Sucre!

Today we flew to Sucre.  I walked around with some friends, and we saw a demonstration in the plaza about coca.  Coca is a leaf that’s really important to the culture here.  It’s chewed as a mild stimulant and used in ceremonies.  It gets a bad rep since it’s used to make cocaine.  The current president of Bolivia, Evo Morales, has a new initiative that would abolish cocaine but protect the coca leaf.  

Health benefits of the coca leaf

Then we went to a vegetarian restaurant, which was delicious but we sat with random (Bolivian) strangers, at one table.  It was a little awkward.  I tried to engage them in conversation, but they didn’t seem very chatty.  Lunch was only 13 Bs, or less than $2!  (Soup, main course, dessert)

We went to a museum, MUSEF (an indigenous/folklore museum).  MUSEF had an exhibit on the totally interesting Chipaya, who live in circular houses and have doors made of cactus.  They also build “artificial rivers” to cultivate their crops.

Then the whole group went to a restaurant to celebrate Sophie’s birthday.  We had tacos, a fruit cake, and a chocolate cake.  The cakes had sparklers!  We all sang for Sophie and she got a T-shirt that said (in Spanish) “Probably the best birthday of my life.”  Then everyone danced for a long while on the dancefloor.  It was fun!