La Paz changes after dark — but not in just one way.
Some people are finishing work. Others are only beginning their night shift. Street grills appear, friends meet for a drink, vendors continue working and everyday life carries on beside some of the city's more difficult realities.
This isn't a nightlife tour, and it isn't simply a food tour.
Using street food, neighbourhoods, people, a panoramic viewpoint and even a local alcoholic drink, we'll explore some of the different realities that coexist in La Paz after dark.
Begin around San Pedro square, rather than focusing on what happens inside the prison, we'll look at the life around it: people meeting friends, buying food, working, passing through the square and continuing with their everyday routines.
ANTICUCHO — THE PEOPLE BEHIND THE GRILL
Taste anticucho, marinated beef heart grilled over charcoal and served with potato and a peanut-based sauce.
But we'll look beyond what's on the plate.
You'll discover some of the layered histories associated with this food and we'll pay attention to the person actually preparing our food. For us, the anticucho matters, but the person behind it matters just as much.
KILLI KILLI — API ABOVE THE CITY
Next, we'll pick up api morado and pastel and take a taxi up to Killi Killi viewpoint.
Enjoy a warm cup of api — a thick purple-corn drink with spices — together with a freshly fried cheese pastel while taking in one of La Paz's great nighttime views.
Sometimes changing where you're standing changes how you understand the same city.
TÉ CON TÉ — TWO SIDES OF THE SAME STORY
We'll finish with té con té — hot tea mixed with Singani, Bolivia's distinctive grape spirit.
That's what Bolivian Nights is ultimately about.
Not pretending that one evening represents everyone in La Paz, and not reducing the city to beautiful views.
Instead, you'll leave having tasted some of its nighttime foods, met people who work after dark, seen the city from another perspective and understood a little more about the different lives unfolding here every night.
Important information:
This experience includes several tastings but is not designed as a full dinner. We recommend eating lightly beforehand if you have a large appetite.
The tour includes walking, street-food stops and taxi transport to and from Killi Killi viewpoint. La Paz can become very cold after sunset, so please bring warm clothing.
Té con Té contains alcohol.
This tour is not suitable for vegetarians or vegans, as one of the main tastings is anticucho made with beef heart.
We visit real, independently operated local businesses and street-food vendors. Occasionally, protests, road blockades, weather or vendor availability may require us to adjust the route or a tasting. When necessary, we'll use the best available local alternative while preserving the spirit of the experience.