Comments on: From Cocaine to Monkeys: Bolivia, 10 First Impressions

By: Daniel Noll

Daniel Noll — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 11:42:13 +0000

@Blaž: Our monkey friends at the sanctuary were incredible. The one that I’m pictured with (who wrapped my fingers around the fruit and also brought nuts to crush under my foot) was especially clever.

By: Blaž

Blaž — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 06:45:09 +0000

Huh, I was touched by the story of the monkey placing fruits into your hands and wrapping your fingers arround … I would have melted at site!

Keep well!
Blaž

By: Legal Nomads

Legal Nomads — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 03:39:06 +0000

Excellent tree pose atop the wine bottle. 100% Legal Nomads approved

By: Daniel Noll

Daniel Noll — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 03:23:14 +0000

Thanks everyone for the very thoughtful comments. So many threads here. This is the sort of conversation we really enjoy.

@Pete: Family in Cochabamba? Wish we knew. I think we are going to start putting itinerary details at the top of our “Where We’re Going” page for cases like this. The story of the balding spectacled bear is very sad (she looks like a rhino crossed with a Chinese crested dog, by the way).
@Akila: You have made the case: economic incentive is one of the strongest forces alive in the realm of human behavior.
@BrianJUY: We’ll be headed there sometime early next year, depending in part on our Argentina itinerary (after Bolivia and Paraguay).
@Dave and Deb: Hopefully as humanity finds a way to make oil worthless, we can simultaneously tackle the scarcity of clean water. We are often shocked by how little value seems to be placed on nature and its resources…by corporations, individuals, interlopers and natives.
@Jodi: Wow, and we thought we received some rough treatment. We actually had a fairly good experience at the Witches’ Market in La Paz, resulting in a 15-20 minute discussion with one of the indigenous vendors there. She began by explaining the various amulets, and we somehow ended up talking about our families, where we were from, etc. We’ll be sure to get our hands on the Devil’s Picnic. We have a growing “must read” list from our travels in Latin America. The Salar photos are up. We tended to focus on the natural, but there are a couple of photos in there of us doing tree poses atop a wine bottle:
http://www.uncorneredmarket.com/photos/tag/goof/page1/
@Pauline: You have read our observations very closely. From this piece, it’s fair to come to the conclusion that Bolivia is very much to itself in many ways. That said, we have headed east and the attitude appears to be changing – noticeably friendlier, more open, less insular. The only thing I would add: the outside influence has historically been from Europe and the U.S. In the current political environment, economic and political influence seems to be coming from Venezuela.
@Tim: Certainly, the $135 visa fee plays a role in Americans visiting Bolivia. But how big a role, I’d hesitate to say without seeing data. There was a day (only a few years ago) before the reciprocity fee — and it’s not particularly clear that there were loads of American visitors then, either. Although the Bolivian visa fee may sound hefty, long-term travelers to Bolivia will more than make up the visa fee within a few weeks because the cost of travel is less than in Ecuador and Peru. On the subject of worthwhile sights, we found the Bolivian salt flats to be amazing. Coupling that with a visit to Lake Titicaca, La Paz, the jungle and drinking some nice inexpensive wines here in Tarija, a case could be made to visit Bolivia and amortize/spread the $135 over the life of your trip.
@Gaea: Part 2 is being brewed as we speak. Tarija is quite different in temperament than the rest of the Bolivia, particularly the altiplano. And yes, the wine. Always helps to have some reasonably priced good food and wine around to help one contemplate a place.

By: Gaea

Gaea — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 17:07:17 +0000

I enjoyed this piece and as (to my mom’s relief) we got to be travel buddies for some the time I vouch – these impressions impressed me – they’re honest. I look forward to part two especially after we visited that desert planet and its moons [that's where we went right?] . . . and Tarija – wine country always sounds lovely. Was it?

By: Tim L.

Tim L. — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 18:52:10 +0000

Yes, a $135 permission slip is a HUGE reason more Americans don’t go to Bolivia. Why would you when much more attractive Ecuador and Peru only make you pay 1/3 of that, and as an exit fee at the airport? (Less overland). Chile can get away with that because most of its visitors are on an expensive trip to Patagonia and this is just one small part of that. But if you’re coming to Bolivia as a backpacker, that’s a week’s worth of expenses, money not going to food, lodging, and transportation.

To me that’s the government saying, “We don’t want you here.” (Just as our government is signaling the same thing to its visitors—and I don’t blame people for giving the U.S. a pass as a result.)

By: PaulineF

PaulineF — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 15:31:16 +0000

Fascinating post, and I do think there’s a narrative here (and not just a collection of observations). It seems like Bolivia is a country that’s very much in its own sphere and hoping to stay that way. What I’m getting from your writing is that contact from outsiders is accepted, but not embraced, whether that contact is social or political in nature. But despite that reticence, outside forces have been shaping life here–in the attempts at USAid (and control of narcotics), in the market for those narcotics, in the destruction of indigenous cuisine–mostly with negative results.

By: Legal Nomads

Legal Nomads — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 02:10:55 +0000

Great post and astute observations, as always. I too found Bolivians (both indigenous populations and otherwise) to be reticient to be in or near photos. In the Mercado de Hecheria, a woman actually threw fruit at my head because she thought I was taking her picture (I wasn’t) and then told me I’d need to buy her a llama fetus to make up for my Pyrrhic photo skillz. Ah good times. Re the coca farmers, it’s worth reading the chapter on coca leaves in The Devil’s Picnic. Good history and informative writing by Taras Grescoe. Looking forward to the Tupiza Tours writeup and seeing your optical illusions photos! – Jodi

By: Dave and Deb

Dave and Deb — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 03:50:34 +0000

Always excellent and informative posts from you! We watched an excellent documentary about water in this world called “Flow” I think about how privatization of water is taking over the planet and it is very scary and extremely sad. Water should be available for everyone. If only the corporations that control our water would let it flow freely instead of damming and diverting it. So sad.

By: BrianJUY

BrianJUY — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 17:07:48 +0000

I’ve been following you guys for about 2 months now. I really like your writing style. When are you making it to Uruguay?