The beach at Titicaca
It's impressive that at 4000 meters above sea level, the town of Copacobana, on the shores of lake Titicaca, almost gives of a beachfront feel, the snow capped mountains visible in the not-so-distance.
But, if it's a beach town, it's a Spanish or Greek one from the 1980s. Unpleasant constructions, only recently having some of the roads cobbled, rickety piers, the beach lined with swan-shaped water bikes, it's only purpose catering to the many tourists flocking to the town, either to stay a few nights or for making their way to the island of the sun.
Only a hundred kilometers away from La Paz, it takes about four hours to get here, and includes a ferry crossing where the bus passengers get out of the bus and head for one of the rickety boats, paying their own way across, the bus itself being ferried on not much more than a pontoon, swaying dangerously as it's moved across the channel that connects Titicaca with its smaller neighbor.