To Potosí and back again

Just got back from a whirlwind trip to Potosí and Sucre. I have now officially been to 14,000 feet and back again, a breathtaking experience in many senses. After a week of traveling, it feels great to be back home in Cochabamba with the fam -- sharing food and stories and settling in again. But first, a recap of the trip!   We first went to Potosí, framed by orange-tinted mountains that have been exploited for silver, zinc and other minerals for hundreds of years. The cobblestone streets are narrow and the city is filled with colonial architecture. It gets super cold at night due to the altitude, so we bundled up in all the layers we had when we went out at night. While we were in Potosí we had the opportunity to go into a mine and be exposed temporarily to the extremely difficult and dangerous life of a miner. 

One of the most interesting parts of the mine visit was going to the altar of "el Tio" (The Uncle), who is the spirit owner of the mine. He is a devil figure that was created by the Spaniards in the 16th century to scare the indigenous people into working in the mines (or else they would face the wrath of el Tio). The Spanish conquistadors named this figure "El Tio," because in Quechua -- one of the main Bolivian indigenous languages -- there is no letter "D" for "Dios" so the Spanish replaced the "D" with "T" to form "Tio."

To this day, many miners worship God and attend mass when they are above ground, but when they descend into the depths of the mine, all of their reverence goes towards el Tio, the lord of the underworld, to protect them from the dangers of mining. There is an altar for el Tio in every mine, and the miners leave coca leaves, alcohol and cigarettes as an offering to ensure that they receive his protection. The altar is pretty scary to witness as you descend through dark tunnels in the mines. The religious dualism of the miners and their intense devotion and fear of a God created by the Spanish is incredible and hard to wrap my mind around.

After our excursion to Potosí, we took a bus to Sucre, the constitutional capital of Bolivia. The city is quintessentially colonial, with white-washed buildings and narrow streets.  

We went to a weaving museum where I saw the most intricate, colorful and incredibly imaginative weavings. Afterwards we went to a music school called “Masis” where they teach traditional Andean music to children and adolescents. They served us a delicious dinner with sweet potato, beets, avocado and corn, while we watched the dance and music from the balcony above. Then we all descended and danced to the music in the courtyard. It was pretty magical. 

A view into Bolivian life

Here are pictures, as promised!

The day after tomorrow I leave for an excursion to Potosí, one of the highest cities in the world at an elevation of 13,420 feet! The Cerro Rico ("rich mountain") stands above the city, which was the main supply of silver during the Spanish empire. We are going to study the silver mines, the mobilization of mining unions and the human/economic toll of the mining industry. Will report back when I return!

The view from my neighborhood! The mountain backdrop is breathtaking.

Mi familia (from left to right) - My pops Eduardo, niece Luz, mother Charo, and sister Daniela!

Family pic in front of the main plaza's fountain

Cooking lunch! Potatoes, fried plantains and rice -- 3 essential ingredients in a Bolivian meal. 

 

My 1.5-year old niece, Brisa.

Mi casa! It's up on a mountain in the north of the city. The view is

A wonderful pumpkin soup that we ate at an excursion to an ex-hacienda in a pueblo nearby, Tarata.

The largest statue of Christ in Latin America that I look out on everyday from my window. 

 

 

A much needed update

Two weeks later, I've finally resurfaced in the internet world! My host family here has a desktop computer that has internet access, but I've felt uncomfortable using it for long periods of time (hence my extended absence). Internet is too slow to upload pictures tonight, but I will upload some asap!

Cochabamba, Bolivia -- surrounded on all sides by gorgeous arid mountains -- is an incredible city. It's full of colorful playgrounds, parks, colorful artisanal markets, and the chaos of cars that don't obey any traffic laws. I'm living up on a hill that looks out over a vast majority of the city and the huge statue of Christ (the tallest in the world!) that Cochabamba is known for. The view is gorgeous at night - a vast blanket of twinkling dots amid the dark mountains.

Although I've only been here two weeks, I have comfortably settled in to my family's home. I have three sisters (ages 17, 21 and 25), and my mom and pops. My youngest sister, Jazmin, does bolivian folkloric dance and today I went to one of her big performances in front of the Prez of Bolivia, Evo Morales! I love love love the dancing here - so many colors and chants and energetic movements. I'm planning to start taking classes at a local dance school and come back a full-fledged Bolivian dancer!

My oldest sister, Wendy has two young children (7 and 1.5 yrs old) who are adorable. Brisa, the younger one, has just gotten adjusted to having me in the house and now she calls out, "Willlyyy? Willyyy?" when I disappear into my room. My parents (Eduardo and Rosario) are the friendliest people ever and I spend lots of meals discussing Bolivian politics, coca growing, cultural norms and food with them.

Cochabamba is also known for its food. As I recently learned from my academic director, Cochambinos "live to eat, they don't eat to live." What a great mantra, right? Lunch is the biggest meal here and BOY is it big. I get a heaping plate of food everyday. Potatoes, quinoa, chicken, and soup make up a great deal of my meals here. From quinoa patties, to pumpkin soup to lentils over rice, my meals are always delicious. And the drinks here are also incredible -- I've had two corn-based drinks in the past two days. One was api (a purple corn drink) and the other was made from green corn. Sounds kind of weird but they are creamy and delicious.

This Friday is the Day of Cochabamba, a celebration of the founding of the city. There's going to be lots of dancing, parades, celebrations and food. And no classes or work! Should be a day of family bonding and fun.

The big day!

After months of anticipation, a sea of notarized visa documents, and enough REI gear to last me a decade, the day has finally come -- I'm leaving for Cochabamba, Bolivia today!

13 hours and 3,832.1 miles later, I will be arriving in the airport in Cochabamba and meeting up with the rest of the American students on my program as well as our academic directors. I'm doing an SIT program called Multiculturalism, Globalization and Social Change (quite a mouthful!). The program is centered on Bolivian history, focusing on the power struggles between the large indigenous population and the international pressures of large multi-national corporations and foreign governments.

Although the program is based in the city of Cochabamba in central Bolivia, we take weekend excursions to the tropical lowlands, the Andean altiplano, and El Alto (the largest indigenous city in Latin America!). We stay with host families in Cochabamba, and also spend a week with an Aymara family on the shore of Lake Titicaca or with a Quecha family in the Cochabamba family.

Although I've had qualms about doing an American study abroad program rather than direct enrolling and completely immersing myself, my two host families will hopefully be a helpful lens with which I can learn, experience and observe Bolivian life.

And another exciting tidbit - I'll be doing a part-time internship with an NGO started by a Mac alum called A Tu Lado. They focus on paramedical education, with the goal of integrating their classes into the local universities and creating a self-sustaining paramedic program. Part of this has included training Bolivian pilots that deliver services in remote Amazonian regions to have paramedic capacities.

I'll be collecting and analyzing mapping data from the emergency flight service and producing operational maps for the pilots with GIS (geographic information systems, basically computer mapping)! This will allow them to target the small communities that are in most need of basic medical services and to assess how resources should be distributed. SO SO COOL.

Can't wait to finally be there! Check back for more exciting updates from Cocha as well as pictures.

Geografía

As a geography major, maps hold high importance. Check out this assortment of Bolivian maps to orient yourselves with the awesomeness that is Bolivia. 

The terrain is pretty incredible -- with the breathtaking Andean highlands in the west and Amazonian, tropical lowlands in the east. 

I'll be staying in Cochabamba for the majority of the semester. Cochabamba is the fourth largest city in Bolivia with an urban population of around 600,000.

6 days until I head south! Cochabamba, here I come.