Our fabulous three-day trip across Bolivia's Salar de Uyuni salt flats, left us in the town of Uyuni in south-eastern Bolivia. We were planning to spend around a month in Bolivia (named for the independence fighter Simon Bolivar who helped the area break away from Spanish rule in 1825). So, our next step was to carry on to Potosí, deeper into this Andean country.
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| Village between Uyuni and Potosí, Bolivia |
It was a long bus trip from Uyuni to Potosí, but interesting, as our bus wound its way through hilly, rocky Bolivian countryside passing small villages and isolated dwellings. There were lots of pick-ups and drop-offs in incredibly remote spots along the way, and it looked like a tough and arid place to live.
Most houses were located on a small plot of land which looked far too dry to grow anything. However, judging by the people who boarded the bus with their produce, the dry soil and hard work were providing some crops.
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| Women wearing traditional in clothing at the bus stop and in Potosí (UNESCO), Bolivia |
At various stops, and later in Potosí, we saw women wearing traditional clothing such as a hat, colourful top, wide skirt, and a huge colourful rug hoisted on their back; usually bulging. The men tended to wear any sort of trousers, with a hat and waistcoat.
This was our first experience of a Bolivian bus and it was a good one. Although we were the only ‘gringos’ on a bus-load of locals, the people were very friendly. Overall, the ride was a great experience.
Then five hot, dusty and interesting hours later, we arrived at the Potosí bus station.
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| Street and houses in Potosí (UNESCO), Bolivia |
Grabbing a taxi from there, we drove through the narrow, hilly and mostly cobblestoned one-way street system, to our accommodation. With a population of around 155,000 occupying a relatively small geographical area, there were a lot of people and vehicles in the narrow streets, and it was busy and slow-going.
Eventually we arrived at Hostal Tukos La Casa Real. The Hostal, while a little tired, is very Spanish in look and design. It felt like a grand home with a courtyard, and we enjoyed its very old-world feel.
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| Our street with Hostel Tukos La Casa Real, the blue building, Potosí (UNESCO), Bolivia |
It's located right in the middle of the old city of Potosí, which meant that we could walk everywhere. So after unpacking, we headed out on foot to explore.
Potosí is one of the highest cities in the world sitting at 4,090 metres above sea level. The high elevation made it slow going when walking around this hilly city. However, we had spent a week gradually acclimatising from the lower altitude of San Pedro de Atacama in Chile, to the high altitude of Potosí and were feeling comfortable.
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| Marg at the ornately carved entrance of the Bolivian National Bank in Calle Junín, Potosí |
As we walked around, we marvelled at several ornately carved doors and entrance portals. We couldn't wait to see more of Potosí's architecture, and the silver mines and mint that have made Potosí a UNESCO World Heritage city.
Potosí dates back to 1545, when it was founded as a mining town. It sits at the foot of the 4,824-metre-high Cerro de Potosí, also known as Cerro Rico (Rich Hill), which has the world’s largest silver deposit.
More than 40,000 ton of silver was mined here and shipped to Spain over 200 years. This helped to make the Spanish Empire incredibly rich, and also stimulated much of the economic rise of Europe at the time.
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| Colonial Mint Museum in Potosí (UNESCO), Bolivia |
Then in 1672, Potosí became the site of the Spanish Colonial Mint. We visited the original mint which is now a museum called La Casa de la Moneda (House of Money). It’s in a beautiful colonial building, and the equipment they used over the years is still there, with much of it still in working order.
It was a fascinating place to visit and the staff there were so passionate about it, and of Potosí's role in the history of silver and currency.
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| Cerro de Potosí (Rich Hill), looming over the streets of the city |
We were originally going to visit the mine, however, for ethical reasons, decided not to. It is estimated that around eight million men, in forced labour, died between 1545 and 1825 while working at this mine.
Conditions were shocking. There were long days with no natural light, no protection from mineral dust or the mercury used in processing the silver, and a high accident rate. Today tin is mined by local families, including the children, but the conditions are not much better. They work in the hope of striking silver. The life expectancy of a miner in Potosí is 40 years.
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| Colonial architecture in Potosí (UNESCO), Bolivia |
Potosí is also known for its colonial architecture which is predominantly Baroque in style. Many streets in the old town have ornate balconies on once-grand buildings, a legacy of Potosí's heyday as a rich silver city. The balcony would have been built to reflect the wealth of the house owner.
Now-days, as with much of Potosí's architecture, the once-grand buildings are sadly run down as a result of the lingering poverty that hit the city following mine closures in the 19th century.
But thankfully, there are no high-rise tourist hotels or business houses. It seems a very authentic Bolivian mining town.
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| Plaza 10 de Noviembre and Cathedral Basilica of Potosí (UNESCO), Bolivia |
On one of our walks, we spent some time at the Plaza 10 de Noviembre, named for the city's birthday. It is the main square of Potosí, and is dominated by the impressive Cathedral Basilica.
There are many churches in Potosí, and we particularly enjoyed the architecture of the Church de San Lorenzo de Carangas, one of the oldest churches in Potosí, with its beautifully carved doors; the San Francisco Convent and Temple; and Le Merced Church Museum.
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| Church of our Lady of Mercy in Potosí (UNESCO), Bolivia |
The 16th century Iglesia de la Merced (Church of our Lady of Mercy) caught our eye with its colourful façade, tiered bell tower, and carved stone entrance.
Potosí was in celebration mode when we were there, and there were young people marching down the street just near our hotel. They all seemed to be college age students but we couldn’t find out exactly what they were celebrating - maybe graduation or a religious festival.
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| Marching girls in Potosí (UNESCO), Bolivia |
We were told that Bolivian’s celebrate everything with parades, costumes, fireworks, marching girls and bands. It was fun being a part of the huge crowds that watched.
The city streets were kept clean and we often passed people sweeping up the rubbish. The biggest problem seemed to be the huge amount of dog droppings, and disfiguring graffiti.
There were lots and lots of people selling all sorts of stuff on the side of the roads or footpaths. No supermarkets here.
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| Typical hole-in-the-wall shop in Potosí (UNESCO), Bolivia |
There were little hole-in-the wall shops, some modern shops, street markets with fresh produce and meat, and the central market.
We liked wandering around the narrow little winding streets of Potosí. Everyone was very friendly and we enjoyed our stopover there.
Soon, we were ready to move on to our next destination of Sucre.
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| Heading to the bus stop, ready to move on to Sucre |
We booked our tickets and showed up the next morning at the 'new' bus station to catch our Trans Turismo Emparador bus to Sucre.
You had to pay a tax to get out of the terminal to the bus – which we finally figured out after people tried to tell us several times!
Eventually, we were all settled ready to go, when two women started carrying huge bags over to our bus. They held up the bus while they loaded their bags into the bus boot and the passenger area.
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| Women at bus station, Potosí (UNESCO), Bolivia |
Then, one jumped in the bus as we took off. But when we reached the exit gate the other appeared with more bags and clambered in as well. They both collapsed into a seat and dissolved into gales of laughter. They were very sweet and funny.
Soon after we were on our way, travelling along more high-altitude winding roads in the middle of Bolivia, headed for Sucre.
This is part of a blog series about our un-escorted travels through the north-eastern countries of South America. The first blog in this series is called “In and around Santiago”
Copocapana really does exist! The parade looks wilder than the Traver's River :-)
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