The Bolivian Visa Process

Our next destination would undoubtedly prove to be the most difficult and expensive entry in South America. Oh dear Bolivia. We have yet to figure out what the US did to you to make our entry oh-so-challenging when most (developed) countries waltz in easy-breezy and for free. Apologies on their behalf! Anyhow, the good news is, we now have a ten-year-visa good for multiple entries for when we want to return for another thirty days in the future. And then, we’ll also understand how everything works, because it’s certainly not cut and dry, no matter how much reading you do online in advance! 

Our flight from Asuncion, Paraguay to Santa Cruz, Bolivia was 1 hour and 45 minutes across the dry, farm and grassland called the Chaco of western Paraguay. This flight cost us 28,000 points on our Capital One Venture card and saved us a 24-hour bus ride and possibly some border hassle. Have you gotten a good travel credit card yet? If not, we highly recommend Capital One Venture which has a sign up bonus of 75,000 miles!

We spent at least a half a day trying to print a stack of tree-killing papers. Bureaucracy at its finest. Here is the pile of documents we were advised to have prepared and printed for our entry into Bolivia: 

• Hotel bookings for our entire itinerary 
• 3 months bank statements 
• yellow fever vaccination cards
• proof of onward travel from Bolivia
• passport copies 
• $160-each, which was surprisingly payable by credit card even though we’d been hoarding crisp USD for this purpose. 

Because we were planning to exit Bolivia by bus into Argentina, we had also printed proof of Argentina reservations, and flights, although we could not get an advanced online bus booking. (Because very little is available to pay online by credit card in Bolivia.) However, when we arrived to the ParanAir ticket desk, the attendant would not let us on the plane unless we produced a plane ticket out of Bolivia, even though we had full proof and intention of leaving after our thirty days. Therefore, we had to step aside and buy a tickets, aka use a service we’ve used before called “Best Onward Ticket” where you buy a ticket online for $15/each which then gets canceled in 48 hours. This is a wonderful option for any countries which require onward tickets when you don’t have an exact plan and has been a lifesaver several times. The Asuncion airport is not exactly a hopping place. Our gate 30 minutes before departure.

Climbing aboard ParanAir, an affiliate of LATAM. Bienvenidos a Bolivia!!

In the end, the immigration officer only asked for our onward ticket and proof of accommodation. We supplied him with the first night’s which seemed to be sufficient. However, he was quite irritated we only had one copy of each. You can’t win in this situation. Evidently you must have one copy PER PERSON even though BOTH our names were on the reservation. They begrudgingly made copies for us and finally granted us with our official visas after about an hour of processing paperwork. We read detailed accounts on multiple forums on this in advance and it’s impossible to know all this because everyone’s story is slightly different. But we KNOW Bolivia will be worth it!!

Testing out Bolivian Healthcare in the ER

Behind the scenes from the pretty pictures, life is not always perfect as a full time nomad…particularly when it comes to jungle bugs. On our second day we went to Iguazu, Mandy was wearing shorts for the boat ride, which is a rare occasion. That night, a small red mystery spot showed up on her leg near the tick bite she’d gotten six weeks prior in Brazil. This bite had still not healed and continued to cause some question marks, although it had not produced any other symptoms. The days we were in Paraguay, however, the spots had started to multiply and a US doctor friend had recommended starting an antibiotic in case it was indeed tick related. (Although Lyme isn’t prevalent down here, other things are.) The cost was $16. No prescription, no problem. Unfortunately, by the time we got to Bolivia, it had developed into a much bigger and more questionable rash. 

So, we found a private hospital in Santa Cruz, the best city we could have landed in not-so-westernized Bolivia for urgent healthcare. 

Here was our experience:

• we paid $50 for the ER consultation 
• we were taken to an emergency room waiting area and seen within 30 minutes by the triage nurse
• we then waited another 15 minutes for a doctor 
• the doctor did not speak English so Mandy slowly (and successfully…whoohoo!) explained the whole story in slow Spanish. 
• the doctor examined her and ordered a very full lab panel, including tick related diseases tests. 
• we went to the office-site lab and paid $110 for Mandy’s tests and an additional $27 for a thyroid panel for Greg, because if one of us was gonna get stuck, we both were!! 🤣 It was one of the best blood draw experiences we’ve had. 
• the tick panel showed up negative but there were signs of infection so Mandy was told to continue the antibiotics, as well as use some additional topical ointment, and all the places and rashes —except the original tick bite—have been clearing up very quickly. 
• in the meantime, Mandy texted with her doctor almost daily for updates. It was a wonderful feeling to be cared for in this way.
• so…we still don’t know exactly what happened the day of the boat ride but it’s a good reminder to keep legs covered
• and, to have continued patience as the other bits healed…which eventually did.

Finally Exploring Santa Cruz

First founded in 1561, Santa Cruz de La Sierra is the biggest city in Bolivia at 2.4 million people. Due to its low elevation at the foothills of the Andes, it has a steamy, tropical climate and an environment which manages to maintain some tradition while blending with modernity. It also has the most population diversity with over-alled Mennonites, hipster dads, Asian businessmen, Brazilian settlers and everything in between. It’s not the Bolivia you see on Instagram or postcards, but nevertheless was pleasant for a two-night stay. The cathedral, Basilica Menor de San Lorenzo, crowns the main plaza.

A group of locals selling snacks in bags…which usually consists of nuts, dried beans or corn. Another lady selling chicha, a fermented alcoholic or non-fermented beverage of Latin America, which emerged from the Amazon and Andes regions.

The main plaza bedecked with towering palms and shady arcades near a pretty church made for Barbie.

Because we knew we’d be settling into Bolivian/traditional food very soon, we took advantage of the international food options in Santa Cruz and dove into some Chinese. Cost was $5.79 for two noodle dishes.

One of many welcoming cafes in the streets of the Santa Cruz center

And like any other city in the world, a cluster of pigeons crapping all over the main square. But unlike other cities, chortling parrots flocked overhead. Why oh why do people let pigeons climb on them? Would you do that with a rat?!

What else to do in a lovely main square but grab some ice cream?! $2 for 3 scoops of gelato. 😋

Time for siesta 😴 

A statue of a famous Boliviana…Gladys Moreno. She was a prominent singer in the 50’s and 60’s. 

Abstract buildings don’t quite fit the mold of the city. And curiously, neither does the entire street devoted to costumes. Ooo…Mandy would have had fun here in her event coordinator days!!