Thanks for the sun spots

Back in June, I posted about a walk that I had taken in which I missed my intended destination. It was just a landmark on a cheap map of La Paz, and nobody had ever mentioned it to me, so I didn't think much of it. But I wanted to do another big walk this morning (lots of time to sit around tomorrow!), so I decided to try again. First I walked to Plaza Murillo, where I sat down for a minute and got my shoes shined. It's something I've been wanting to do for a while. The shoes shine boys are all over the city. You can't see it very well in the photo to the left, but they wear ski masks over their faces. The first week I was here, I was startled several times when I looked up or rounded a corner and there was man in a ski mask, often in fatigues too. Anyway, the shoe shine was fantastic.

Everything was uphill to my destination, but it was so worth it. Mirador Killi-Killi has an almost 360 degree view of the city. I stayed for over an hour, reading and taking pictures. A couple tour buses stopped while I was there, filling the little park with people and then emptying out again. I asked one of the tour guides to take a picture of me, but of course I have my eyes closed in the photo. So I took a few of myself, and I think a couple actually look okay (i.e. you can tell that there is a gigantic mountain behind me).

















I walked home around noon to have lunch, and then went back out in the afternoon, so my legs are ready for their day-long rest tomorrow. My flight leaves at 6:55 am, so I have to be up around 4. I already have butterflies in my stomach... flying around in the air is just not my thing. Plus, the flight into Miami is notorious for being hours behind schedule. I only have a three hour layover, so it might be close. I am hoping for the best. At least my Blackberry should work in Miami. :)

P.S. Happy 4th of July!