South America

Visiting La Paz, Bolivia is both fascinating and exhausting, with its dramatic mountain setting, vibrant markets, and unique culture offset by the dizzying altitude that leaves you breathless at the most unexpected moments.

The cholets of El Alto in Bolivia are brightly coloured, multi-storey buildings that blend traditional Aymara cultural motifs with modern design, serving both as family homes and venues for community gatherings or celebrations.

The Valle de las Animas, just outside La Paz, is a striking landscape of jagged sandstone spires and deep ravines that resemble an otherworldly cathedral of stone, shaped over thousands of years by wind and rain erosion, and offers visitors a dramatic backdrop for walking, photography, and quiet reflection amidst Bolivia’s high-altitude scenery.

Cholitas Wrestling in Bolivia is a vibrant and theatrical spectacle where indigenous women, dressed in their traditional layered skirts and bowler hats, step into the ring to showcase both athletic skill and cultural pride, blending sport, performance, and social commentary in a way that captivates locals and visitors alike.

Visiting Copacabana and Isla del Sol was a curious mix of charm and chaos, with Copacabana’s slightly scruffy lakeside bustle feeling more like a backpacker pit stop than a destination in its own right, while Isla del Sol, though undeniably beautiful and steeped in Inca history, required a fair bit of patience for the steep climbs and patchy organisation that came with the experience.