A week in Bolivia ...

Our journey began with a dream and a plan, and when we had to book our around-the-world flights last fall, we chose LaPaz, Bolivia as a stopover before our volunteer work in Peru. We were not aware of how special Bolivia would be, and that we would meet someone with bigger dreams and plans...Dr. Jose Velasquez. I will introduce him and the organization Mano a Mano shortly.

But first, it was our close friends, Drs. Brooks Donald and Karen MacKenzie who introduced us to Bolivia. With their daughter Shannon, they have been involved with Mano a Mano for the past 9 years and told us their stories of the wonderful people, culture, and country. We gave a donation to a school they were helping build and it was our chance to see firsthand what they had been describing. Brooks sent a letter of introduction for us to Jose (perhaps overstating our importance), and suggesting a bunch of things we may want to do. For sure, we did receive the royal treatment, but realized that they treated all of their visitors and guests with the same gracious hospitality.

Bolivia by bus ...

We flew into LaPaz, a city built into a giant crater at an altitude of 3680 meters above sea level. The airport sits on a flat plateau above the city and the taxi ride into town was all downhill with lights of this city of 1.5 million dotting the hills and landscape. Despite our pre-med for altitude sickness, we both felt a little nausea with headache that soon passed. The next morning we boarded a bus to Cochabamba....over the hills and down the mountains. We had both read about the buses in Bolivia, although this one was comfortable and the roads were paved. I made sure Deb made the trip in fine fashion and my multi-drug regimen for nausea, frequent urination, panic, and altitude did the trick for her. After 9 hours, one pretty bad Jean Claude Van Damme movie and one flat tire we arrived safely in Cochabamba.

Minnesota healthcare professionals share their knowledge and friendship ...

Our next bit of good fortune was to be here the same week a group of physicians, dentist, nurses, psychologist, ER techs, firefighter, and PA from St. Paul Regions Hospital and other Twin Cities medical clinics were here in Cochabamba to present the 4th Acute Care Conference sponsored by Mano a Mano. We were tag alongs but really enjoyed meeting and hanging out with a great group of folks. It was especially nice to reconnect with Mary Margaret Conroy and her husband Tom. Mary Margaret is a neonatologist and pediatrician and my mentor during residency in the Twin Cities. She says she taught me all that I know about kids, and I think she may be right. We had lots of fun sharing stories about about families, kids, and mutual friends.

Women prepare for their community's clinic dedication ...

The morning after we arrived we all packed up for a trip to dedicate one of the medical clinics built by Mano a Mano. Our three jeep caravan drove further down the mountain valleys to Santa Rosa, a small village reached by a cobblestone road. The dedication was for the next morning, and under the direction of Jose and the other staff, we swept, drilled, lifted, hung, unpacked, washed and sweated to prepare the clinic for it's grand opening in the am. Opening a new clinic or school is a big deal for these small villages where families live in poor conditions. The whole village turns out, decorations are made, school children and elders gather, a formal program with the national anthem, speeches, thank you's, traditional dances, ribbon cutting, plaque unveiling, and confetti showering of the guests is joyously conducted. A large meal prepared by the villagers sent us off filled with food and appreciation for being part of a great event.

Bolivian schoolchildren ...

Mano a Mano ...

I was able to ride with Jose and ask him how this all became a reality. He learned his values of hard work and service from his parents who moved the family from a rural home to Cochabamba where their kids could get a better education. Back in the early 1990's, he had this idea of bringing necessary medical equipment and supplies from the US for the medical clinics he was working with. He asked his brother, a pilot in the Twin Cities if it were possible to raise some money for donations and supplies and send them to Bolivia. It was and he did and soon thereafter he helped create Mano a Mano, a non-profit with headquarters in Cochabamba and it's US affiliate in the Twin Cities. Their model was to create sustainable clinics and schools by partnering with villages and towns throughout Bolivia. The partnership required that the village and community contribute 30-40% of the cost of building, donate labor, food, and housing during the construction, and agree to maintain the building in the years to come. The government pays for the salaries of the doctors and teachers. With this model, their success has been phenomenal ......120 medical clinics, 41 schools, numerous roads and airstrips have been built throughout Bolivia. Mano a Mano also sponsors and requires continuing medical education of it's clinic providers, has a dream scholarship program for kids with financial needs, has it's own construction division and equipment for road development, continues to collect and donate medical supplies and equipment, and found that it was more cost effective to make it's own beds, windows, doors, and drapes for the clinics.

Dr. Jose Velasquez, a dreamer and a doer ...

As the week went on and we had further opportunities to meet more of the people at Mano a Mano, both Deb and I felt fortunate to meet such a dedicated group .....we found them all to be first class, genuine, value driven, mission focused, transparent, hard working,organized, and efficient. But most of all we liked them as people, and their dreams and plans have touched thousands of lives in Bolivia and the US. For additional info check out their website at manoamanobolivia.org

El Cristo de la Concordia ...

A trip to Cochabamba would not be complete without a climb to El Cristo de la Concordia, the largest statue of Christ in South America, on a hill overlooking the city and valley. We hiked up the 1349 steps (yes, Deb counted on the way down) to see the statue. It towers over you as you stand on the ground and watch the clouds float overhead against the blue sky. For both of us it was a special spiritual moment and prayers were said for all of the people in our lives, our blessings and faith. The inscription at the base says, "This is my commandment. Love one another as I have loved you." In all of our travels, we have surely been witness to the incredible love in the people we have met.

Bolivia's future ...

We celebrated the week with a big party at Mano a Mano's building and then were up early for our flight to Lima, Peru. It seemed only fitting that we were met by Andrea, a member of the Mano family who is a flight attendant. She also had a layover in La Paz and was there waiting for us. Her goal is to become an airline pilot....it seems like the dreams in Bolivia have been passed to the next generation.

Traditional dances at the party ...

A few thoughts on my grey hair ...

When I started our Walkabout in January, I had considerable trepidation about how I would keep up with coloring my hair. With underdeveloped countries on the itinerary, options would be few and far between for hair salons, and I didn't have room in my one suitcase for hair dye. So. I had it cut very short before the trip and I am now fully un-dyed.

For the most part, I love not seeing grey roots peeking out all the time and spending no time at all on hair upkeep. Every once in a while I'll walk past a mirror and see the white haired person standing where I'm supposed to be and think "what's Barbara Bush doing here?", but other than that, I'm used to it, and it feels kind of freeing in a way. When you get away from our high expectations for looking younger, thinner, and as perfect as possible, you find so many more important things to spend your time and energy on. And interestingly, I feel happier with myself and healthier than I have in many years.

The only annoying thing has been that whenever I step onto a crowded bus, men immediately try to give me their seat. It's like the parting of the Red Sea! I have become an old lady without the benefit of having grandchildren, which is utterly unfair. But since men in the US don't tend to be quite as accommodating as South American men, I suppose I should just relax and enjoy the ride.

Lost in Patagonia ...

We are at that point in the trip where anxiety is creeping in about running out of money, so with seven weeks left we have been getting to know the bus system in Argentina. They have pretty comfortable double-decker buses which travel long distances overnight, saving you plane fare as well as a hotel night. The rates vary according to how far back your seat reclines, and although we paid for the mid-level recline, Pat is too nice to put his seat back so he had a long (24 hours) bus trip to Patagonia sitting pretty much straight up. I, on the other hand, gladly reclined for a good night's sleep. He really is a saint.

Patagonia is hard to capture in words or pictures. It is just exquisite; the Andean mountains, glacial lakes, trees in the midst of fall color, picturesque villages and very warm hearted people. We went to San Carlos de Bariloche, in the lakes district, and once there we liked the hostel we were staying in (Arko, where we had a very large clean room with a front desk staff who act as travel agents with advise and tour booking help) and area so much that we stayed through this week and then took another overnight bus all the way to Buenos Aires to catch our plane to Bolivia.

Bariloche was settled many years ago by Swiss immigrants, who must have felt at home in this paradise of snow capped mountains. They brought many of their traditions and skills, and there are many chocolate factories and stores in the area. We had a cup of hot chocolate that was unlike anything we have ever tasted; so add chocolate to the things we loved about Bariloche.

Pilar, Alberto and a cup of mate ...

The first day we decided to hike to the top of a small mountain called Cerro Otto; this is a mountain with beautiful views of the entire area, and you can take a skyline tram to the top or hike, so of course we opted to hike. We were following a young couple who seemed to know where they were going, but after a few kilometers, the path ended and we were just hiking straight up the mountain over rivulets where the rain had come down the mountain. I mean straight up; I can imagine the people in the trams laughing at us struggling up. By the time we were halfway, the other couple were as lost as we were, but it was clearly too treacherous to go back down that way with slippery gravel and rocks. So we went on, finally reached the top, and this nice couple asked us if we would like to have some "mate" with them. We had not tried yerba mate, but it is a very strong tea which the people in South America drink out of cups carved from gourds like pumpkin, sipped through silver straws. The gourd is filled 1/2-2/3 full with loose tea, then hot water is poured over, and you sip it through the straw which has a filter on the end. The gourd is passed around ... and hot water refilled as needed. Above is a picture of Pilar and Alberto, the couple from Buenos Aires who we met on the hike and drank mate with. They have been married "for ten long, hard, terrible years" according to Alberto, who was quite funny.

So of course after all that mate, I had to use the bathroom in the little tea house at the top of the mountain, but they wouldn't let you in unless you bought a sky tram ticket, and you couldn't buy one way, you had to buy both ways; I was far too cheap to pay for that, so we walked the long way (about 9 k) back down the car road into Bariloche. Which was actually a lovely walk.

Preparing the Curanto

Pilar and Alberto also told us about the Curanto in what is called Colonia Suiza, or the Swiss Colony, on Wednesdays and Sundays, and advised us to take a bus there on Sunday. A Curanto is an earth-covered roasting of meats, chicken and vegetables which the Swiss settlers actually developed from Polynesians. We took a bus ride for about an hour to Colonia Suiza, paid our $12.50 each, and watched and enjoyed a beautiful day with Argentinean people. A fire is built until coals are very hot, then large river rocks are placed over the coals. More wood is piled on until the stones and coals are very hot; then the remaining sticks are removed and green branches of leaves are put on the stones. Chicken, lamb, beef, pork, and sausages are placed on the leaves, then potatoes and squash and whole apples and other vegetables, then more leaves and finally burlap. An Argentine flag was placed on the top layer of burlap, then one more layer of burlap, and the whole thing covered in dirt. It smoked for an hour and a half, then the bell was rung and everyone heard a patriotic speech by the cook (in Spanish, we didn't pick it all up) and the layers removed. It resulted in a perfectly cooked and delicious meal of roasted meats, potatoes, squash and apples. I still can't believe I ate something that at one point was covered with dirt.

A lake region bike ride ...

Bariloche's 109th Anniversary Parade ...

We happened to be in Bariloche the weekend of their 109th Anniversary Celebration, so got to watch the parade and see the entire village come to el centro for local food and music. We were impressed that while every day care and preschool through primary school walked in the parade, the honor of being first to parade past the stand of dignitaries and cheering community were the handicapped children and their parents. There were no fancy floats needed to represent the priority of the good people of Bariloche: the children, their community's future, took center stage.

A warm welcome to a beautiful church ...

Another very special highlight of Bariloche was our visit to a little church the evening before the Curanto. We had been to Easter mass in Mendoza at a big cathedral the weekend before, and to be honest it was a very somber service and not at all what we are used to for Easter. So Pat found this little church when he was out taking pictures; it looks like it has been entirely hand carved of beautiful wood, and you had to hike up 71 steps (yes, I counted) to get there. The evening service was packed, and it is hard to describe the warmth and enthusiasm of the people there - many young people, kids in boy scout/girl scout uniforms, just a really friendly group of people. So when the sign of peace came, Pat and I gave each other a kiss and put our big American hands out to greet those around us, and realized too late that we were being offered a kiss on the cheek from the sweet teenage girl and older woman next to us ... which they withdrew when they saw our hands and just shook them. We were so ashamed. Everywhere, people kissing strangers as well as loved ones, and we shook their hands. It was over in a second, but we wanted to take the second back and try again, this time pretending we aren't from Minnesota, where you wouldn't want to do anything too familiar or call attention to yourself. The service was in Spanish, so we didn't get all of it, but we got the important part: when people care about one another, it shows. A very special evening. We found ourselves thinking about our friends at our own church, the Newman Center in St. Cloud, and the blessing they gave us as we left for our trip. We are so thankful to be a part of that faith community.

Adios a Bariloche ...

We boarded another bus to go the 20 hours back to Buenos Aires, and flew to La Paz, Bolivia. Argentina was a beautiful, very diverse country with warm, friendly people, and we were both sad to say "adios" ... at least until we can find a way to fund a return trip!

Mendoza, Argentina

Our travels in Argentina had to include a visit to Mendoza, famous for it's wine country and Malbec wines. It is also located at the foothills of the Andes near the Chilean border and gave us our first view of this magnificent mountain range that covers most of western South America.
Mendoza is a beautiful city with wide, tree-lined streets and multiple spacious parks with fountains and statues. It was rebuilt this way after it was leveled by an earthquake in 1861. It still is at risk for further quakes and one of our guides mentioned that he even felt aftershocks in Mendoza after the major Chilean earthquake last year.

We learned the history of General San Martin who was governor of Mendoza. He led an army of 5,000 men over the Andes that defeated the Spanish and eventually won independence for Argentina, Chile, and Peru in 1816-1818. Which is why there is a very strong national pride here in Mendoza.

The area is actually more desert with over 300 sunny days per year. Only 10% of the land is inhabited, and only 3% cultivated. With a sophisticated aqueduct system from mountain streams and reservoirs, however, it is the 5th most productive wine region in the world as well as the 3rd most productive garlic region. Add grass fed beef to the equation and you have the makings of some pretty good eating ....yes, we have gone off the vegetarian kick for a couple of weeks.

Our days here were sunny, warm, early fall colors and brilliant blue skies. We spent one day on the wine tour with a fun group - Juan, our guide, and two couples from the USA - NYC and San Francisco. We had a great day together learning about and tasting the wines, and Tim from SF made points with Deb for his unabashed support of her favorite basketball team.

We attended Easter mass in downtown Mendoza and didn't notice the excitement and celebration of the day that we have felt in the US. It was probably the particular Cathedral and parish because Deb will describe a much different and warm experience we had in Bariloche.
We were grateful to celebrate the service as well as the beautiful day and spent the afternoon reading our books in Independencia park.

On Monday we were off to the Andes and learned more about the geology, history, and local animal population. It was also our first sighting of the Condor, Argentina's national bird. The rock formations with their multi-colored faces and the view of Cerro Aconcagua we're Incredible.

As we boarded the bus for Patagonia we have come to appreciate more the passion for living we have seen here in Argentina.

Our wine tasting group...and Celtic fans

Malbec vineyards, Mendoza

Puente del Inca

Plaza Independencia, one of many parks in Mendoza

Reservoir in the Andes, source of water and site of world cup wind surfing championships

Cerro Aconcagua, tallest peak in the Andes