SUCRE!

Today we arrived in Sucre around 7ish. Over the course of the 12 hour journey Danny had made rather good friends with the mother and daughter beside us, or they became rather obsessed with him. Anyways they invited us to their house for breakfast and since it was so early and nothing was open we couldn't really find a reason to refuse.

After getting off the bus we met the lady's son and his girlfriend and they took us to their house in his car, leaving the mum at the bus station. At this point I couldn't understand how someone could be so nice and hospitable and was freaking out slightly and feeling a little 'rare'. In the end it was fine and we chatted to the daughter Lidia for a while whilst enjoying some coffee and breakfast and when the mum returned she gave us a tour of her massive house. It had so many floors, it was crazy! Because of this when we reached the top we had a wonderful view of the town of Sucre and she pointed out the main places to visit.

Afterwards we got changed and freshened up and even after the lady insisting we make use of her numerous showers we refused as we had a lot of see in the town in only one day. We moved on just after 9am and Lidia took us to their craft shop via the daily market filled with a ridiculous amount of fresh fruit, vegetables, food and souvenirs. After leaving our heavy bags at the shop for the day, away we went.

First stop was at several tourist agents to check that the tour of the mines in Potosi tomorrow was still going ahead with it being Easter Holidays. The conclusion was that there should be tours but potentially no working miners. Although not ideal, there wasn't really much else we could do as the rest of our travel plans were fixed around these few days.

Afterwards we took the steep walk up to the Recoleta area and sat in the Plaza for a while, taking in the stunning views. Carina and I were sucked into souvenir shopping as per usual and she ended up purchasing a bracelet whilst I bought a set of earrings. We moved on to the viewpoint cafe for some brunch and fresh fruit juice. it was so relaxing and such a lovely sunny day. The cafe had deckchairs perfect for a little sunbathing! Then we made our way back to the centre of the city. In Sucre the architecture is the most incredible. Everything is so white and clean and it sort of resembles a European/Spanish city. Although a little small, it is definitely one of the most beautiful cities I have seen.

We tried to go to some museums but many were closed for siesta. So we took a break in the main plaza of the city and spent half an hour or so people watching whilst eating an icecream. Afterwards we visited the textile museum, culture house and a convent which was actually really interesing. It was slightly disappointing that we couldn't get into the history museum (Casa de la Libertad), because of a concert being held, as it's supposed to be really interesting and informative and it was the main thing we wanted to there.

Instead and to finish our day off we walked miles to get to the cementery. It was really beautiful although after walking all day I was wrecked and just wanted to sit down and get to Potosi asap. After the cementery we went to our lady's shop to pick up her bags. It was so funny when we arrived there as she couldn't wait to hear how Danny's day had been. As we were chatting her daughter prepared us some hot chocolate and served some tasty pastry snacks. We stayed there chatting for a good half an hour, exchanged phone numbers and email addresses and made our way to the bus station.

You would think we had had enough bad luck with buses but it was only going to get worse. All buses to Potosi from Sucre were full and so we wouldn't be able to get one until the following morning. Panic sets in as we realise that the only reason we're going there is for the mine tour which begins early in the morning. Luckily a taxi driver outside the terminal agrees to do the 3 hour journey for just under £30. We readily accepted. It was a funny journey being in a taxi for that long but he was quite a nice man and even stopped so we could purchase a few beers on the way.

We reached Potosi around 9pm and had to get another taxi to the hostel since our taxi driver didn't know his way around. During this time I found out I managed to lose a jumper during the taxi ride. Although this was the least of my worries as the freezing temperatures of the significantly higher town of Potosi were quickly having an effect. We arrived at the hostel, checked in and got settled in our beds which have been reviewed as the comfiest beds in South America. Hopefully, then, I will have the best night sleep yet...