Potosi
Trip Start
Mar 28, 2008
1
17
98
Trip End
Mar 27, 2009
Potosi,
Potosi,
Bolivia
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Julie woke up this morning with even worse altitude sickness - after 5 cups of matte de coco and lots of drugs she came round!
We then had to endure a 3 hour bus ride to Potosi - 10 minutes before the bus was due to leave one of our group realised they had left their passport in the hotel (and no it wasn´t us!) Alvero made a mad dash back to the hotel and some of the group tried delay tactics - one of which was checking the tyres (which later tempted fate!)
At the start of the journey we stopped and the driver put air into one of the tyres - was this a bad omen? Then about an hour into the journey all the locals at the back of the bus started screaming and shouting to stop the bus
Blowing up the dynamite
. We realised a tyre had burst - an hour later is was fixed thankfully! This however did not slow the driver down but we obviously arrived in Potosi in one piece! Potosi is at an altitude of 4,000 metres - it is the highest city of its size with 110,000 people living here. The only economy here is mining.
Claire went out for tea without Julie (who was still ill!) and guess what her tea was last again - a running theme!
Wednesday
The main reason for coming to Potosi is to visit the mines located in the mountain Cerro Rico. Our guide book states "Be warned though, that this is an unpleasant and highly dangerous environment, where safety precautions are largely left to fate....the air inside is fetid with dust and gases...and the chances of been hit by falling rocks or a speeding mine trolley are real". It however wasn´t quite this bad and an experience I will never forget. There is so much poverty here it makes you feel quite humble.
There were 3 levels of mines - the first is expert and the third is beginner
Buying the dynamite
. A beginner earns up to 40 bolivanos a day, about 2.50 pounds. Life expectancy is on average about 45 years because of a disease called Silicosis. As a group we had to take gifts to the miners, we took a selection of juice, biscuits, cigarettes, coco leaves, 96% proof alcohol and DYNAMITE which you can freely buy on the streets! The guide told us when to give the gifts out and to who. There are about 50 mines on the mountain run by co-operatives. We met the oldest person working on the mine - she was a 78 year old woman sorting out the stones once they had been mined. She was still working because she had no sons to support her.
It can get quite clastrophobic and alot of scrambling was required - you had to be quite fit and agile to do this. Tourists can go the levels one to three but there are six. Most go to level one only but we chose to go to level three - great to do but very hard to get out - you had to clamber up a stone/muddy wall (I needed a little assistance, my boots were 4 sizes too big and my lamp wasn´t working properly).
We were assured by the guide that dynamite is safe until you put the detornator in - a good job as it was in our boiler suits!
Julie had decided not to come because of altitude sickness which was a wise thing to do!
We are heading to the Salt Flats so we will update you all in a week´s time as we won´t have any internet access.
Comments
Still can't believe you did it!
It sounds like you're having plenty of 'experiences'. What are you up to next? You are not missing anything over here. I can't believe you are a 12th of the way through already.