Jovi, Tom, and I
are beginning to wrap up our travels in La Paz which has mostly
consisted of shopping. We have been holding out on a lot of past
shopping opportunities because of how cheap we were told Bolivia is.
For example- the first sweater made of alpaca wool was 75 Soles-
$28.30 that I bought in Lima from that cute lady Sarah who I went
back to visit several times. Tom and Jovi each bought pure alpaca
sweaters for 80 Bolivianos yesterday which comes out to be $11.76. I
wasn't necessarily ripped off back in Lima, prices are just
significantly lower in Bolivia and the more you buy, the better deal
you can get.
This morning I was
sitting in the lobby/reception area of our predominantly Israeli
hostel waiting for my computer to charge while I tried to illegally
stream my internet connection from the hostel we checked into when we
first arrived here on Friday. No success, so I began to watch an
episode of The Wire on my laptop. After about thirty minutes Juliana
strolled in with her one year old asking if I had changed my mind
about completing my entire head with dreadlocks. I still am not ready
(and wasn't at the time either) to have my entire head done but I
agreed to four more. My Brasilian friend said that she would charge
me even less this time because while she had a lot of business Friday
night and Saturday, again, she was short on cash and needed to take
care of some expenses for her kids. How could I say no to that!? I
followed Juliana back to her apartment/hostel room she's been renting
nightly for several months with her two kids and their father for her
to make the next couple of additions to my mop of a curly head. I
handed her the equivalent of $2.89 for her craftsmanship and the
entire family walked me back to my hostel because they had plans to
eat lunch at the restaurnat next door. I was thirty minutes later
than I had said I would be back to meet Tom and Jovi but I couldn't
stop the artist in her groove. I found a note on my bed letting me
know that they were starving and couldn't wait any longer (which I
totally understood- it was almost 2pm) so they decided to do some
shopping and would meet me in the room at 3pm. I choose to do some
more shopping for the final items on my shopping list so I went to El
Mercado de Las Brujas to get my bargain on. I approached a
hoarder-looking store, took a deep breath and entered with a smile. I
am learning that the attitude in which you enter a store completely
determines the person's willingness to give you better prices. I
walked through the door and brought the sunshine with me exclaiming
'Buenos dias! Como esta?' to the 80 something silver-haired, short
and stalky woman and she replied with the same greeting. I was in, in
so many ways. I asked for the first item on my list which I have been
unable to cross off; a Matero which is a special cup for drinking tea
using whole leaves as opposed to using a tea bag. It comes with a
decorative straw finished off with a sieve-type contraption to
prevent tea leaves from being sucked through it. I asked for a price
and was pleased with the charming woman's response of 38 but that she
could do 35. I even helped her fetch some more natural maté cups
from the bottom shelf, tucked away in a cubbord and could tell that
the fragile woman was appreciative from the way she smiled at me and
said 'gracias mamita.' I picked out the cup I wanted with excitement
and a smile from ear to ear and told the cute little old lady that I
wasn't finished shopping. This was music to her ear! She was enjoying
my enthusiastic visit. I could tell she hadn't had such an excited
visitor in some time. I asked where I could find her wool socks made
from 100% llama fur and picked out a stylish pair in beige. I
proceeded to pick out more goodies, and presents for my immediate
family and my tab was racking up. I complimented each piece I picked
up to examine before deciding to add it to my pile and while I was
being watched, I could feel the appreciation for appreciating the
Bolivian products in the woman's store. I bought five items from the
wrinkly lady and we came to an agreement of 175 Bolivianos- $25.36.
While thigns here are dirt cheap, I have learned to react to price
announcements with shock as if I was being ripped off. Ultimately, I
am paying pennies, but I need to stretch my pennies as far as
possible. As the soft spoken woman was sorting out my change, I asked
her what her name was. I told Emma my name, leaned in to give her a
kiss on the cheek- the custom greeting in South American countries,
and said that it was very nice to meet her. Emma asked me where I was
from and how much longer I would be in Bolivia. After telling Emma
that I had just 11 days left, my eyes began watering. I can feel it
all wrapping up but that the best moments of my travels are yet to
come. Emma pointed to a stool covered with scarves and invited me to
sit down. She started digging through some piles of clothing and
pulled out a black plastic bag. Inside the bag was a binder filled
with 500 or so sheets of paper. She set the binder on my lap, opened
it, and flipped through the pages. The book on my lap was entitled
'Los Amigos de Emma' and each page had three separate sections for
the new people she meets who buy things from her and who she becomes
friendly with. I was beyond honored to write my name, nationality,
email, and opinion of her store. She must have made over 1000 friends
with all the filled-in pages she had to flip through to find me a
clean space. I filled out my information and helped Emma pack it back
away carefully. I could tell this book was special and that she
didn't pull it out for just anyone. Emma then walked to another part
of the store and asked me if I wanted a love statue. I said yes to
support my new friend and asked how much they were. Offended, Emma
told me nothing. She picked up the minature statue, sat back down
across from me, and took mulitcolored thread and wrapped it around
the couple embracing each other in the name of love. I asked for the
significance of the traditional statue and she was honored to tell me
that a love statue in the home is for money, health, and love. She
told me to cup my hands and hold them out. Emma asked if I had a
husband. I said no. Then she asked if I had a boyfriend. Again, no. A
man in my life? Nope. I told her that I had been attracting bad men
in my life and that I was waiting for someone worth my while and
deserving of the love I have to give. While she approved of my plan,
she told me that she couldn't believe that someone so beautiful
didn't have a special love in her life. Emma placed the statue in my
hands and chanted some words I couldn't make out. She opened a tin,
grabbed some sugar and springled it over my hands then threw some in
my mouth. My little old lady friend told me that I will have a great
love in my life in the future and that he will be worth the wait. I
cried tears of happiness and we embraced each other and exchanged
kisses on one another's cheeks. I left feeling refreshed and
ecstaticly pleased with my new and meaningful purchases. I walked
back to meet Jovi and Tom who arrived at 3:30pm and we went to do
more shopping for the last few items that they needed to pick up
before going to the post office to mail everything to New Zealand.
While it'll cost an arm and a leg to send, they paid close to dirt
for everything they picked up. Tonight we're getting falafel for
dinner and I couldn't be more exicted! It's been sucha great day.
