272 CultureShock! Bolivia
Micro Small bus used in urban public
transportationPachamamaMother Earth, god of nature, whose
influence trancends indigenous
communities and reaches both
religious and secular Bolivians of
diverse backgrounds
Peña Folk music scenePolleraThick bulky embroided skirt used
by chola. The trend is away from
using the word chola and instead
saying mujer de pollera (woman with
pollera).QuechuaLanguage of the Incas, still spoken
in the Bolivian, Peruvian and
Ecuatorian highlands
Quena Andean fluteQuinoaAndean supergrain, now a popular
product in health food shops around
the worldSalteñaChicken or beef pie, with semi-sweet
dough and mildly piquant sauce,
usually a mid-morning snackSayaAfro-Bolivian dance recalling
black slavery in Potosí mines, today
a primary dance of Carnaval and
other festivals
Soroche Altitude sicknessSurazoCold wind coming from the south
into normally hot Bolivian lowlandsTinkuA traditional dance that often
breaks into a ritual fight between
communitiesTranca Police checkpoint at designated
points on highways