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For most of my stay in Bolivia as a Peace Corps Volunteer, I lived in Huanuni, a tin-mining town about an hour (now that there is pavement) out of Oruro on the road that eventually leads to Siglo XX. Things have changed in the 30 years since I lived here. It is larger now - because the mine never closed, it actually experienced an in-migration of workers seeking employment. Comibol, the state-run mining corporation, is no more; a couple of years ago a large portion of the mine was sold to an English mining company. The remainder of the mine is divided up between 4 cooperative mining groups. There are still rich ore deposits here so the cooperative miners do better than Siglo XX. Although we didn't know the day we visited Huanuni, the miners working for the English Company were on strike.


This is the valley one must drive up to get to Huanuni. The city of Oruro lies out on the Altiplano at the foot of the furthest mountain in the photo. Lake Uru Uru, a shallow, saline lake, can be seen between the mountain and the entrance to the valley.	Just over the crest in the road is the town of Huanuni. The hole at the top of the mountain in the background is one entrance to the mine. There are other entrances all the way down to the mountain's base.

This is the town of Huanuni. Although many of the methods and tools employed are antiquated, Huanuni is obviously an industrial town. Because there is plenty of work, it is a prosperous place. However, it is a disaster as far as sanitation is concerned. All waste from the mine, the people, and their animals ends up in the river that runs through the town.

Our actual purpose in visiting Huanuni was to walk out to a small estancia (hamlet) named Karajara, a place where I spent a lot of time as a Peace Corps Volunteer. It takes over two hours to walk to Karajara.

To get to Karajara one must climb over a low band of hills and then down into a valley to the small town of Ventimedia. In less than a mile, things have changed. Unlike Huanuni, Ventimedia is a sleepy, agricultural town with none of the bustle of Huanuni.


After arriving in Ventimedia, one must then walk up a broad valley. At first appearances, the valley seems a place out of the past. It is entirely agricultural. People still plow their fields with bulls. There is no electricity - no stores. Things are usually hauled by llamas and burros. However, things are changing more rapidly than might appear. In the last two years, a new road has been built. Although it is made of gravel, it is much better than the old one and bus transportation is available 2 times per week. Many of the estancias have constructed water systems and now have potable water - there should be electricity in the valley within the year.


This is the new road. Unlike the older one, it has bridges across the small streams and arroyos that cross its path.	Two years ago troops were stationed at this guard station. Today it is abandoned.

	Karajara also seemed little changed from 30 years ago. This was deceiving. Very few people live here now. Many now live in Huanuni and work in the mines, but a surprising number have gone to the university and ended up as lawyers, doctors, engineers, and priests. Those who live in Huanuni still return to Karajara on weekends to plant, tend, and harvest crops.

A coincidence - an omen! We walked out to Karajara unannounced but ended up at the first community meeting that had been held there in two years - the Karajarenos seemed happy that we were there. The topic of discussion - the school we'd spent so much time building 30 years ago. It is currently abandoned as there are not enough children in Karajara to justify keeping it open. There is not much need for a public building in Karajara these days, but the estancia voted to create a sub-corrigedor (local official) and use the school as his office.

Bolivia, 2001