border tagged posts

In Europe, Eastern Europe 2002 On  24/07/2002  No comments

I was a little worried about this trip to Warsaw, it would be a 20 hour train trip. I got a first class train ticket because it has only two beds. Almost all the short distant trains I got in Russia there was a drunk man sitting next to me. I started to imagine 20 hours smelling someone’s alcohol breath. I ends up being lucky, there was nobody sharing the cabin with me. I was by myself.

There was no passport check when we left Russia and entered Belarus. The way out from Belarus they came to see if I had the transit visa. I had to pay 45 dollar to get it in Moscow. I believe almost all nationalities need a transit visa just to go through Belarus in the evening. People say it is just for them to make some money out of the tourists.

The trains stopped for about two hours so they could check everyone. When they came to my cabin, they asked me to leave and checked every single thing. They even unscrewed the roof and wall and looked in there...

In America, Bolivia 2001, Highlight, Traveled places On  27/12/2001  No comments

See the posts on Bolivia

• Border Peru – Bolívia
• Laja – Tiahuanaco
• La Paz – Culture
• Bicycle Tour to Coroico
• Rurrenabaque and the Pampas
• Copacabana and Lake Titicaca
• Chacaltaya and Valle de la Luna
• Sucre
• Potosì
• Uyuni
• Salar de Uyuni tour to Chile
• Border Bolívia – Chile

View Viagens Errante / Errante’s Travels in a larger map

In America, Argentina On  18/08/2001  No comments

I arrived in Pozadas at 10am. I went to get my backpack and it wasn’t in the bus. Neither the one from a German friend that came from Salta with me. They told us that our luggage was sent (by mistake) to Glorinda, a city in the border with Assuncion (Paraguay). We had changed the bus at 5am, they told us to not worry with the bags that they would move from one bus to another. They just forgot to tell us that they usually forget some.

We complained at Nueva Estrella Office. They told us this happens a lot, and we would have to wait until 1am when a bus from Glorinda arrives. It was a cold and rainy day. There was not to do in town, we would have to wait the whole day in the bus station.

Since my parents live near the Argentinean border, they had gone to meet me in Pozadas. When they got there to get me, they found out that they would have to wait 16 hours. If we had driven to Glorinda, the way and back, it would take the same amount of time...

In America, Chile On  15/08/2001  One comment

From San Pedro Atacama this trip to Argentina took 12 hours. The Chilean road was good and paved. The desert-like landscape and with impressive lagoons. When entering in the Argentinean side, the road got worse, no more pavement. We stopped at the Argentinean customs and immigration. When I saw from far away the Argentinean flag I got emotional. I felt I was getting home, getting closer to my culture.

Once more I was in line to stamp my passport. There were many Europeans, the policeman didn’t ask anything, just stamped their passports. In front of me there was a Chilean woman, on her turn, the policeman asked her lots of things: intention of the trip, where she was going to stay, if she had relatives there. My turn he also asked me where I was going, for how long, if I was going back to Brazil or if I was going to travel in Argentina. After me, he stamped all the other European passports without asking anything. Once more, prejudice…

In America, Bolivia 2001 On  12/08/2001  No comments

Sometimes the Bolivian immigration Office in the border with Chile is closed. In order to not have problems I decided to get my exit stamp on the passport in Uyuni. In Bolivia you pay $15 Bolivianos to get out of the country. I’ve never seen that before in other countries.

When we got to the border, our tour group split. Some went back to Uyuni and others got the bus to San Pedro de Atacama. The bus stopped by the Bolivian Immigration office, this time they were open to people stamp the passport. Then we continue to Chile. On the border line we could see the difference between the countries. The Chilean road was new and paved while the Bolivian one had sand and rocks.

We stopped at Chilean Immigration and Customs Office. Everybody had to get off the bus, stamp the passport and go to a room where they check the luggage. There was a long table where everyone placed his/her backpack and waited. After a while the police came and asked very loud who was Claudio, a Chilean man answered...

In America, Bolivia 2001, Peru 2001 On  09/07/2001  2 comments

Crossing the border from one country to another is not a good experience around here. It is even worse if there is threats of closing the roads by the Bolivian farmers that were on strike. I knew I couldn’t go to Copacabana because the roads were closed as a form of protest. I went to the Bolivian consulate to know if I would have problems and they told me to cross the border through Desaguadero (a frontier city in Peru). It should be a longer but safer way.

I left very early so I would have more time in case of getting stuck somewhere. The 3-hour trip to Desaguadero had no problems, therefore the road was good. In the city we had to get off the bus with the backpacks, go in-line to the Peruvian immigration to give the exit stamp on the passport and cross the border walking. On the other site there was a bus waiting for us. We spent some more time in-line in the Bolivian immigration to get the entrance stamp. They gave me a 30-day visa even though I said I wanted to stay longer...

In America, Ecuador 2001 On  29/05/2001  No comments

Crossing the border between Ecuador and Peru is not a pleasant thing. When I got off the bus in Huaquilla (Ecuador) about 20 men came around me trying to sell transport to Peru and offering to exchange dollars. One caught my backpack while the others fought for deciding who was going to take me. The place was horrible. It looked like with some parts of Ciudad del Leste (in Paraguay). I walked about 400m to the bridge on the border. I was carrying my backpack and always begging them to leave me alone. They continued walking with me, they were all talking at the same time and trying to sell me something.

On the bridge, I ran into a policeman and asked him there was a place to stamp the passport. I also wanted to know if there was public transport to Tumbes, I didn’t want to go to Peru with any of those guys that were harassing me. He was not precise in any of the answers. Moreover, “my friends” were talking the whole time, it made even harder to understand him...