeep trip from Tupiza to Uyuni (the Salar tour). The scenery in this remote SW corner of Bolivia could be the most unique, bizarre and magnificent natural landscapes I have seen in all my travels. SW Bolivia (10/2004).

Laguna Verde and Volcan Licancabur. SW Bolivia (10/2004).

Laguna Colorado, a massive red-colored lake only about 1-2 metres deep, has a population of over 10000 flamingoes. SW Bolivia.

"Arbol de Piedra" (the rock tree), SW Bolivia (10/2004).

The rare James flamingo, Laguna Hedionda, SW Bolivia (10/2004).

Football game at 3600m on the magnificent Salar de Uyuni (the Uyuni salt flats), SW Bolivia (10/2004).

View of the Salar from the slopes of Mt Tunapa.

Salar de Uyuni.

Isla Pescadores, Salar de Uyuni.

Salt mining on the Salar.

The Salar de Uyuni trip is one of my top 3 highlights of South America (along with the Galapagos and Antarctica). SW Bolivia (10/2004).