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The
surface of Bolivia is 1.098.581 kmē, a country the size of France and
Spain together. It borders Peru to the northwest, Brazil to the north and
east, Paraguay to the southeast, Argentina to the south, and Chile to the
west. La Paz, the seat of government, is the world's highest capital city.
It contains many museums and provides visitors with modern and comfortable
hotels.
The country can be
divided in four main regions : the Andes,
the eastern Bolivian mountain area
where many high and low valleys form the transition between the dry
highlands and the wet lowlands, the Amazon area
in the North-East and the dry Chaco area
in the South-East. Western Bolivia is made up of two high Andes mountain
ranges : the Cordillera Occidental alongside the border with Chile with
the highest mountain of Bolivia, the Sajama (6.780 m) and the Cordillera
Real in the north-east with its many glaciers. Cochabamba, the garden
city, boasts a long tradition of local culture and folklore and Tarija
City's excellent climate, combined with beautiful flowers and fine wines,
makes it ideal for finding peace and quiet. The states of Beni and Pando,
in the heart of the jungle, occupy a region offering visitors dramatic and
colorful landscapes. The 'Golden' Pantiti's many rivers
provide popular land and water excursions. National
dishes include empanada salteņa (a mixture of diced meats, chives,
raisins, diced potatoes, hot sauce and pepper baked in dough) and lomo
montado (fried tenderloin steak with two fried eggs, rice and fried
banana). Cruzena, is considered to be one of the best beers on the
continent.
Lake Titicaca is the picturesque
Bolivia. It is the highest situated navigable lake in the world ( at 3810
m). The lake is surrounded by the snowcapped mountains of the Cordillera
and plays an important part in the Inca mythology. The Indians who live on
its borders consider it a holy lake.
The holy city of
Copacabana (5000 inhabitants) lies on a magnificent bay between
two hills, the Cerro Calvario with a stone staircase and a terrace and
the Cerro Sancollani of Seroka. Legend has it that the Incas founded the
city in honor of the Sun and its children Manco Kapac and Mama Huac.After
the Spanish conquest, the natives were converted to Christianity by the
Dominicans, and later, by the Augustans. This resulted in a mixture of
catholic and traditional native rituals. This process was accelerated by
the statue of the black Madonna, the Virgen de Cadelaria. According to the
writings of father Ramos Gavilan, miracles started to happen here as from
1583. To welcome the many pilgrims an enormous basilica was built here
between 1610 and 1619.
The official
capital of Bolivia is the city of Sucre, but in fact it is the
city of La Paz that has the real
function of capital. La Paz lies on an altitude of 3636 m which makes it
the highest situated capital in the world. The cityscape of La Paz is
determined by the snow covered tops of the pyramid-shaped Huayna Potosi
and the tops of the Illimani which light up very colorfully at sunset.
From afar, it looks as if the miniature houses of La Paz are glued to the
slope of the mountain.
La Paz was founded in 1548 by Alonso de Mendoza after gold had been
discovered in the Choqueyapu. The city grew fast because of its ideal
location at the crossroads of trade routes. In the 20th century an
immigration of farmers caused a further expansion of the city. The capital
now has an estimated population of about 1.000.000 people.
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