What do you really want?

The G-20; it was everywhere over the weekend. If you weren't watching the world cup (I'm in mourning over England's loss) then you were into the G-20. The funny thing is, its hard to find out what they actually talked about. Meetings like this have turned into opportunities for huge protests and for some people, an excuse to act like a hooligan. Now I'm not saying that people shouldn't be allowed to protest but there are more productive things to do than smash windows and destroy public property. I for one, resent my tax dollars going to pay to rebuild the damage caused when they could be going to other things like say development.

When there is so much that needs to be done in the world why are people so bent on destruction? I'm in a country right now where the government is shipping water to some regions because there is a drought so severe people are drinking contaminated water. I also spent a day going to regional offices on roads that are barely drivable in a 4X4. How can anyone expect to get basic goods like food, clothing and building supplies for houses to regions when you can't drive down the road?

Its easy to smash things and vent, its not easy to do something about the problems that exist in the world. So instead of tearing up a city every few months to show world leaders that your angry, try showing them how to make the world a better place.

I love AGMs. They are just so much fun. Especially when they last 18 hours on the first day and you have to come back the second day to hear the same thing again. This weekend ANED, the organization I'm down here working with had their annual general meeting. It was 2 days of banging heads together to come up with strategies followed by trying to stay awake the next day.

As is usual with things like this the schedule can be thrown out the window because its going to run over time. So when all the managers of the different regional offices and the national office gathered in the hotel on Friday morning we knew we were in for a long day. Bolivians love to eat so there were several breaks for mid morning snacks (saltenas) followed by lunch (3 course meal), and then an afternoon snack (sandwiches) and of course dinner. To help wash it down there was lots of coffee and tea. If anyone couldn't last there was candy as well.

The next day we all waddled back to the hotel, sleepy eyed, to meet up with the rest of the employees of ANED to go through what had been hashed out the previous day. With one more day until the start of winter down here and no heating in the buildings we huddled together, bundled up to listen to the strategic plan.

It was a chance to get to know people from the different parts of ANED as well as catch up with old friends.

Bad Baking Ideas

This weekend I had nothing in particular planned so I decided to bake. This was decidedly a bad idea. As a result of this decision I had flat heavy cinnamon buns. Fortunately they were very sweet (thanks to the half a tonne of brown sugar the recipe called for).

In Bolivia, as long as its sweet, it will pretty much get eaten. They love sweet. Pop, candy, over ripe bananas, you name it. If its sweet, they eat it. On top of that, cinnamon buns are bready (or at least they are supposed to be) so that was another point in their favor. Bolivians like bread. Aside from potatoes, its probably one of the most consumed things here. On every street corner there is bread.

As with everything here though, its a bit different. Bread isn't bought in loafs, buns are most common. There are different types as well. You can get hamburger buns which are not used for hamburgers. These are the most like what we have in Canada. Then there are other little buns that are very hard; sort of like bread that's been left out for a few days. Then there is mariqueta. This is the most common and most popular. They are like fat hot dog buns with a hard crust. But you can't have bread without knowing how to eat it.

So how to eat bread in Bolivia. Here's the kicker, you pretty much only eat the crust. Yes, I know, that's completely crazy. You cut the bread open, or in more informal settings just break it open with your hands, and then pull out the middle (la miga). I have asked why and no one seems to be able to give me a better answer than 'so you can put more in it'. And guess what they put in it, more sweet stuff like sweetened condensed milk or jam.

I know! I'm as shocked as you are. Why on earth would you take out the good stuff and just eat the crust. I was very confused at first because I would find little bits of what looked like parmesano regiano cheese in the morning and I couldn't figure out where it came from because they don't have parmesan cheese here. It took me a little while to figure out that it was the bits of bread, balled up from the night before that had been thrown away.

Anyway, to make a long story short. I can't bake here. Tops of mountains are not compatible with my baking skills, unless I try cookies. Mayby cookies would work. They don't rise, they're sweet and they are sort of crunchy.

Creature Comforts

I guess when you first go to a new country there are a lot of things you over look. Not that you necessarily take them for granted but they just don't stand out because you've seen them in pictures or you haven't had time to absorb everything. After being in Bolivia for several weeks things are starting to poke their heads out and say "hey, over here. Look at me"! Thanks to friends, family and a camera here are some basic things about that have stood out so far.

Everything builds on something else in a society so if you take a look at houses for instance, they are very different. Apartment buildings here don't go much higher than 10 stories, most are about 4 or 5. I haven't been in one yet that has an elevator so you can imagine walking up that many flights with your groceries and I don't even want to imagine moving. That might be why once people move into a place they don't want to move out again. It's not uncommon for people to spend most, if not all of their married life in the same apartment.

Buildings are mostly a combination of brick and concrete. Roofs are often corrugated metal. Yes the roofs leak when it rains but not as badly as you would think. Many houses have washing machines but don't use them. Most of the laundry is done by hand (I miss a wash machine). Houses have rooftop terraces for drying the laundry. Because La Paz gets a lot of sun, these are also places to relax.

Hot water here is a luxury. Because gas is bought in tanks like you would buy for a barbeque or to go camping, hot water is not available throughout the day and you have to turn on the hot water tank about 15 - 20 minutes before you take a shower so its not freezing cold. Even most of the hotels don't have hot water all day long. Dishes are washed with hot water from the kettle.

Houses also don't have heating. I'm not talking about central heating, just any kind of heating so bundle up. It's cold in the morning because ventilation in the houses is also just a hole in the wall. Literally, a round hole in the wall of the kitchen and the bathroom serves as a vent.

Once you settle in, its the things you take for granted that start to stick out. When your hands start to get chapped from washing your cloths and you're constantly sniffling because there's no heat you miss the comforts of home. And your friends and family of course!