As the title of this post suggests, we spent yesterday (25th November) exploring the cities of La Paz and El Alto for Alice's 23rd birthday. The day started with a bit of Christmas wrapping for the children at the Centro Infantil. This proved slightly surreal as we listening to German Christmas songs and a strange version of jingle bells with dogs barking instead of words, all whilst baking in the intense Andean sun
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On Tuesday and Thursday afternoons, we spend a few hours at a children's refuge based in Mallasa. The children have often had extraordinarily difficult starts in life, with parents who suffer with drink and drug related issues, and have in some cases been abandoned. REMAR offers them residential care, a place with a community and other children who can understand what they have been through. At the centre they have a secure home which they can share with their vulnerable parents and the centre provides them with a source of stable income, in the form of a fully equipped bakery. The children often help their parents sell the bread and pastries produced to local shops and residents, which they do on top of attending school. As volunteers, our job is to provide some light afternoon entertainment, through crafts and games, aimed at giving them some confidence and a little bit of rest bite from their ordinary routines. We plan activities in advance which are suitable for all ages (the kids range from 3-15 years old). In our time in Bolivia we have: - Made traditional European Christmas crafts (including advent calendars and Christingles) - Made and decorated salt dough figures and decorations - Played various games (including pictionary and a favourite called 007 - complete with forfeits for the losers!) - Attempted to make moving movies using cardboard and a roll of paper 'film' With our two weeks left we have planned some really exciting stuff that hasn't been done before. Next week is 'experiment week', during which we're going to make and explode some volcanoes, test out a non-Newtonian fluid using cornflour and water, and made some soda rockets using good old fashioned mentos mints and coke. We also have planned a special team quiz, with bonus rounds which include pictures, music, a blind taste test and some physical challenges, as well as some general knowledge At the start we found REMAR to be quite challenging, as the kids were older and wanted more meaningful conversation which we were unable to provide with our limited Spanish. However, as time has gone on, the kids have opened up to us and have even given Joe a nickname (based on an unfortunate pronunciation of the Spanish for knife, cuchillo). We actually now count REMAR as one of our favourite projects, and one we look forward to planning activities for. It's great being able to just have pure fun for a few hours and see the kids engrossed in some craft or project, the results of which they often treasure.
This is one we thought we would be quite difficult given the basic kitchen we have, but actually, it turned out great and had the added benefit of being ultimately customisable. Ingredients Dough:
Method Dissolve the yeast and sugar in a large bowl with water. Leave for 5 minutes then add oil and salt. Gradually add the flour a cup at a time and combine. Kneed for 10 minutes on a lightly floured surface. Oil a clean large bowl, add dough and leave covered in a warm place until doubled in size (around 45 mins to an hour). Whilst this is proving, fry the onions until soft and set to one side. Knock back the air in the dough and stretch out on to oiled baking sheet. Spread tomato puree and add toppings. Bake at 200 degrees centigrade for 25-30 minutes or until crust is golden brown. Tasty, cheap and fun to make. Who doesn't love pizza?!
On Monday and Tuesday mornings, we help out at The Valley of the Moon Children's Centre in Mallasa. The nursery is run by a team of dedicated tias (or 'aunties') who between them look after five classes of children ranging from 6 months to 5 years old, sometimes totaling 50 Our main task is to help the centre's resident chef, Doña Maxima ('doña' being an honorific title of respect). Children need nutritious and filling meals to prepare them for learning, and therefore one of the key principles of the centre is to provide healthy, home cooked meals throughout the day, to give each child the nutrients they need to thrive. A typical day would look like the following: 8:30am - arrive, wash hands and begin chopping vegetables for the day's dishes 9:00am - count the children in each classroom and record this information for Doña Maxima 9:30am - serve breakfast (often a hot drink such as spiced hot chocolate or mild with cinnamon and a bread roll, or a quinoa dish served like porridge) 10:00am - clean and wash all breakfast cups (sometimes quite tricky as quinoa has a habit of setting like concrete!) 11:00am - serve cinnamon juice or a fruit smoothie 12:00pm - serve lunch. This changes everyday, based on the fresh produce available, but typical dishes include fried liver, yucca (also known as cassava) with onions and tomatoes, or lentil, carrot, potato and tomato salad with beef meatballs. Lunch also includes juice and fresh fruit (such a sliced and peeled apples, pears or pineapple). 12:30-1:30pm - collect all dishes, wash and dry app cups cutlery, bowls and plates with Doña Maxima's grease busting technique, which includes double washing to ensure maximum cleanliness. This routine also includes some time to take part in educational activities with the children. For example, practicing numbers with finger painting or making paper pizzas to teach shape and colour. The these activities are designed and lead by the volunteers, who bring the required materials to the centre. It is very important to us that we are giving our time in service to the community, reacting only to their needs without projecting any preconceived ideas that might not be what is actually best for the people involved. The centre is great place to truly see the difference volunteer support can make in aiding the smooth running of an operation that is so much at the heart of the Up Close Bolivia ethos and the community at large. Here we get a truly rewarding experience, whilst knowing the assistance we give is appropriate and appreciated in return. And not to mention how fun it is to get messy with crafts and have fun playing games!
Having spent some time trying out different ingredients from local shops and supermarkets, we thought we'd start a mini series of recipes that are fun to make and really enjoyable to eat. The first installment is for the creatively named Road Curry with homemade flat bread. Ingredients Paste:
Method Mash together the paste ingredients and add to a pan of fried onion, pepper and celery. Cook the paste for a few minutes, adding some chicken stock for additional moisture to stop it sticking. Add the remaining ingredients and boil down until tomatoes have softened and the carrot is tender. For the breads, combine the ingredients in a large bowl and kneed. Form into even balls and leave to rest for a few minutes. Hand stretch dough and fry in a hot pan with oil until brown spots appear on the bottom. Flip to cook the top side for a minute and set aside. We served our curry with potatoes instead of rice
Our time in Bolivia is being spent living and volunteering just outside of La Paz, mainly in Jupapina and Mallasa. Our volunteer programme is varied and based on the principal of 'reciprocidad' or reciprocity. The Up Close team work hard to build true friendships with the local community in order to foster genuine two way relationships that benefit the community and the volunteers in equal measure. For that reason, volunteers respond directly to the needs of the local projects, meaning we are able to spend our time in ways that are genuinely helpful and it also means that no two days are the same! Given the variety of the work we are involved with, we have decided to dedicate a post to each of the projects in the coming weeks, starting with The Valley of the Moon Children's Centre, based in Mallasa. Watch this space...
In a follow up to the Peru Hop Debacle, we thought it only right to share how we actually made it to the dizzying heights of La Paz. Whilst relatively painless and stress free, the trip wasn't without some minor hiccups. For example, trying to secure an actual bus ticket in advance proved slightly more tricky than we first imagined. Like all good millennials, we headed straight for the wisdom of Google to tell us exactly how to cross the Bolivian border. Unfortunately most posts online dated from 2013/14 and the reviews of the tourist buses were slightly scary. In the end we went directly to the bus terminal with the idea of purchasing a Panamericano bus ticket. When we got to the terminal, their booth was empty, and after waiting half a day to see if they'd arrive we ended up buying a ticket to Copacabana (a half way point over the Bolivian border) with a company called Titicaca Bolivia for a 6am bus the following day. Fast forward to 5am, as we try to leave the hostel in Puno, wearing three layers of clothes with all our essentials strapped to us for security. We open the door to find ourselves behind padlocked gates. Much panicking ensued as we realised we were locked inside and that the reception didn't open until our bus was actually due to depart. Luckily for us, a few commuters passed along the street and using a mixture of pigeon Spanish and strange charades, we got them to ring the bell on the outside of the hostel so we could be set free. The bus itself from Puno to La Paz was most definitely dated. The double-decker coach had none of the promised seat belts and the windows were partially falling out of their frames. However, one of the benefits of being in such a dinosaur was that it was unable to gather the required speed to pull off the dangerous driving tricks we had previously witnessed. All in all the journey of about four hours was about as comfy as any other we'd had in Peru. The Peruvian/Bolivian border was a point of some apprehension, as we'd read stories of buses leaving passengers stranded. Our bus company kept our bags on board (which was definitely a little scary) as we carried our valuables over the crossing ourselves in day packs. Getting stamped in and out was painless and required little to no Spanish. Our bus had a guide who spoke a small amount of English to assist with the customs forms and the whole thing took around half an hour. We joined our bus on the Bolivian side and got back on for the journey into Copacabana. One thing to bear in mind is to change some money into Bolivianos, as this is required for some nominal taxes on entering Copacabana. Once we arrived in the town (which is situated on the shore of the worlds highest navigable lake, Lake Titicaca) we were easily able to find a number of buses travelling directly to La Paz for around 20 Bolivianos each (around £2.50). The bus was relatively new and used by locals and tourists alike. The scenery was truly incredible and the journey involved an exciting lake crossing, whereby passengers were shipped across in a small boat and the coach was floated across on a barge. Again the crossing requires 2 Bolivianos per person but was a very welcome opportunity to stretch your legs and spend some time off the bus. All in all the journey cost around $7 per person and actually resulted in quite an adventure, which in hindsight was more enjoyable than an overpriced bus.
Settle in, because this could be a long one... In the course of planning how to get from Lima to La Paz, we came across a hop on, hop off bus company by the name of Peru Hop. A quick Google search brings up glowing trip advisor reviews and a glossy website, complete with safety guarantees and pictures of the modern coaches they use. We didn't hesitate at spending a considerable amount (around £200 each) for a 6 day tour, taking in the sites of Peru as this worked out to be cheaper than a flight. Fast forward to our first few days in South America. The bus company seemed to deliver as promised, with comfy buses which included reclining seats, a toilet, USB charging ports, English speaking guides and GPS trackers to monitor driver speeds, all things designed to make long journeys (sometimes over 8 hours) more bearable and of course safe. It was in Huacahina that the perfect picture began to crumble, when the company attempted to force us on to a small 9 seater run down mini van for a travel time of around 6 hours with stops. With no leg room and none of the aforementioned comforts or safety guarantees, the tiny van was filled to capacity with 8 adults. A number of passengers including ourselves asked to speak to the operations office (after all, we paid for a state of the art coach with safety features, not a tiny van with a driver in flip flops!). Eventually, after some heated discussion, it turns out a coach which we had been told was full, actually had a couple of spare seats and we were able to travel in the vehicle we actually paid for. One of the most surprising things about traveling around Peru is the sheer diversity of its landscapes and climate. Like many, when someone mentions this South American country, images of the ruins at Machu Picchu spring to mind, leading to the impression Peru is universally high, and well… green. In fact, the country is home to incredible biodiversity, ranging from tropical jungles in the Amazon to desert conditions complete with picture perfect sand dunes, and not forgetting the imposing Andes, which jut their way across the east of the country. This was one of the many reasons we sought to explore using a hop on hop off bus service on our way to La Paz in Bolivia.
Our journey started in Lima (once Joe had located his wallet) where we caught a bus to our first hostel in the upmarket district of Miraflores. After spending some time recovering from travel induced nausea (Alice) we ventured out in search of lunch and to people watch in the central park. It was here we cooked our first hostel meal of the trip (a very imaginative pasta with tomato sauce)... |
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Hi! We're Alice and Joseph, currently on a year long RTW trip :) Archives
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