As people from all generations filled the Avenida de la Americas on Aug. 6 to partake in the festivities commemorating the end of the Spanish dominion in Bolivia 185 years ago, political and social instabilities seem to have disappeared.
Cold temperatures fill the night air, as fireworks and musical compositions in honour of the country engulf the main avenue. While crowds engage in national dances and conversations under the clear skies of Chuquisaca, steam rises up from the gas cookers on several tables aligned where women sell the famous Bolivian hot drink "Canella," giving an atmosphere of warmth.
For only 10 Bolivians, or a $1.50 Canadian, this strong but tasty drink that uplifts you quite quickly, especially on cold nights, is filled into a two-litre plastic coke or sprite bottle, which consists simply of three quarters of boiled water with cinnamon and the other quarter, Singani.
Bolivia's national liquor, this grape brandy distilled from a variety of the muscatel grapes grown in the southern part of the country is used to make many traditional cocktails, including "chufly" and the "yungue帽o."
Although high spirits, most Bolivians' such as some of our participants at Guia, were forced to celebrate without their families from the farmlands and the surrounding area of Potosi due to political instabilities.
Just three hours away from Sucre, anti-government protests entered its third week to disrupt the output at two of the major global mining producer's of zinc, silver, tin and lead in Bolivia.
Hunger strikes, road and air blocks remained, disturbing the mining production as well as normal life, while food supplies ran low and some foreign tourists were stranded.
In a country like Bolivia and the dispute being over government investment and land distribution, roadblocks and strikes are common practice.
The intention is to spread a social or political message throughout the nation and to encourage other citizens to join the protests. More so, in the past few weeks, tourism and transportation had been affected across the country but, more importantly, the general population's needs in terms of food distribution though the small towns had been blocked causing several deaths in the region.
In Sucre, there were blockades in many parts of the city. Rocks, sticks, tires, piles of dirt shovelled and dumped to be scattered across in length wise on the roads, preventing anyone from travelling on any motorized vehicles.
But of course, Bolivians will always manage to cross over them by foot, especially when work is pending and every cent counts. As some will walk hours to get to their destination, jobs and school schedules become more flexible in these times and are usually announced to the public through the media.
However, throughout these hard times, for many, the celebrations allowed most to forget for one day and actually take pride in their own country.
If you would like some information regarding our project, please contact Jessica Butler at [email protected].
You can also donate with Paypal either on our Facebook fan page which is called Fundacion Bolsa de Empleo Guia or at www.guiafoundation.org.
