The Persecuted American

An oxymoron you say? Well, maybe but I´m sure feeling a little put off by senseless bureaucracy lately. I'll explain the last few days. After hearing a few whispered rumors during our trip about some new visa requirements for Bolivia solely for U.S. citizens, we thought, "hey, maybe we should check into this before we find ourselves at some no-mans land border." And so, while still in Santiago we visited the Bolivian consulate. The news was no good--yellow fever vaccination, proof of monetary funds, fotos with specific requirements, detailed intineriary with hotel reservations, and the kicker-a $100 fee. Now, I don't know about you but I don't fancy myself the type of person to cough up $100 just to visit a third world country. Apparently these newly imposed requirements (12/1/07) were an act of policitical grandstanding by the non-U.S. allied president of Bolivia, Evo Morales, in an attempt at reciprocity for what the U.S. requires of Bolivians for visas. Fair?-probably, but the policy is economically foolish as the only Americans seeking entry into the country are the financially strapped backpacker-types who have little time or resources for pushing through red-tape. This sort of tit for tat politics is unfortunately only going to hurt the workers in Bolivia who rely on the income the American tourists bring, who will spend their money is other more inviting S.A. countries. After confirming this bad news at the consulate in Santiago we grudgingly proceeded with trying to fulfill these ridiculous requirements. Wanted to get out of Santiago, we figured we could have our last chance at a visa at the northern consulate in Calama, Chile. Begin the longest bus ride I have ever been on. 22 hours sitting in the cheap seats, which was highlighted by our proximity to the bus' toilet. After that experience I feel like I could camp out in a Johnny On the Spot for a day our two without having an aversion to the smell. Officially as a homeless man, this is not out of the realm of possibility.
In Calama, we again dealt with the typical run-around, which included requirements that were actually different than what was stated at the Santiago consulate. Other than a phony intinerary we did not have a reservation in Bolivia or with a tour company to get into the country. They demanded this--and were kind of enough to go ahead a call a tour company of their choosing....
After a brief pow-wow Petro indicated that he'd had enough of the BS and preferred his time spent in a country that wanted him and I don't blame him. So he split for the northen Chile beach town of Arica in Chile before his entry into Peru and I remained to tap dance for the Bolivian consulate. Eventually, I "agreed" to book their tour which did not require a formal reservation or any money and my visa was granted. Having no intention of going with that company, I took the bus to the desert oasis of San Pedro de Atacama for a two night stay before my tour into Bolivia with another company departs Sunday morning. Its a three day jaunt through the Salar de Uyuni, which is supposed to be incredible. The logistics of the expedition are basic lodging, a cramped Land Rover, and some amazing scenery. As luck would have it, the one ATM in San Pedro won't accept my card so I felt a little up shitcreek yesterday until the tour operator, the shiester Lionel, told me he would "loan" me the money for the tour until we arrived in Uyuni--can't wait to see the interest is on his generosity. To compound money problems, this desert town is expensive. I lucked out last night and found an art gallery exhibition with some free food--all I had to do was to do the perfunctory staring at paintings with an occasional head nod of approval.
And so the plan is to see Bolivia for 10-14 days, get sick with Malaria, and then depart for Peru to meet back up with ol' Petro and eventually my parents!
Also, you may of noticed the new addition to the blog--Google Ads. Yes, I sold my soul to Father Money in the hopes that any revenue from the ads may pay for an empanada or two. I'm also sick of you free-loaders as well.

Rolling solo,
BQ