Potosi

We arrived in Potosi, the highest city in the world, after a 2 hour hair raising taxi ride. I’m sure the taxi drivers in South America think they are in "Wacky Racers". The main feature of Potosi is the large mountain to the north of the city, Cerro Rico or Rich Mountain to us non-Spanish speakers.

When we arrived at the hotel it was clear that the whole city no longer had the wealth it may have once had. There were many beggars and street people around. Alex still wasn't feeling very well and so went straight to bed, I however went out to eat with the rest of the group. As the dutiful girlfriend I even brought him back a cup of warm chicken soup from the restaurant... it went uneaten!

The following day we amused ourselves by wandering around the town and by going to a "Money House" where Bolivian coins continued to be made here until 1933. Many early Spanish coins were also created here and shipped back to Spain. The Boliviano is now created in France and Canada where costs are cheaper. It is understood by many that the Minting House is one of the most important building in Bolivia.

The final day in Potosi we were leaving at midday to head towards the Salt Flats (previous blog). We decided to spend the morning down a mine in Cerro Rico. There are currently 8 "floors" of mining, much of the profit is distributed through a co-operative system. We entered the mine on one of these floors and set off looking for miners to share the goods we had bought from the local shop. Our provisions included: 1x Stick of Dynamite, 1x Fuse (for dynamite) 1x bag of Coca leaves (they don't eat the whole time down the mine, the coca stops them getting hungry) 1x bottle of 95% Alcohol (gets them drunk so they forget they are hungry and offering for the Tio.) 1x fizzy drink (for the children we may say working in the mine).

During our meanderings down the labyrinth of tunnels we met a 12 year old boy. He was working with his uncle. 12 is the youngest that he could work down the mines, by working he could support his family by working in the afternoon after being at school in the morning. We then met a 60 year old man boring a hole to place his dynamite to expose more of the Silver vein he had discovered. Alex and the other 2 guys we were with helped him by hammering a stake into the wall over and over again. It is hard work for a 60 year old, they do not normally live past 45 as the conditions in the mine are so poor. We provided the 60 year old with the alcohol and some coca leaves. He then took us to his Tio, the demon of the mines, who is worshiped daily by the miners to keep them safe and provide better quality minerals. The Tio was created by when the Spanish ran the mines to encourage the workers to be productive, there is now one in most tunnels.

It was clear that the miners really appreciated the visit and the gifts that we gave them. To help the 60 year old out I bought some silver from him, I paid double the market price and it was still only 1 pound, he was nearly in tears.

It must be said as with much of Bolivia, Potosi was not particularly geared up for tourism and so 2 days here may have been too much. Overall it was definitely an eye opener!