It will be very hard to replace. I knew I was in trouble when I asked the hotel clerk where I might find one. The corners of his mouth turned up a little bit, though he managed not to smirk. "In the market," he said, circling about 5 blocks on a city map. "Ask around." Stores are not a popular concept here in Bolivia. Every town has a few, mostly specializing in the same thing. I saw plenty of shoestores in Sucre, and lots of plumbing stores here, but nowhere that might sell an alarm clock. Market shopping, when not done as a diversion, is frustrating. Everyone has a stall, but few specialize in one thing. Unless it's something you definitely don't need, like confetti and pinatas. I found lots of people who would be happy to sell me a 5-gallon bag of neon-green confetti. The alarm clock, however, was a different proposition. A few vendors said "alarm clock? what's that?" Others said "maybe Monday." The most helfpul pointed me on to other kiosks, conveniently located near the meat market. In between stalls selling raw cow heads, I finally found my new alarm clock -- hot pink, panda-shaped, will only go off on the hour. No waking up at 9:15 for me. Indiglo not even an option.

    Copacabana, situated on Lake Titicaca and less than 10 KM outside Peru, is certainly a change from Cuzco (which I swear I will write more about later). At lunch today, I compared the difference between "touristy" in Cuzco and "touristy" in Copacabana. The restaurant where I ate lunch was full of gringos, thereby qualifying it as "touristy." But by some country's standards, it wouldn't have fit the definition of restaurant. Really it was a few plastic tables in between two houses. Behind us was a yard where ducks and bunny rabbits roamed free. Water came from a giant oil drum. I eyed other travelers's cups of coffee and tea and concluded that Bolivia is a place where my Coke addiction is protecting my health. Yes, theoretically, the coffee water would have been boiled...but it still came from a giant oil drum surrounded by livestock. I must have a stomach of iron because I'm the only traveler I've met who hasn't had food poisoning (except for Liz, but she drinks the tap water when she goes home to Ghana). Don't worry Mom...most restaurants here are a little more restaurant-y.

    My favorite thing about Bolivia is that I don't have to do anything to feel like I'm having a travel experience. Today I have done very little besides sit on park benches and the beach, but I've seen all sorts of interesting things. It is a religious holiday here, though I'm not sure which one. Apparently this means the cars will be receiving blessings from the local priest. To prepare the cars, people dress them up wtih garlands of flowers and chili peppers, arranged in the shape of a smily face. Outside the cathedral, amid all the running cars, people detonated giant strings of firecrackers. I would have liked to see the end of the ritual, but it didn't seem very safe, so I moved on.

    Tomorrow, because I am a glutton for punishment, I am going trekking again. But this trip will be self-directed and much lower-key. I'm taking a boat to Isla del Sol in the middle of Lake Titicaca, where I can wander among traditional villages and ancient Incan ruins. Hope my alarm clock wakes me up on time.

~Meredith