For a country with lots of different races, skin colours, accents and social statuses, there sure is a lot of racism!! Bolivia is essentially devided into two regions that are devided by the mountain lines. The south East of the country is one region and then the North West is another region. I the north you have all the cities like Oruro, Pando, La Paz ,Potosi and Cochabamba, then in the South East you have Santa Cruz, Beni, Chuquisaca and Tarija. The people in the south are known as Cambas and that is something that we are all very proud of and is taken as a compliment!The name given to the Northern people is not so much a compliment as a great insult. They are called Coilla and generally when you call someone a Coilla it is because you are either mocking them or you are being racist. Coillas are the indigenous people that dont have any European roots. The word Camba comes from the verb Cambiar which in english means "to change", when the europeans first came to Bolivia they settled in the South East because it was flat, had good agricultural potential and it was close to the borders of Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay, the northern part was too cold and had nothing really that the europeans wanted. Because of the altitude and mountains the Europeans didnt settle there and so the wealth that they brought with them never made it to the north. Cambas became recognized as superiors and the Coillas got the reputation as poor filthy people. Even to this day there is extreme racism against the Coillas and it is disgusting.
When my family went to La Paz my host dad would make comments and my classmates were appalled that we even wanted to go to La Paz for Easter. Then when they found out that I had no problem with the Coillas they actually tried to make me see why the Coillas are "disgusting people" I was apalled with their efforts and made that very clear.
Saturday 28 April 2012
Tongue Tied
Being and living in Bolivia, it is something that is becoming harder and harder to describe. There are so many different components that make it up and then there are emotions and points of view that change all the time. Talking to everyone, they all want to know what it is like and how it is going, but the truth is, there is no way to possibly describe it accurately, at least not to someone who is not here with me doing and feeling the same things.
I keep trying to think of sufficient answers to questions that I know that people are going to ask me, but I cannot find the words to sufficiently describe my experience here. I know that everything can be going amazing but the dumbest and smallest thing can make you plummet downwards but then the smallest thing can bring you right back up again. For instance, the last few weeks have been awesome and things have been getting better and better all the time and then I bought peanut butter that tasted terrible and all of a sudden I was mad and sad and depressed and it was super strange. But then a few days later I make an inside joke with my sister and I feel on top of the world again.
This life is a roller coaster that is so difficult to describe but it is amazing and I know that I am not ready to get off the ride.
I keep trying to think of sufficient answers to questions that I know that people are going to ask me, but I cannot find the words to sufficiently describe my experience here. I know that everything can be going amazing but the dumbest and smallest thing can make you plummet downwards but then the smallest thing can bring you right back up again. For instance, the last few weeks have been awesome and things have been getting better and better all the time and then I bought peanut butter that tasted terrible and all of a sudden I was mad and sad and depressed and it was super strange. But then a few days later I make an inside joke with my sister and I feel on top of the world again.
This life is a roller coaster that is so difficult to describe but it is amazing and I know that I am not ready to get off the ride.
Saliendo
Im not sure if it is everywhere in Bolivia or only in Santa Cruz, but on the weekends everything and everyone comes alive! Going out to the clubs on Thursday Fridays and Saturdays are just part of the life. It depends on the person as to where you go but generally it is either to a bar, a club, a churrasko or a boliche (pretty much the mix between a bar and a club...its is middle class casual.).
When people go out to the clubs, it is not a joking matter, everyone gets super dressed up in short dresses, high heels and inches of make-up, then they go to an overly expensive club and dance all night long. These places are very formal and you generally need a reservation to get in, not really my favorite Bolivian night scene. It seems that for me the best place to go are to the boliches, they are casual and you dont have to worry about spending a fortune to get in. There is always music and it is fun to go out with your friends! When I go out with my friend Emily from New York we have found a way to make friends that has never gone wrong. We bring little packets of glitter and sprinkle it around, for some reason people always try to find the source of the glitter and we make new friends :)
Because everything runs on Bolivian time nothing opens until 10PM so people usually dont end up going until 11, it is late but for me it is always a good time!
When people go out to the clubs, it is not a joking matter, everyone gets super dressed up in short dresses, high heels and inches of make-up, then they go to an overly expensive club and dance all night long. These places are very formal and you generally need a reservation to get in, not really my favorite Bolivian night scene. It seems that for me the best place to go are to the boliches, they are casual and you dont have to worry about spending a fortune to get in. There is always music and it is fun to go out with your friends! When I go out with my friend Emily from New York we have found a way to make friends that has never gone wrong. We bring little packets of glitter and sprinkle it around, for some reason people always try to find the source of the glitter and we make new friends :)
Because everything runs on Bolivian time nothing opens until 10PM so people usually dont end up going until 11, it is late but for me it is always a good time!
Friday 27 April 2012
Vallegrande
This past weekend I got the opportunity to travel with my family to a small town in Santa Cruz called Vallegrande. Rotary Grigota was going there in order to help the Vallegrande club get some projects off the ground. It was a great trip filled with fun, adventure and rain. We left on Friday morning and drove the entire 6 hours through the mountains to get to Vallegrande which is on the border of Santa Cruz and Cochabamba...that pretty much means that it is in the mountainous region of Bolivia but fortunately not as bad as La Paz. The trip was a lot treacherous, the roads were a little less than idyllic, they wind and climb through the mountains and they are pretty narrow, at least for the most part it was paved and if you didn't look over the edge it was not that bad. My Host dad does not understand the concept of taking corners slowly so as a result my 7 year old host sister was a little green and Sarah (my friend from New York who went with us) and I weren't feeling to great either. When we finally got to Vallegrande, we went with all the Rotarians to a home for children with mental disabilities and we gave them an oven so that they could finally cook for the children there. It was actually heart breaking to see how little those children had and then to top it all off they all had disabilities, it felt great to be able to contribute to something that can make them smile.
Sarah and I were a little unprepared for the weather in Vallegrande, we thought that because it was in Santa |Cruz that it would be hot, so the both of us only brought shorts and t-shirts, unfortunately it was cold and raining the entire time...on the plus side everyone thinks we are super hardcore because we told them that we were not cold because we are from up north...we decided it was better to tell them that than to have them think that we were idiots for forgetting to pack warm clothing.
Day 2 of our trip Sarah and I got almost the entire day to go out and explore on our own because all the rotarians had a meeting that we were not invited to; that was not a problem for us though. Vallegrande is the grave sight of the Cuban revolutionist Che Guevara. He was hiding in Vallegrande when he was captured brought to the hospital (ironically) where he was executed.
Anyway Sarah and I went out to see where he was originally buried after his execution. It took Cubans 7 years of digging up a HUGE field in order to find his bones but then they were brought to Cuba where they are now. It was a cool thing to get to go and see, we also got to explore the town and check out some of the markets. In the afternoon we went with the Rotarians to a Bolivian equivalence of a soup kitchen except it is specifically for seniors who have no way of supporting themselves. We distributed blankets and food were welcomed by them with tears and besos and they even sang to us. Weekends like this make me really happy but at the same time they make me feel overly privileged.
We went to the grand opening of the first PUBLIC school in Vallegrande which Rotary funded and then we headed back to Santa Cruz exhausted and content...and very terrified, the roads are not a joking matter, it was terrifying.
Sarah and I were a little unprepared for the weather in Vallegrande, we thought that because it was in Santa |Cruz that it would be hot, so the both of us only brought shorts and t-shirts, unfortunately it was cold and raining the entire time...on the plus side everyone thinks we are super hardcore because we told them that we were not cold because we are from up north...we decided it was better to tell them that than to have them think that we were idiots for forgetting to pack warm clothing.
Day 2 of our trip Sarah and I got almost the entire day to go out and explore on our own because all the rotarians had a meeting that we were not invited to; that was not a problem for us though. Vallegrande is the grave sight of the Cuban revolutionist Che Guevara. He was hiding in Vallegrande when he was captured brought to the hospital (ironically) where he was executed.
Anyway Sarah and I went out to see where he was originally buried after his execution. It took Cubans 7 years of digging up a HUGE field in order to find his bones but then they were brought to Cuba where they are now. It was a cool thing to get to go and see, we also got to explore the town and check out some of the markets. In the afternoon we went with the Rotarians to a Bolivian equivalence of a soup kitchen except it is specifically for seniors who have no way of supporting themselves. We distributed blankets and food were welcomed by them with tears and besos and they even sang to us. Weekends like this make me really happy but at the same time they make me feel overly privileged.
We went to the grand opening of the first PUBLIC school in Vallegrande which Rotary funded and then we headed back to Santa Cruz exhausted and content...and very terrified, the roads are not a joking matter, it was terrifying.
Thursday 26 April 2012
Fotos!!!
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| Day 2 of Carnaval. With my sister/best friend Goldy...things are got more colourful:) |
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| My bata before Carnaval...it got a bit messier. |
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| Day 3 of Carnaval...mucho mas pintura!!!! |
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| Aftermath of Carnaval...my hair is a mixture of red green, blue and purple. It took about 2 weeks before it all washed out. |
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| Just a taste of the floats in the Parade for Carnaval, this one had the "Reina de Carnaval" aka the queen of carnaval. |
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| Some more amazing floats for the parade |
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| Almost of all of my Grigota Girls for the Rotary Carnaval Costume Party, I was a Pacena (person from La Paz) |
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| Our Rotary went out to a really small town to help the families there, here we are distributing clothing to the locals. |
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| This is my room and I am wearing the skirt of my school uniform. |
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| After Day 1 of Carnaval |
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| Santa Cruz is not very prepared for heavy rainfall, the streets flooded. |
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| borderline fail trying to keep up a family tradition, Gingerbread houses, but not exactly like back home, they still tasted good tho! |
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| FELIZ ANO NUEVO |
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| typical Bolivian churrasko (barbeque)...this is my aunt Linda. |
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| this pretty much sums up my relationship with my brother, Im always crazy and he is like WTF |
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| The final result of my Carnaval experiences |
Wednesday 18 April 2012
Left Behind
Today my host parents forgot about me...they left me behind at our Rotary meeting. I know its not the end of the world but it still doesn't feel too good to be forgotten about, especially after you have been living with them for almost 8 months.
Thursday 12 April 2012
Charango
So I finally started my charango lessons, I have been saying that I would for the longest time and now that I have actually started, I wish I had started them sooner! LOVE CHARRANGO LESSONS!!! I now know how to play happy birthday:)
Monday 9 April 2012
Semana Santa
What Canadians know as the Easter long weekend, Bolivians know as Semana Santa; It is three days of family, religion, food and fun. I was lucky enough to travel to La Paz with my family for the weekend to visit my host dads brothers and sisters. Although there were no Easter eggs nor turkey, it was still a very nice Easter filled with new Bolivian traditions. On friday we all went out and visited 7 churches in the morning, it is tradition to do this but the only catcher is that you must go from Church to church by feet...no cars or taxi's aloud. This wouldnt have been such a big deal if we hadnt been in La Paz, with the super steep hills and the altitude, it was quite a challenge. Saturday I was introduced to another tradition, the seven course lunch. We had the ENTIRE family (more than 40 people) get together for lunch and we ate seven different courses, each course represented something and was accompanied by a prayer, it was also considered rude if you didnt eat/try one of the courses so it is safe to say that we were all VERY full by the end of lunch. Sunday started off with us attending church and then going home where we removed a special reef over the front door and replaced it with a new one. The reef is replaced every year on easter sunday as a sign of respect for Jesus's sacrifice and it is said that with the reef in your house, the entire family will be looked after for the whole year.
La Paz is not in fact the capital of Bolivia like many people believe, it is where the government is but it is actually Sucre that is the Capital. La Paz is essentially a bowl, the city part and the down town are in the bottom part but all the houses and other parts climb up the mountains that surround the city. Being in the city is beautiful with all the mountains and the way that houses look but the altitude kills! It is so hard to breathe and you get super tired really easily,to top it all off though, all the streets are hills and in order to get anywhere you either have to hike or pay ridiculous amounts for a taxi!
Being in La Paz made me see that although it is super nice there, I am so lucky to live in Santa Cruz, the weather is always nice, there are no killer hills nor altitude problems, you can walk anywhere, it is not as dangerous and it is way less expensive to live there. La Paz, because there are so many mountains, you have to go around the mountains and it takes you a solid half hour to get anywhere, the taxis are more expensive and there are hardly any buses anywhere, as oppose to Santa Cruz where you can actually get a taxi anywhere in like 10 min and the buses seem to go everywhere!
While I was in the City I got to do some shopping, sight seeing, met some more of my family, learned to play poker and got a nice break from the Santa Cruz heat, I also got to spend some quality time with my host family! All in all it was an amazing Easter long weekend.
La Paz is not in fact the capital of Bolivia like many people believe, it is where the government is but it is actually Sucre that is the Capital. La Paz is essentially a bowl, the city part and the down town are in the bottom part but all the houses and other parts climb up the mountains that surround the city. Being in the city is beautiful with all the mountains and the way that houses look but the altitude kills! It is so hard to breathe and you get super tired really easily,to top it all off though, all the streets are hills and in order to get anywhere you either have to hike or pay ridiculous amounts for a taxi!
Being in La Paz made me see that although it is super nice there, I am so lucky to live in Santa Cruz, the weather is always nice, there are no killer hills nor altitude problems, you can walk anywhere, it is not as dangerous and it is way less expensive to live there. La Paz, because there are so many mountains, you have to go around the mountains and it takes you a solid half hour to get anywhere, the taxis are more expensive and there are hardly any buses anywhere, as oppose to Santa Cruz where you can actually get a taxi anywhere in like 10 min and the buses seem to go everywhere!
While I was in the City I got to do some shopping, sight seeing, met some more of my family, learned to play poker and got a nice break from the Santa Cruz heat, I also got to spend some quality time with my host family! All in all it was an amazing Easter long weekend.
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