Potosi and the Cerro Rico

Out first full day in Potosí was a Sunday and we discovered a lively market with some great street food and interesting stalls. Turns out Bolivia loves it's cakes and whipped cream! We "won" a cake on a cake tombola stand, but seemed like the odds were fairly generously stacked towards winning.

Uyuni besides, entering Bolivia you're immediately struck by the tradition, colours and liveliness of the streets, such a contrast to Chile and Argentina - and it's great!

Potosí is a pretty city, with lots of colonial buildings and overlooked by Cerro Rico (rich mountain) from where all the wealth originated and which is still the life blood of the city; for Potosí is where all the silver comes from. At over 4000m it's also one of the highest cities in the world.

Cerro Rico

You can't come to Potosí and not visit the mine so on Monday morning we went on a tour with Real Big Tours, a company run by ex miners. All the miners work in cooperatives now and despite the primitive and undoubtedly tough working conditions, the impression we got from our guide was that the miners were proud of their livelihood and not unhappy with their lot (they don't send kids down the mine anymore).

Talking to others since then who did different tours however, it seems there's a real mix of opinions on how good (or bad) life in the mines really is. They earn more than average, but they also work 12 hour days, with barely any mechanisation, often just on the lift of a huge pouch of coca leaves stuffed in their cheek.

Working for a cooperative they also get to choose their own hours, so Monday morning was a quite time in the mine as the miners recovered from the weekend. And when their drink of choice is 96% pure alcohol, it's understandable.

The traditions were interesting to learn. Bolivia is Catholic but they've never lost their believe in the pre-hispanic gods. So whenever you have a drink there's always a little poured on the floor for Pachamama first. In the mine they also appease El Diablo (more the god of the underworld, rather than the Catholic devil) with alcohol, cigarettes and coca leaves. Every Saturday in June they sacrifice lamas, the number depending on how on good the year has been. We got their at the beginning of July so sadly just missed the last party, but you could see the splashes of llama blood on the walls at the entrance to the mine.

That's not red paint splashed on the walls...

We came loaded with gifts too: with bags of coca leaves, juice, and dynamite for the miners, all available from the miners market.

Fascinated by the hard life of a miner and on the hunt for authentic experiences, my young Belgian friend Mathias was desperate to experience the life first hand. And it's possible. All you need to do is register with the Bolivian miners association and off you go. Only as a volunteer however. I've not seen Mathias since but he did survive a week down there.

Our second day in Potosí we spent a long time on the hunt for some lunch (finding food after 1pm proved to be a challenge) and then headed out of town on a bus to find a natural hot spring. A lot later than planned and by the time we were we dropped off at the side of the road and began the short hike up to the spring the sun had already set. The spring was lovely however. A large natural pool, over 20m deep in the middle, not particularly warm but warm enough to stay in there as night descended and the almost full moon rose above the far side of the valley.

Getting back could have been tricky, given we'd missed the last bus and there weren't any taxis around, but very fortuitously a well off Bolivian couple from La Paz waited for us and gave the five of us a lift back to Potosí.