Coroico – three days of total relaxation

After the Death Road ride, most people catch a bus back to La Paz with the tour company. We however, along with a couple of other guys from our group, had decided to stay in Coroico, the end point for a few days. At little over 1000m above sea level it’s much warmer than La Paz and we’d booked a cabin at the Sol y Luna resort after a couple of recommendations from fellow travellers. The only downside is the numerous fruit flies – you can’t feel them when they bite but they are much more vicious than mosquitoes and leave hard, red lumps that itch for days.

The cabin

There’s not a lot to do in Coroico itself but the surrounding countryside is beautiful and it’s a nice place to spend a few days relaxing. Sol y Luna is a 15 minute walk up the hill from town (I would recommend walking into town but taxiing back) and is a sprawling, rustic outfit, with two outdoor pools, a meditation room, restaurant and individual, self-contained cabins, as well as smaller apartments and rooms in the main house.

Incredible bay windows overlooking the valley

We opted for the Alaya cabin, the furthest up the hill from the main house (a 7 minute walk according to the website but I’d say it’s shorter than that unless you’ve got a rucksack on). We had an outdoor shower and toilet, a basic kitchen with two gas rings, and space outside for a fire, with a grill for barbecuing. But best of all was the view, and the fact that we were completely isolated. Utter bliss.

View from cabin

That evening, we opted for dinner in the restaurant, and enjoyed a very tasty and also very cheap trout and chips. Then it was off to bed for an early night – after all that cycling we were both shattered and aching in all the wrong places.

Coroico town

The next morning we ventured into town to pick up some shopping in preparation for a couple of days holed up in our cabin. It’s a small town, and doesn’t have the best selection of foodstuffs but we managed to cobble together sufficient meals for three days in the wilderness.
That evening we set about lighting the fire (you can order bundles of fire wood from the main house for £1.50). All I’ll say is that it’s not as easy as it looks, but toilet paper makes great kindling. After several failed attempts we finally got it going and enjoyed a brilliant night of barbecued sausages and toasted marshmallows. Yum.

The campfire

For the next few days we did absolutely nothing, except read books and listen to music whilst sunbathing on our front porch and enjoying the view. It was the most relaxing time we’ve spent since coming to South America and I would definitely recommend Sol y Luna to anyone coming to Coroico – it makes a nice change from your standard B&B.

Outside toilet sink and shower

After three days of total relaxation it was back to La Paz before an overnight bus ride to Santa Cruz for a few more days of sunshine and then a flight back to Buenos Aires. We’d spent five weeks in Bolivia and had an absolutely amazing time, done some incredible things and seen some awesome sights. Now, after six months on the road (who can believe it?!) we’re going to spend two months in Buenos Aires, learning Spanish, dancing tango and getting to know the city.

Local resident - Diego

 

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