Happy birthday, Santa Cruz

09.24.2003

Unfortunately, I can't travel to Santa Cruz to celebrate my home department's anniversary. It's usually a great time to be in Cambalandia ... but I just can't get there. The highways all around La Paz are still blocked by campesinos, and now even some of the open-air city markets are closing. Still, life remains "normal" in the capital. So no worries here. But it'll probably be a while before I take a bus cross-country to Santa Cruz.

In the meantime, I'm working diligently on my research at the Library of Congress. So far, I've gotten through the first 20 days of July 1985 of the newspaper El Diario. Reading the daily evolution of the first election conducted under a civilian government is interesting, to say the least.

I'm also taking careful notes on the places I eat, especially their prices. Even I'm surprised at how cheap I can eat daily. I spend an average of $5-6 per day on food. And that includes a full lunch (which comes w/ salad, soup, entree, and dessert), a mid-morning snack, coffee in the afternoon, a normal dinner, and coffee in the late evening. What a deal, eh? You should all come here and eat all day long and get fat.

On the downside, the apartment directly upstairs from me is being remodeled. So I get woken up promptly at 7:30 to pounding noises. At least I'm not sleeping in too much, eh?

Posted by Miguel at 06:58 PM

Comments

Are you really living in Bolivia? Perhaps it's actually the U.P., eh?

Posted by: meredith at September 24, 2003 09:07 PM

eat all day and get fat... sounds like a good deal to me! can't wait to get there.

Posted by: sam at September 24, 2003 11:58 PM

you need someone to cook you meals miguel!
did i ever tell you that i didn't like cous cous before you made it one day and gave some to jef, sebastian and i??? now i make it all the time. so thanks.

Posted by: beth at September 25, 2003 09:18 AM

Actually, I'm pretty sure it'd cost me more to set up my kitchen (it has no stove or fridge) than it would to just eat out for all that time. But I am gonna get an electric water heater (like for a liter) to make coffee w/. So i might eat at home a little ... but not much.

Posted by: miguel at September 25, 2003 12:05 PM

...dulce cambita, nina que tienes, ojos de guapuru.Dame el encanto de tu boquita llena de achachairu.....ciao!! Si è cosi,una buona canzione de la mia "cambalandia",sempre cuando e fuora dellsuo paesse se bisogna de la terra que è nato...ricorda sempre cosi,el cuore della sudamerica!!!! viva santacruz!!!

Posted by: Kathita at October 5, 2003 11:16 AM