EMAIL FROM FRANK GREEN
The frontier crossing has some interesting observations. The town that straddles the imaginary line running down the centre of the river is divided into two contrasting halves. The southern Argentinian side is called La Quicha - neatly curbed though dry tree-lined streets, everything laid out by the town planners book. Those efforts are however largely unappreciated because all activity is centred over the river in Villazon, the Bolivian half, where everything is a fraction of the cost it is in Argentina. One can observe the ant trade as hundreds of kilograms of illicit imports flow across the bridge into Bolivia past the noses of Bolivian customs and immigration. Local peasants pushing or pulling huge carts and barrows stacked with a variety of goods of the type unavailable or expensive there. Officialdom take some cursory interest occasionally and confiscate something that may catch their eye but mostly the flow continues uninhibited.
Villazon has that same atmosphere of chaotic frenetic activity that characterises Asian cities and whose absence can result in the sterile boredom of over-planned towns like Canberra. The streets are lined with small individual shops crammed full of electrical goods, cheap clothing, Chinese household accessories etc. their continuity only broken by the money exchange cAmbios. Bags of coca leaves large enough to fill a phone booth are propped on the pavement to tempt your fancy.
Both the Argentinian and Bolivian paperwork are straight forward until it comes to getting the bike into Bolivia. The customs officer just over the bridge, unable to deal with the situation himself directs us to the customs building in the town 3 and a half block and to the left. Here on the 1st floor of an office attached to a larger warehouse the problem bounces from one plain clothed official to another. People come and go. It is difficult to tell official from friend of official or public.
The computers of Argentinian border officials are absent replaced by a tired typewriter placed on one corner of the aging desk. No one seems to have much to do but appear to be sufficiently experienced at doing nothing to give the impression of performing, or at least on the verge of performing some important task.
After a lot of discussion about where we intend to go in Bolivia a dark middle aged bureaucrat with pigmented s----- selects three sheets of customs letterhead paper printed Emorandium and inserts these in the typewriter. After carefully placing carbon between each he begins to type, pausing occasionally to peruse our passports and the bikes registration document. At last with a flourish he gives it his signature, completing the final touch with a stamp and pad.
On receipt we both study the official Spanish. A rough translation is that it permits us to spend only 15 days in Bolivia and to follow a particular route visiting the towns named - not all we intended to visit are specified - although our visas allow 30 days. It is also unlikely that 15 days will be sufficient to cross the country, reaching the Peruvian border given the difficult nature of the terrain.
Our appeal for an extension to 30 days falls on deaf ears, even when accompanied by an offer to pay (Bribe) for more time. We are told we will need a 6 month permanent residents visa obtainable through an Australian Embassy (Closest one in Buenos Aires, Argentina) To qualify for more time. Too exhausted by the days difficulties to argue further we retire to our first taste of Bolivian accommodation. At residencial Panamericano it coasts less than $5.00 for two persons for a night. They are happy for me to ride the bike up the two stairs, down the hallway, through the courtyard and insist that it sleeps indoors in a largish room with suspect floorboards that creak and deflect under the Swinehunt's considerable weight.
RALPH GREEN
ANOTHER EMAIL
Dear Tynda
We had read Ralph Green's article on your website so we were some what prepared. We crossed at the same town but had much different results.
First, we had a map taken from your website showing that we wanted to visit almost every conceivable city and town in Bolivia. They were impressed that we wanted to visit Trinidad in the far north.
Second, when the customs official realized that we did not speak Spanish he was perplexed. But we tried and spoke the few words we did know and showed him a copy of the customs document from Argentina. This made his work much easier since all info was there and in Spanish. He just transferred this info to his form.
Next we crossed on a Sunday, so when we followed the auto to the official office it was someone's home, not the normal office building. And, this gentlemen spoke a little English. We explained to him that we thought Bolivia was very big and very grand. That we wanted to spend a lot of time here.
So he said, no problem. The document he prepared for us he said would allow us to keep our moto in Bolivia a very long time but we think it is only good for four months. We will see.
As elsewhere, length of time one gets for the moto appears to be chance and luck, good in our case since we had to store our moto in La Paz, not Peru as we had planned. We just could not leave Bolivia due to the road blocks by the strikers.
Eric & Gail Haws
Email from FERNANDO
do that what you feel. but I wouldn't worries so much for customs. only if you get in to bolivia by that pass coming from san "pedro de atacama"(chile) to "salar de uyuni" (bolivia), there is not any possibility to declare your vehicle (the bike)so go to customs office in any next main town or city to do that and then it will make easy to leave bolivia.
I wish you keeping having good time and safely trip.
FERNANDO
EMAIL FROM Torsten & Ricarda
we managed easily the border to Bolivia, also on west side of lake T. We got
the permission for 6 month, too. On the border I asked the man, how it is
possible to extend the permission for the motorbike. The man said it is not
a problem, we can do it in La Paz. So I thought, maybe you can send your
friend just to this place, than he doesn´t have to leave the country with
the bike. The address is:
ADUANA NACIONAL DE BOLIVIA
AVENIDA 20 DE OCTUBRE
LA PAZ
Hopefully this information may help.
We also did the tour to Sorata. It was very nice, especially because of
clear, sunny, warm weather. We had excellent views on the Cordillera Real.
And, just on this weekend, there was the biggest yearly event in Sorata: the
big FIESTA. Dancing and drinking from Friday to Tuesday!!! Not for us - of
course - we had to drive, but for the Boliviens. Anyway, we enjoyed ourselfs
watching the dances and the dunken people. We stayed for 3 nights on the
Campground further down to the river. It is called "Altai Oasis" and really
a wonderful, nice and quite place. Follow our webside to see some nice
pictures of that area (maybe in 4 weeks).
Lots of greetings
Torsten (& Ricarda)
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