Larry Memmott's Blog

Laja was founded as La Paz on October 20, 1548 by Alonso de Mendoza.  It lasted for three days, as the city was transferred to its current location on October 23.  Laja remained an important location and the first cathedral in Bolivia was built in the mid-17th century.  It is an imposing stone building with […]

Tiwanaku is mandatory, even if you are in Bolivia for only a few days.  It is the premiere archaeological site in the country and provides an opportunity to learn about the longest lived empire in South America.  On the way to Tiwanaku, you can visit the first cathedral in Bolivia and the site of the founding of […]

The trip to Tiwanaku is a “must-do” excursion from La Paz.  The remains of the capital of the longest-lived empire in South America is something you don’t want to miss.  The ruins are impressive.  The history behind them is even more impressive.  I’m not going to get into all of that here, so you definitely […]

Alex got here Thursday morning and we’ve been having a good time since then (even though work has been completely insane).  Friday night we went to the video taping of a concert by Bolivian metal group Armadura at the Ministry of Culture.  It was a blast. Saturday we went down to the Valley of the […]

One of the great things about Bolivia is that wherever you go, even if it is not where you wanted or intended to go, you will likely find excitement of some sort.  Twice now I have tried to find my way to Laguna Arkhata, nestled as it is in the upper folds of the skirt […]

  The Valle de las Animas, or Valley of Souls, is seriously misnamed.  It is not a “valley” but a region, and I for one fail to see why there is any reason to believe that the rock formations therein have any resemblance to “souls.”  After all, isn’t their lack of a physical form a […]

I’ve occasionally put up posts on music in the past, but it looks like I may be putting up more such posts in the future.  I went with some friends to a Death Metal Festival the other day (posters above and bottom).  It was fantastic.  The variety of music (within the Metal genre) was stunning, […]

Despite its focus on chapels and its brevity, German Ambassador Philipp Schauer’s guide to rural churches (Guía turística de/Tour guide of Iglesias Rurales: La Paz y Oruro, by Schauer, Philipp, Teresa Gisbert) is my favorite printed guide to the Altiplano.  With lots of maps and photos, Spanish and English directions to, and descriptions of the churches, […]

  Caquiaviri is a small town on the road to Charaña, which is on the border with Chile and Peru, north of Tambo Quemado.  It’s a great destination for a day trip from La Paz, and it will soon be an even better destination. According to German Ambassador Philipp Schauer, in his book, “Tour Guide […]

This is one of the places I used to travel to at least monthly to hike, fish, camp, and just relax.  It’s quite changed, now.  All the “lagunas” have been dammed, and in several cases, they are fundamentally different from what they used to be, with their surrounding bofedales now almost entirely underwater.  That said, […]