My highest yet…A day in Llama land

Being free at weekends takes some getting used to… I hope it’s not too hard getting used to a normal parish weekend again after this time! One of the things that has been beckoning at weekends has been the 5,200m (16,000ft) Tunari mountain that dominates the skyline here in Cochabamba. Even if it’s not high by the standards of the Bolivian Andes, it’s higher than anything Europe has to offer.



Ten of us set off early on Saturday morning to conquer the peak, relieved to know that most of the height would be gained by bus. For three hours the bus toiled up precarious mountain roads leaving us ready to face the remaining 4000ft ascent. At first the walk was pleasant in cool but sunny weather, passing occasional mountain farming houses where the sheep and llamas shelter. Then came the first surprise of the day as we passed workers preparing a mountain track; we soon realised that their shouts were not just friendly greetings but warnings that they were about to blast away a rock face. As we photographed the explosions it dawned on us that a little more distance was advisable and there was a comical show of fleeing walkers, cameras still in hand, escaping the rocks bouncing along the hillside. Health and safety standards aren’t quite what we come to expect back home!


Then came the second surprise; as we approached the steep climb up, the mountains produced a sudden change in weather and we found ourselves in wind and snow and fog pushing upwards with difficulty as the air contains considerably less oxygen at that altitude.







Amazingly at the top the clouds cleared and we received the fruit of our labours being rewarded with spectacular views looking down 8,000ft to the city of Cochabamba. Truly a breathtaking sight…but not one to savour for too long as the wind certainly wasn’t letting up its icy blast. A brisk walk back saw us back at the bus for 5.00pm and enjoying a cool beer in the warm Cochabamba evening.

Half way…

As I write this I am reaching the half way point in my time in Cochabamba… I should be half way to being fluent in Spanish! That may be something of an exaggeration but I’m certainly growing in confidence and hopefully I’m making more and more sense to my host family who I feel must be very practised in the art of patient listening.




The family here have been great and it’s been a joy to be part of family life again in such a close way. The two sons here - one a university student, Marcos, the other a civil engineer, Ronald - make sure that my Spanish isn’t too old fashioned and no doubt teach me some of the phrases that textbooks don’t teach! Mary and Alfredo have made me feel totally at home here and a real part of family life.




I’ll know I’ve really made it though when Mattias, the parrot finally learns my name (for many weeks his Spanish vocabulary was certainly larger than mine!). One great privilege recently was to celebrate Mass for the wider family on the feast day of the Exaltation of the Cross. Handed down over generations is a large crucifix and the family gathered for the feast day and to continue with a lunch for everyone squeezed into the house.




Politics are never far away from the conversations here. The turbulent history of Bolivian politics means that there’s always plenty to discuss. Most recently president Evo Morales has been to the meeting of ‘non-aligned’ countries in Cuba and is now attending the meeting of the General Assembly of the United Nations in New York. Fiery statements abound concerning the foreign policies of the United States and in return the US accuses Bolivia, with its considerable production of the coca leaf (mainly for non drug related purposes), of slacking in the war against drug trafficking. What is certain is that more Latin American countries are speaking out against US policy. Quite where things will lead is anyone’s guess for these nations where the dollar bill is very much the accepted and often the preferred currency in everyday life. What is clear is that more and more recognize the present injustices of world trade and the reality of terrible crimes committed by regimes supported by the foreign policies of powerful nations.

To end on a happier note, a word about the current fiestas here. Last Thursday was Cochabamba day, commemorating the city’s liberation from Spanish rule nearly two hundred years ago. Once again the parades and bands took to the streets and people danced and celebrated all day and probably all night! This coming Thursday is national student day and I wonder what everyone will be doing to celebrate the lives of students! Whilst schools, colleges and universities will all be free for the day the definition clearly doesn’t stretch to returning students of language school. We will be celebrating with a full day of Spanish classes!

Distant Summits and Daily School

In the last few weeks I’ve at last been feeling the daily hours of Spanish study have been paying off. From the frustration of the early weeks where conversation was limited to describing the lounge furniture in the present tense only, I’m now feeling I can hold a reasonable conversation on topics beyond household furniture, even if the grammar isn’t quite right and the pace is still slow. Spanish is a great language and thankfully here in Bolivia it is spoken relatively gently and without too many quirky local expressions. I just hope that when I go to Peru or Ecuador I won’t find myself back at square one trying desperately to follow a strong local accent!



Two little breaks from life here have been to head to the hills, once by bus and once on foot. Overlooking Cochabamba is the 16,000ft Tunari peak. Five determined students from here set out to conquer this snow capped peak at 5.30 one Saturday morning. In spite of the assurances of our guide that we would reach the summit, my first doubts came early on when our bus came to a halt at most only about 500ft above the City. Cochabamba being at 8,500ft this left us around 7,000ft to climb in a day and a long trek through the foothills. We enjoyed a fabulous day in the hills and came reasonably close to the final ascent but given that it would be dark by 6.00pm and the pace at 15,000ft is painfully slow because of the thin air, we left the peak for another day … and a different route!



On our way up that day we passed an amazing little village and called in at the tiny school house. People there had a two hour walk down to the nearest place with roads and a shop… and a

steep three hour walk back. The harsh landscape clearly only just produced the bare minimum to live on and the only electricity in the area was produced by a solar panel at the school - probably enough to power a radio and a light bulb. I imagine life in that community has changed much in hundreds of years and whilst there was a basic education for those children, access to healthcare and any further education would be hard to imagine.



My other trip to the hills was to visit La Paz, the world’s highest capital at around 13,000ft. We took the overnight bus which laboured uphill for the entire eight hour journey arriving at dawn in the cold, oxygen deprived air of early morning La Paz. The city is a curious mix of modern skyscrapers which could let you believe you were in any large city in the world, if it weren’t for the poverty of ramshackle houses and buildings which are never far away, and the breathtaking mountains surrounding the city - especially the 21,000ft Illimani which dominates the skyline.

Hard to imagine that the half-way point in the course is now just a couple of weeks away now. Time’s flying by here - more news soon!