So I caught my flight to Santa Cruz. When I booked my ticket to Europe (Madrid) I had 2 stopovers. One in Santa Cruz, and one in Buenos Aires, each for about 2 hours. That would have made about 24 hours total travel time. I asked the agent if I could stop for 3 days in each instead with no extra cost, and she said yes.
Arriving in Santa Cruz, it was so nice to be somewhere warm again. I was prepared by being in shorts and a t-shirt on the plane. I landed and asked a taxi to take me to the hostel that I had read about. It was full, and as I didnt have a guide book (lost it in the jungle), I had to take his recommendation on something else. 'Something else' turned out to be a rather posh place called the Hotel Bilbosi (Hotel Bibosi ). I am not a big fan of posh places, generally because there are no backpackers there, and you dont meet people. But I decided to stay for a night and find somewhere else the next day.
Walking around that night, I felt very awkward. Well, kind of, but not really. When you leave a city you know well, and head to somewhere new and you're solo, its a weird feeling walking around. A bit of a feeling that people are looking at you - and maybe they are because you're walking around with that look like you dont know where anything is. Its odd, because you know after a couple days you'll know the place better, and walk down the exact same street with a completely different outlook and a completely different feel.
The next morning, the Residencial Boliviano had a vacancy and I moved in. It was a really awesome hostel with a good vibe and some really cool Toucans as pets. They'd hop all over the place, hopping from tree to tree (yes, Toucans hop rather than walk). They're amazing birds, friendly, and amazing to look at and watch. At one point we were having a discussion about them while sitting around the courtyard table, and one of the four Toucans jumped in to the only open chair as if to want to join the discussion.
I was able to get a run in for the day, as Santa Cruz is much lower in altitude than La Paz. In fact, Santa Cruz is techically in the jungle. Santa Cruz is what Rurrenabaque could be if it had about 100 times more poeople and was situated on a major highway. Santa Cruz is a jungle town that has no resemblance to what you'd think a jungle town would be. Lots of amazing stores and an incredble nightlife with high-priced clubs.
A group of us from the hostel went out to eat the first night, and at the last minute a girl from Peru wanted to join us. Just about an hour earlier, we had all been saying how as a traveler, we never get to practice our Spanish staying in hostels where everyone uses english as a common language. But with our non-English-speaking Peruvian friend, we all now needed to speak Spanish, which was great.
Afterwards, we headed out to Equipetrol. Equipetrol is a section of town where there are a lot of outdoor bars that face the road. We picked one and sat down. Now, before I came to Santa Cruz, everyone that I had told I was going there had made some remark about Santa Cruz having the most beautiful women in Bolivia. I have to say that after going to Equipetrol, they were right. It was rather amazing.
Later in the evening, we met some people who said they were going to bed and they asked us if we wanted to come. Wha?? B.E.D. happens to be the name of one of the larger clubs in Santa Cruz. We went and had an amazing time. Great music and an awesome club.
The next day, I toured and shopped with my friend from Nicole in the hostel. Deciding that I needed more than one shirt to go out to the clubs in, I went and bought a couple more shirts. My backpack is already too heavy, but with only a couple more stops before getting to Europe, I figured I can take the extra weight. Being as everything has been so cheap in South America, I also figured I could afford the extra cost of getting a couple nice shirts. For reference, I think I spent more in Tommy Hilfiger in 20 minutes than I did the entire country of Peru in 3 weeks, and the shirts werent even that expensive.
(So, Rick, do you think there is a different gravitational pull in Europe? Why do you not care if your bag is heavy when you get there? Well, I have made arrangements to purchase a VW camper when I get to Pamplona in a couple days. http://www.travelhead.com/trip/journal/van/)
After the shirts, I decided it was time to finally chop the mop. I hadn't had a haircut in 8 months now and it was starting to show. I was tragically stuck somewhere between a bad 1970s cut and a bad 1980s cut. So, I found a cool salon and got the best $3 haircut I've ever had. Ok, the ONLY $3 haircut I've ever had.
The gang from the hostel went out for dinner in honor of Nicoles birthday (holding the cake/candle below), followed by another round of Equiptrol-BED.
Again, I really didnt want to leave Santa Cruz. 3 days wasnt enough. I should have picked either Santa Cruz or Buenos Aires and stayed 6 days in one, and none in the other. I dont like the feeling of having to leave somewhere when I dont want to. However, I am very excited to be going to Europe. I have friends there that I havent seen in a very long time, and I am excited to see them, as well as excited to be starting a new chapter in this crazy tale.