50 CultureShock! Bolivia
Characters
On the surface, the people on a Bolivian street form a
postcard that broadcasts ‘third world country’. People with
lighter skin seem to preside over the scene while those with
darker faces or more colourful dress seem to be doing most
of the heavy labour, which is mainly selling, fi xing, cleaning,
building, driving and carrying. Between these events, eating
takes place. The things being sold range from the exotic to
the tacky. The things being fi xed are often items which would
have gone directly to the city dump in a more prosperous
country. The places being cleaned will shine for a half hour
and then begin accumulating dust and grime from the
street. The places being built have dangerous scaffolds. The
things being driven seem to bump and burp, and passengers
sometimes bulge from the doors. Some of the things being
carried are bending strong backs forwardly. The things being
eaten are of great variety, but some of them, in particular
salteñas (chicken or beef pies) at 11:00 am, are eaten by
both those who preside over the scene and those who are
hustling and heaving.
There’s much more, of course, but this is what tells us that
we are near the Plaza San Francisco in hilly La Paz and not
in hilly San Francisco, California.
Bolivia becomes more nuanced when we get to know these
people, and this chapter will go beyond the faces in the crowd
and into their lives and ways of thinking and doing.