In La Paz, we see few street people. I have come across two or three so far who seemed to have alcoholism problems. All the rest are just the elderly. It is a different make up than the extremely poor population we see at home. The beggars are very old, poorly dressed, unfailingly polite, and alone. I have to assume that they have no children to care for them in their old age, and no place to go. It is incredibly sad.
Monday, July 21, 2008
Why we need the pension plan
In La Paz, we see few street people. I have come across two or three so far who seemed to have alcoholism problems. All the rest are just the elderly. It is a different make up than the extremely poor population we see at home. The beggars are very old, poorly dressed, unfailingly polite, and alone. I have to assume that they have no children to care for them in their old age, and no place to go. It is incredibly sad.
Friday, July 11, 2008
Do the office shuffle
So yesterday, I (Heather) go to the office of the Red Nacional de Comercializacion Comunitaria (RENACC), where I think I will be working. There is a formal presentation and welcome for me, lunch, meeting -- very nice. Then I find out I will be working at a different office with a women´s economic foundation which is a member of RENACC. OK. So, I´m off to my new office in a few minutes. But... apparently it´s only for a month and a half. I will check in again at the end of August to update you on the office shuffle.
POST SCRIPT, 1 week later: Work is going very well at Fundacion Uñatatawi and I really can´t complain at all. I have a desk, computer, internet access, and helpful people around me. Some of my Canadian colleagues are working quite a bit from home and internet cafes where they have access to the web. It´s not ideal from a teamwork perspective, but I can see the reason for it. Flexbility is a job requirement... I think this is a lesson for me!
POST SCRIPT, 1 week later: Work is going very well at Fundacion Uñatatawi and I really can´t complain at all. I have a desk, computer, internet access, and helpful people around me. Some of my Canadian colleagues are working quite a bit from home and internet cafes where they have access to the web. It´s not ideal from a teamwork perspective, but I can see the reason for it. Flexbility is a job requirement... I think this is a lesson for me!
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
Settling into La Paz is easier than we´d expected
We´ve only been one week in La Paz and already we are starting to settle in. We arrived safe and sound in La Paz on June 30th, except for Kayla who had nausea the first day.
We have rented an apartment in the fairly wealthy area of Sopocachi, by Bolivian standards. It´s a 3-bedroom close to the CECI office. PROS : sunny, large, shared garden, fully furnished, filled with the owners paintings, in a block of 5 large houses converted to aparments so it feels like a home. CONS : squeaky floors, chipped tiles and cupboards, lumpy mattress, and... lukewarm showers.
The best news... there is a very nice, clean pool, sauna, and hot tub facility only 1 block away! So, despite the cool showers we will be able to warm up at the "hidro masaje" and I won´t be missing my hot tub in Calgary too much. Who would have expected to find this in a country ranked as 3rd poorest in the Americas, after Haiti and Nicaragua?
The city actually has many amenities such as movie theatres, private gyms and sports clubs, lively arts scene, and even horseback riding lessons -- it is a just a question of who can afford them. Atleast the many parks and playgrounds are open to everyone, public transit is inexpensive (about 15 cents per bus ride) and the museums are relatively inexpensive.
The friendliness of the people came as a surprise too. We were expecting more wariness of foreigners, and with such a large indigenous population, more time for people to get to know us before becoming friendly. CECI office staff have been tremendously helpful and welcoming, even more than I´d expect as part of their job. So far we have met 4 neighbours, all very nice. Two have said they will come and visit us on the weekend, one helped us move our suitcases, and another offered to take us shopping with her on Sunday.
So we have to say we are off to a good start.
We have rented an apartment in the fairly wealthy area of Sopocachi, by Bolivian standards. It´s a 3-bedroom close to the CECI office. PROS : sunny, large, shared garden, fully furnished, filled with the owners paintings, in a block of 5 large houses converted to aparments so it feels like a home. CONS : squeaky floors, chipped tiles and cupboards, lumpy mattress, and... lukewarm showers.
The best news... there is a very nice, clean pool, sauna, and hot tub facility only 1 block away! So, despite the cool showers we will be able to warm up at the "hidro masaje" and I won´t be missing my hot tub in Calgary too much. Who would have expected to find this in a country ranked as 3rd poorest in the Americas, after Haiti and Nicaragua?
The city actually has many amenities such as movie theatres, private gyms and sports clubs, lively arts scene, and even horseback riding lessons -- it is a just a question of who can afford them. Atleast the many parks and playgrounds are open to everyone, public transit is inexpensive (about 15 cents per bus ride) and the museums are relatively inexpensive.
The friendliness of the people came as a surprise too. We were expecting more wariness of foreigners, and with such a large indigenous population, more time for people to get to know us before becoming friendly. CECI office staff have been tremendously helpful and welcoming, even more than I´d expect as part of their job. So far we have met 4 neighbours, all very nice. Two have said they will come and visit us on the weekend, one helped us move our suitcases, and another offered to take us shopping with her on Sunday.
So we have to say we are off to a good start.
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