If you are traveling to Bolivia and happen to be traveling with small children, do not, I repeat, do not take them to the Valley of the Moon in La Paz. Oh sure, they can get in for free. There is a reason. If your kid plummets to their death and you start to bang on the ticket window, they can just shrug their shoulders and say, “hey, we said it was free.”
If you are young and single and have just ridden a bike down the deadliest road on earth (another daytrip around here) the Valley of the Moon will seem like a cakewalk to you, by all means, do it.
If you have ever accompanied a young child to a playground and have almost had a heart attack when he or she; a. almost walk in front of another child swinging on a swing, b. start to go down a slide standing up, c. fall off the top of a stairs, the Valley of the Moon is 10 times worse.
Before we went into the Valley of the Moon, I said in English while holding SB’s hand, “Oh, is this like a tourist trap?” Hon-Hon, they laughed back. “Piège à touristes!” How right I was. The “fun” thing about the visit is that you walk on narrow little paths only between a foot to two feet in diameter through a very interesting landscape (see photo gallery). The un”fun” thing is that you can also slip and fall to your death, but then again, it all depends on your interpretation of fun.
Seeing my little boy walking in front of me, yes, holding his Daddy’s hand, on that little path, made me want to throw up. This is the point that I swore away doing the dishes for the next 10 years only if he would take me and the boy back to the starting point.
The others came back a half an hour later, laughing and having a good time. Good for them. I was happy with my heart coming back to a normal heart rate and SB blowing soap bubbles at my feet.
