192 CultureShock! Bolivia
three university museums covering colonial to modern art
and anthropology. Colonial Sucre’s old convents and churches
are the foundation of its architectural unity.
Popular culture can be appreciated at the Mercado
Campesino (Peasants’ Market). Any one of the restaurants
in and around the Plaza may offer a peña on a weekend
night. In particular, Arco Iris’s interactive peña eliminates
the boundary between musicians and audience. As in
Mississippi’s blues juke joints, people from the audience may
rise and dance in any available space of fl oor, to a group like
Raza Milenaria, which plays music from all regions of Bolivia.
In the uninhibited musical atmosphere of Arco Iris, foreigners
and Bolivians fi nd a common ground.
A major feature of Sucre, rarely mentioned in travel guides,
is the presence in many government buildings, the university
and the normal school, of grand historical murals by Bolivia’s
great 20th century artist, the late Walter Solón Romero.
Solón, who grew up in the barren Uyuni and had never seen
a tree until late childhood, arrived in Sucre after being the
sole survivor of a plane crash in Chile. During his year-long
recovery period, from his hospital bed, he organised the arts
collective Grupo Anteo. Solón’s and Anteo’s murals, in the
genre of the Mexican muralists, are Sucre icons.
Sucre’s slower pace makes it a better hangout city than La
Paz, with unusual and sometimes bookish cafés and taverns
at or near the Plaza 25 de Mayo, including the multipurpose
Joy Ride Cafe, La Repizza (good food), Tertulias Coffee Bar
Restaurant, Bibliocafé and at the nearby Alianza Francesa,
La Taverne, moderately priced considering the fi ne food and
cosy atmosphere. Too bad that the outdoor seating so typical
of Cochabamba establishments is not found on Sucre’s
narrower streets.
Sucre’s liability? Commercially eclipsed by La Paz,
Sucre may be a bit too placid for folks who demand lots
of action. For a side visit 65 km (40 miles) away, enjoy the
Mercado Campesino of Tarabuco, especially for the richly
colourful textiles. A quicker escape is the hour-and-a-half
pilgrimage trail through shady woods to the top of the hill
above La Recoleta.