Bolivia, 2001

 

Bolivia, 2001        Home

Day Trips

August 3, 2001

Click on Images for Enlargement

One of the great things about the Escuela Runawasi, Anne's school, is that Janine and Joaquin Hinojosa, the owners, want it to be much more than just a place to learn Spanish and Quechua.  The school is located in a neighborhood that was created by a miner's cooperative and is now populated people who are retired from the mines or have been, in some way, associated with them.  Not only do students attend classes but live with working class families and participate in their lives - students learn while serving as an additional source of income for many in the community.  

The school also encourages students to learn about Bolivia through  activities.  On most Thursdays mornings, students can go to Huancarani, Joaquin's hometown, to work on a community development project.  Although near Cochabamba, Huancarani is a small, rural, campesino village.  So far, most of the work has involved making adobes for a community center which will eventually house a bakery and provide rooms where visiting technical experts can stay while working with the community.  

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Joaquin talking to Melissa (Philadelphia) and Anne talking to two other students near the adobe pile.  Adobes are piled this way to dry and our job was to make the pile.  

Huancarni is located in a valley that is over 2,5000 mts. (8,000 ft.) above sea level, 

This is the temporate zone of Bolivia.  The country is quite green at this altitude when there is enough water.

Huancarani is on railroad line running between Oruro and Cochabamba.  The line is no longer in use; there is talk that the trains may soon run again.

Joaquin (red shirt with a stripe) is a great story teller.  Here he is telling a story involving the Virgin Mary, the Holy Spirit, and a sausage...

Although we didn't quite capture the moment, some work does get done...and there really are people from Huancarani working - they didn't want their picture taken. 

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While Anne diligently attended classes, the majority of Swiss students and I took a trek to Mount Tunari early one Wednesday morning.  At an altitude of 5,034 mts. (16,000 ft.), it is the highest mountain in the Cochabamba area.  

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We arrived at our drop off point before sunrise.  

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This is the view of a mountain across the pass from Mt. Tunari.
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In Bolivia, people live at this altitude (approximately 4400 mts.)

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Llamas make an eerie sight at sunrise - they face the sun.  Once the sun has risen, they disperse to graze.
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No, these are not llamas; they are Runawasi students during a rest stop.

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This is one of the many small lakes that nestle in the valleys high in the mountains.

No, there are no pictures at the summit.  About 50 meters from top, I suddenly realized that I was dizzy; I could hardly stand.  It is surprising how these things sneak up on you!  The altitude, the hard climb, a long field of scree, and the fast pace (the Swiss zoom up these mountains) had gotten the better of me.  Anticipating that it was going to take a long time to get back down in the condition I was in, I turned around.  However, after a confused but effortless slide back down the scree, I recovered and took a route past the lake back to the awaiting van.  

Ciao,

Jim (and Anne)

Bolivia, 2001        Home