Political program in La Paz

I am in La Paz now from the second political program and to make the second travel letter. La Paz is an unusuall city. With the city center around 3500meter above sea level it takes some days adjusting. El Alto is anothere city just outside La Paz, its 15min with a bus and its around 4100 meter above sea level and almost 1million people live there. Mostly Aymara people that moved there the last 20 years.

Before La Paz we was the weekend in Coripata, which is a small village in Yungas, a area east of La Paz. It is the heartland to the cocafarmers and we participated on a meeting with the farmers. It is an amazing area. Around 2000 meter above sea level, almost tropical vegetation, deep and steep valleys that makes the area hard to visit. The road there is often closed because of landslides , just room for one car and on one side its 50 - 300 meters straight down, truly amazing and scary at the same time.

On my birthday I got up early, bought a newspaper and ate breakfast in peace reading the paper. After that we had a meeting at the norwegian consulat, before it was champions league, after the football match we had dance lesson in Aymara folkdance, something that was really fun (and hard). Dinner was of all things sushi in La Paz!!! it was good and then we went to a jaz club. All in all a good and unexpected day. And I got the Bolivian football shirt, it is worth mention that Bolivia won 6 - 1 against Argentina a month ago, big moment for the people.

Manchester just won against Arsenal in the first semifinal in Champions League, and I am getting ready for a new meeting. It is will be an interesting one, about the gas war with Chile in 2003(ca), it wasnt a real war, just bad friends. On saturday I go to Peru to renew my visa. So I guess I spend around a week around lake titicaca. Looking at Inca ruins, try to sleep on reed islands and some more, I need to read in the travel book what is to do there. One thing that is really nice is that it is cold in the evening and night, the heat in Santa Cruz is hard, but now I dont have to worry about that for a week and a half more.

Some things are always new

Hola,
the last days been eventful in a some unexpected ways. On Friday the Mayor was fired because of corruption and that he was lazy. At least what most people say. Some of those working with him said he just did not want to work anymore and quit. The new Mayor then was a women, but the farmers and many more mean she is equally corrupt and want the whole Town Council to quit. So the farmers decided to have a march and close the Town Hall on Monday. They gathered some km outside of town, around 5000, mostly farmers. The Police had over 150 extra men around the town to keep things calm.
Outside the Town Hall they made a podium and when everyone had come there where speeches about how bad the Mayor's are. After about an hour of that they shut down the Town Hall. Blocked all the door and windows and now they are keeping it closed until the whole Town Council quits. In the newspapers here it looks like a really uneventful, quiet happening. I guess that is since it is only 1 person that's been attacked so far.
It was strange to follow this event so close, listen to the speeches, watch the march, speak to the people participating, those who worked at the Town Hall and with the Police to listen to what they mean or think about the coming days. Unluckily Andrea and I left for La Paz on Tuesday so we cant follow the blockade, but I am excited about how it will be when we get back.

Of other events in Bolivia lately that is funny. For a week and a half ago the President Evo Morales started a hunger strike to get the Parliament to approve the new election law. I found that so funny, a President where hunger striking to get his will.

And yesterday and so far today my stommach been crazy. So bad I havnt been able to do anything, my head hurt, my body hurt and I have a 18hour busride starting in 1 day. Which can be interesting.
And a good thing, the last week it been a little colder. Or it been a few days where I in the morning needs a blancket over me and I am not wet from sweating each night, life is good.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y49UEE3NlSM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q2QDYqViq_U

Back to normal day

This workperiod has been rather boring, I must say. Those we are suppose to work with does nothing and therefor I have had much time to read. The first week it was good, I felt for being lazy. However, now it been 3 weeks and nothing and it doesnt look like something is coming up either. Luckily it is part of the learning process, to realize that they love to talk, but aint a fan of doing the walk. I been halfheartedly trying to get in contact with some different people, without much success. Maybe since I am not really looking, I believe ´the force´ will lead them to me.

Therefor I have started a new really good rutine. In the morning I buy a newspaper, go to the plaza and reads it. It is good to gets some information through the Bolivian media. I dont get everything, but with some time and a dictionary it is not far from.

In the evenings I now play chess against Jaime. We put out blanckets and play on the ground outside. He is only twelve, but he beats me some times. I also practise to concentrate since there are between 5 - 10 children running around, creating a lot of noise. It is fun, even though I dont have any work now something happens, in one way or anothere.

A perfect day in the mountain during the easter

The day started with watching the sunrise from my balcony.
Then a 2 hour car ride in to the mountains on the worst thinkable road, that closes each time it rains. When we got there we had a 7 hour hike up the mountains to look for Condors.
Which we saw many of :):):)
Big part of the trail was on the edge, literally.
We was lucky with the day and the timing. At the most it was at least 17 condors flying around us. Sometime not more than maybe 10 - 20m, slowly passing by us.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CpKP4Thw6iE This is a link I uploaded to youtube of the condors.
And of course, the day ended by swimming and jumping in this waterfall. It was taken out of a fairy tale.
I didnt get a chance of skiing this Easter holiday, but I did at least go to the mountain :P

Samaipata

Samaipata is a place in the mountains with some Inca ruins. There are ruins from other Indians also that are older. It is on the UNESCO world inn heritage list. To be such a special place it is very few turists. Both because it is Bolivia, not the first place people travel to and people from Bolivia seldom travel inside the country. Secondly since the roads are very bad. I have to say it is a good thing. The village Samaipata is also the entrance to Amboro natural forest (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amboro_National_Park). I didnt have time going there, but it is a chance I do that later, if I have time.

It was mainly a religious place so I dont know why the patterns are like they are.

The last week passed by faster than usual, and also as always somwthing unexpected happened.
The week started in Santa Cruz where I actually was alone in a house, for the first time in, since I can remember. What do I do? I start clean the swimming pool, which is green, takes me 4 hours. In when I think back on that I should have done something else, because I didnt have time to use it later.

Then I go back to Yapacani, reads, spanish and just relax. I was tired and slept until after 7 several days in a row, didnt make it up early to go running. At the Cubanos hospital it was a celebrating one evening, because some important people was coming, so I helpt decorate their. Ballons and toilet paper makes an official occation classy !!!!! whatever, then they had 20 different people who held a speech and i got a little bored.

On Friday I whent to Santa Cruz to meet a friend from Peru and go to a Political March. The March was for the opposition, and they want autonomy. Many of them are half fascist, rich, whiter than me, love Bush and in general nice people. I infiltrated them easily, I sent a mail telling my coordinator about it and she said that is great. Today I got a new mail, where she ask if it was a 1 april joke, so I guess she didnt really support me. I had a good time, some interesting conversation, all in Spanish and a new experience.

On Saturday she came with me to Yapacani. We was cooking with my family, walked to the Amazonas and built a sandcastle in the mud and when we returned we was more muddy than the other children. Was fun doing something else also. Sheleft for La Paz and I dont think I meet her again, but thats life when you travel, meet many people and say bye equally quick. She ask my mother if my mother liked me and she answered more than her own children:-) And she found out that the brother is in jail because of drug trading, not shocking since its Bolivia.

Yesterday Andrea and I made meatball in brown sauce for dinner. The brown sauce was white but they liked it.

Next weekend I go to Samaipata, some old Inca ruins with the other Santa Cruz group. It will be fun to. Now I most read some spanish in my spanish book, it takes a lot of time since I must uset he dictionary a lot, but its good for the learning process.

I been really happy and good mood the last week. Been strange, I been here almost 2 months and only have 3,5 month left, way to little. I am so happy I went, it is truly amazing.