Photos from Coroico

La Paz and Beyond

The past couple weeks have been busy (what else is new!). I got the opportunity to utilize my conflict resolution skills as a few conflicts arose within the group and between counterparts. I also got the opportunity to do some traveling, and finally, left La Paz, to visit my sister in Cochabamba, as well I went to Coroico, in Las Yungas, with the team as a part of our midproject camp.

The conflicts that arose were typical and nothing too out of the ordinary. Nonetheless they were emotionally charged, tears were shed, names were called, and gossip was present. Throughout such times I have constantly tried to reassure the team, and in particular those facing such conflict, that these situations are “normal”, and that after nearly 4 months together we’re bound to have some issues, tensions build and you may start to feel worn out and perhaps want to give up. However, just as I say these things, and think to myself – yeah, you know what you’re doing, this wont be that tough to solve, just takes some mediation and the conflicts we’re confronted with are not the end of the world... then i´m thrown a curve ball and again I feel like we´re starting from zero and wonder why? or how we´ll get through this? All that said, these moments were really short lived, and I did, as always, find the light and the direction I needed. I am very happy and proud to say that most of the conflict and tension felt over the past two weeks appears to be solved and as a team I feel we are in a better position and are heading towards a great finish as we head into the final couple weeks of the program.

Much of the success we achieved in these areas is due in part to the wonderful midproject camp we just had; where we spent 4 wonderful days at “Sol y Luna” a wonderful rustic ecolodge in Bolivia’s Yungas- a lush semi-tropical area surrounded by green, almost surreal, majestic mountains. The place where we stayed was spectacular, we all stayed in little cabins on the side of a lush mountain full of butterflies, birds and mosquitos! The participants had planed the agenda very well and we had most of the afternoons free to hang out by the pool, lay in the hammocks overlooking the incredible view, explore the town below (a 15 minute walk), go for homemade ice cream at Villa Bonita, or else catch up in your journal or read a book. The rest of the agenda was spent reflecting on our learning to date in the key areas of the program, learning about conflict resolution, communication and giving and receiving feedback. Overall I feel we achieved our objectives and have come back stronger and ready to give the program its final push as we enter the final phase of our 5 month program.

Apart from that trip I was also lucky to have recently had another opportunity to leave La Paz, where I visited my sister for a couple days in Cochabamba. This trip also came at a time where I feel I needed a little break from the program, to engage myself entirely in something else, in order to regain perspective and really give the program my wholehearted dedicated self as the SUPERvisor I am. And indeed time with my sister, as always, did just that. We relaxed a great deal, did a Tai Box Class, went shopping, went to the salon, went dancing, and went out for sushi. Apart from all that I got the opportunity to see most of Bolivia’s national dances, as Ali participated in a mini-Carnaval event organized in part through her university called “La Entrada Universitaria”. In “La Entrada” each faculty or department of the university organized themselves, prepared one of Bolivia’s many folkloric dances. It was incredible, I took close to 400 photos! Arnd(Ali’s partner) and I sat for 7 hours along the side of one of the city’s main streets as we watched 27 of the 48 entries that participated in the La Entrada. It was like a never-ending parade. Ali’s sociology department came by as the 24th group. She participated in an Afro-Bolivian dance group called “Saya Afro” and appeared to have had a great time. She invited me to dance, rent a costume and get my hair done like her and her friends, however, I felt I needed to de-stress and relax and as much fun as I know it would have been I am glad I decided to chill out, rather than dance for several hours on end in the intense heat and blazing sun.

This week the group has the incredible experience to participate in a conference organized through the Public University and a PanAmerican Humanist Organization; where delegates from across Latin America will come to discuss the Conference’s theme A Latin America without War or Violence among many other interesting themes.

In the meantime my counterpart and I hope to continue to support and guide the team to make the most of their final few weeks as a team. Come Christmas its hard to believe but we’ll be parting and each will be on their own, without a counterpart, hopefully still reflecting about this experience, continuing to try and make sense of all they went through, the highs and lows we all have gone through on this incredible journey otherwise known as Canada World Youth. I know I will be, hopefully in the warmth of the tropical climate back at Sol y Luna...