A week after my fingertips began to feel the effects of the high altitude on my trip through the Bolivian Altiplano, I finally touched down in semi-tropical Santa Cruz de la Sierra (Elev: 416 m or 1,365 ft).
My flight from Sucre arrived at the smaller, older El Trompillo Airport, closer to the city center where I would be staying.
Later, I would fly to La Paz from Bolivia's most modern airport, Viru Viru International Airport.
The city of Santa Cruz de la Sierra (also known simply as Santa Cruz) is organized in concentric rings, with the historic center smack dab in the middle.
Plaza 24 de Septiembre is at the heart of the historic center and was named after the anniversary of an uprising that led to the city's independence from Spain.
Here, I spent five days relaxing at an altitude as close to sea level as you'll find in Bolivia.
The oxygen-rich air aided in the healing of my fingertips, which slowly began to return to normal (despite going through a waxy-feeling phase).
Plaza 24 de Septiembre quickly became one of my favorite plazas in Latin America, not only because of its size and tree cover but also because of the wonderfully restored buildings surrounding it.
I passed the days by soaking up the sunshine while going for walks and sampling traditional Bolivian snacks like cuñapé (delicious yuca and cheese bread).
If I hadn't been in a rush to return to Lima for my first trip to the Amazon, I would've stayed longer to explore two UNESCO World Heritage Sites in the region, the Jesuit Missions of the Chiquitos and Fuerte de Samaipata.
Related: Escape from Uyuni, Bolivia
Suki F says
Those photos are amazing! I couldn’t concentrate in anything you wrote.
Tim says
Good to know that there is somewhere as beautiful as this to go in Bolivia if the altitude becomes too much to bear...!