In this photograph by Pedro Szekely we see the city of La Paz, the second largest city in Bolivia after Santa Cruz. It is located in the western part of the country at an elevation of roughly 3,650 m (11,975 ft) above sea level, making it the world’s highest de facto capital city, or administrative capital, with Quito, Ecuador, being the highest legal capital.

Overlooking the city is the triple-peaked Illimani moutain, which is always snow-covered and can be seen from several spots of the city. [Source]

In the Flickr photo description, Szekely describes his thoughts as he arrived in La Paz for the first time:

“Arriving to La Paz by land is quite an experience. La Paz is in a valley, but it overflowed into the Altiplano. In South America, the outskirts of the big cities are very poor. The peasants coming from the countryside looking for jobs settle there. So, your first contact with La Paz is quite shocking, as you see the extreme poverty of the people who live there.
 
The bus then winds down the road into the very crowded La Paz. The streets are narrow and lined with little stores that sell everything, the traffic and pollution are horrible, and there are lots of people. It is picturesque but unsettling. I live in Los Angeles, but I am from Colombia and I have seen my share of poverty. La Paz is something else.

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