February 20, 2009

Hello all:
We´ve been in Sorata the past several days. This is a small village in the mountains. The Andes mountains are spectacular, several are snow capped and rival the Himalayas at 6500 meters. Most of them are craggy, vertical mountains, sheathed in green. After weeks of seeing just brown mountains, the green is wonderful. We´re at a lower altitude here, hence the green. This afternoon, Jim and I took a taxi 12 kms to see some caves. The road was amazing, a narrow gravel path winding around the mountain edges. All vehicles here are 4 wheel drive but even the 4 wheel drive couldn´t reach the caves. Part of the road had just disappeared down into the valley last night.

When we returned to Sorata,I convinced Jim to stop for Lupper. While we were enjoying our cervasa and pizza, a local band started playing. It was so sudden and so loud, I thought I´d been shot. It sounded terrible but was played with huge enthusiasm. When a change was called for they speeded it up and played even louder!!

I am still smarting from being told off by an old indigenous lady a couple of days ago. I was plunked down in the market and had a painting started. This old lady was some upset. I promised that I wouldn´t paint her in the painting but that didn´t appease her and so eventually I closed everything up and moved. I felt like crying, I felt so horrible. Eventually I found a sweet little girl, Bernace, and she let me paint her and her stall. A little friend of hers squeezed in as well. After I finished the painting, I did sketches of each of the girls for them. Yesterday I just didn´t have the heart to go to the market again and so I found a narrow street view with mountains in behind. When I say narrow, I really mean narrow. Trucks kept turning down into this street and very very narrowly missing me. The folks that were watching me were flattened against the wall or almost on my lap. Today I did a similiar subject. At times I had fourty kids crowded around me. It was okay except I couldn´t see what I was painting and when ever someone walked by the kids would biff a water balloon and lots of times my painting got splattered with water!

After I finished, I thought I´d nip by the market and give paint sets to my two little friends from a couple of days ago. Immediately one of the women gestured that I should paint her. I couldn´t resist and so I started a second quarter sheet. Then of course I also had to do a sketch to give to her. By this point it was pouring rain. We, artists, certainly have to be tenatious.

Eventually I gave Bernace the paint sets and she was so incredibly happy. She can´t attend school because she has to work her families market stall.

Tomorrow, we will attempt to get a Collectivo out of Saroto and once we get to LaPaz in about three hours we will then try to get an overnight bus to Santa Cruz. I was keen to fly to Santa Cruz but Jim still likes the bus better than flying. Jim is certainly a wonderful travel partner. Nothing gets him down. I´m a bit tired of the stench, the sketchy living conditions and the uncertain safety of the food. Jim just carries on, enjoying all the people, both locals and tourists alike. This morning he was studying his Spanish learning phrases such as ¨Ï think I´m pregnant!
änd more pracically ¨How do I kill that rooster?¨