weekend at the farm & coca hacienda

Amanda: It was super cool! There were lots of cool animals; four parrots, a small emiu, two huge, black dogs,two other small dogs, some chickens and some cows. Me and Kayla both got to feed a calf! There was a pool, a swing, lots of room and a nice garden. Some path ways are neerby so on the weekend we went on a trail up the hill to see some wildlife. When mom, Kayla and I came back down, dad wanted to stay and keep walking for a bit. So dad continued and we went back down. Later on we went for a short walk to the river. It was such a fun weekend! On Sunday afternoon we packed, me and Kayla said good bye to all the animals and we left. the trip back felt alot shorter than the way there. It was good to get home but, we mised the farm!

Heather: The hacienda used to be a coca farm. We learned about how the leaves were picked, dried, stored and shipped. Coca is grown on steep terraces, and farmers burn their fields to clear space for coca plants. There is still a lot of coca grown in the region -- some for traditional use and some for illegal export to make cocaine. Apparently there are lots of coca farmers who now can afford a vehicle... but don't have a driver's license.

La Paz hoodoos and the hidden river

About 10 minutes walk from our apartment we can enter the hoodoos -- amazing rock formations which surround the city and form part of the Valle de la Luna (valley of the moon) park. We went climbing and hiking in this surreal landscape recently. And... we discovered the "Rio Secreto" of La Paz. It has been almost completely built over and now runs underneath the city. The municipal government is doing some public works to channel the river in stone and cement canals. It reminds us of the ghost town we visited in B.C. last summer where the town had built a giant boardwalk overtop of the river... which lasted until the flood, which wiped out the boardwalk and most of the town. The Rio La Paz has been covered for a century so the chance of a flood seems lower, but you never know!

101 anniversary of El Colegio Amerinst

The girls' school -- Instituto Americano (Amerinst for short) celebrated its 101st anniversary. Yes 101 -- they don't celebrate 100 here. The school had a one week long celebration, with cheers and formations from each grade, a sports day, a square dance (can you believe it?!) and a traditional parade down the main street of the city, called El Prado. Amanda dressed in a t-shirt depicting an environmental theme, and Kayla dressed in traditional Afro-Bolivian costume.

Referendum Revocatoria 2008

The national referendum was held on August 10th, 2008, as a sort of confidence vote in the leadership of the President, Vice President and each of the prefecturas (provincial premiers) roughly halfway through their terms. Heather volunteered as an international election observer through the Canadian Embassy, and visited a total of five voting stations with a group of about 30 other observers. We observed 3 sites in La Paz and 2 sites in rural areas, as a large group, moving around by a charter bus. I felt somewhat like an election tourist. Generally the process seemed free and fair, with few irregularities notes. The only one I noticed was campaign materials for MAS party at a voting site, which is not permitted. There were no vehicles in the streets for election day -- very peaceful! Other colleagues who observed with the Organization of American States were placed in one voting site from the opening through closing and counting of the ballots, and tended to see more irregularities than did my group. I was impressed with the work of the Corte Nacional Electoral -- professional, focused, and transparent about some of the deficiencies of their system, particularly in voter registration.

Unfortunately, the continued mandate for the President's leadership confirmed in the referendum has not led to peace and stability for Bolivia. Another national referendum is planned for December -- this time regarding constitutional change which would see some land reform. Tensions mount as the resource-rich provinces of the east are vocally (and sometimes violently) resisting this next national vote. Democracy in Bolivia is participatory, and rocky.

Kayla's 9th birthday

Hi i'm Kayla and I had my birthday and I turned 9 years old. 7 people were at my birthday. Ther were Adel, Miel and there perents Rosa Maria and Salvan. I loved it. We had pizza for supper.

Amanda: We had so much fun at the party! I got Kayla a polly pocket set for her birthday. It was super fun!!!

Tiwanaku ancient ruins

The ancient empire of Tiwanaku reined from 1600 BC to 1200 AD, preceding the Nazca and the Inca. The Tiwanakans were accomplished in engineering, stone and iron work, and trade. They introduced terraced farming and built a road system from the Altiplano to the Amazon. Raymond, Amanda, Kayla and Holly (Heather's sister) visited a major site in August.