We have been travelling for a 100 days!

After months of speculation and ardently checking the news and traveller groups on the unfolding political situation, two days ago we crossed the Bolivian border to make it to Peru. We are currently in Cusco and getting ready for the next few days of our journey, nonetheless today I could not help but reflect on the last 21 days we spent in the wonderful country that is Bolivia and would like to share some of those reflections with you.

We arrived in Sucre, Bolivia on the 19.03.2023. It sits on an altitude of 2700m and is referred to as the White City given its colonial architecture and cobbled streets. The white buildings against the bluest of the blue skies give the city a pristine quality.

One thing that caught my eye immediately as I strolled around, besides the indigenous population, were the amount of women in the workforce. You will see women hawkers, women cashiers, women in bakeries, supermarkets, juicerias, parlours, in restaurants, cafes, road side markets, police, as gardeners. Everywhere you see more and more women and girls. We went to a central market selling fresh produce and goods and all of the stalls were run exclusively by women vendors. As I walked into the market I felt a sense of calm and a feeling of security gripped me, and I wondered why? I then realised it was because there were women all around me. Even as they called out to me to come visit their stall or taste the fruit they were selling or eat at their restaurant I couldn’t help but smile. They had a gentle way of calling as well, smiling and waving at you and at no point did I feel harassed or felt I wanted to get away as I have had in some cities before. I stood in the middle of the market foolishly smiling at the vendors around me and could not help but sing to myself:

'Who run the world? Girls! Who run the world? Girls!'

Well, they certainly seem to do in Sucre :)

I wanted to add a disclaimer at the end of today's post. When we first arrived in Cusco, we saw many street vendors walking around with baby alpacas, asking for a small fee to take a picture with the animal. I could not resist their cuteness and paid to pose for a picture with the innocent animal, a decision which I later regretted when I found out that these baby alpacas are separated from their mothers when young and mistreated. Their place is in the mountains with their mothers and not being forced to roam the streets of a city. Please be a responsible tourist and say no to such practices.