Saint Francisco Church

Considering the fact that this App can't contain larger texts, I have an extra footprint in English, same same, but different:

Well, yesterday evening, when the bus arrived this huge city, I was impressed. First by the huge size. And second was that this city looked different from most of the cities in South America so far. It looked more liked my imagination of Mogadishu, but without black inhabitants. The streets were more like dusty paths with huge stones on them, there were real packs of street dogs and nearly no shops or anything.
Then I realized, looking at maps.me, that La Paz isn't just La Paz, there are two cities, La Paz and El Alto. And Last one is the bigger City. It's placed on the Alti Plano, the high plateau from were I just came. In contrast to that is La Paz placed in a valley east of El Alto. Here it doesn't look good either, but better than up there. The city has everything what a big one needs in South America, beside of a beautiful old town. Nearly like Coventry, but with more people. And everyone has black hair and is brown, so also not Mogadishu.

As I want never prejudice to win, I have to get to the walking tour here, done by the Red Cap Agency. Its not a free tour, it costs $3 or 20 Bolivianos. But to be fair it's one of the most interesting tours...

Let's start with a brief history of La Paz: The city was founded by the Spanish as a station for the silver transports from Potosi to Peru. It's the seat of the government on the highest altitude and the full name is "nuestra Señora de La Paz", our women of peace. But it's not really about peace when you look at the first highlight, San Pedro prison. It's a bit different compared to most prisons. Let's start with the fact that you have to buy your own cell. And so there are luxury cells with a great view, netlfix account and a hot shower, bit also holes in the ground. Caused by the fact of burying your own cell, whole families are moving to this cells because it's like a bought flat. And so that creates a whole community within the prison, because they have to create an income to pay the bills. And so one can find there restaurants, shops and bars. Simply everything that you need in a small town, and one of the biggest and well known cocaine production site. And to sell this product to the outside world, the british inmate Thomas McFadden developed the idea to offer a guided tour through the prison. On this tours coce was selled like hell, till McFadden was released. Afterwards different people tried to continue the tours, but there were stabbings, rape and muggings, so today the tours are prohibited.

So much to that one, there is also a big street market like in every big bolivian city. And this market is more than just a possibility to buy your groceries.
By the way, there are more types of potatoes that I've ever saw in my life. That's the reason why the people from La Paz are called potatoehead, chucuta.
The other function of the market is to be a dating place. The women wear their typical clothing which is known from all the documentaries on discovery channel. There they stuff the hips because it's a sign of fertility and the skirt has to be longer than the cuffs, remember that one.
The funny melon hat that they are wearing is rooted on the british railway workers, who build the railways from Potosi to the sea in the 19th century. If the hat is straight on the head, they are dating or married. If the hat is slope, they are ready for dating. And if theses women are flirting with someone, they show their cuffs, therefore the long skirt.
The women in the same place prefer men with thick hair and big belly's, I'm currently out of that for sure.
And so is this market also a place to look for hat's and who is with whom and whatever.

Next station is the witches market. Here the locals can find everything what they need in matters of magic like aphrodisiacs, medicine, things for curses and against them. And what's most interesting for tourists, hydrated lama phetus.
You have to offer them when you marry, buy a car or build a house. An urban legend says that lamas are not enough for big and important buildings. So they sacrifice homeless persons. They get them drunk, and before passing out they're set in concrete. It's just a legend and nobody would confess it, but there were some human remains found in the basements of old and big buildings.

Last stop is the presidential palace and the theme: Evo Morales. The president who wants to become president for a third period, contrary to the Constitution. After a failed referendum, in which he asked the Bolivianos whether he should go for a third presidential period, he wants to go for another referendum. You could get the image of a president who is on the well known way to become a dictator, but the real situation is a bit more complicated.
Bolivia didn't had many good Presidents, although they had in 191 years 88 Presidents. So nearly every two years another one. And some of them where burned in the presidential palace, so it's called "palacio chamuscado", burned palace.
The last president with a longer period was Lozado, an America friendly president who privatized many state owned enterprises and tightened Bolivia nearly to it's ruin. In the following protests the military shot more than 60 persons, most of them policeman trying to protect people. Not that good.
Compared to that did Evo Morales many good things, like nationalizing the former enterprises to create an income for Bolivia. Also he supports education and included the indigenous into his politics, after all their are the majority of people in Bolivia. But also he is a populist who is against gay people and blames fast food to be the reason for hair loss, although he likes to eat it. Abd after a population census he wanted to ban condoms, because there are to less Bolivianos. After a protest he changed his mind.
So now the time will tell the story whether Evo will become the problem, because he is still very popular in Bolivia which you can see everywhere.Read more