El Parque National Toro Toro

Background: The is an episode of the BBC´s Top Gear where the guys have to drive fast down this crazy cobblestone road in a POS car with a colender of eggs above their heads. The goals is to see who can get to the end with the least egg on their head and the least amount of parts missing from their car.

So, I spent the weekend in Toro Toro National Park, South of Cochabamba. I went with three other volunteers and we had a guide who took us there and showed us around. We left around 5:00am on Saturday, thinking maybe we could sleep in the car... no way. If I had had a colender of eggs over my head there would be nothing left and I would be covered in egg. I couldn´t help but think of the Top Gear guys during the trip (and luckily I was traveling with Brits who actually knew the show!!). The roads were all cobble stone or dirt and we had lot´s of interesting river crossings :) We did get to see the sun rise and there were some funny donkies, pigs, dogs, and cows along the road. Once outside of the city, you really get a feel for the true Bolivia. The houses are tiny huts of brick and mud, people are walking miles from any town, clothes are thrown over bushes to dry, and it is a much different world out there. We got to the park and got to see some amazing things. We toured an area filled with dinasour foot prints (although I am still a little skeptical) and went to a tortoise cemetary (apparently when they are about to die they all go to the same place).
We spent most of the first day exploring caves (thanks for the headlamp mom!). We had nothing but our own lights and a hard hat (thank goodness or I would have lost some brain cells). We literally crawled through tiny crevices, scaled rock faces, belayed down boulders, and went so far into the cave. We saw little waterfalls and a lake with blind fish in it too. Needless to say, when we got out, my clothes were a complete mess, but it was so unbelievable that we could see so much in the caves! The funniest part was our friend Peter who didn´t have a headlamp. He got to go in with "Big Boy".... the gas tank connected to a flame on top of his hard hat. It was pretty hilarious.
The next day was spent hiking down over 900 steps into a canyon where we were rewarded with an icy cold swim under a waterfall. It was so beautiful... but the water was way to cold :) And reguardless of the mountains of sunscreen I put on, I got a little sun burnt :( The views were spectacular and the company was good. However, we were traveling with four Dutch girls who were nice, but literally NEVER stopped talking. And after awhile, a language you don´t know just sounds like lots of noise.
I learned a new game that is pretty much like Yatzee and the food was good too.

P.S. I tried to put up more photos, but it is not working, so you get one of the three other volunteers we went with and our sturdy truck!