The first in the World cocaine bar Route 36 is in Bolivia in a highland city La Paz. That is exactly the reason for this city to practically become the center of the world tourism.
Though drug production, selling and consuming are illegal in Bolivia, nevertheless the authorities do not make obstacles in the inhabitants’ way, for whom using the coke leaves as tonic is a centuries-old tradition. In fact even the eccentric president of the country Evo Morales has made enough to preserve the 500-year old culture of cultivating and using coke and even, as the rumor has it, spends much time taking care of his own coke bush. Therefore it is not surprising that in Bolivia, where the production of cocaine has increased by 10% in the last year, there is a successfully functioning cocaine bar – the first and so far the only one in the world.
The bar Route 36 is located at the altitude of almost 4000 meters above the sea level. In such rarefied air the inhabitants of La Paz have been using the coke leaves as a cure for hypobaropathy for centuries. Jonathan Franklin, correspondent for The Guardian, visited the bar and it is from his words that we can get an impression of this extraordinary establishment.
At the first sight, Route 36 is no different than any other bar. There are always many visitors who sit around the tables and waiter who serve the orders but besides alcoholic beverages and snack they also bring small case with little packets of cocaine. There is always a bottle of water that is on the house.
In Route 36 anybody can place an order for two types of cocaine to choose from – either diluted cocaine for 14 dollars or pure – for 21 dollars per gram , well prices seems quite affordable but I would like to remind that top residential cocaine treatment isn’t cheap at all 🙂 . The cocaine in Route 36 is so good that some visitors claim that the cocaine they get home always seems to be diluted and they do not wish to use it anymore especially if you take into account that purest powder in Route 36 costs 5-10 cheaper than the one you can get in the “black” markets of the USA or Europe. When all is said and done, the choice to either continue using drugs like cocaine or to enter
As one of the waiters, Roberto, says there are never any fights or quarrels that are so common for the alcohol bars. The visitors communicate calmly, consume the ordered drinks and cocaine, discuss their travel adventures and can even stay overnight. “There are 4 Australians now who have spent already 4 days in here”, says Roberto and none of the visitors is concerned about the police because “the owners have paid those who had to be paid”.
Nevertheless, you can never find the exact address of Route 36 in a guidebook. Because of the neighbors, who do not wish to live and work in the same neighborhood with such establishment full of tourists who are beside themselves, the bar has to move from one location to another. The owners are also concerned about their competitors who may set the police against them.
