On the journey from Copacabana to La Paz--which involved getting off the bus at one point while it was ferried across a river--we met a cool French-Lebanese guy named Jules with whom we spent much of our time in La Paz (see photo, at left). In order to enter the city you have to drive through a sprawling suburb known as El Alto, built on the mountain plateau above. With a population almost the size of that of La Paz, it is really a city in its own right, and is the Aymara capital of the world. The Aymara are the cultural descendents of the Tiahuanaco empire, which was based outside of La Paz in the years before Inca domination. Their current homeland is one gigantic marketplace, with unadorned brick and cinderblock buildings that all look the same, except for handwritten signs advertising different things for sale--tires, key copies, furniture, television sets.
Once in La Paz and settled into a comfortable hotel in the middle of the historical district, we set off on a walking tour of the immediate area. Just down the street from our hotel is the infamous Mercado de Hechiceria (Witches´Market), where vendors sell everything from llama fetuses to bury under the foundations of new buildings for good luck, to stone carvings of owls meant to embue success in intellectual matters, to magic powders guaranteed to make the wearer either irresistible or highly resistible, depending on whether he or she is trying to attract or repel.
We also wandered into the gorgeous Iglesia de San Francisco, well worth a visit for both its gold saints´altars and its beautiful interior and exterior stonework--the latter being a prime example of indigenous artists skillfully weaving pagan imagery into Catholic art. And we enjoyed sunset around the photogenic Plaza Murrillo (seen in the photo at left), where hundreds of people congregate with friends and family every day to watch the Bolivian flag being brought in for the night, and where you can have a delicious ice cream at the Heladeria Napoli that rivals any cold concoction I´ve had in Italy (try the chocolate and cream).On Monday morning, the three of us took a short taxi ride to the exceedingly well-curated Museo de Textiles Andinos Bolivianos. The manager of the museum took the time to give us an excellent overview before we checked out the exhibitions, which consisted of some of the most impressive textile art I have ever seen. Assuming I understood him correctly, in Bolivia alone there are over 40 indigenous groups that demonstrate distinct weaving styles. Far from being considered merely an art form, fabrics are also used to portray critical social information about their wearer, such as marital status, social status, and indigenous community of origin. Some of these traditional patterns have hundreds of threads to the square inch.
Although researchers have managed to trace all of the natural dyes used to give Andean weavings their distinctive pigmentation, they have been unable to figure out how ancient textile colors were ¨fixed¨; whereas weavings hundreds of years old still display their distinctive colors, more modern textiles invariably fade in the sun. Investigations are ongoing, as there is a great deal of interest in isolating the chemical used to create these color-fast textiles. And this is just one of the ages-old secrets of textile weaving that may never be uncovered--some of the unique textile patterns themselves have been lost, as during the 80s and 90s many young indigenous people moved to the larger cities in hopes of escaping the difficult living conditions and making a better life for themselves, and did not learn the traditional weaving techniques of their ancestors.
Interestingly, there has been a resurgence of interest in the indigenous past and its art forms due to the election of Evo Morales to the Bolivian presidency in 2005. As Bolivia´s first-ever indigenous person in the highest government office, Evo (as he is adoringly called by the masses) has made quite a public display of forwarding indigenous rights and interests; critics consider it a form of reverse racism. A former cocalero (coca-growers´leader), he has often sided with Cuba´s Castro and Venezuela´s Hugo Chavez in denouncing the involvement of the United States in third world affairs. His personality cult is strong here, with many youths wearing shirts with his likeness that bear the words ¨Evo-lucion¨(Evo-lution).In this climate, it has become popular in recent years to harken back to one´s (sometimes invented) indigenous past. Younger people are once again sporting traditional dress, sometimes just for special occasions, but also as daily wear. However, because many of the traditions surrounding this style of dress are unfamiliar to this generation, they are often wearing these textiles with no real sense of what the colors and weaving styles convey. Purists such as the curators of the Textile Museum are dismayed that the real meanings behind these masterful, unique pieces of art may be lost in translation.
Other highlights on Monday included a visit to the Museo de Etnografia y Folklor, with a beautiful display of ceremonial masks and an equally stunning exhibition of Bolivian feather art; the Museo de Instrumentos Musicales, an interactive experience which included musical instruments from all over the world as well as an impressive collection of Bolivian charangos (small, guitar-like instruments famed for their role in traditional Andean music) made out of such diverse materials as wood, tortoise shells, and armadillo skins; and dinner at the delicious French-Bolivian restaurant la Comedie, where an upscale dining experience can be yours for a mere $10USD, including the most delicious dessert I´ve had here to date--quinoa flan topped with chirimoya (custard apple) ice cream.
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