Stop 1 · Bolivia
La Paz
At 3,640 m it is the highest seat of government on earth — though Sucre, far lower, remains the constitutional capital.
The world's highest capital cities
Every stop is a seat of government sitting more than two kilometres above sea level, where visitors arrive short of breath.
The five stops
Stop 2 · Colombia
Bogotá
The third-highest capital in the world. On Sundays 120 km of its roads close to cars for the ciclovía, a weekly ritual copied worldwide.
Stop 3 · Ethiopia
Addis Ababa
Its name means "new flower". Fast-growing imported eucalyptus saved it in the 1900s, when the court had been ready to move on for lack of firewood.
Stop 4 · Bhutan
Thimphu
A policeman in white gloves directs traffic at the main junction — a traffic light was installed once, and removed after public complaints.
Stop 5 · Eritrea
Asmara
Its intact 1930s modernist centre was made a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2017 — the first modernist city listed anywhere.
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