Casa, dulce casa!

We're back in Cochabamba and I'm happy to be home. Potosí and Sucre were great (especially Potosí) but so much traveling gets exhausting! I feel like as soon as my ears stop being clogged after one flight, we're on another. It's really incredible how many places we get to experience here, though, and I am grateful for the diversity of the trip. I'm just happy to be back in my own bed.

I can't even think of where to start. As soon as we arrived at the Sucre airport, we got on a bus to Potosí, a "three hour" bus ride, which in Bolivian time meant something like five, although I didn't keep close track of it. Actually, now that I look at the schedule, I'm realizing it says "aproximadamente" (approximately) 3 horas, so I should have known then that we'd get in late. Anyway, the ride was gorgeous, and we even crossed a bridge that Simon Bolivar crossed during the fight for Bolivian independence (this is a picture from the top of one end of the bridge) so it wasn't so bad, but even breathtaking scenery doesn't make an entire afternoon on a bus completely worthwhile. We got to Potosí around 8 and had dinner in the hotel, accompanied by a traditional Potosina music group with pan flutes, drums, charangos (little string instruments), and other folk instruments. We all danced for a while and then went to bed as early as we could. Potosí is the highest city we've been to so far (I think it might be the highest city in the world, but I'm not positive), so just walking up a flight of stairs wiped us out.

On Monday we visited a mine in Potosí (this picture is of the entrance). It was a really intense experience. Miners work under some of the most abominable conditions in the world, with very little improvement in conditions since the mining began in the colonial era. They don't have health insurance, the pay is pretty awful (since many of the mines are now cooperative mines, they don't have salary or hourly wages, they just get paid for whatever minerals they can find), and the life expectancy is around 40 or 50 years because most miners die of silicosis, a lung disease, at which point their children take their places in the mine. We were in the mines for two hours and we all literally breathed a collective sigh of relief when we got out, half because we could finally get a decent lungful of air, and half because of how dismal it was inside. At one point, we turned off our headlamps (we were all dressed in mining clothes, including boots and helmets) and it was unbelievable how dark it was inside. You can't see half a centimeter in front of your face. We had all read about the working conditions of miners, but seeing it and experiencing a little bit of it was a different story. I think it took everyone an hour or two to recover from it afterward. It really was very intense.

That afternoon, we visited a school for children of miners and it definitely lightened the mood a lot. The kids were really excited to see us--almost as excited as we were to see them. They gave us a tour of the school and then we danced with the kids for a little while and played with them in their playground. They don't all come from great home situations but they are lucky because the school is very integrated with the families and tries to incorporate the parents in a lot of the programming to help give the kids a better chance at life than entering the mines, which is what an overwhelming percentage of miners' children end up doing. It was so much fun just running around with the kids (who range from 6 to 18, although most of the students are between 8 and 12) and listening to what they had to say. One little girl took my camera around for an hour and just took pictures of her friends and the other students on the program and it was really great to look through the pictures afterward and see what she had done. I think I might go back and visit the school during my ISP, but I'm not sure if I will have time or if it's exactly pertinent to my topic.

The next morning we swam in aguas termales (hot springs) that the Incas used to use. It was so amazing! The laguna is in an inactive volcano, which is why the water is heated, and we just swam in this warm pool in the middle of the mountains all morning. It was so gorgeous and so relaxing. We even gave ourselves spa treatment with the mud. It was extremely refreshing and such a nice recovery after such an active day the day before. We ate lunch there, llama meat on a grill and potatoes cooked underneath the ground. It was so rich! I love the food here so much. It was especially exciting for me because we had just learned in Quechua class about that way of cooking in the countryside, by creating a hot pit in the ground and burying the potatoes for a few hours. It was delicious. Then we had the afternoon free, and since we accidentally missed the tour at the Casa de la Moneda (which is supposed to be one of the best museums in Latin America), we went to an old convent that's been around since colonial times and is still in use. It reminded me of the monastery that Ali and I visited in Arequipa. It was a convent where the richest Spaniards would send their daughters for the rest of their lives, and it was so interesting to see how they lived in luxury at the same time as living very strictly structured, solemn lives. Plus our tour guide was a blast and kept asking Nicole if she would stay and become a nun there. It was a lot of fun, and made missing the Casa de la Moneda a little less painful.

We went to Sucre that night and just went to bed, and the next morning went to Asur, a museum and organization that is working to recover the ancient art of Bolivian textiles. They have an indigenous art museum and also hire women to come to the center and learn how to create the art as it used to be done. It was really gorgeous and so impressive to see the women working so intently. It takes them a day to finish about 1-2 centimeters of a piece, so I can't even imagine how long it must take women in the campo to do it while they're also working the fields, taking care of their children, and cooking all day. It's extremely impressive. That afternoon we visited a cultural center of musicians. We spoke with the director of the group and then ate dinner and watched the musicians perform. There is a core band of them called Los Masis ('friends' in Quechua) and then younger students who study and work there during the day. It was so exhilarating and really a lot of fun. We dance so much in this country! It's exhausting, but it's so much more fun than just sitting and observing all the time. I really love the energy.

Yesterday we went to the Zona Tarabuca, which is an area just outside of Sucre, where they make textiles and play traditional music and essentially incorporate all of the different cultural aspects we learned about all week. It's in the country, so the people speak Quechua, and Luis and Nicole and I got to practice a little with them! We helped chop onions for lunch, then participated in an offering to Pachamama, then watched them perform some music and traditional dances, then ate a delicious lunch once again. I haven't been disappointed for a single meal in this country. I also bought a bag that they had woven right there. It's gorgeous and I feel great about it because I know the money actually went to the artist. It was a really warm experience because the people were so welcoming to us, despite the fact that for all they knew, we were just another group of tourists barging in to examine their quaint customs. I had a great time and I think they appreciated that we were trying to speak Quechua, although the experience made me realize just how useless I am when trying to speak. I need a lot more practice before our rural homestay in a week.

This morning Luis and I explored a bit before we had to leave for our flight at 1. We checked out the famous chocolate place, Chocolates Para Ti, and I bought way more than I should have ("for my family," though of course I've eaten almost half of it already). Then we ended up getting lost and having to take a taxi back to the hotel, which was embarrassing and frustrating, especially since we are supposed to be two of the three excursion leaders. Whoops. Ismael and Lupe were understanding, though, and we made the flight with plenty of time to spare. Now this afternoon I've just relaxed in my room and snacked on expensive chocolates and I'm really happy to be home. We have so much work to do this weekend and I spent so much money this week that I think I probably won't go out much. I'm happy to be here just to relax. I really love this country.