At it again…

I am going back to Bolivia. This time for around 8 months.

Recently, I have been experimenting  making movies. This is the first of many to come:

Return to Bolivia Video

Back in the States

So, it has been a week and I am now back in the states. I miss Sucre and Ñanta a lot! Bolivia really became like a second home to me and I can not wait to get back there and see the kids!

Sidenote: As you might have picked up, I stopped my job at the hospital; there was not much to do there and it was not stimulating enough. In Ñanta I got a lot of great medical experience and I was always very busy so I chose to work there full time in the end.

If you are interested in learning more about the kids I worked with, what there lives were like, and what Ñanta did for them, I encourage you to check out this video. It is really great. Enjoy!

http://www.guzzigalore.nl/log/archives/archive_2008-m02.php

The Do(s) and Don´t(s) of Bolivia

Do(s)

1. Do use the word Che in conversation with other Bolivians from Sucre. Che as in Che Guevara is used here in place of amigo.

2. Do expect to see small children peeing in the streets at all times of the day.

3. Do try llama meat here. ¡Que rica!

4. Do expect cars to have the right of way in the streets. Like New York, cars don´t stop for pedestrians (especially in Sucre).

5. Do expect cars never to signal.

6. Do expect a lot of beeping at intersections to warn other cars that the car that was there first is passing.

7. Do expect a lot of water balloons, water guns, and sometimes eggs to be thrown at you during carnival.

8. Do expect many Bolivians to be bitter about losing their sea to Chile. Some even believe they will one day get it back.

9. Do expect to hear a lot of Quechua in Sucre. Imaynalla= como estas?, Cayacama= hasta luego.

10. Do expect to pay an average of 3-5 dollars for dinner in Sucre. $5 being on the expensive side.

11. Do receive coca leaves with both hands, never refuse. And always give a little to Pacha Mama (mother earth).

12. Do expect to drink chicha (an alcoholic beverage made from corn).

13. Do expect to start your night out at the discotecas at 2pm and do expect to hear Shania Twain’s, “I feel like a woman,” quite frequently.

14. Do expect to drink lots of chuflys, a typical bar drink made with sangani- Bolivian liquor.

15. Do expect to eat a lot of quinoa (an amazing grain grown in the Andes mts).

16. Do expect the fruits in Bolivia to be among the most delicious in the world.

17. Do expect a lot of stray dogs to be roaming the streets of Bolivia. If they have green collars on, they have been vaccinated.

18. Do expect Sucre to fight to remain La Capital Plena!

19. Do expect to dance quite a bit of salsa.

20. Do expect as of Dec. 1 if you are a U.S citizen to pay $100 for a visa to Bolivia.

Don´t(s)

1. Don´t swallow the coca leaves, bad things can happen.

2. Don´t throw toilet paper down the toilet. Bolivian plumbing is very sensitive. Use the trash basket.

3. Don´t go to Oruro for carnival with anything of value.

4. Don´t expect to have really amazing showers in Bolivia. The water system is a little old fashioned.

5. Don´t expect anyone ever to be on time. The hora latina takes its sweet time!

6. Don´t wear white during carnival.

7. Don´t expect to find bathrooms on buses. You do get bathroom breaks but there are no bathrooms per say.

8. Don´t ever settle for the original price of a product. There is always room for bargaining!

9. Don´t eat at the Sucre local market without some imodiom or cipro close by.

10. Don´t forget to take your malaria pills if you go to the jungle.

11. Don´t forget to kiss everyone on the right side of the cheek when you enter a room even if you don’t know all of them (Men do not kiss men, they shake hands then briefly hug).

12. Don´t forget to bring toilet paper with you everywhere. Most Bolivian bathrooms do not supply. Forget about paper towels!

Breathless Bolivia

So, I am here in La Paz. The flight went extremely smoothly. No problemas. I arrived to El Alto airport at around 8:00pm and Gregorio, a man hired by amerispan, had a sign with my name on it.  He drove me through the city which is breathtaking even at night:  Women in colorful indigenous shalls with bowler hats had babies slung to their backs, the mountains were all around and the cool night air was refreshing after breathing hours of recycled air.  I arrived at the Hotel Ritz feeling dizzy. At first I thought it was due to all the excitement of being in a new place but when I noticed my finger nails turning blue I realized that the altitute of La Paz had hit me.  13,000 feet can do a number on anyone! So I spent most of the night hydrating and resting.  Today I fly to Sucre which is about an hr from La Paz (24 hrs by bus) and only 9,000 ft . There, my host family will pick me up and show me my new home for the next 6 months! I can’t wait to get organized and unpack.  Tomorrow I have spanish classes for 4 hrs and then I plan on exploring Sucre and finding a internet cafe to make my homebase. Untill then….