Bolivia: Food and Mud

Our trip to Bolivia, Part 2

French fries (and other forms of potatoes) are a staple food in parts of Bolivia. 

Also, a root called Yucca. We had some delicious "sopa de mani" (peanut soup) with french fries sprinkled on top.

Then there are chuños (Choon-yoze). I had heard about these from Michael as he remembers eating them growing up in Peru as a little boy. They are freeze-dried balls of potatoes.

Ellie's apprehensive face summarizes how I felt about them too. Not my favorite.

On one of our last days of our meetings we went to visit a low-German Mennonite colony, which MCC Bolivia partners with. There are groups of conservative Mennonites who live in Bolivia, Belize, and Mexico. They live simply, much like the Amish communities in the US.

We ate purple fruit soup, a Mennonite dish.

 On our way back from a visit to a Mennonite cheese factory, it started to rain.

And then this happened:

 We were stuck in the mud in a very large van, or more like a mini-bus. Our group was divided into two buses, and both got stuck.

The men tried to help push the first bus out of its rut. 

Mostly, their shoes got really dirty.

We quickly realized that these vehicles weren't going anywhere.

 Luckily, some friendly low-German Mennonites passed on by and decided to try to help us.

They went to the mayor's house down the road, who recently acquired a very large tractor. In these communities, as part of a commitment to live simply, the tractors and anything with wheels usually only have the metal rims (they take off the rubber tires). Fortunately for us, this tractor was so new it hadn't lost its rubber tires yet. (I didn't get a picture of the tractor).

After being drug out of the first spot, the tractor attached both of our buses together. We began to dovetail and ended up in some bushes:

I was nervous but everyone assured me we couldn't tip over. I had a hard time believing them.

 While we waited to be rescued, the girls watched a movie. They were fairly oblivious to our position.

Eventually, the mayor drug the first bus down the dirt road, out of the mud, and to the paved highway. He returned to bail out the large milk truck that was also stuck before dragging us out to the highway. In total, we were delayed almost two hours. It could have been worse. We could have been stuck in there all night. It definitely made our Bolivia trip more memorable.

Next, we headed to Lima and Cusco in Peru.