i registered for spring quarter today. countdown to plane ride, the states, unpacking my backpack, work, school, t-minus 6 days
Friday, February 29, 2008
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
home again home again
well sort of.
alana wanders
past moutains streets fronteras
to a gate marked home
alana wanders
past moutains streets fronteras
to a gate marked home
Saturday, February 23, 2008
a trip to hell (or a day in the life)
of a miner in potosi.
potosi is a breath taking city in more ways than one. first of all, with the impressive title of "highest city in the world" (4060m), you might find your lungs working a little overtime. (there goes the guide book language again, i need to stop). but more significantly, in my opinion, is the town's magnificent beauty and how it connects to both a horrific past and a present day realitiy.
silver. minerals. the blood, sweat, and lives of millions of indigenous workers and african slaves that built the town up from the dust into the largest and wealthiest in south america during the end of the 18th century. while present day potosi falls way short of this former title, the work in the mines continues as the city continues to be blessed (or cursed) with an enormous amount of economically significant mineral that has yet to be extracted.
hey, at least working conditions must have improved since back in the day, right guys?
well, not really.
alarmingly medieval conditions, tools, and manual methods of extraction leave the miners of potosi (youngest age around 13) with an average lifespan of 10-15 years once they begin work in their own little sector of hell. they seem to cope by chewing massive amounts of coca leaves, consuming an equally massive amount of 95% potable alcohol (which can conveniently be purchased in the same store as the dynamite and other supplies used for work), and by daily offering and rituals to tio, the devil (or god) of the mines.
in town i found a tour group that was offering tips of explosives, refreshments, and bags of coca leaves in exchange for a one hour venture into the most "accessible" and "ventilated" areas of the mines. i tagged along and emerged from the darkness after what seemed like a full day of stumbling, crawling, climbing, and gasping for fresh air through the bandana wrapped around my face with only a lamp on my hard hat and the miner to guide me.
i was only there for a fraction of a day, barely even exherting myself. these men spend almost every day of their lives pounding and shoveling and hauling pile after pile of rocks from dawn until dusk.
for what? for silver baby. lots of silver.
potosi is a breath taking city in more ways than one. first of all, with the impressive title of "highest city in the world" (4060m), you might find your lungs working a little overtime. (there goes the guide book language again, i need to stop). but more significantly, in my opinion, is the town's magnificent beauty and how it connects to both a horrific past and a present day realitiy.
silver. minerals. the blood, sweat, and lives of millions of indigenous workers and african slaves that built the town up from the dust into the largest and wealthiest in south america during the end of the 18th century. while present day potosi falls way short of this former title, the work in the mines continues as the city continues to be blessed (or cursed) with an enormous amount of economically significant mineral that has yet to be extracted.
hey, at least working conditions must have improved since back in the day, right guys?
well, not really.
alarmingly medieval conditions, tools, and manual methods of extraction leave the miners of potosi (youngest age around 13) with an average lifespan of 10-15 years once they begin work in their own little sector of hell. they seem to cope by chewing massive amounts of coca leaves, consuming an equally massive amount of 95% potable alcohol (which can conveniently be purchased in the same store as the dynamite and other supplies used for work), and by daily offering and rituals to tio, the devil (or god) of the mines.
in town i found a tour group that was offering tips of explosives, refreshments, and bags of coca leaves in exchange for a one hour venture into the most "accessible" and "ventilated" areas of the mines. i tagged along and emerged from the darkness after what seemed like a full day of stumbling, crawling, climbing, and gasping for fresh air through the bandana wrapped around my face with only a lamp on my hard hat and the miner to guide me.
i was only there for a fraction of a day, barely even exherting myself. these men spend almost every day of their lives pounding and shoveling and hauling pile after pile of rocks from dawn until dusk.
for what? for silver baby. lots of silver.
tihuanaco, bolivia
only a short bus ride from the bustling city of la paz lies the most significal archeological site in bolivia. ... woah i think i have been reading too many travel guides lately, that sounded like lonely planet material... nevertheless, the history of the tihuanaco, or lack there of, is definately enough to make it into the guides. this pre-incan culture probably arose around AD600 but by AD1200 it had pretty much faded into oblivian, shrouded with just as much mystery as that of the abandoned incan city of macchu picchu.
the site is an amazing combination of towering megaliths, pyramids, sites still undergoing excavation, and a creepy room with dozens of faces carved into it's walls. as i explored the area, the heavens apropriately boomed with thunder while a lightening storm carried on in the distance. all in all it made for a good history fix and a satisfying day trip from la paz.
pictures to come when i can figure out how to get to the pictures i uploaded onto my ipod
the site is an amazing combination of towering megaliths, pyramids, sites still undergoing excavation, and a creepy room with dozens of faces carved into it's walls. as i explored the area, the heavens apropriately boomed with thunder while a lightening storm carried on in the distance. all in all it made for a good history fix and a satisfying day trip from la paz.
pictures to come when i can figure out how to get to the pictures i uploaded onto my ipod
Monday, February 18, 2008
salares
wandering around on the mind-boggling brilliance of the salt flats of uyuni was blindingly surreal. definately near the top of my out-of-world experiences list. as my bare feet traipsed through the submerged salty wonderland, i couldn´t help but think of slartibartfast the planet designer from hitchhiker´s guide to the galaxy and how this unreal natural formation had to have been the result of some eccentric crazy who was just having some fun.
for 3 days i traveled by jeep with a few girls from argentina and a couple from france. we visited lagoons dotted with flamingos, marveled at amazing volcanic rock formations, and watched the sun rise with sol de mañana´s geysers near the chilean border.
from there it was a return trip to uyuni and a night bus to potosí, the highest city in the world. at around 11 pm the bus stopped with a flat tire...i held my breath...but thankfully we were on the road again a mere 15 minutes later. just enough time for me to hop off and have a cup of tea in a little restaurant in the middle of nowhere.
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