Bolivia post 2: Feb 22

Dearest friends and family,

I've just finished week three in Bolivia, where things are pretty soaking wet. For a few reasons. It's been raining pretty much non-stop since my comment about how nice the weather is. Also, it's Carnaval! The activity of choice during these days (weeks?) involves foam in a can and under-filled (and therefore painful) water balloons. (More on Carnaval in a bit). Also, last week, we experienced an unprecedented hailstorm that resulted in several inches of hail throughout the city (and on my roof!) The houses here aren't really built for such weather events, so my cozy little room ended up being a nice lagito (little lake...check out the pictures!). My host mom graciously helped me squeegee-dry my room, but my clothes are still, shall we say, damp. But my bed is warm and dry and the sun occasionally peeks out to say hello, so I can't complain.

CLASSES:
My classes continue to be fascinating and challenging, which is proving to be a pretty inspiring combination. We finished our unit on Bolivian political history, taught be historian Rafael Puente. While the subject matter was interesting, his lecturing style wasn't my favorite (and his bright orange sweater proved to be the source of an occasional but persistent headache).

CARNAVAL:
Our classes were briefly interrupted by a trip to Oruro, the acclaimed world capital* of Carnaval. The drive to Oruro was absolutely stunning and humbling. (See pictures for a glimpse). The Andes are incredibly awe-inspiring. As our bus lumbered around corners and up steep (paved and unpaved) roads, we caught a small glimpse of a calmer (yet wilder) Bolivia. We took advantage of the spacious public bathrooms (read: hillside) and breathed the fresh and ever-thinning air. As we weaved among the mountains, it felt as if we were part of a caravan of pilgrims to this Carnaval festival. After a 6 hour drive, we arrived in Oruro where the elevation tops 12,000 feet. The modern city of Oruro exists almost primarily for this festival. The economy there is based solely on the four-day festival during which the population more than triples.

The Carnaval parade lasts from 8 am on Saturday until 3am on Sunday (yes, that's 19 hours), only to begin again at 9am on Sunday. Persistent traditional Carnaval drums and brass music become the heartbeat of the city for the whole weekend. (One learns how to fall asleep to tubas, trumpets, and bass drums). I could try to describe the costumes and dancing to you, but the phenomenon of the parade is best described in pictures (check out the picasa album!). It was definitely a fascinating and colorful experience. The parade tells the history of Bolivia, including the stories of the colonization, the exploitation of indigenous people in the mines, the exploitation of kidnapped Africans in the mines, the effects of altitude...all with a bit of Catholicism thrown in.

My least favorite part about the whole experience was the espuma (foam in a can). Teenagers (and small children, and adults, and grandmas) wander around the city and sit in the bleachers and gleefully cover unsuspecting people in the soapy foam. We found ourselves ducking every time we heard the shake of a spray can. I still have dreams about it. Oy. All in all, Carnaval was an interesting experience...though I'm not sure I'll do it again anytime soon. (Though I did get an AWESOME wig out of it...again, check the pictures).

BACK IN COCHA:
After our adventure in Oruro, we arrived back in Cochabamba for two "ferriado" (furlough?) days. I spent these days sleeping, doing homework, encouraging the sun to come out, and hanging out with my host-bro. It was definitely an exhausting couple of days, and I'm feeling emotionally and physically exhausted, but I'm also feeling so grateful to be surrounded by such loving people. The people on my program and our directors (and my host-family!) are so loving and giving, it's hard to imagine I could ever give back the amount of love I receive on a daily basis.

We learned today a bit more about Andean cosmovision. We talked about the concept of ayni (roughly translated as reciprocity) and how that manifests itself in Andean ideology, music, and religion. We learned that everything has its pair or its opposite: our body parts, our souls, etc. Even G-d is made up of equal parts good and bad (because one cannot exist without the other). In traditional indigenous music, there must be at least two people to play the melody line (almost switching off notes on the pan flute). We also learned about the different cosmic and earthly spheres (which reminded me very much of what I've learned about Kabbalah). The take-away of this lesson is that life (and death) are all about balance. One has to balance the good and the bad, the strong and the weak, the joy and the sadness. This resonated deeply with me, especially after an exhausting (and exhilarating!) week.

For some reason (not really sure why), I was reminded of a part of a prayer by Reb Nachman that has become my mantra for this week:
"Help me find satisfaction and a deep abiding pleasure in all that I have, in all that I do, in all that I am."

On that note, I hope you all have a wonderful rest of the week and a relaxing weekend!
Thanks for reading this far! And, as usual, I would LOOOVE to hear what you're up to.

Love and empenadas (YUM!),

Eliana

(pictures: HERE!)

*so claim the Bolivians