"Nuestra Señora de La Paz (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈnwes.tɾa seˈɲoɾa ðe la pas]; English: Our Lady of Peace; Aymara: Chuquiago Marka or Chuqiyapu), simply known as La Paz, is the seat of government of Bolivia, as well as the departmental capital of the La Paz Department, and the second largest city in the country (in population) after Santa Cruz de la Sierra.[3] It is located in the western part of the country in the department of the same name at an elevation of roughly 3,650 m (11,975 ft) (the city is built on steep hills) above sea level, making it the world's highest "de facto" capital city, or administrative capital."
Street view of La Paz, 3600m.
(Looks a bit like San Francisco, CA)
Witchcraft Street.
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Idols.
Cute!
Seduction Potion?
]
Dried llama fetus.
Dried llama fetus.
It was a common offerings, and it was taken while a pregnant llama was slaughtered for its meat.
USD, Mother Mary, Saints.
More Supplements!
Street View
Another Street View
People watching at a Plaza.
After non-stop traveling for 18 days, I was quite tired and preferred just to chill out at a plaza and watch people.
Locals.
Shoe-polishing boy at the plaza.
He was very diligent and hardworking.
I was really curious about his story and background.
(Taken by HY)
Another shoe-polishing boy in the Plaza.
(Taken by HY)
His hands.
(Taken by HY)
We managed to get them over to polish a shoe for a gentleman (seated beside us) and paid them handsomely for their service (as we were taking up their time when they could earn money). They normally charge 1 Boliviano (S$0.20, US$0.16) for each pair of shoes.
They are all 12 years old from a town outside of La Paz, and it took them 1 day of traveling to get into La Paz to do shoe-polishing work. They are cousins and trying to earn some money for their education expenses (it was a holiday period). At night, they would spend 1.5 Boliviano (S$0.30, US$0.24) for a place to sleep. I could not imagine the sleeping condition of that place.
They paid 100 Boliviano (S$20, US$16) for their tool box, which means that they had to polish 100 pairs of shoes before they could breakeven.
I asked the boys what they want to do when they grow up.
The boy on the right wanted to be an architect, while the boy on the left did not know.
We gave them so money for their education, and they were so happy that they stopped shoe-polishing (at least for that afternoon). =)
I was really touched by their story - working hard to earn money for education. They put me to shame. I was not behaving with such maturity at the age of 12. I really wish I could help them more. They might be young, but they worked hard and endured hardship for their future despite unfavourable financial condition. And I understand how it feels to be poor.
They are really inspiring.
There is no reason for me to complain about life anymore.
I thank them for giving me a good lesson.
=)
A group photo.
Interestingly, the gentlemen seated beside us was actually an undercover police. We continued to talk about the crime, law-enforcement, penalties and the role of police in Bolivia and Singapore. After listening about Singapore's low crime rate and the salary of Singapore police, they wanted to work in Singapore. Haha.
There was a protest by the handicapped people at the background.
It was a great day in La Paz.
Even though we did not visit any touristy sites, the interactions with the locals are way better than sight-seeing. This is one of the highlights of the trip.
Plaza
Bread selling at 0.4Boliviano (S$0.02, US$0.016).
It is so cheap!! Wondering what kind of margin do they make.
10 Boliviano. The person looks like a cartoon character.
Falafel with Hummus in Lapaz!!!
It tasted as good as those in Israel. Love it!!!
(Taken by HY)
Our last dinner together, as HY was catching a flight from La Paz to Santa Cruz to Bueno Aires to Sao Paulo to Doha to Singapore. (It would take him may be 45 hours of flight from La Paz back to Singapore). PY and I continued our traveling in Bolivia.
Beautiful La Paz
(Taken by HY)
=)
(Taken by HY)
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