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Yotala, and more SucreSep 4, 2007
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Patty and Annika at one of the old buildings in Yotala
A couple of the many ladies cooking pork in the streets
A small cafe (beer and coke) where we ate our fried pork
| As we are packing up, getting ready to leave Sucre, we definitely have some mixed feelings. We have absolutely loved our time in Sucre, but we also are eagerly awaiting our next destination. Everything was great in this city. The hotel (Casa Kolping) has been one of many bright spots. On two separate occasions, girls that work at the hotel have taken Annika for play dates around the city. It was really nice to have a few hours to ourselves. It has also been interesting being in the middle of all the turmoil this country is going through. The president, Evo Morales, could be one of the dumbest human beings ever elected to any political post on the planet. Some of the things he is doing, and has said, are at best childish. After he was chastised by protesters during a local visit to Sucre, he stated later that Sucre would pay for the insults. What? Is this Rome? Does he plan to sack the city and burn it to the ground? You have to feel sorry for this little country that just can't seem to get anything right. They have never won a war. In fact, they used to be one of the larger countries in South America before losing territory to Peru, Argentina, Brazil, Chile and possibly a couple others. They have all the natural resources needed to be a very prosperous country, but can't ever seem to keep any of the money inside Bolivia. There are a few things that come to mind as to why this may be so. One such story is about a European salesman who had an over-abundance of very small bowler hats. He convinced the local Bolivian women that having a teeney-tiny hat on top of their large round heads was THE thing in Europe. OK, so a shipment of hats gets sold, not something to hold over a country's head. But almost 100 years later and the fashion statement is still going strong, there may be reason to suspect naivety. Another example is the Festival de Santa Rosa in the small town of Yotala, outside of Sucre. Thousands of people flock to this tiny town to pay homage to a small statue inside a small, nondescript iglesia(church), then spend the rest of the day drinking and eating in preparation for the real event. A number of young men get inside a corral and try to snatch bags of money tied to the horns of giant, pissed off bulls. They rope the antagonized bulls, and pull them into the corral, tie the money to their heads, then let them free to try and maul these kids trying to grab a few dollars off the backs of these beasts. The first bull went into the corral for 2 seconds before busting through the wooden fence and heading right back to the holding corral. The next bull went into the main area for about 5 seconds before breaking through another section of the fence, chasing the crowd assembled outside the fence, heading up main street, and running up a hill overlooking the festivities. It was Bolivian inefficiency at its highest level. Despite this, we actually had a fantastic day in Yotala, and the rest of the bulls put on a great show. |
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