Not such a smooth journey

I got up at 4.30 and the taxi arrived before the agreed time so I left the hotel at 5.30. Just as well. There was already a long queue of people with mountains of baggage. As I was sitting minding my own business in the departure lounge, my name was called over the PA system and I was invited to accompany an official as my case had been chosen for anti-narcotics inspection.

Are you Mrs. Mary Rodriguez?
Yes.
Is this your case?
Yes.
Are you travelling alone?
Yes.
Where are you travelling to?
Buenos Aires.
You aren't travelling to Madrid?
Not today.
So you are travelling alone?
Yes.
To Buenos Aires?
Yes.
Not to Madrid?
Not today.
OK. Then you may go.

After that all went well. We left Cochabamba only 15 minutes late.

At Santa Cruz the 1 hour and 30 minutes between flights was just enough to clear the stream of bureaucratic requirements. First of all passport control. Then hand in a declaration that you are not taking out more than US$10,000. If you are then you have to justify how you came to obtain this money and what you want it for. Next Interpol anti-narcotics control governed by Bolivia's infamous Law 1008 where they go through all you hand luggage.

After that, to the departure lounge. The Buenos Aires flight was posted for Gate 4 but some officla said it would be Gate 9. Then they announced Gate 3, so there was general chaos while they made up their mind which one it was going to be. Gate 3. So we then had to retrace our steps. However, we boarded and left on time. So far so good.

Just after we took off there was a loud bang on the left hand side of the plane. Nobody saida anything then, but after about 15 minutes it was announced that due to a technical problem we would be re turning to Santa Cruz. Then they told us that the technical problem was due to the cabin pressurization system. We turned around and went back to Santa Cruz.

At first they kept us on board and served drinks but after half an hour we had to disembark and we are currently (1.15p.m.) sitting in the departure lounge with no indication of when we are likely to continue our journey.

Then they served us lunch – usually a fair indication that the wait is going to be long. By then the Argentinian passengers had lost patience and were threatening to lynch the director of the company if he did not make an appearance. Apparently several of them had been on the same flight the previous week and the plane had to turn back, make an emergency landing with the fire brigade on standby and then they had to wait two days before being taken to Buenos Aires. Understandably they were not prepared to go through the same thing again.

Finally a flight came in from Salta in northern Argentina and once the passengers had disembarked and fuel had been loaded up, they put us on that plane and we finally reached Buenos Aires at 19.40 local time I.e. more than five hours late.

I lost no time in getting through immigration. Fortunately they did not hold my British passport against me and I was able to get a taxi into Buenos Aires!

Meeting the children & parents

Today was a busy day. The journey up to San Benito took an hour and a half, the first part inside Cochabamba in a trufi or minibus and the remainder through the countryside up to the high valleys in a trufi taxi which is a taxi that several people share. As it was raining, most of the people had problems getting to the church patio which is where we meet, but the ones who had the greatest difficulty were the families coming down from Chaki Q'ocha up on the puna. However, they all managed to get there eventually.

The procedure is always more or less the same. First of all Primo talks to the parents and children, clarifying things that he is displeased about and those that he is happy with. Then it is my turn to give a pep talk explaining that all the ponsors ask in return is that the children attend school every day and that they wear their uniform and shoes, which are not to be hoarded for fiestas and holidays.

This year I wanted to take a photograph of each child so that their sponsors could see how they are growing up.

Then the serious business of handing out the material began.
First of all
schoolbags,
uniforms
shoes,
towels,
socks
toothpaste
toothbrushes
soap.

It was like an assembly line and all the children were anxious to receive their things. The new beneficiaries were particularly excited and the younger ones were jostling for position until they were asked to form an orderly queue as nobody was going to run off with their things.

After that the community elected a member to give their vote of thanks to all the sponsors expressing the hope that the work of the project will continue for many years to come.

The mothers then loaded everything into their awayus, the colourful cloths that Bolivian women use for everything, from carrying babies to loading potatoes and other crops to market. Someone had arranged for us all to go to the newest and “best” restaurant in San Benito which has been opened by a man who emigrated to Spain for a while and saved his income to be able to set up this business on his return. Work is still in progress but nobody seemed to mind the unfinished building. The families settled down wherever they could find a space, on the floor, on a step or a chair, and produced the food that they had brought from home which they all tucked into while we, as the “honoured guests” were served the usual heaped plateful typical of Cochabamba where food is a primary concern. We had trout from a little local fish farm, potatoes, rice, onion, tomato and slices of green pepper.

Then it was back down to Cochabamba where the chaos of market day was just dying down. Transport was still at a premium as people hauled their big sacks of produce on to the buses.

Mammoth shopping

The Aparthotel Regina where I usually stay in Cochabamba is gradually modernising and they now offer a wi-fi connection. I have managed to connect to the network, but for some reason which I have not fathomed yet I am unable to connect to Skype or the internet or collect e-mails. What happened to all this automatic configuration we are supposed to have? It never seems to work when you need it.

Today was a busy day. First thing in the morning, before going to the MANACO shoe factory which is a subsidiary of Bata, we had to change some money on the black market as the exchange rate is better. Since it was Carnaval last week the factory was closed and they had not prepared our order. Then certain sizes were not available so we had to choose another model which turned out to be more expensive. They said they would deliver the order tomorrow morning.

After lunch we met Vito, the man who makes our uniforms for us. I paid him because he has already delivered the clothes.

As Vito has a car, he took us to La Cancha market where we bought the towels, socks, toothbrushes, toothpaste and soap. So, loaded down with 4 doz. Towels, 4 doz. Toothbrushes, 4 doz. Packets of toothpaste, 8 doz. Pairs of socks and 4 doz. Bars of soap we trudged through the crowded market where at least there was some shade. The stuff is now all stacked at the house (still under construction) of a friend in Cochabamba. We will take it all up to San Benito tomorrow.

In the evening I met Mr. Willy, who organises all our books and school materials. He has also delivered ahead of time so he was delighted to receive payment. Now that the suppliers know that we are a reliable organisation, they are quite happy to deliver before being paid and this certainly makes life much easier for us as we don't have to cram everything into a short space of time.

Journey to Cochabamba

20-21/02/2010

After a long flight (12 hours and 10,300 Kms. From Madrid) I arrived in Buenos Aires at 9.30 a.m. (1.30p.m. in Spain) today February 21st. The sky is overcast and apparently yesterday 70L. of rain fell in one hour plunging the city into chaos. Not unexpectedly, the Aerosur flight arrived in Buenos Aires late so we left one hour late and arrived in Santa Cruz ten minutes before the Cochabamba flight was due to leave. Fortunately they delayed that flight because half the passengers were coming from Buenos Aires. One advantage of “human” systems where you can actually speak to a person who can DO something, the girl in Buenos Aires was able to check my case through to Cochabamba by calling to the luggage handling department and - miracle of miracles – it arrived safe and sound. So, having arrived in Cochabamba at the ordained time of 8p.m. (1a.m. Spanish time) I fell into bed after a most welcome shower!