The New Commute

One of my first views when arriving at the therapeutic center is this lovely old adobe structure, which is one of the outbuildings on the property. There is a little cluster of buildings, where the caretaker lives, and small guest cottages. After moving from the the outskirts of the city, from the countyside like setting of Tiqti to the center of the city of Cochabamba, it is a real treat to be able to go at least once a week to the center and accompany the teenage boys for a day and a night.



This is the view out the dining room window. There isn't enough room in the kitchen to eat. So this dining room table serves for both meals and work. The guys can work on homework, learn new skills, plan out programming, the staff sometimes has meetings here. I would take this over any "corner office" in a major U.S. city. The view below is of the town of Sacaba where I worked in 2002-2004. I sometimes gaze out the window, trying to locate the church and other landmarks.




Walking from the town of Sacaba to the Center takes about 45 minutes. Usually there is someone coming or going to the center and I can hitch a ride. But it is also a nice walk if you are not carrying too much. It also takes about 30 minutes in a van to get from the city to the town, if you can find one with a empty seat.

City Scapes My Neighborhood

I was asked in a recent interview what was my neighborhood like, since I had just moved from Tiqti Sud to the city, I really had nothing in my blog nor even in my camera to depict the radical change that was happening in my living situation. I tried my best to give a verbal picture, but as you go out in any direction from my apartment you could encounter very different scenarios. The views in this post only capture a slice of southwest from my apartment, and mostly looking northward from points 3-5 blocks away.



The national police were out in force one day as a protest march arrived a the Plaza Principal. They are kept busy in a country where protest marches and blockades are weekly experiences somewhere within the country, sometimes lasting for days and weeks.




These views are from the Archbishops Office where I work 4 mornings a week in the Health Ministries Office. As I climb the stairs to the 3rd floor (think 4th floor in US) I rise above the street level and get a little seen view.





This photo shows old adobe buildings with red tile roofs (lower part of picture) in the heart of the city. Near by are new modern structures. Both show the impressive mountains that edge the city, north, east, and west of the city. It is even more incredibly beautiful in person.




This photo as well as the first one of this post depict one of the main streets in the city. Four lanes, two in either direction, can be jammed with traffic during rush hours or can be totally empty when blockades cut off any vehicular traffic. These are the older buildings, but the modern ones are literally around the corner.




I like this last one best because it is the type of view you can see from many different streets, that of old buildings with small balconies on the second floor. One way traffic to allow parking on one side of the street and then in the distance the mountains rise up over the roof lines 14,000 - 16,000 ft in altitude just a few kilometers outside the city center. The view down most north running streets gives this view without having to climb up a few stories. The outskirts of the city climb up the bottoms of the mountains, every year they climb a little higher.

The Beginnings of a New Work

Months before I began my new work with Voces Para Latinoamerica and Voces para Cochabamba I attended the dedication and blessing of the new Therapeutic Center called GuainaCapac and it's workers. The work of Voces has been going on for many years, but this was a new project, that was coming to fruition after years of preparation. The above photo shows the beginning of the ceremony of the Q'owa, the Andean blessing. The Q'owa is similar to incense at a high mass (for purification and sanctification), or the Native American Smudging Ceremony (with sage for cleansings). Specific and significant elements as well as herbs are burned to receive protection (from demons) and blessings from the Andean Gods.



image left from a bolivian culture website

At the new Therapeutic center, the burner with a long handle, was walked around the house to the 4 corners to bring a blessing down upon the house. At each corner, there are 8 because the center is in a U shape, and at various outbuildings, the group of followers stopped as the leader said prayers. Another part of the blessing is the Ch'alla, which is a reverent action toward the Pachamama (mother earth). Pure alcohol (though others are used) is splashed on the earth at the 4 corners also. In this reciprocal process, we feed mother earth and she protects us, helps us with family, love, work, and business.



The air was festive as groups of people toured the grounds. The Therapeutic Center has been designed for a model project. The large center, out buildings, grounds are rented for less than what I was paying for a second floor apartment with friends after university. The hopes are that other organizations, who are working in similar projects, would come for training at the center. Currently Voces para Cochabamba provides the training, centralized through the Mayor's Office for all organization who work with children and teens who live in "situations of the street"



The most impressionable part of the day was the blessing of the workers, a sort of commissioning of their work and the new center. Many people came in support of the Center and the workers; they were from so many different connections, political, religious, associates, medical centers... There was even a dance troupe that performed a couple of numbers. One gave much food for thought as the dancers started within cardboard boxes. The symbolism of cardboard boxes and street living was obvious, but the struggle to gain freedom from the boxes, and the frequent return to them, sometimes alone or with other dancer was poignant.





Jose "Pepe" Alvarez Blanco is the man behind the dream and the vision of the center. He is from Spain has worked in Bolivia for years. He's a pretty amazing guy; even his old friends come to Bolivia for their vacations just to help out with his work or the center. Most recently a friend who is a nurse spent three weeks of his vacation living at the center and providing much needed medical assistance, as well as an excellent mentor figure.




Amazingly the center is about a 40-50 minute drive (in public transport up to hours!) from Tiqti Sud and yet you can still see Mount Tunari (to the west) as clear as day! It's nice to have this old friend looking over my shoulder when I work at the center in the countryside.

Below, looking northeast is the backyard of the center, wintertime. In the mountains you can almost discern the dirt roads that switchback their way over the mountains to the rural communities that reside at very high altitudes.