Last week I was graciously invited by some very remote Bolivian communities to come and visit several of their villages located in the mountains north of Potosi. Our team—two other expats and four Bolivians (including a doctor and dentist)—provided medical and dental aide, children’s programing, and an evaluation of the kinds of services that may be beneficial in the future.
Nestled in the Andes Mountains at upwards of 14,000 ft., some of the communities we visited couldn’t be accessed by road. We drove as far as possible and hiked the rest of the way with our gear. The houses were made of adobe bricks and had dirt floors, but our Quechua speaking hosts kindly provided us with sheep and llama skins to sleep on. During the night temperatures would drop below freezing, forming inch thick ice on still water. Water for washing and any kind of bathroom facilities were simply not available. Many of the children we worked with had not been able to bathe for months, causing a buildup of dirt on their skin along with burnt cheeks from the sun and wind. Save for one community, electricity wasn’t in the cards either.
Nestled in the Andes Mountains at upwards of 14,000 ft., some of the communities we visited couldn’t be accessed by road. We drove as far as possible and hiked the rest of the way with our gear. The houses were made of adobe bricks and had dirt floors, but our Quechua speaking hosts kindly provided us with sheep and llama skins to sleep on. During the night temperatures would drop below freezing, forming inch thick ice on still water. Water for washing and any kind of bathroom facilities were simply not available. Many of the children we worked with had not been able to bathe for months, causing a buildup of dirt on their skin along with burnt cheeks from the sun and wind. Save for one community, electricity wasn’t in the cards either.
All of this lent itself to a pretty intense week. We visited four communities and ran full programing in two of them. Although the villages themselves had a cluster of seven or eight houses, we would have about 80 children walk (sometimes hours) from surrounding communities to participate. Adults would also walk in for medical care or vice versa for those who weren’t able to reach us. We distributed pills to help with parasites, which we had to put directly into their mouths because the dirt on their hands could often be the cause of these stomach bugs. Dr. Jorge kept busy by visiting patients and treating everything from sick babies to broken arms while Dr. Waldo had people lined up to get their teeth pulled.
Our programing included songs, games and Bible lessons. Along with some really fun times with the kids (note the pictures of me dressed as a clown), we also brought the communities food and scarves. Although they are able to eat llama or sheep on special occasions, their day to day diet consists almost completely of potatoes and chuño (a dehydrated potato) resulting in very poor nutrition. We provided mandarins and bananas as well as sardines to mix in with their potatoes—this made for some very happy kids!
In some ways it was shocking to come into contact with such extreme situations; however, I feel incredibly humbled and blessed to get to know these amazing people and share a part of their lives with them.
Our programing included songs, games and Bible lessons. Along with some really fun times with the kids (note the pictures of me dressed as a clown), we also brought the communities food and scarves. Although they are able to eat llama or sheep on special occasions, their day to day diet consists almost completely of potatoes and chuño (a dehydrated potato) resulting in very poor nutrition. We provided mandarins and bananas as well as sardines to mix in with their potatoes—this made for some very happy kids!
In some ways it was shocking to come into contact with such extreme situations; however, I feel incredibly humbled and blessed to get to know these amazing people and share a part of their lives with them.
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