You might think that the headline is a little over the top, or at least you are hopefully thinking “perish the thought!”

But actually, the ideas is not as far off as it may seem, as this report shows.

Apparently the U.S. sees Bolivia as a possible country to be split up into it’s regional areas - just as Serbia and Kosovo were split last week.  And why?  Allegedly because the U.S. does not agree with the current politics of the Bolivian Government.

I think that this is a pretty scary thought.  Whatever you feelings may be towards or against the Bolivian Government and its President, should a foreign power really be pursuing such a policy?

Have they considered the damage, that this could do to the people of Bolivia?

The first story of the year that caught my eye is somewhat unusual.

A lady from Berlin is raising money to send a dustcart to Samaipata (original story here).

The story got me thinking - rubbish being collected by a lorry rather than a dustcart I could imagine, but did I see this happening during my visit anywhere? Was rubbish such a problem?

So I went back through all my photographs - and it took me a while to find any pictures with rubbish on them. On almost all of them there was none to be seen, not in Sucre, Potosi, La Paz, Cochabamba or Villa Tunari.

On closer inspection I did find two examples - the (closed) railway station in Sucre, and the hill up to the shines in Copacabana.

Above: the station in Sucre
Below: the hill climbing up to the shrines in Copacabana
(July 2000)

Even in the poorest areas such as El Alto I cannot find any.

That said, there was often a problem with sewage. I remember the filthy colour of the river flowing through La Paz, or the blocked toilets in Cochabamba.

Perhaps after the dustcart, someone should start collecting for a sewage treatment programme?

“Amigos de Sucre” would like to wish a very
Merry Christmas
to all of our readers

For those learning Spanish, there is an excellent podcast called “Notes in Spanish” which offers three levels of difficulty and accompanying worksheets.

This episode of the advanced podcast is an interview with a Bolivian lady called Silvia who now lives in Madrid.

If you can understand Spanish, take a listen and hear the Bolivian accent as well as a comparison between the Bolivian and Spanish cultures.