Day 105

**DISCLAIMER: looking through my old blog, I found this post that I never finished.  It speaks to two challenges that really made my study abroad experience what it was.  I didn't want to add to it, so take it as it is!  I also added another post I'd started the same day.  We'll make a combined post! :)



This is my 105th and second to last day in Bolivia.  I cannot believe how fast this semester went and at this point, still don't believe that I'm actually leaving.  I've come to call Bolivia home and am so grateful that I got to spend my semester in such a different environment.  Bolivia really challenged me, but with those challenges I learned so much.

First challenge:  Spanish.
When I first got here I was a little embarrassed to speak Spanish to the locals.  I didn't have a problem talking to my peers and my professors, but outside of those relationships, I didn't want to talk.  But slowly, things got easier.  My host family was so helpful with the learning process.  My sister Laura would correct me every time I made an error and was probably the one that could understand best what I was trying to say.  And learning a language brings about laughs as well.  We visited my abuelo and I tried to ask if he was comfortable and if he needed anything... I asked him if he was food!  Everyone burst out laughing, including me once I realized my  mistake!  It's what happens when you learn a new language, and people appreciate that you try to speak their language.  Even if it was just a "Buenos Dias" and "Gracias" a little can go a long way.  And even the other way around.  It was always nice when I heard English being spoken by someone not in my group.  When I was at the airport in Santa Cruz I ended up talking to two groups of backpackers that were speaking English!  It was great to just talk about Bolivia and our travels, even though it was just five minutes, being able to speak my first language every once in a while created a bond with those strangers.   But now, it's not so bad.  I can hold conversations with few starts and stops (there are probably still a few errors, but that's just how second languages go.)  I can ask for directions without feeling uncomfortable and the best part, I can understand the answers I'm given!  I hope to continue learning and improving my Spanish back in the States, it's just a matter of where!

Second Challenge:  Culture Shock.
Everyone knows culture shock exists, and having traveled I thought, oh culture shock won't affect me.  I'm used to spending time away from home, I'll be fine.  No matter where you go if you study abroad, or work abroad or even just travel in one country for an extended period of time, culture shock will happen.  I can't exactly pinpoint what really shocked me, because life is very similar to my life in the states:  I take the bus to school every day, I stop at the drug store to buy shampoo and toothbrushes, I shop at the market... but yet I'm in Bolivia.  I unfortunately cannot put this into words, but there were days when I dreaded taking the micro to class.  What if it doesn't pick me up?  Will he charge me more today?  Will someone rob me?  What do I have that's worth robbing?


BOLIVIA:  A brief overview

La Moda (Fashion):
Many of the clothes are from the States.  They're either cast offs from previous years that have been shipped around the world or donated clothing from churches, GoodWills, etc.  So that explains why there are so many different college shirts and hats!  That makes it sound like everyone is not dressed well, that is not true at all.  When Bolivians have to, they wear suits with slacks, ties, and no matter what day it is, most of the women wear heels.  I don't know how they do it, because Bolivian sidewalks are killer.  There are tons of cracks, lots of construction and I can barely walk around in Pittsburgh in heels, so I can't imagine walking around here!  The favorite brands seem to be Aeropostale and Hollister, which is funny because that brings back memories of middle school for me when those were the only brands worth owning.  There are Bolivian designers, but even the wealthier families seem to buy the american brands.  I bought a pair of shorts for Santa Rita from a local store and guess where they're from... Wal-Mart.  If you want true "Bolivian" clothing, you have to go the traditional route and buy a polera, which is a pleated skirt, and a lace-like top.  But those outfits are super expensive because they are a symbol of status in the indigenous world!

Las Noticias (News):
The news airs in the morning, during lunch and in the evening around 8 or 9pm.  The news is similar to the states as they like to leave you waiting for the stories.. "Coming up next..." and then 20 minutes later you finally get to hear the store.  The news is different in that it is much more graphic.  You see dead bodies with the faces blurred out, car crashes where you can just glimpse the body, as opposed to shots of pavement with broken glass everywhere.  The first few weeks it definitely took some getting used to.

My Adviser is Famous!

I'm working very hard on my children's book, and it takes up the majority of my time, but on Saturday I will be done with the story and will begin to process of illustrating everything!  But I haven't forgotten about all you lovely people that have been reading my blog, so here's something to occupy your time!

The link below is about Guadalupe Antelo, my adviser and contact in the community of Santa Rita!  She has been working tirelessly over the past few years to bring back the artisan traditions of the pueblos around Concepcion and in doing so, has improved their lives ten fold!  Due to her efforts she has been nominated as a person of the year here in Bolivia!!  The article is in Spanish, but I'm sure you could translate it!  I was in Santa Rita when the journalists came to interview Lupe and the women about their mantas and along with this article, soon there will be a short video available online, which will also showcase the man that makes straw hats in San Miguelito (just 5 minutes down the road and another community that Lupe works with)!

http://www.eldeber.com.bo/nota.php?id=131202214325

Juana, Juana, Maria, Mercedes, Lupe, Me & Ana with las mantas

To short and sweet posts and famous advisers,

Carly

Snapshots of Santa Rita

I have returned from my adventure in Santa Rita!  I´ve been bitten by mosquitoes, spiders, ants and who knows what else, but had the most wonderful time in Paradise! I don´t have all of my pictures, but have included a few here!  Once I get back to Cochabamba on Monday I´ll give a more detailed post of my experience!

In total I spent 15 days in the community.  There are about 35 families that live there, so it´s small and very friendly. While in Santa Rita I investigated the weaving techniques and life as an artesan (and have 4 blankets to prove it!!)  I spent my mornings with Juana and her mom Ana and learned all the steps of how to make a manta (blanket\shawl).  I learned how to dye the hila (thread) with all the different plants, washed out the dye in the atahao (lagoon), prepared the loom, rolled countless balls of yarn and most importantly, weaved on the loom!  It takes about 3 days from start to finish to weave a blanket and the women can then sell them for 100 bolivianos.  I´m practically a professional artesan after my days with Juana and Ana.  They also weave scarves out of yarn with the help of a handheld loom.  And on top of that, I taught the little girls how to make earrings out of sirari seeds (the good luck seeds)!  I think I´m ready to open my own shop, it´s just a matter of where!  ;)

Juana, Myself and Ana with my creations! 

In the afternoons I played with the kids who ranged in age from 2 to 17, the ones older than 17 were too cool to play with the gringa!  We played Duck, Duck, Goose! Red Rover, Tag, Señor Lobo, Cat & Mouse... all of which I´m sure played when I was little!  I got quite a workout those two weeks running around after the kids!   If we weren´t playing in the plaza we were at the atahao!  But the atahao was not just for swimming, but also where everyone bathed and washed their clothes, myself included!  There is no running water in the village so being able to be somewhat clean was welcome!  Spending an afternoon at the atahao is a family affair.  The mothers come to bathe and wash the clothes, and after the children are finished playing they help wash the clothes and bathe as well!  Even the smallest children help out, washing socks and underwear!

Getting ready to play Señor Lobo!
Essentially you yell towards el Lobo what time it is, take that
many steps and keep walking towards him or her.  When
the lobo says ¨Medianoche¨ (Midnight) you sprint
back to where you started, trying not to get caught or
else you also become a lobo!

Obviously a lot happened, and this is just a quick snapshot, but I had a truly wonderful experience!!  I´m still writing my children´s book and the kids gave me a lot of ideas, so I have a lot to work with!!  If you haven´t donated yet, please seriously consider it, I know the children of Santa Rita would appreciate it more than I could ever imagine!!

To two weeks of paradise (even with the bugs),
Carly

Libro Infantil Update!

I have super exciting news!!  I am officially writing a bilingual children's book about the village of Santa Rita!  (to read about them specifically, check out the blog post: Religious Influences & Chiquitano Pueblos!)

I will leave on Monday (11 november) and will spend three weeks living life as a Chiquitanian!  I'll be staying with a local family and hopefully will get to learn more about their gardens, maybe do some weaving and just observe life in a completely different environment than I'm used to!  My friends from art school are going to help me illustrate the book, but I've also met with an illustrator here in Bolivia that has given me lots of ideas!  She is originally from France, but has been in Bolivia for 20 or more years!  She not only illustrates books and paints, but also has written a few books and holds art classes for students of all ages.  She also holds a separate class for students with mental disabilities, which is just a phenomenal thing in my book.  Her house is so full of color and there are costumes and masks everywhere, I can imagine whey children love to come to her classes!  Also, to gain a better understanding of the Bolivian child and what they like, dislike, how they may or may not be different from other children around the world Jimmy and I went to a local library that hosts an after school program.  We spent three hours playing with the kids!  We helped them write a play, played pato, pato, gonso (duck, duck goose), did a dance similar to Grey Squirrel Grey Squirrel, and I discovered that Stella Ella Ella is actually in spanish... who knew!  So we taught them that hand-clapping game and Jimmy taught them some French!  It was a wonderful afternoon and hopefully when I get back from Santa Rita I can go back to the library!  The kids were so interested in life in the states!  They had hundreds of questions like:  what's your favorite food, is there a typical dance in the US, where's the prettiest place in the US, etc. etc.  They also told me that I have to go to the zoo in Santa Cruz to see all of their favorite animals.  I'm surprised they didn't draw me a map, but I feel like I can find the bears and tigers, so I should be fine!

Anyway, back on track!  Once I get to Santa Rita I hope to just jump in and see what inspires me to write about.  Right now my plan is to investigate the Gardens and why there has been such a loss of information over the years, but that could easily change as I have no idea what to expect!  I'm taking tons of bug spray and sunscreen, a mosquito net, a hat, iodine tables to purify the water, a sleeping bag, a few outfits and a camera, and a lot of hope that it's enough!  I think there is some electricity in the village, but I really don't know!  It's truly going to be an experience and I'm ready!  Hopefully I can pick up some Chiquitano words while I'm there too!

Where I'll be spending the next three weeks!

If you haven't donated yet to my book, I'd really appreciate it!  It will happen and really, I can only publish it with your help!  So please, pass this on to all your friends and family, because more than 1000 lives can be touched with 1000 books!  And just think how excited all the children of Santa Rita will be to see their village in a book that will travel to the states!  Can you even imagine?  I don't think I can!

 http://ourworld.worldlearning.org/site/TR?px=1469641&fr_id=1040&pg=personal

To what I hope will be a wonderful experience
(not only in the village, but writing this children's book!),
Carly

Daily Life

I've talked a lot about our excursions around Bolivia, but realized I haven't said much about my day to day life in Cochabamba!  So you are going to get to see what life in Bolivia really looks like, because daily life while abroad is interesting!!

After two months I've gotten into a pretty steady routine.  If class starts at 9:30 I wake up around 8:00 to shower and eat breakfast.  And finally, I don't have any problems turning on the shower, although some times it is a little iffy as if I'll get hot water or lukewarm.  Luckily it's never freezing!  After getting ready I head down to the kitchen for breakfast which usually includes a piece of fresh bread with marmalade and a 'coffee.'  Coffee here is all instant, so I put two huge spoonfulls of mix, a spoonfull of sugar and boiling water!  I stir my concoction and sort of enjoy it... while watching the Bolivian today show which is called "La Revista."  It's pretty hilarious.  Some days there's a drag queen that does the news, other days they are a little more serious and have local music groups and chefs come in to perform and cook!  The other day they were advertising graduation ring sales and had a mock-graduation for the news anchors.  It's really quite funny!  Then it's off to the micro stop to go to class.  The micros here are wonderfully reliable.  They come every 15 minutes or so, especially at high traffic times like in the morning, before and after lunch, and at the end of the day.  I walk about a block to Blanco Galindo where I then cross the pasarella instead of crossing the two 4 lane highways ... it's much safe that way!

This view never gets old!

Waiting for my Micro in the shade of the Pasarella
(either X10 or E)

Inside the Micro to class
It costs 1 boliviano - aka 14 cents!

I get off the micro about 3 blocks from the SIT office and walk to class.  Some days, if I didn't have enough time I'll stop and buy a mandarina, water or pineapple to snack on during class.  Or if I'm early enough I'll go to Cafe Espresso for a morning coffee that is a little bit more real than the instant mix, but still nothing compared to coffee in the US.  Class lasts until about 12:30 and then it's home for lunch!  Missing lunch is frowned upon here.  I had to miss two lunches last week because I was so busy writing my proposals and papers and my family was sort of offended.  They thought I didn't like the food all of the sudden and were worried I wasn't eating.  But we sorted it all out and they understand now.  But missing meals and sleeping in are not common occurrences in the Bolivian family.  During the week our abuela makes lunch for us since my mom and dad both work and it's not nearly as big as the weekend lunches!  Usually it includes some type of meat (usually beef or chicken), rice, potatoes, fried plantains, a salad of tomatoes and onions (yes that's it), and of course llajwa (hot sauce) and coca cola!  Some days we get lucky and have homemade soup which is my favorite, although I usually find whole chicken organs, which I refuse to eat.  Yes, I have tried them, and no I didn't like them!  Other days we have chicken in a sweet sauce over pasta, or just plain pasta with tomato sauce which my family then adds ketchup to.. I'm not a fan of that meal.  It's definitely not italian pasta sauce, that's for sure!  But for the most part, the meals are delicious and filling and I'm definitely getting all the starches I could ever need!  After lunch, we wash the dishes and depending on how much time I have I usually take an afternoon siesta until I have to go back to class at 3:00!  To get back to the city I leave around 2:30 and repeat the same steps as in the morning.

A different micro to return home for lunch!

All the micros have their own design aesthetic:
Spongebob, Superheroes,
Wilstermann, Snoopy, Tazmanian Devil...

If we have Spanish class, as we often do in the afternoons, we get a 30 minute break to do whatever we want!  Usually this involves a massive trip to the food court around the block to the ice cream shop where they usually offer a 2 for 1 deal.  It's kind of like marble slab, in that they mix all the toppings into your ice cream for you!  It's amazing, although I miss American ice cream.  All the cheese and dairy products have a different taste here, and I don't really want to know why, but for the most part I limit my dairy intake here, aside from the ice cream!  Then it's back to class until 6:30, when we head our separate ways to go home.  I walk about 4 blocks to San Martin to wait for my micro, and usually end up waiting until close to 7 with all the traffic before my micro shows up.  Then it's about a 15-20 minute ride back home.  I'm usually the first one home, so I unwind a bit before settling down to do my readings and assignments for class.  Unwinding usually involves playing with the pug puppies!! When everyone arrives home we have 'cafecito' which is essentially dinner, but because lunch is so big, it's usually just leftovers from lunch or a piece of bread or bowl of cereal with tea, hot chocolate or coffee!  We usually eat around 9:30 or 10pm and watch the news, the telenovelas or my sister's favorite: Yo Me Lllamo, that is sort of like American Idol, except people try out as impersonators.  The trials are hilarious because so many people come in wanting to be Shakira, Michael Jackson, Christina they have little sing and dance offs and it's great!  

Returning at night
When I hold onto that top bar, my arm is bent at
a 90 degree angle...  that boy in the foreground
is about 5'6" hopefully now you
can understand my daily head hitting struggles!

Barbie

Barney

Other than that, my days are pretty normal.  Every once in a while the micros won't pick me up, but I've come to accept it.  Other days, the micro drivers demand I pay more won't give me change, but for the most part I don't have too many problems.  I think they have finally figured out that I'm here to stay (for at least a little longer) and I think it also helps that my Spanish is improving!  As for the cat calls, those still continue and I don't expect them to end.  Just today walking to the internet cafe to write all these posts a group of Bolivian boys walked past me and one of them said "All that I want" in English.  Thank you boys, but I'm going to cross the street now and get on with my life!  

To what I think has been a successful adjustment to Bolivian life,

Carly

Santa Cruz: Adventures in the Amazon

Unfortunately, because it rained so much the two days before, we weren't able to enter the National Park... which was disappointing, but we still had our own adventure!  Andres took us to a cacao farm and on the way he stopped and pointed out all the different plants, trees, bugs and animals that live in the rain forest!  We weren't in the forest, rather on a dirt road, but we did see a lot, so I'm not going to complain!

First stop:  Rubber Trees (Caucho)
We saw trees in all stages of life, from newly planted, to ancient trees that had hundreds of marks on them.  Rubber tapping doesn't actually hurt the trees which I found very interesting!  And we got to 'tap' one of the trees and feel the rubber.  It comes out white and looks and feels kind of like glue.  But when you rub it between your fingers it feels rubbery!

Fresh Rubber!

 Second Stop: The long and winding road... to the cacao farm!
As usual, we weren't really sure what we were in for.  We were just told that we were going on a walk and to bring our cameras.  It ended up being a pretty long walk, with Andres anyway!  We arrived a solid 45 minutes after the other group arrived at the cacao farm!  But because Andres is an ecologist/botanist/jungle enthusiast we stopped every few feet to see a different animal or plant!  He also told us a lot of interesting things like which ants live in which trees and have a symbiotic relationship, the names of EVERYTHING and of course things I don't really need to know, like the fact that the largest spider in the world lives in the Amazon rainforests of Bolivia as well as the majority of the most poisonous snakes... I can handle bugs, beetles and ants, but anything that is going to bite me that has too many legs or none at all, no thank you, I do not want to know about it! Luckily we didn't see any of those, but here are some of the things we did see!!  (This definitely isn't everything, but these were some of my favorites and things that I found the most interesting!)

The long (and not so windy) road we traveled!

So many trees had these giant terminte nests...
I was very glad that I wasn't walking under them!

Andres showing us the best leaves to use as toilet paper..
They were actually quite soft, but I still wouldn't
want to use them!

These are swallow tailed kites!  They followed
us all the way to the Cacao farm!

A (thankfully) empty Cicada shell...
but I could still definitely still hear them!

No, that's not my camera that tree is actually yellow!!
There is an indigenous group that lives by a large group of
those yellow trees so the people are called
"Los Amarillos" aka yellow people! 

This bicho (beetle) doesn't look that big.. but he was huge!
Andres's favorite thing to do is roll over logs to see who (or
maybe more accurately what) lives underneath them!

Many jungle trees grow like they do in the swamplands!
And if you look really close.. they have spines like the one below!

 

These spines are poisonous!  So don't touch them!
The poison is a paralytic, but ants live in the tree and are able
to not be paralyzed.  Nature is crazy!

Final Destination:  Cacao farm
Unfortunately, cacao isn't in season quite yet... so most of the trees had the shells of the cacao fruit, but nothing inside them.  But we saw cacao trees and I learned so many things about the Amazon I'm not complaining!!  And we found tons of 'luck!'  I'm not sure which tree they come from, but they are pretty much like four leaf clovers anywhere else, except way easier to find!  We were presented with two when we first got here for luck during our time in Bolivia (which I still have!) and I think they've served their purpose! But just in case, I stuck a few more in my pockets!

Ginger!

I can't remember the name of this plant, but the little beads are used
to dye fabric red!  You can crush them between your fingers and
it turns your fingers an orange-red!

Trying to knock down the cacao pods... 

Cacao pod

LUCK!

Our final stop of the day was the Rio to go swimming!  And after the pretty much nonstop travel and constant charlas with different groups and organizations just sitting in the water and doing nothing was very exciting!  Some people crossed the river and went into the rainforest (that was actually part of the Reserve) but I had learned so much following Andres that morning that I was okay just relaxing in the river!  Before we got in we had lunch on the beach which was quite a feat with the wind, the sand and lack of plates and utensils.  We had tuna fish sandwiches with cheese, tomatoes and mayonnaise and juice boxes!  It wasn't a bad lunch, but I know that I ate a lot of sand!  Right after lunch most people ran into the river, but being the pale red head I am, I loaded up on the sunblock before heading in!  The river was pretty shallow, but had quite a current so we spent a lot of time sort of body surfing with the current and digging our hands into the soft sand!  And no one found any crazy bugs or was bitten by piranhas!  (And actually, most piranhas are vegetarians... who knew!)  To illustrate how shallow the river was, we were all swimming, enjoying the water and a family came up to the edge of the river with their motorcycle to cross to the other side.. the husband rode his motorcycle through the water and when it got to the 'deep' part (~2.5 feet) he just got off and wheeled it through the water like it was nothing!  We ended up staying in the river for more than five hours and missed our last two activities, but we all agreed it was worth it and necessary for everyone's sanity!   After our swim, we boarded the bus for the three hour drive back to Santa Cruz the city for our last day before heading back home to Cochabamba!

The reserve across the river!

To all the new Amazon plants and bugs that I feel I now know personally,

Carly

Santa Cruz: The Longest River Crossing in History

The next morning we were up bright and early to drive to Portachuelo and then Buena Vista, which is where the Amboró National Park is located!  It was supposed to be about a four and a half hour drive, but well, we're in Bolivia, in the Amazon and it just rained for about seven or eight hours, so it was slow going at first.  But we were able to keep pretty good time and arrived at el Rio Grande more or less on time.  We had to drive over the 'dry' flood plain to reach the river (as it's still technically the dry season) and we made it all the way to the boat without having to get out and push the bus out of the mud; so we were all pretty happy!  We got off the bus so it could board the pontoon boat waiting for us and that's when the problems started... first the bus couldn't get onto the boards that formed the ramp to the pontoon.  Then, someone had the brilliant idea to back the bus up and try from another angle.  Which, in theory probably would work in a normal situation, but there had been so much rain backing up was a bad idea... the bus ended up stuck in the mud.  We ended up spending over two and a half hours on this flood plain, in the beating sun, in the mud.  No one thought we would be outside for this long, so no one had sunscreen, hats, or anything to protect us from the sun or water.  Most of us had our cameras, but there's only so many pictures you can take.  And although it took two hours to get the bus unstuck, and we were under the burning sun, it was a very nice change of scenery to be outside of the bus, as we'd spent most of our trip so far on the bus, all together.  We were actually able to spread out and talk to other people than our seat mates and those around us!  It was wonderful!  Eventually someone found a shovel and started digging out the bus's wheels, and they were able to move the bus forwards just enough to wedge a board underneath the wheel to hopefully get the bus unstuck... but the board just slipped out from under the bus and then cracked in half.  So next they tried tying a rope to the front of the bus and pulling... with part of the board under the wheel... still no luck.  They also tried putting more water under the bus so that the mud didn't have such a tight hold on the wheel, and that didn't work either.  Eventually someone dug out enough of the wheel and with people pushing and pulling the bus, we were able to get it unstuck and on to the pontoon!! It was a grand celebration and a great relief, because I know I personally thought we might be there for the rest of the afternoon!

Pull attempt #1...

The Bolivians specifically asked for "Varones" so
las mujeres got to stand and watch
WELCOME TO PATRIARCHY! ;)

Pushing, pulling and digging is what it takes to get a microbus
out of the mud in the floodplain of el Rio Grande

The mudpit...

Finally crossing the river!!

And we arrived!! The other side of the river!

After our impromptu adventure we ended up being almost four hours late to lunch... so our time in Portachuelo was cut very short.  Which is unfortunate because Tony, one of our guides, was a famous TV and radio personality from Portachuelo and very important in his community.  We ate lunch in record time (for Bolivians) it was under an hour, if you can believe it, and then we were off to the next activity:  ABEJAS (bees)!

We drove to a bee farm on the outskirts of Portachuelo and weren't really sure what to expect.  When we got to the farm Andres (our Ecologist and guide for the trip) explained about the different types of bees in Bolivia and the world.  The farm we went to had three different types:  the normal bees that you see in the states that are actually originally from Africa, black Bolivian bees that don't sting, but love to fly into your hair, and last but not least, the tiniest bees in the world!  First we saw the black Bolivian bees.  I had my Pitt hat on, and I was very glad as Andres wasn't kidding about the bees flying into your hair.  It didn't matter if your hair was long, short, blonde or brown, the bees were everywhere!  We had to pick them out of each other's hair which was quite a bonding experience, and not something I want to do again.   The bees didn't sting, but they did bite and they sure did enjoy getting lodged deep into your hair.  And hearing them buzzing but not being able to grab them was awful!! It was like holding a fly between your fingers, which no one wants to do!  Finally we got all the bees out of everyone's hair and moved on to the tiniest bees in the world!   (They don't sting either!) They were so tiny and they apparently make the richest honey!  I liked these ones much better, they just went about doing their own thing and didn't try to hitch a ride on anyone's head.  After our mini abeja tour, we got to try the fresh honey!  I've never had fresh honey and it is all that it is cracked up to be.  The little old man that cares for the bees (I unfortunately can't remember his name... ) took out a huge, fresh honey comb and began to cut it into pieces for us to eat.  Some people ate the whole thing, others only ate the honey and spit out the wax, but it was so delicious it didn't matter!  We were all so sticky and content with life, even when the bees came to take their own honey no one seemed to care!  We also got to try the honey of the little tiny bees which was almost like a liquor.  We literally drank it out of a cup and it was incredibly sweet so I could only take a sip or two, but it made me crave some good English tea!  (Don't get me wrong, the coca tea is great, but sometimes you just want some classic Earl Grey or English Breakfast!)

The tiniest bees in the world!
(Thanks Gabby for the finger measure!)

Cutting the honey comb!

Even the bees know how good the honey is!

These are the black bees that don't bite!  Still much
smaller than the ones in the US!

After all that honey we had one more stop at la casa de cultura en Portachuelo.  It's a place for children to learn different instruments including the violin, pan flute, drums, piano, guitar and voice lessons!  The best part is that they played traditional Bolivian music!  It was like a mini symphony performance!  Afterwards the group wanted a picture with all of us and then proceeded to find the most gringo gringitos for solo shots.  I was one of the favorites being a tall red head, but I think the blondes received just as much attention!  We talked to a few of the kids, who ranged in age from about six to sixteen, and they were all very nice and very passionate about their music.  Many of them played multiple instruments!  I love the music culture here in Bolivia, the fact that just about anyone can play an instrument or dance is wonderful!  And it's a wonderful way to show pride for your culture as well!! 

The Casa de Cultura
(The House of Culture)

Finally, we arrived at our 'eco-resort' hotel.  We were given maybe an hour to change before we had to go to dinner, which was in the the central plaza of Buena Vista.  It wasn't anything to write home about, lots of hearts of palm, some rice and carne, but it was food.  Around 10pm we arrived back at the hotel and passed out, not sure of what would happen the next day because of all the rain and the delays... but it was looking like we might not be able to enter the National Park... which would make our schedule pretty useless...

To a very long day, but rewarding nonetheless,

Carly