So we flew... eventually. We waited over 16 hours at the TAM military airport after a harrowingly scary taxi ride into the depths of the altiplano (yep, that's a contradiction folks!) where the driver took an unexpected turn off the road in the midnight nothingness (after us reading in the hostel about La Pazzian nighttime airport taxis and all sorts of murderous robberies!!) to an unused railyard, drove along the railway line, and then, after Fiona and I resuscitated each other, he revealed the shortcut we were taking kept him from paying a multa toll on the road.
We waited at the military airport (TAM runs civilian flights around the country to bump up its military budget no doubt - glad to be of service!) which has the worst crash record (or is that the best) in the country, and watched the news live from Cochabamba on the airport "lounge" tv, the riotous thousands, the blockades EVERYwhere, and were told that the flight delays were due to Cochabamba's bad weather... Cochabamba NEVER has bad weather (except of course the terrifying thunderstorm we had last night... ahem, yep) so I was convinced they were talking about the political climate and was decidedly worried about our flight when it did happen...
It did happen, with delays aplenty, and Fiona commenting that TAM couldn't organise a proverbial in a brothel...
The protests in Cochabamba resulted in a Thursday of blood, injuries and death on both sides. The side that wants Morales out, and the side that wants Manfred, the Cochabamba District Prefectura (the State Premier) out. By the way, the "Premier" was instrumental in making the Water contracts a walk in on the golf course for the US Betchel corporation (look it up).
One young man from the "rich" side was slashed with a machete and hanged. One father from the poor side was shot and killed by an "unknown" assailant. I doubt whether, as usual, there'll be any justice for either family...
It all settled down for now and what does that mean? Morales is adamant that it's Manfred's fault and he should deal with it while Manfred, of course, is saying it's a matter of State and Evo should take responsibility. Looks like another palm off, until the inevitable worst comes to worst (and my in depth analysis dies in the bum - I gotta go to work) and I had my birthday party (two weekends later) and all. Spiderman Lemon Cake bought by Fiona who had the words "Felicidades Maicl" written on the top ("Congratulations Michael" that is), and she made the Australian rumball pile to the right. What a gal! My head was shoved into said cake in what I was told was a Bolivian tradition (perhaps for gullible Melbourne folk only...) and a pleasant evening regardless of the settling brew in the city square...
Yet the Prefectura offices are still a burned and broken mess by the looks of it (pictured). I suppose Manfred is trying to gain as much political leverage as possible from the attacks on his offices - "ooh! Look at me! Look at what they did to my place! See how barbarous they are! This is what I have to deal with!!" Course, he could just resign or at least give the people what they want which is a completely transparent government, given the evidence against his corruption and back-door deals is mounting ever so creepily.
3 comments:
Might I suggest "The Artist formerly known as Death Road"?
Ah yes,
but where does a man get his Cole's chocolate cake on a full moon in Bolivia?
Hmmmmm?
Rupert
Well, La Cancha is a place that isn't quite the ideal location for midnight full-moon cake shopping. So, during the day you can go to the "cake section" (possibly) next to the potato section, which is across from the plumbing section, just down from the dog food section, which is around the corner from the olive oil section. The cake section has cakes, tarts (they're very sweet...) more cakes, all sizes (as with the tarts), all flavours (tarts too) and all designs (yep. Tarts...)
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