Following from article on Copacabana our next stop was Puno, Peru a logical stop for most tourist going on to Cuzco. Puno is the largest City in the region and Province in Southeastern Peru.   It has population of approx 100,100 and sits at 3,860 m above sea level.

Puno is approx 3.5 hours drive from Copacabana including the crossing at the border which can take up to 30 minutes depending on the number of tourist at the time.  The trip is quite smooth as the roads are a lot better that those in Bolivia.  Buses leave Copacabana around 9 am and you arrive just before midday due to time difference between Peru & Bolivia.  So don’t forget that once you cross the border you will need to adjust you clock/watch as the Peru is an hour behind.  The cost of the bus from Copacabana to Puno will set you back $30Bs ($7.25USd), however, you can choose to buy a ticket to Cuzco with the option to stay over in Puno for $70Bs ($10USd).  Take note that you can also catch the new Tourist buses that leave Puno for Cuzco,  stopping at various tourist attractions along the way, they provide lunch and a guide all for $30 USD.

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OK – no secrets I am a homeopath and I have always had a strong interest in health and natural health in particular. I have idly wondered from time to time if the phrase ‘natural health’ implies that health maintained by orthodox means is unnatural… Anyway as you know I am interested in natural health, homeopathy etc and so of course my interest extends to ‘natural health‘ practices in other cultures.

In Bolivia the traditional healer is called a Kallawaya. According to Wikipedia Kallawaya’s are “doctors (médicos Kallawaya), are known as the naturopathic healers of Inca kings, and as keepers of science knowledge, principally the pharmaceutical properties of vegetables, animals and minerals.” These guy’s start training at a very early age and their knowledge of local herb medicine is phenomenal. We met a Kallawaya at one of the many festivals in Cochabamba and decided to interview him. We will post this interview on our Bolivia Vista pages just as soon as we have done the Spanish English translation.

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We would like to wish all our friends in Bolivia a Happy Independence Day as you celebrate the 6th of August. As you might expect there will be celebration, marches and festivities right across the nation on this day.   Last year in Cochabamaba we had 2 full days of festivities which included marches that went on for hours, parties everywhere and a lot of celebrating on the streets.  It was very uplifting day for all.

For those not aware on the 6th August 1825 the nation know as Upper Peru was declared freed from Spanish colonisation andt was later renamed to Bolivia.  Bolivia was the last country in South America and to some extend, although it has been free for 184 years, the scars of colonisation are still very much present in today’s society.  We shall talk about the colonisation scars another day but today is about celebrating the day Bolivia optained its freedom.

To our friends in Bolivia and other Bolivians around the globe

Happy 6th of August

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When traveling, most of us are conscious of the sites or places we would like to see/visit and if you are a history buff then you might know something about the history of the place.  However, most of us are not history buffs and we may be lucky enough to arrive somewhere at a time when the locals are celebrating a significant event.  So if you find yourself in La Paz, Bolivia on the 16th of July (in any given year) then you are one of the lucky ones to witness a day of significance to paceños (ie those born in La Paz) and in a strange way to the rest of the folk in South America.

You see at 7pm on the 16 July 1809, a well-prepared revolutionary insurrection broke out in La Paz.  The revolutionaries led by Pedro Murillo took advantage of the procession of the Carmen Virgin and overthrew the Spanish Governor Tadeó Dávila and Bishop Remigio de la Sánta y Ortega.  On 27th July, the proclamation of the independence of the colony, said to have been written by Priest Medina and the first proclamation of that kind, was released and sent to the other main cities of the colony, hoping they would support the uprising.  This rebellion was the start of many other revolutions that followed and that led to the independence of South America in general.

On this day, in La Paz and in all other states around Bolivia you will see the local paceños celebrating this event.  There are speeches, marches, bands and all events start at 7pm as a symbolic re-enactment of the rebellion.  The people will march carrying old fashioned torches, or tea’s as they are called in Bolivia, to symbolize the light of hope and freedom the revolutionaries had on that day.

July 16th 2008, we were in Cochabamba and so were able to participate in the march with local paceños living in Cochabamba.  I must admit it was nice to have a relatively short ceremony as it was cold that night and did not want to keep out for very long.  The speeches concluded with a march like all the other states around Bolivia.  Below is a video snippet of the start of the march where you can see the traditional torches.

I was born in La Paz and so in Bolivia I am still considered a paceño – even though I have not lived there for a LONG time. So on the 16th July 2008, Maddie, Galen and I felt quite honored to march with the other paceños.  Now this march is not ‘exclusive’ – it is as much a show of solidarity as anything else, a restatement of that pledge to  freedom. So if you happen to be in Bolivia on this day and you are able – attend the ceremony. You may not understand the language but you will know the speakers are claiming their collective right to freedom with all the pain and ecstasy that required. Follow the marchers and reflect for a moment on what most of us believe we all should be entitled to.. It will be an experience you will never forget – except you might want to stand down wind of those blasted bands…

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When one talks about a “Dream Team” they are either referring to their idea of an ‘ideal team’ or the 1992 US Olympic Basketball Team.  Most people dream of being part of such a team regardless of whether its for work or play. Being part of a Dream Team is inspiring and boost ones confidence.  However, what about working with a team of dreamers? Most of us would not consider working with a Team of Dreamers after all what would you gain from it apart from dreams and aspirations which are likely to be dashed? Well, in our stay in Cochabamba we had the privilege to work with such a team, a team of dreamers whose goal was to save lives and improve the quality of life of those who cannot afford basic medical services.  The St Lucas team with scarce resources is making a significant difference to the communities that surround Cochabamba.

We came across the St Lucas Foundation after we finalised all the burro-crazy dealings with immigration.  By that stage it was way too late for us to consider contracts with NGO’s – we were not be there long enough to meet contract periods, so we decided to volunteer. We had approached some organisations but had not managed to speak with the correct folks when one day, walking past the City Offices “Santa Clara” we dropped in and were welcomed with open arms.  The director of the St Lucas team is Dr Maria Teresa Losada, an amazing women who  is open minded, caring, with an incredible will and an great sense of humanity.  Working alongside Maria T is the great team of Doctors, Dentists, Nurses, Community Educators etc that she has assembled over the years. Together, on the smell of an oily rag, they have made a huge difference to the thousands of people who sought help.

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Apologies for the long break between blog entries; we have started our slow journey back to Australia and a lot of things have happened. For example, our last weeks in Cochabamba were spent clearing and packing for the next leg of the trip. Although we purposely tried NOT to accumulate ‘stuff’– the stuff monster came and left us with a fair bit of work. That monster seems to find us no matter where we are…

Since leaving Cochabamba Internet access has been sporadic – we either encountered poor line quality, no facilities at all or INCREDIABLY expensive Internet access e.g. we paid 20 Euros for one hour access last night – another set of lessons learned. Our observation is there are more Internet cafe’s in places like Bolivia than many of the places we have stayed in Europe.

Anyway, enough of the explanations we will now give you a thumb nail to bring you up to date with where we are and then follow this up with detailed blogs when we have more reliable Internet access. After leaving Cochabamba (which was a saga in itself – our departure was delayed for 3 days due to illness and various other unexpected events) we arrived in La Paz in time for the famous Alasitas Festival.   La Paz is the home of Alasitas and so while we attended the same festival in Cochabamba – the original is bigger and better.

From there we left for Buenos Aires and our bodies went into complete shock as we went from La Paz ( 12 degrees during the day) to average temperatures of 25c to 35c with humidity, something we had not felt for 10 months. We stayed in BA for a week wandering throughout the city and letting our taste buds experience the change from Bolivian food. The kids went into consumer hyper drive at the range of choice and familiarity which was not readily available in Bolivia e.g. McDonalds and we had to teach them the concept of restrain – a very difficult process. After Bolivia, the costs in Argentina were a shock but the ‘best’ was yet to come…

From there we took a side trip to Ushuaia in Tierra del Fuego. There we stayed at Chap hostal managed and owned by a Bolivian expat. The owners made us very welcome once he realised we had just come from Bolivia. David, the manager, kindly gave us an interview for our Bolivia Vista section which we will publish ASAP.

We did the classic tourist things in Ushuaia as our time was very limited. We took a cruise and saw the penguins, sea lions and later we took a ‘stroll’ up the kids Martial Glacier. From our point of view this place was a pleasant surprise and deserves a blog entry in its own right so stay tuned. After leaving Ushuaia we headed back to Buenos Aires to spend a bit more time with the family before heading off to London.

Once we arrived in London we were all a bit shocked with the change. If the kids thought they were in heaven in Argentina, they were convinced London was Nirvana – relatively speaking – all these things to buy AND everyone spoke English – bargain! We were overwhelmed by the sheer size of the place and the cost – e.g. we paid 30 pound for 5 plates of dumplings – but the kids were soooo desperate to eat some Asian food we gave in – that said we walked the streets in search of a lunch special – and it was.

From London we went to Aberdeen and then onto Findhorn – what an amazing place. This is one place we looked forward to visit as we were not disappointed and we look forward to publishing a blog on Findhorn and the community there.  From there we went to Copenhagen (even more expensive than London!!!) and we thought  Scotland was cold.

This part of the trip is one of the most challenging legs as we can only stay in each place for aver short period and not pre-planned as the other legs of the trip were.  In Copahangen we bought our Europasses and went on to Hamburg. We spent a couple of days in Hamburg and had a unexpected ‘stopover’ in Koln. We are now sitting on a train going from Koln to Paris – it’s a bit like a dream really. The only thing that crashes us back to reality is keeping track of three kids and 100 bags all full of bricks – that’s how we feel right now after lugging them as far as we have. And with the exception of Koln we have walked or bused public transport to our accommodation. We have learned a lot and are keen to share it.

And so, merci por su attention, guttentag y hablamos despues – thats the other thing we feel as though we are in language soup – kinda cool – though we routinely meet folks here who speak a minimum of 5 languages – bring back Esperanto!!!

We are now close to Paris and getting ready for another set of packed days.

Flash update and the Internet issue has hit us again and we were not able to connect for another 5 days.  Since then we left Paris on an overnight train to Bologna Italy.  We loved Paris and we have lots to write about our stay and we even managed an interview.  Because of the overnight trip to Bologna the kids arrived very tired, grumpy and with limited time we only only managed to scratched the surface of the place.

Tomorrow we are off to Naples and we hope to have better luck in Naples with the Internet so we can publish more articles.

Is anybody else having a hard time believing we are at the start of 2009? Moreover we can’t believe our time in Bolivia is almost over and we are preparing for the second half of our trip in earnest. After working and planning for this for so long it feels as though it has been and gone in a flash! As we reflect on 2008 there are many people we have to thank for their support and assistance which has made our stay in Bolivia that much easier.  Apart from our family we want to thank the staff and parents at the Don Bosco Futbol (Soccer) Club.

The Don Bosco Futbol club is a school team which recruits players from their own school, a school which Galen was not enrolled in. Yet when we explained our circumstances to the coach he welcomed Galen with open arms. In fact the management and parents of the team have been very supportive of Galen throughout the whole soccer season despite his developing language skills. I don’t believe many clubs would have opened their doors like Don Bosco did and for that we are very thankful - so a BIG thanks to Don Bosco.

And now for an update on Galen´s under 9 team. Unfortunately the team did not make the semifinals – they were just a few points away. Though they worked hard they were eliminated from the competition.  I would like to thank the coach who did a great job particularly while  managing two teams with very different needs and levels of skill.  In particular the under 9’s team had quite a few kids without a lot of soccer experience and still the coach managed to build two good teams. I am sure Don Bosco will do a lot better in 2009.  Thank you coach and buena suerte/good luck for 2009.

2008 was a challenging year for Don Bosco Club – the team experienced a shortage of funds and a few parents had to dig deep to help get some of the equipment required and to hire a half decent ground for training.  When we first joined the Club the field they were using for training was basically a dust bowl, every time the kids kicked the ball a cloud of dust was created which the kids would inhale. With the help of the parents the club was able to train  in a field that had some grass.

The club managed to raise funds to buy team uniforms but is lacking in lots of other areas eg they only have 3 balls to share in the training of two teams ie 30 kids.  Not all the parents can afford to pitch in so a few are carrying the burden.

This year the club is looking for supporters to help the buy equipment for 2009 and beyond.  If you have a few dollars to spare and would like to support a struggling kids soccer team in Bolivia than please contact Javier Jordan on this e-mail jorge_jordan@sdb-bolivia.org. A dollar goes a long way here so it does not matter how small the donation is. All help is greatly appreciated – and it really will make a difference. The pride and dedication with which the coaches coach and the teams train and play is phenomenal. See for yourself with some of the highlights of Galen’s soccer experience.

What else can we say? This year has gone so fast – and 2009 is upon us. From our POV 2008 has been an amazing ride.  We took a huge risk and though it has not always been easy it has paid off in spades. I suppose it is a matter of preference but for me there is something to be said for stepping out into the unknown.

I will always be glad we did it and to you I hope that 2008 has been great and that you have some AMAZING plans and intention for 2009. Emerson, a personal favourite, said it best when he said:

It is impossible for a man to be cheated by anyone but himself

or

What lies behind us and what lies beneath us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.

We reckon the take home message is not to cheat yourself out of what you are capable of by limited thinking. There are plent of others who will do that for you…

So wherever you go and whatever you do, go safely and enjoy! We truly hope that 2009 is the very best year yet and that it exceeds your wildest expectations. To our nearest and dearest HUGE hugs and big sloppy kisses.

With love from all of us in Bolivia XOXOXOXOXOXOXOxoxoxoxoxoxoOXOXOXOXOXOXoXOXOXOX