Dear Friends,

After my pampa trip I had to spend another day in Rurrenabarqque as
there weren’t any flights out. I wanted to use the chance to do some
riding, but that is not one of the standard options the agencies
offer. Ronaldo, the boss of the agency I did my tour with, promised
me to organize a horse but it got later and later and whenever I
asked the told me to wait a little more. Finally at four he told me
that he had been two hours on his motorbike, trying to find his horse
that had run away. You may have noticed that I used the time to write
you another report that got quite long according to the otherwise
useless time I had.

Also the next day I had do practice patience, a subject I learned to
be a master in. We were told to be in the office of the flight
company by nine and then the told us hour by hour that we should come
a bit later as the flight was delayed due to bad weather. It got half
past one till we left for the airport. The used the same method for
their prices: First I paid my ticket, then they told me, that I had
to pay for every kilo of luggage exceeding 15 kilos, then there is an
extra charge for the transfer to the airport and finally an airport
tax AND a tourism tax. All in all none of these was expansive but
after spending some days in a town without any banks or ATMs we were
all quite broke.

The plane had only twelve seats and I were sitting directly behind
the pilots, saw the pointers circling on the altimeter. It isn’t a
long distance but some 4000m off altitude difference and the poor
plane had to circle its way up for almost all of the trip. For a few
minutes we even were at some 19’000 feet or 5800m, of course without
a decent pressure cabin. Who wanted could use one of the oxygen masks
but real men have to face the risk of head aches, dizziness,
tiredness and death by altitude sickness.

The arrival over La Paz is spectacular, the city fills the
surrounding valleys and mountains, a fantastic panorama. I like this
city, it is huge but relatively clean, the classical architecture is
nicely broken by some modern skyscrapers and I immediately felt home
and safe (what definitely is not true after sunset). In the middle of
the city is a viewpoint where you can take wonderful pictures.

In the evening I met with Carmen whom I had met on the Uyuni trip. We
almost had also met Keith, but using the internet this is not as easy
as with the omnipresence of mobile phones. For dinner we afforded a
real nice sushi that was quite expensive considering local prices but
incredible cheap considering European prices for the same quality.

But there were new adventures to face: We wanted to visit San Pedro
prison, the main prison of La Paz and Bolivia. We knew that the
prison consists of one whole block of 100 by 100 meters and that
there were two parts, the normal one, were the situations are at
least as bad as you imagine them and one part where you can go if you
got the necessary money. The latter is possible to visit. We had some
controversial information how to enter the prison from some guide
books and Chris (also from the Uyuni trip) who had been there a week
ago. We walked to the prison and so some people waiting to be let in.
Through the gate we could se a crowded court yard. That didn’t look
too nice, but didn’t they say it wouldn’t be a problem?

Carmen had read that it was only possible to enter if you know the
name of one of the inmates but a first trial using a name she
remembered was blocked of by the guards, there weren’t neither any
tours nor a person called John. We reread Chris’ report and found the
name Richard but that didn’t help a lot, either. Bribe them, maybe? I
tried showing my passport including some money bills but nothing. But
the man sending us away had none or only one strip on his shoulders
and there were a two star and a three star officer … finally the two
star person led us around the corner … we had been trying the wrong
entrance the one for the bad / poor prisoners. If you should want to
do the tour don’t go to the eastern entrance facing the park but the
northern one just around the left corner.

Here they knew Richard, yes, we were some friends of his. Richard is
a thin black Caribbean with dread locks. If there is anybody matching
a drug dealer cliché than it is him (though he just looks like a guy
selling you some weed, compare my 2002 Belize reports). He had tried
to step up in the traffic carrier, went to Bolivia, spent there ten
days and then tried to fly home carrying some strange white powder.
Nobody believed him as he said that he had no idea what this powder
was and how it got into his luggage. The ten days soon turned into
years … Richard confirmed that we were friends of his, explained that
we had to pay some eight dollars each, including a fee for the guards
and then guided us through the nice section of San Pedro where only
some 50 prisoners live while in the main section there are more than
1000.

In the main section there aren’t any laws but the one of force, might
and violence, the police enters the prison only in groups of ten or
twenty, normally they don’t enter at all, leave the prisoners to
themselves. Whoever has the possibility pays some 250 to 350 dollars
and moves to the “luxury section”. The money is paid partly to the
self organisation of this prison part and used to maintain the site
and partly to the guards, but only the important ones (stars on the
shoulder?) who get paid for quite a lot, even their daily food is
paid. Then you have to buy a cell, a nice room about 14sqm with own
kitchen and a little but nice bathroom is available for some 4000 USD
(can be sold to others again after you’ve done your time), a good
investment if you have to spend there some years. If you can’t afford
to buy one there are also some to rent. The best cell in the prison
had three stories and was owned by a former bank manager who had
stolen some 10 million dollars from the company. Chris wrote that he
even had a Jacuzzi and his private chef. There are all kinds of
delinquents: many drug dealers but there are also murderers.

Life isn’t bad in there, you can receive visitors 24/7 and some of
the prisoners even have there family living with them which is
possible for an extra fee. There are computers, mobile phones (not
allowed but tolerated), two or three restaurants, a fitness studio
and a pool salon. Living here you have to be 100% self-reliant, but
it is not so expansive, if I understood right 100 bucks a month may
be enough though there is no upper limit. Everything needed is
strangely bought from the other side of the prison rather than from
the outside. In the other side literally everything seems to be
available. While we were waiting in front of the wrong gate we saw
some Japanese looking business man in best suits delivering a
computer with all the stuff you need. I don’t want to know what else
was in those boxes. Chris also wrote that one of the inmates had some
ten kilos of drugs in his cell but was never caught as the officials
always informed him before his cell was to be searched.

The prisoners in the nice section control the life in their part
themselves, turbulence, violence or theft will not be tolerated, you
can even get punished for making noise after half past twelve in the
night. If someone broke a less important rule than he may be punished
with some time in an isolation cell, but in the worst case the will
take you back to the main part of the prison and this is about the
worst thing that can happen to you. Therefore life in prison is
comfortable and secure. If you pay enough you might even get vacation
from the prison, but the price is that high, that you can expect,
that the prisoner will NOT come back after 15 days and hopefully
succeeded in leaving the country.

If you should want to visit this prison just try to smuggle some
drugs or ask Richard who will be there some more time. We definitely
can recommend him, he took more than an hour for us and our
questions, was friendly, funny and competent. If Richard shouldn’t be
there for what reason ever (it didn’t seem to be clear how much more
time he had to spent their) try asking for Anderson, a Swedish guy
who also has to spent some years in La Paz. When we were there his
Bolivian wife was there with their two month old baby. Anyway I had
the impression that all the wives and girlfriends are there all the
time. But even if you don’t know a name it shouldn’t be a problem,
said Richard, just go to the gate and they will help you. Though it
seems that not all of the officers appreciate the tourist tours as we
had to hide in the computation teacher’s cell for a few minutes
before we could leave as there was another officer at the gate who
Richard did not want to see us leaving. He even said that it wouldn’t
be a problem to take a little camera but we didn’t just to avoid
problems. By the way, you can visit the prison everyday, not only on
Thursdays and Sundays as some of the guide books say, though it might
be a bit easier and cheaper on those days.

Chris had another information for the totally crazy of you: If you
pay some 250 dollars, he said, it is possible to spent a night in the
bad part of the prison. The price includes personal security service,
a private cell and all the drugs you want.

What a tour! After a fantastic Lebanese lunch Carmen left the city
and I went to the coca museum. On the museum’s homepage http://www.cocamuseum.com/ you find some
information including a nice photo of El Tio and a mineworker on the
first page. Here a summary of the most interesting points:

History: The use of Coca leaves is very old, the Inkas did even
operate brain tumors using Coca for anesthesia. After the Europeans
came to the Americas the church did forbid the Coca, but when they
found out that the slaves working in the mines were much more
effective when chewing Coca they allowed it immediately again. A
single mine worker uses up to 380 grams of Coca each week.

Usage: Following my newest information it is necessary to use natrium
bicarbonat (bica) as the cocaine can only be extracted if your salvia
is alkaloid. So you put it in the mouth, chew a little bit to break
the cells, let it suck a bit and then add the bica, that’s it. But
don’t use only a few leaves, the people here always have a very thick
cheek that I thought he had a tumor when I saw the first one.
Alternatively they sold coca sweets in the museum that you also put
into your cheek. The taste is a little better but I didn’t feel a
lot. If I was informed correctly the drinking of coca tea has no
effect at all as it is missing the bica. But at least the leaves are
said to be very healthy, many vitamins and other stuff. With the new
information I am tempted to try it another time, but the taste is too
ugly and if you take a lot you get an awful halitosis.

Effects: Chewing coca is more or less the same as a very slow and
controlled consum of cocaine. Coca does not make you stronger but you
can work longer without getting exhausted. Working at their maximum
capacity the coca chewers did use significantly less oxygen as non
chewers. Using coca the body tends to use the fat reserves of the
body, the glucose level in the blood is much more stable. So if you
want to loose some kilos or suffer from diabetes then get some coca …

Cocaine production: It needs some 320 kg of coca leaves to produce
one kilo of coca paste. The past is made by a poor worker who has to
trot for hours in a piscine where the leaves are mixed with kerosene
and acids. The paste is more or less the same as crack, it is
extremely toxic and addictive. Bolivia mainly exports the paste that
afterwards gets cleaned in some improvised laboratories in Europe,
the States or wherever, to finally get the cocaine. All this costs
approximately 3000 dollars for a kilo.

Usage: Besides the worldwide drug abuse (about 50% in the USA) it is
commonly used in medicine, for example there are some 146kg of legal
cocaine produced in Germany each year, 500kg in the States. They told
us that the anesthetics used by dentists are normally based on
cocaine or the synthetic and half as strong PROCAIN. And finally
there is Coca-Cola. Between 1894 and 1914 it contained cocaine, but
still today they use coca leaves for the taste.

But now for something completely different. On the witch craft market
they sell dried llama fetuses. I imagine what would happen if I
brought my mom one of these as a souvenir …

The next morning I wanted to leave for Copacabana and the Lago
Titicaca. As I couldn’t sleep very well due to the altitude I got up
quite early which is at least an advantage. In the lobby I met two
friends who were also going to Copacabana and were just waiting to be
picked up. I managed to get a ticket for the same bus and half an
hour later we were on the way.

In the bus I changed my mined and wanted to go to Puna in Peru first,
visiting Copacabana when coming back. But when we arrived in
Copacabana they told us that the road to Peru was blocked by
protesting campesinos (probably because of the plans to reduce coca
production). So I am here now and rented a little sail boat to spent
the afternoon. But after one hour in the self build boat I gave up
because it was impossible to cruise against the wind. For those of
you who don’t know sailing: that’s very important because otherwise
you will never be able to return to the place you started from.

Tomorrow I will visit Isla del Sol, the place were the Inkas believed
that the human race (or at least the Inkas) were created by god. I
probably will spent their a night and then I have to leave Bolivia as
my visa expires … I would have never thought to spent a whole month
in this country, incredibly.

All the best from Cocacabana, Bolivia

Volker