“The folds of Bolivia’s beauty – and its contradictions and struggles — defy a story line.” — Our thoughts in Bolivia, First Impressions

Bolivia may defy a story line, but it sure does beg a visit.

It doesn’t usually occur to us to present false dichotomies like we do in the title, but questions like these are the ones that Bolivia seems to raise. It's a conflicted place and it left us similarly so.

Bolivia's landscape is stark and stunning in turns. So are the people. In Andean South America, Bolivia is the poster child of diversity, whether in regards to ethnicity, culture, clothing or politics.

But for all this, you pay a price. The high altitudes of the altiplano and salt flats humble you into understanding the limits of your body: your head feels dizzy, you run out of breath. For a host of cultural and historical reasons, indigenous communities often view travelers suspiciously. Some people even throw tomatoes in the direction of unwelcome shutterbugs.

Make no mistake, Bolivia doesn’t slot in as the world’s easiest travel destination. But it certainly does stimulate. It will make you think — and if you give it a chance, it just might profoundly impact and inform your view of the world.

For us, that's plenty reason to visit.

But in case you need further convincing, we offer our photo essays and a summary of what we experienced in Bolivia.

Lake Titicaca – Blue Skies, Blue Waters

At 3,800 meters, Lake Titicaca stands as one of the highest, largest, and deepest lakes in the world. And if you take it all in from Bolivia's Isla del Sol, something beautiful. Deep blue skies hang above inky fresh waters, clouds pop over a lonely landscape, and the whole scene is wrapped by the 20,000 foot snowcapped mountains of the Cordillera Real.

It's one thing to admire the lake from the shores of Copacabana, Bolivia's main outpost on the lake, but it's another to hike the length of Isla del Sol. Breath-taking, quite literally.

Because of the altitude — a lung-aching 3,800 meters (12,500 feet) — you can feel the burn, but the amazing views make it all worth it. Go slow, appreciate the villages, the people, the donkeys, the llamas, the history.

Our suggestion: take a boat from Copacabana to the northern side of Isla del Sol and hike to the village of Yumani on its southern edge. The walk offers great views of the lake and a few sites of reconstructed Incan ruins.

Although Yumani has experienced a bit of a boom in guest house construction recently, you can still see pack donkeys carrying supplies through town and young girls shepherding llamas from the fields.

After an overnight stop, hire a boat in the morning to take you to the village of Yampupampa on the mainland. From there, hike the remaining ten miles / 17km back to Copacabana. Along the way, it's a different world: villagers rely mainly on agriculture, livestock and trout fishing.

So if you find yourself in Bolivia, take in Lake Titicaca. And if you find yourself at Lake Titicaca, be sure to take a long walk. And be sure to celebrate your hiking accomplishments with some freshly grilled trout on the shores of Copacabana.

Compare prices at hotels in Copacabana.

La Paz

How many other major cities feature a 6,400 meter (21,000+ ft) snow-capped mountain (Mt. Illimani) looming over it?

The surrounding landscape is full of hills, red rocks, and crags — all of which spill into a giant bowl of a valley. When it comes to dramatically set major cities, it’s difficult to beat La Paz.

While the setting of La Paz is undeniably amazing, what really struck us was the city's mix of indigenous people, bustling market culture, and seemingly cosmopolitan caches of tall buildings. While other big cities in South America (e.g., Lima, Peru and Quito, Ecuador) have some of these features, La Paz seems to inimitably integrate it all.

Compare prices at hotels in La Paz.

Cochabamba and Chapare

Cochabamba doesn't qualify as our favorite city in Bolivia (watch out for your belongings in the market!), but it does serve as a jumping off point for the Chapare region and the Bolivian jungle.

Consider a visit to Inti Wari Yassi animal sanctuary near the town of Villa Tunari in Chapare. Hang out with monkeys and other animals rescued from circuses or donated by people who realized that taking care of a full-sized bear is no easy feat. If you have some time, you can volunteer at the sanctuary as well. Word has it that they are short on staff.

Chapare also serves as Bolivia's coca leaf production center. You may or may not see any coca growers during your visit, but it’s interesting to understand how the cocaine production lifecycle begins in a place like this.

Compare prices at hotels in Cochabamba.

Salt Flats and High Deserts

If your time in Bolivia is limited, get on down to Tupiza in the south and take a 4-day jeep tour across the high deserts and salt flats to Uyuni. The landscape is some of the most unique and beautiful we’ve come across on our three years on the road. Mother Nature really outdid herself here with a palette including red and green lakes, snow-white salt fields and azure blue skies.

Read the full story about our Salar de Uyuni tour .

Compare prices at hotels in Tupiza and Uyuni.

Sucre

From the moment we arrived in Bolivia, people raved about Sucre. Yes, it’s a pretty colonial city with white buildings, churches, and a central plaza reminiscent of Europe. However, when we consider Sucre, we don't find ourselves reaching for superlatives. It’s a comfortable city in which to spend a few days, cobble together a Thanksgiving meal, visit the excellent Museum of Indigenous Art, and perhaps stop by the Sunday indigenous market in nearby Tarabuco.

Note: In Tarabuco, be careful with your camera; locals are decidedly photo-unfriendly. Although we enjoyed our visit and emerged unscathed, fellow travelers had tomatoes and rocks thrown at them when they brought out their cameras.

Compare prices at hotels in Sucre.

Potosi

Locals will remind you that nearby Potosi was once larger, richer and more famous than either London or Paris. 500 years later, the mines still operate and attract travelers. The mine tour is by no means upbeat (it's not intended to be), but offers an opportunity to see and experience the conditions that miners subject themselves to on a daily basis. The whole experience is a window onto their lives, dreams and fears.

Compare prices at hotels in Potosi.

Tarija

If the thin air and indigenous Andean communities of the altiplano leave you light-headed, may we suggest a visit to the southern Bolivian city of Tarija for a vacation from your vacation?

Although Tarija may not feature any particularly notable sights, its friendliness, laid-back attitude, wine culture and attention to food makes it feel downright Mediterranean (minus the beach). Recharge your batteries by hanging out with people like this:

Compare prices at hotels in Tarija.

The post Bolivia: Travel to Love or Travel to Learn? appeared first on Uncornered Market.

We eat the mountain…and the mountain eats us.

— David, a mine guide and former miner in Potosi, echoes a decades-old sentiment about the city's lifeblood, its world-famous silver mines.

It was late morning and the sun was bright, the sky crystal at 13,400 feet in Potosi, Bolivia. We were being tended to by a group of schoolgirls dressed as nurses at a hygiene fair; they sought to teach us the methods and benefits of properly washing our hands.

The mood: uplifting and hopeful.

Contrast this with just the day before.

Profuse sweat and claustrophobia advanced as we crawled through tunnels well over 500 meters underground. Even with damp masks and bandannas covering our faces, we could barely breathe for all the dust and chemicals swirling from a nearby dynamite explosion just minutes before.

There, in the darkness of the Cerro Rico mine, a 12-year old boy was four hours into his shift. He had ten more hours to go.

The Miner’s Life

In the 500 years of Potosi's mining history, things haven't changed much for the average miner — the boy we met included. He was waiting, sweating; he wore a pained, exhausted look on his face. Practically, his day had just begun.

To make it through the workday, he filled his cheeks with large wads of coca leaves and chewed them as life force. The coca would lend him energy and curb his hunger, but it was clear it wouldn't fully counteract the stifling heat and lack of oxygen in the tunnels.

Although miners no longer die by the millions from mercury contact as they once did under Spanish colonialists, they virtually all die young — usually between 35 and 45 — of silicosis (black lung). David, our guide and a former miner himself, explained: “Nothing can be done once you have this [silicosis]. Even the best hospitals in Europe can do nothing to cure it. We know we're going to die young, so we want to make the best of what we have and enjoy life. This is why the festivals and celebrations here are so important to us. We give everything we have.“

Why live through such difficulty only to guarantee an early death? Miners are a proud group; they work hard and honorably in order to provide for their families. They'll take a gift of coca leaves, soda, or dynamite from tourists on mine tours, but they don't want our pity. They are motivated by the dream of striking it rich. Some work for private companies for a small salary, but most choose to work in cooperatives. Their hopes of finding valuable new veins of minerals and sharing directly in the fortune of their find are what keep them going day after day.

Our guide continued:

There was once a miner earning only $80 per month. One day he found a vein of silver. Today he is a millionaire and owns a football (soccer) team. The man we met outside? He owns 33 cars; he found a vein. After new veins of zinc were found in 2007, the Hummer population in Potosi increased by fifteen.

If you work as a truck driver or teacher, or in the factories you can earn about $150 per month. Police technically earn $150 per month also, but with all the bribes they get, it's much more. Same with politicians — they earn the most. But we all can’t be policemen or politicians. So, being a miner is the next best thing to support our families. There is always the chance to become rich if you work hard enough.

There simply aren't many employment options in a place like Potosi.

Question: If your father was a miner and died of silicosis at the age 40, who will provide for your family?

Answer: The eldest son, 12 years old.

Potosi Above Ground, Brighter

The following day, we took an early morning stroll around Potosi’s old colonial downtown. Hints of the city's former grandeur stood in its churches and homes — Potosi was once the richest and largest city in the world, besting places like Paris and London. Cerro Rico mountain – the one we'd been deep inside the day before — looms over a city now diminished.

During our walk, we intersected a group of Bolivian women and schoolchildren marching, advocating an end to domestic violence. Mixed and indigenous locals carried colorful banners and symbolic coffins. Now this was interesting and different. We followed them to the main square where the march merged into a hygiene fair run by teachers and children from local schools.

After watching us with curiosity, a group of young girls mustered the confidence to invite us to their booth for a lesson. One by one, each girl stood tall and recited her segment: the importance of cleaning and disinfecting one’s hands, how to prevent dengue and yellow fever, and why clean water is a necessity for a healthy community.

Their body language and the confidence and pride that resonated in their voices gave us a lift.

Upon leaving, a group of boys from another school surrounded us. When they found out we were from the United States, we were barraged with a series of questions for over 30 minutes: “What is the White House like? Have you met Barack Obama? Do you know Michael Jackson?“

In this interlude, hope sprang eternal.

The kids at the hygiene fair – for all the maturity of the messages they delivered — were still allowed to be kids. How different their lives are from the 12-year-old miner we'd met the day before. And how different the lives of working kids are from the childhoods we have known.

Where were you when you were twelve?

Taking a Potosi Mine Tour and Tour Ethics

As with any tour that features a real-time view of difficult circumstances and human suffering, tour detractors argue that the experience amounts to paying to watch people suffer.

We believe the value of the experience (for you, the miners, your readers, etc.) depends on how you approach the tour. If you are going to view the miners as you would animals in a zoo, then we advise you not to go. If, on the other hand, you understand that the people you'll meet underground are human and their lives are made of decisions as serious as the ones you believe you face (more perhaps?), then the tour will be worthwhile. You'll have an opportunity to see and feel the mines firsthand in a way that no film or video experience can deliver. It may affect you profoundly.

Potosi Mine Tour Recommendations

• Watch the film Devil's Miner, a terrific, heart-tugging documentary told almost exclusively in the voice of a young boy who works in the mines. If you plan to take a Potosi mine tour, we recommend doing the tour first, then watching the film. Both of your experiences will be the better for it.
• Potosi mine tour operator: We opted to go with Koala Tours. Given his level of English, our guide was able to answer our barrage of questions about life in Potosi and in the mines. Cost: 100 Bs ($14.50). Many guesthouses also offer tours for a bit cheaper, but just make sure your tour company has a good safety record and contributes something to the miners they visit.
• Dealing With Altitude: Potosi is supposedly the highest city in the world at 13,400 feet (4090 meters) above sea level. To battle altitude sickness, we suggest moving slowly, drinking lots of water, and chewing coca leaves. If you still feel bad, consider taking Diamox (altitude sickness medicine).
• Accommodation: We stayed at Hostal La Casona in Potosi. 80 Bs ($12) per night for a double room with shared bathroom. They have free wi-fi internet. On par with most places in Bolivia, the breakfast is mediocre. Address: Chuquisaca 460
• Transport: You can get to Potosi by bus from almost any spot in Bolivia. Guesthouses will sell bus tickets for select times, but we found that it was just as easy to go to the bus station fifteen minutes before departure time, buy the ticket ourselves and use the savings to buy snacks for the ride.

The post Potosi, Through Children’s Eyes (Where Were You When You Were Twelve?) appeared first on Uncornered Market.

While the people of Tarija, Bolivia will keep you hanging around, it’s the wine – surprisingly drinkable and made with grapes grown at an elevation of 6,000 feet — that Tarija is best known for.

Bolivian Wine-Tasting for the Adventurous

The town of El Valle in nearby La Valle de la Concepción (Concepcion Valley), a sleepy little place tucked into the canyons, features several small family vineyards and wine bodegas where you can partake in the local vintage.

These are not fancy affairs. So don’t think Napa Valley or Bordeaux. Think something like Sideways goes south of the border.

At La Casa Vieja, an artisanal vineyard, we joined ten Bolivian engineering university students visiting the region for a national conference. Their bubbling “free wine” excitement reminded us that university student priorities around the world are not that different after all.

The vineyard’s sommelier (a very generous use of the term) quickly washed out several glasses as he gave a brief history of the vineyard and its wines.

We assumed that the glasses were for each of us. But no. After he lined up an almost-to-the-brim pour of a different wine in each glass, we realized that we would be sharing. The H1N1 Swine Flu public announcement poster campaign across Bolivia imploring people to not share glasses apparently had not yet reached this far south.

Although we considered dropping out, our curiosity got the better of us. So we tasted: a tannic red, a sweet white, a less tannic red, a light white, then a grape infused with sangani, the local grappa. Ten wines in all, in no discernible order, all at light speed. A hapless sampling at best.

The wines were simple — nothing particularly refined or exceptional, yet nothing too terribly offensive either.

Although the university students were thrilled with the tasting, we decided to move on and picked up the dirt road toward the town square. Although most roads in El Valle are not yet paved, the town appears as though tourism development has been on somebody's mind. But for all the signs and buildings on the mend, the place retains a bit of ghost town secret splendor.

We visited Hosteria, an eclectic mishmash of a place: one part vineyard, another part curiosity. Its proprietor, Jesús Romero, gave us a tour of his “museum” – an odd, dusty collection of artifacts from the area featuring everything from fossils and bones to old suitcases and random stills.

Jesús uncorked a bottle of his latest vintage for us to taste and sat down with us for a chat. He was proud of his eight year-old Sangiovese vines from Argentina and Chile. His wine: strangely effervescent. His demeanor: contagiously positive.

We figure that someday when the throngs make their way, Jesús and his compound will be at the center of attention in a venue that fittingly defines the region.

Bolivian Wine-Tasting, Bodega Style

If you are serious about understanding Bolivian wines, we highly suggest a stop at La Vinoteca at 731 Ingavi Street in Tarija. You can taste any of the dozens of Bolivian wines they carry. They’ll open any bottle and pour a single glass – for about $1.50. They can talk about each of the wines and vineyards and offer comparatives like “though Kohlberg is the oldest, Campos de Solana has the best quality and overall value.”

Maybe you’ll agree. Maybe not.

To figure it all out, order a plate of picados — a tapas-like appetizer plate of olives, cheese, ham, and pickled onion bits — and go slowly.

When we began our wine-tasting, we asked for some recommendations but focused on unfamiliar varietals (like Tannat) and sprinkled in a few of our well-known favorites (like Syrah):

• 2008 Aranjuez Tannat: Tannic, but juicy; a bit too much of an alcohol finish. ($4.00/bottle)
• 2005 Concepcion Cabernet Sauvignon (Reserve): Dry and smooth, with hints of peppers and berries, but unexceptional given the price. ($11.50/bottle)
• 2007 Kohlberg Syrah (Reserve): Good body, dry. A solid wine, particularly for those desiring a bit more of a tannic finish Syrah at a reasonable price ($8.00/bottle)
• 2008 Casa Grande Trivarietal Reserva (Merlot, Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon): Smooth, balanced. Nice fruit, and a pleasant finish. ($10.00/bottle)
• 2005 Magnus Syrah-Cabernet Sauvignon: Rich, smooth and very drinkable right out of the bottle. ($6.50)
• 2008 Kohlberg Malbec (Reserve): Perhaps the best of the tasting group, all around. Drinkable, nice fruit. ($8.00/bottle)

Our bill for six glasses of wine plus a picados plate substantial enough to serve as dinner: just over $10.00.

As we indicated earlier, the 2008 Aranjuez Duo (a Tannat-Merlot blend) became our favorite Bolivian wine. While we found the Aranjuez Tannat too puckering by itself, it softened nicely and added the necessary body when blended with Merlot. At $3.50 a bottle, this wine was a good value.

Final Thoughts on Bolivian Wines

We have a growing body of experience in both bad wines (think Tajik wine and some select Chinese vintages) and good wines (several years attending theFrench Independent Vintner Salon in Strasbourg).

So where do we fall on Bolivian wines?

Although Bolivia's vineyards boast wine pressed from grapes grown “at the highest altitude in the world,” we don’t expect Bolivian wines to become the next big thing at international wine competitions. However, if you avoid the least expensive table wine options –which are unfortunately what most shops in Bolivia outside of Tarija tend to carry — you just may be pleasantly surprised.

Having said that, it’s difficult for small Bolivian wineries to compete with their larger and more experienced Chilean and Argentinian counterparts on price.

Regardless, if you find yourself in the neighborhood of Tarija, Bolivian wines are worth a try.

The post Tarija, Bolivia: The Lowdown on Bolivian Wine appeared first on Uncornered Market.

Oh, Tarija. The women there are beautiful. It’s their smiles. They are the dream of every Bolivian man.

— David, our Bolivian guide for the Salar de Uyuni tour, delivers an animated testimonial for one of Bolivia’s lesser-known cities.

Cafés with outdoor seating line palm tree-dotted squares; cars broadcast opera from open windows as they cruise the plaza; wine lists measure longer than food menus; tablitas (ham, cheese and olive tapas plates) are standard fare; and smiles are in ample supply.

A Mediterranean-style culture smack in the middle of South America? Tarija is not your typical Bolivian town.

Chapaco Spirit

Tarijeños (or Chapacos, as locals are often called) will proudly tell you that Tarija is different. Even Tarija’s economic migrants — there are many – will openly share that they don’t plan to return home to places like La Paz, Potosi or Sucre anytime soon. The economic opportunities may have drawn them to Tarija, but it’s the atmosphere and attitude that have convinced them to stay.

Tarija is “muy tranquilo” (very calm), they say.

The local government employs disabled workers to monitor the parking areas in town. Streets are cleaned daily; signs asking people to throw garbage in cans actually seem to be working. A walk through Tarija’s largest outdoor market, Mercado Campesino, delivers curious looks rather than the trademark looks of suspicion we’d become accustomed to in the rest of Bolivia.

The staff in Tarija’s local restaurants and cafés knew us after a visit or two; some even knew our names. They made us feel at home, a really nice feeling in nomadic lives such as ours.

Perseverance Through Hardships

But alas, life is not all wine and roses for everyone in Tarija. Like any city, it struggles with a growing population and a large community of economic migrants.

A photo shoot with Five Talents brought us to Tarija. During our project, we profiled two dynamic women promoting savings groups and performing capacity building in marginal communities. We witnessed families living on the literal and figurative edges of town – including children of market vendors eager for a free breakfast and families living for years without running water and electricity.

Despite these challenges, the people we met evinced a positive spirit and an openness unmatched during our time in Bolivia.

This is what we’ll take away from Tarija.

Well, that and a greater appreciation of Bolivian wine (coming in Part 2 of this series).

Tarija Travel Information

Where to eat: The Tarija Social Club on the main square offers one of the highest value lunch menus in all of South America. $3.50 (25 Bs) fetches you a four-course meal that is not only enormous – we usually didn't need dinner afterwards – but tasty and balanced. The owner explained to us, “I import all my beef from Argentina or Uruguay. Bolivian beef is like shoe leather.” After eating there three times, we can attest that whatever he's doing seems to be working. Although the restaurant is nicely decorated and the waiters have uniforms, the atmosphere remains genial and unpretentious. Highly recommended.

Check out Cafe Mokka on Plaza Sucre. We became regular consumers of their chicken fajitas ($5 for two people). A hearty bowl of marinated chicken, onions and peppers comes sided with an array of toppings (beans, guacamole, cheese, sour cream, pico de gallo) and six tortillas. Good coffee, too.

Bufalo, on Plaza Luis de Fuentes, sets the pace for Tarija's outdoor eating scene. Our favorite dish: the serrano tablita ($5) – a chopping board spread with two types of local hard cheese, local serrano ham, traditional ham, olives, marinated onions and garlic bread. One tablita is more than enough for two and possibly enough to keep a party of four busy. Accompany it with one of the many wines from Bufalo's local vintage wine list. Bonus: Bufalo also offers free wifi internet.

Just next door, Gattopardo also gets great reviews. Unfortunately, it was closed for renovation during our visit. Gattopardo is rumored to offer free wifi internet, too.

For a snack or a light lunch, visit Gringo Limon on 15 de Abril Street (next to Plaza Sucre) for some of Bolivia's tastiest beef salteñas, stuffed, baked pastry like empanadas, usually only served in the morning or early afternoon). Friendly staff and cold beer. Should you ask, you'll find that the “gringo” was in fact a light-skinned Tarijeño.

What to do: To be fair, Tarija does not offer a laundry list of big tourist sights. The fun for us was simply being there, talking with its people and enjoying its food and wine outdoors. For many, it will serve as a break from Andean Bolivia.

Having said that, there are Bolivian wine tour possibilities in Tarija. If you are interested in a formal tour, consider stopping into the helpful tourist office on the corner of Sucre and Bolivar, for it's likely that new wine tours will crop up over time. Tarija does offer a Ruta de Vino bus that tours a few commercial wineries; it departs Tarija's main square twice a day, in the morning and afternoon. The cost, according to our discussion with the folks at the tourist office: 5 Bs ($0.70).

Alternatively, you can take a shared taxi from the corner of C. Corrado and Gral Trigo streets to El Valle (one of the wine-making villages in the Valle de Concepcion) and take a more rustic do-it-yourself tour. Cost: $0.70 (5 Bs).

Where to stay: Because we needed internet access for work, we chose to stay at Hostal Carmen on Ingavi Street, just a few blocks from the main square. At 190-200 Bs ($28) for a comfortable double room and private bathroom, it's the least expensive accommodation option with wifi internet. On the budget end, consider the Residencial Rosario just across the street. Book a hotel in Tarija.

How to get there: We arrived in Tarija by bus from Tupiza (7 hours overnight on bumpy roads, fording rivers and cutting through slot canyons), but there are daily flights from Bolivia's major cities.

The post Bolivia Travel: Tarija, the City of Smiles and Hospitality appeared first on Uncornered Market.

I need to fill up the tank completely. Finding gasoline in Chapare can be unreliable. It’s one of the ingredients in cocaine production – and that gets first priority.

— Alvarro, our client and guide in Cochabamba, Bolivia explains why it’s necessary to gas up in the city before heading into the jungle.

Paraguay customs. We had just crossed the 200 mile desert frontier with Bolivia. Border agents dressed in knit shirts, their shoulders adorned in crossed Paraguayan and U.S. flags, scanned our bus’s contents –- all of it piled before us. As we waited for a drug-sniffing Labrador retriever to finish pacing and pawing suspect bags, we figured it was time to bring the cocaine story to its finish.

And just as we thought this, the guard approached: “Miss, place your bags up here. We’d like to take a look.”

Latin America's Cocaine Corridor

Drugs — as a topic of conversation – have followed us throughout Latin America. The problem in this part of the world is not so much local drug use (although that is growing), but rather the effects that drug production and distribution have on local economies and societies

The anecdotes began piling up in Central America. Salvadorans told us of thuggish drug gangs who earned their stripes on the streets of Los Angeles only to graduate to the streets of their country’s capital, San Salvador.

Guatemalans blamed Mexican drug gangs for the violence that spilled over into its Peten region. On the Guatemalan Caribbean, locals indicated that DEA (United States Drug Enforcement Agency) agents paid regular visits in order to intercept drug shipments making their way up from the south along the Mosquito Coast. While we were on the Honduran island of Utila, a “narco” flight crashed; locals apparently availed themselves of a few kilos of ditched cocaine as payment for the disruption.

Such are the stories along the cocaine distribution corridor.

We recently had a chance to collect another puzzle piece. By traveling to Chapare, Bolivia’s largest coca production region, we got a peek at the front end of the cocaine production trail where the drug begins its life in the form of a rather innocuous leaf.

Coca as Local Tradition: In the Andean mountains of South America, the tradition of chewing coca and drinking coca tea goes back thousands of years. Ask any Andean native about coca leaves, and he’s likely to give you a laundry list of natural benefits: it gives you energy, it’s a source of calcium, it curbs hunger, and it helps control altitude sickness (soroche). Some coca production and distribution in Bolivia is legal and regulated by state-run companies. However, our conversations with locals put the estimate of coca production for legal use at only 5-10% — leaving a sizable heap for the production of cocaine.

Cocaine, Money and Making a Living

We were visiting Chapare on a photo shoot for CIDRE, a Kiva partner microfinance institution (MFI) that aims to develop and support alternatives to coca production in the region. The deal: CIDRE provides small loans and capacity training to local farmers and businesses in exchange for their agreement not to grow coca.

A family growing coca leaves can earn around $500 per month. That’s a lot of money, particularly in rural Bolivia. Considering that coca isn’t as labor- or capital-intensive as most other agriculture products common to this area, how do you convince family with the immediate needs of feeding and schooling their children that switching crops is a good idea?

Talk about a hard sell.

Even in the days of U.S.-Bolivia coca eradication programs, as fast as the coca fields could be burned, they were replanted anew.

When the economic incentive is there, so is the will.

These days Bolivia features a more coca-friendly government, thanks in part to Bolivia’s current president Evo Morales, a former cocalero (coca grower) himself. Add to this the fact that new and improved cocaine processing technology arrives continually from Colombia and you have a recipe for a better-fired cocaine factory.

Yet the serious money is not in coca leaf production. The women sun-drying coca leaves on tarps in their front yards are not wealthy; their homes are far from fancy.

Further up the production chain, the standard of living improves noticeably.“See over there, that’s where the cocaine is made. Nice houses, too,” Alvarro said as he pointed towards the outskirts of Cochabamba. New modern villas — clearly out of place — were scattered amongst the mud block homes in the villages near the base of the mountains.

Choosing a Different Path

However, there are people in the area who have chosen the alternative.

We visited an older couple running a tropical flower plantation. They used a loan from CIDRE to improve their machinery; they sold their flowers throughout Bolivia, from Cochabamba to Santa Cruz and even abroad to Argentina. They were older than most other borrowers we’d met that day, but their age didn’t dampen the energy with which they described their plans for expansion and improvement –- of their lives and business.

Another visit took us to a banana packaging facility. Amidst a sea of banana plantations, a conveyor belt of dangling banana stalks hummed its way in from the fields. We watched the workers –- many with prodigious wads of coca leaves packed into their cheeks –- cut, clean and pack the bananas for export.

Banana stalks make their way from the fields by way of a long pulley line. Men machete the stalks into smaller bunches and women pull the reject bananas and wash the rest. After a few more cleaning dips and a spray or two, the green bananas are hand packed into boxes to be sent to destinations around the world. Often with the aid of chemicals, the bananas ripen along the journey. By the time you buy them in your grocery store, they've known a color change and a long journey.

CIDRE provided the loan for the conveyor belt and other machinery. As we admired the facilities and the efficiency with which the workers boxed thousands of bananas, we spotted a half-finished building suffering from neglect, looking like it didn’t belong. The unused building amidst the din of banana packaging productivity: a defunct USAID (United States Agency for International Development) project.

Back to the Paraguayan Border

As the Paraguayan border agents searched our bags, we recalled a Bolivian newscast from the night before: 100 pounds of cocaine seized from a Bolivian vehicle driven by a man wearing a MAS (the Bolivian political party led by Evo Morales) shirt.

The border agent who searched us was hoping to cut off similar shipments, likely headed east to the Rio Paraguay for Brazil and points north, or to Argentina in the south.

After one hour of searching the bus and everyone's belongings, the guards found nothing. The drug-sniffing Labrador was ushered back into its cage, our bus was re-packed and we were on our way.

Oh, the tangled web woven by an innocent little leaf — one that is chewed by manual laborers in the Andes, but when mixed with a few chemicals, ends up as a white powder on the glass tables of the well-to-do thousands of miles away.

The post Cocaine: A Story That Begins in the Bolivian Jungle appeared first on Uncornered Market.

Thanksgiving may be over, but I’m still thankful.

We admit it – we are the worst bloggers. Many wrote their Thanksgiving posts a week or two before turkey day while others prepared something to publish on the day itself.

Then there’s us.

We intended – we really did – to publish a reflection yesterday, but life took over and filled our day with a raft of experiences and emotions.

As we engineered our Thanksgiving dinner in an under-equipped Bolivian kitchen, we reflected on the kindness of people like the chicken rotisserie guy who came to our rescue with a smile…and a bottle of chicken drippings. And as we longingly recalled Thanksgivings past and the family and friends we spent them with, we reminded ourselves once again of what we are thankful for.

Ingredients for a Bolivian Thanksgiving

Oh, how thankful we would have been for the American supermarket perhaps just this once. Though the concept of cobbling together a Thanksgiving dinner out of a string of visits to various stalls at the fresh market may sound romantic to some of you, we would have been especially thankful for the ease of cruising an American supermarket, what with its bags of cranberries and cans of pumpkin.

But alas, that wasn’t an option. We walked up and down the mildly chaotic stalls of the central market in Sucre, Bolivia with our shopping list. Here’s what we found in the way of ingredients to make a Bolivian Thanksgiving feast:

Stuffing

We strolled up to the first bread stand we encountered. The wheat loaf in the middle of the table looked decent. “Is it sweet?” we asked. Unfortunately, so much bread in Latin America is sweetened and it’s virtually impossible to tell based on appearance.

“No, it’s not sweet,” the grandmotherly vendor replied as she made haste to stuff the loaf into a black bag. Before she could get her hands on it, we turned the loaf over to reveal an unbeatable science experiment of lustrous green fuzz.

She wasn’t happy with us, but the bread ladies further down the aisle were; they made a point to show us the freshness of their loaves.

For our sake, we ask that you never again take celery for granted. We remember the good ol' days in the Czech Republic when celery (no, not celery root!) — like something exotic — was impossible to find, save for the spendy, little French market. The Vietnamese rescued the day by bringing celery to the masses. But that’s another story.

Here in Sucre, acquiring celery was much easier than expected. It wasn’t abundant, but more than one vegetable lady was selling it.

Bolivian celery stalks are puny, however. Think pinky-sized, stunted in growth. When the veg woman packed five bunches (no, not stalks) into a bag, we hesitated at the quantity. But, at $0.75 we decided to take it all. Good thing, as we used every last bit.

In lieu of the Provencal spice and olive oil we prefer, we opted to toast our bread cubes with a bit of melted butter, fresh parsley, and dried oregano and basil. The end result was so good it made us weep for home. Kidding, kidding. It was terrific, though.

And that funky Bolivian celery? A taste knockout.

Mashed Potatoes

It continues to amaze us that the most potato-endowed part of the world cannot find more clever ways to prepare its potatoes. Travel the Andes – from Ecuador to Bolivia – and you’ll go green from fried potatoes, potato chips and the dreaded (over) boiled potato.

Where are the mashed potatoes, people?!?!

But we digress.

Upon entering the potato courtyard at the Sucre central market, we were overwhelmed by choice (Bolivia and Peru boast something like 2,000 varieties of potatoes!).

“Which potatoes are best for potato puree?” we inquired at the edge of the potato courtyard. Instantly, our potato lady of choice pointed, said something like “good with butter,” and started bagging.

Later, when we ran our papas (potatoes) under water, they revealed a fascinating shade of purple. The inside was still a boring white, but the skins certainly looked exotic.

So you have no potato masher, you say? We can attest that even the starchiest potatoes can be lovingly mashed with a giant soup ladle. The results were pretty good, but a masher would have been nice, just to get them a little smoother. And you people with a Kitchen Aid: we don’t want to hear about it!

Turkey Chicken

We quickly abandoned our search for turkey, opting instead to go to one of the many rotisserie chicken places near the market.

When we entered the shop, Audrey gave our pitch in her best Spanish: “Today is a big American holiday. Usually we eat turkey but there are no turkeys here so we would like to eat one of your chickens instead. We also make this special sauce to go with the chicken. Can you give us some ‘chicken oil' so we can prepare our holiday meal?” (Random language lesson of the day: chicken drippings in Spanish are called aceite de pollo.)

How thrilled this man was to help us complete our meal. He was all smiles – and so proud that we had chosen his shop.

And his chicken: truly immaculate. And a steal at $3 for a giant half-bird. The chicken juice – given free – was lean and beautiful, too — possibly one of the most lump-resistant stocks ever known to gravy-making man.

Bolivian Wine

During our brief time here in Bolivia, we’ve done our fair share of sampling various bottles of Bolivian wine. Eminently and imminently drinkable, the 2007 Aranjuez Tannat-Merlot blend has become our favorite. At $3.50 a bottle, it also fits our budget nicely.

Now we know we’re going to hear about “no red wine with white meat” from the cheap seats, but we choose to follow the advice from Dan's “Wines and Spirits” class (yes, he had one of those) from long ago at university. As one of the visiting sommeliers from Windows on the World (once atop the World Trade Center) once advised: drink what you like, when you like it, with what you like.

Dessert

Attempting calabasas (the local squash pumpkin) pie would have proven a day-long exercise by itself. Given the instability of the hotel stove, it would likely have proven a disaster as well.

As an alternative, we considered these rainbow-colored jello cups from the market.

We thought better of it, however, and opted for some very tasty chocolate covered almonds from a local chocolatier.

As it turns out, we were so full that dessert was an impossibility anyway.

Final Outcome: Our Thanksgiving Feast

An achievement, given the circumstances. From our standpoint, comfort food at its finest.

A Little Homesick

Bouts of homesickness come and go, and occasionally come again. To fend these off over the long-term, we usually make it a point to be with family and friends – or at least some other Americans – at Thanksgiving time.

However, due to our travel plans this year, we found ourselves tucked deep in eastern Bolivia –- feeling a bit untethered in a nostalgic yet unpleasant way. We really longed to be with family, and our Thanksgiving Day began almost ruefully because of this.

It’s hard to say how we emerged from this homesick funk. Perhaps it was the parsley and goat cheese vendor and how she laughed when Audrey asked how many goats she owned. Or maybe it was the chicken man's generosity and kindness.

Maybe it was the simple pleasure of cooking this meal – still one of our favorites in the world – that helped put us in a frame of mind to appreciate what we have. Or perhaps it was the communication with family and friends that placed it all in perspective.

Regardless, we are thankful for the opportunities we have. At times we grouse about things (don’t we all?), but we know that it’s crucial to reel ourselves back in and realize how fortunate we have been to see and experience all that we have in our lives — good, bad or indifferent.

And to our friends and family, it’s to you that our thoughts run often, but especially during these holidays. We are grateful for all those Thanksgivings past with you — in the U.S., France, Germany, Czech Republic, China and a few places in between that we’ve certainly forgotten.

If our travels have taught us anything, it’s that nothing is permanent. So we are thankful for it all and for as long as we have it.

——-
*MacGyver – a U.S. television show character who became an icon by fashioning grand solutions out of the simplest bits available to him. We have vague, unsubstantiated memories of him breaking free from a prison by using only a stick of bubble gum.

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The Bolivian Salt Flats. If you haven't already been to the Salar de Uyuni in Bolivia, put it on your bucket list.

Vast, stunning, barren, surreal — and a stark, beautiful reminder of how small we humans are, particularly in the face of Mother Nature. That's southern Bolivia's Salar de Uyuni and the surrounding high deserts that float in pastels from 11,500 to 16,400 feet.

The beauty of motley mountains and chromatic lakes contrast with the hostility and harshness faced by people living in this environment. Only llamas, vicuñas and flamingos can really survive above 13,000 feet (4,000 meters). Agriculture is similarly limited to just about nothing; not even the rugged potato can make it at this altitude. Minerals are abundant, but extracting them is no easy task. It's no wonder we passed only a handful of sparsely populated villages across our 1,000 km (620 mile) journey.

When we meet travelers headed to South America, Bolivia's Salar de Uyuni is among our top recommendations. And while the all-white salt flats are the goal, it's the 1000 km (620 miles) four-day jeep trip from Tupiza to Uyuni that features some of the world's most beautiful and otherworldly landscapes around. It's definitely worth taking the longer tour from the south instead of the shorter one from Uyuni as we were treated to a gradual build up over four days which culminated at the Salar de Uyuni, the world's largest salt flats.

Booking a Salar de Uyuni (Salt Flats) Tour

Choosing a Route: Most Salar de Uyuni tour-goers take a two or three day tour that begins in the town of Uyuni and ends in Tupiza. We chose a four-day trip in the opposite direction. Not only do tour companies in Tupiza have consistently better reputations, but their routes also feature a gradual build up over several days, from the red rock scenery in the south to the gaping white salt deserts in the north, with ever-improving lagunas (small lakes) in between.

Tour company: We took the advice of several travelers who had taken successful (i.e., no drunk drivers or food poisoning) jeep tours with Tupiza Tours. Tupiza Tours delivered everything they had promised: jeeps were well-maintained, food was good and varied, and there were no “surprises” or additional expenses.

Cost (2009): The cost of your Salar de Uyuni tour will depend mainly on how many people are in your jeep and what time of year you choose to travel. We booked one day before departure in Tupiza and paid 1,000 Bs ($145) per person for five people in the jeep. For a smaller group of four people, the cost was 1,200 Bs ($170). This includes all food, accommodation, transport, entrance fees, and return transport to Tupiza (if you choose). Note that accommodation during the first two nights is very basic (that's all there is). On the third night, you will likely stay in a hotel made entirely of salt (impressive and comfortable) and have access to a hot water shower (for $1.50) — a welcome relief after three days in the dust. You can apparently upgrade to a higher-quality hotel (also made of salt) on that final evening, but reports from other travelers did not make this option sound exceptional.

Getting there: There is a lovely and reasonably priced train that runs from Oruru to Uyuni (7 hours) or to Tupiza (12 hours) several times a week. We were not able to get a ticket in first class ($30) for the 12-hour journey, but we were pleased to find second class ($13) surprisingly clean and comfortable.

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The folds of Bolivia’s beauty – and its contradictions and struggles — defy a story line. It seems that every time we turn a corner, another piece of data in the form of an observation or conversation presents itself. Along the way, any pre-conceived notions that we might have had of Bolivia are further laid to waste, and the makings of a convenient narrative further deteriorated.

With this in mind, we share ten first impressions from our travels in Bolivia as we sort through our thoughts and fill in our own canvas.

1. Inspirational Landscapes

The diversity of Bolivia’s natural landscape is nothing short of awe-inspiring. Panoramas are expansive, the pockets of desolation spectacular; a spectrum of colors and hues cascade down the frame of every photo. And where else can you climb from 2,200 meters through high desert to a mountainous 4,000 meters and back down through lush greenery to the jungle – all in the course of 100 kilometers and 2.5 hours?

And of course, as altitudes change, so do attitudes. Styles of life and socio-economy roll with the change of the land.

2. The Culture of Protest

History suggests that Bolivians enjoy the fine art of the protest. In fact, it’s a source of national pride. One Sunday in La Paz a group of flag-waving supporters of Evo Morales, the current president, marched in a political rally reminder of Bolivia’s upcoming national elections in December. Across town, the opposition (a ragtag bunch wrapped in yellow and red flags) were almost chased off the church steps by the police. This reminded us: when it comes to protests, cast a sharp eye as to who is funding the march.

However, there seems a contradiction. When Bolivians discuss the broader injustices of their own society, they are often quick to dismiss them with, “Well, this is Bolivia. It´s what happens here.” This resignation finds its way from the insignificant – like the hotel’s reaction to having our phone stolen at the market – to the serious, including a woman’s reaction to the emblematic corruption of a local man paying off the police to look the other way when his taxi was found covered in a murdered man’s blood.

3. The Water Wars

No visit to Cochabamba would complete without at least one discussion of the infamous “water wars” that took place in early 2000. The prevailing narrative goes like this: Bechtel, an evil, extractive corporation once responsible for privatized water provision was driven out by a groundswell of grassroots protest (see #2). The Bolivian people took back their water – and the management thereof.

Many consider this particular example of people power a success. But at what price a Pyrrhic victory? If you speak to locals living in Cochabamba, approximately 50% of the residents in this city of 500,000 remain without access to water — now provisioned by a state-run company. Just goes to show that preemptive declarations of victory can be found at all edges of the political spectrum.

4. Coca and Cocaine

This is a gnarly one — so gnarly that we included it in the title and we’ll write a separate article about it next. Cultivation of coca leaves is a national tradition; chewing coca leaves is a national pastime. However, it is estimated that only 5-10% of coca leaf production is used for the relatively benign form of local consumption.

Although local cocaine consumption in Bolivia remains relatively low, the side-effects of cocaine production and its transport and export are numerous: polluted rivers, gasoline shortages, income inequality, corruption and crime. But a visit to Chapare, one of Bolivia’s heaviest coca production regions, helped us see first-hand the challenge of convincing local farmers to cultivate alternative crops.

5. “USAID Get Out of Bolivia”

There is apparently no love lost between the Bolivian people (or perhaps the current Bolivian government) and USAID, the United States Agency for International Development. From La Paz to Cochabamba, messages like the one above are frequent and clear: get out. Apparently, it worked in the Chapare region and USAID left in late 2008.

One might imagine that coca farmers (Evo Morales, the president, was once a coca-grower himself) perceived that USAID projects were a de facto extension of the U.S. sponsored war on drugs and its companion coca eradication programs. The DEA (United States Drug Enforcement Agency) was kicked out of the region, too.

The great irony here: the police station we visited in nearby Cochabamba (in order to unsuccessfully report our stolen cell phone) was funded by – yep, you guessed it – USAID. Spiffy USAID stickers were plastered on the back of every chair and piece of equipment. Unfortunately, our Sunday visit showed us a police station that was relatively unattended, foreboding, derelict, and just plain falling apart.

6. Community Development and Microfinance

We’ve seen microfinance at work throughout Central and South America, but a visit with CIDRE, a Bolivian microfinance organization, illustrated how individual microloans can be used cooperatively for larger-scale community projects.

When a group of 28 dairy farmers needed a storage tank to control the temperature and quality of their milk, each took out an individual loan and pooled a portion of it for the purchase of the tank. Similarly, a community of over 20 farmers pooled their loans to purchase a pump and irrigation system for their fields. Prior to the system's installation, the community could plant only once a year, depending on the rain. Today, the community manages three yields per year while carefully rotating crops to avoid stripping the land of its nutrients. A $6,000 loan changed the lives of at least twenty families.

7. A Little More Than “Camera Shy”

We have encountered some very kind interactions, particularly upon our entry into Bolivia and in and around Lake Titicaca. But to say that Bolivians are camera shy is an understatement. In a way, we were prepared for this. A Kiva Fellow working in the region shared with us the unmatched difficulties she encountered while trying to take photos of the organization's Bolivian clients.

The suspicion of both cameras and outsiders often makes Bolivian people difficult to approach and to convey photographically. There are many historical and cultural explanations for Bolivians – particularly those from the indigenous community – to dislike cameras, but it saddens us to think we may not be able to share as much from this country’s wealth of human beauty as we have from others.

8. Food

Oh, how we wish we could wax lyrically about the beauty of Bolivian food. But alas, we cannot. Perhaps this is why sandwiches, hamburgers and pizzas seem to have become national dishes. However, there are some redeeming bites amidst the meat and potatoes and murky browns and grays. Take for instance the artistically presented, visually appealing salteña, a dough pocket stuffed with meat, potatoes and a stew-like broth.

9. The Only Americans

“Are there any Americans on this bus?” the driver shouted down the aisle.

From Puno, Peru, our bus was scheduled to skirt the edge of Lake Titicaca and over the border to Copacabana, Bolivia. The bus was full of tourists, but we were the only two passengers to raise our hands.

Why single out the Americans? The bus driver just wanted to avoid delays at the border, for America has the distinction of being one of the very few western countries from which visitors are required to purchase a tourist visa to Bolivia.

Aside from a handful of Americans working and doing research in Bolivia, all the other travelers we've seen have been from everywhere but the U.S. We're not exactly sure the reason. Perhaps it’s the rather stiff $135 price tag that drives so many Americans away.

10. Monkeys – Hugging, Licking, Grooming

At the edge of the Bolivian jungle, we popped in on Inti Wara Yassi, an animal sanctuary whose focus is rescuing and rehabilitating animal victims of the illegal pet trade. Although a puma, jaguar and spectacled Andean bear skulk around (all are usually leashed and require daily walks), monkeys rule the roost. A purported 1,500 of them amble and swing about the premises.

We made particularly good friends with the capuchin pictured here (yes, the one on the left). He even brought fruits and nuts from the brush for us to help crack. He placed the fruit in our hands and squeezed our fingers around it. Startlingly intelligent — and dare we say almost human-like.

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