#22

Even though we were all dying for a lie in, our plan to visit the Potosi mine dragged us out of bed at 7am. Luckily we got the last few spaces with the only tour company actually owned and operated by miners and ex-miners and by 8.30am we were off. We stopped first at the miners market and bought juice and coca leaves for the miners we would meet inside. There were also dynamite shops everywhere selling explosives to anyone who felt they wanted some. We suited up in protective gear and replaced our backpacks with some fairly stylish sacks before heading to a processing plant to see how the silver/tin/etc is separated from the the material without value. Apparently yesterday was a big drinking day in Potosi so there was a distinct absence of workers this morning.
Our next stop was Cerro Rico (the rich hill) which stands sooo tall to the north of potosi. We headed straight into the mine and crouched and climbed around the tunnels for 2 hours. The picture is of one of the miners we met along the way who was working by himself since most of the colleagues from his area were too hungover for mining. We also met the God of minerals, Tio, who is a pretty scary statue who miners offer pure alcohol, coca leaves and cigarettes to in exchange for quality minerals. When we left the mine, we saw some of the miners pushing wheelbarrows of what they had been mining, apparently weighing up to a tonne. Our guide Wilsol was saying that the miners resist most modern technology because embracing it leads to job losses, so almost everything is done manually.

After our crazy morning in cerro rico we realised our planned travel to Uyuni wasn't going to go to work since every hostel within our budget seemed to be booked up. We decided not to pay £15 a night and are instead getting on another super fun night bus to Tupiza today (which my dad has just informed me is near where Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid met their end). Hopefully our bus has some suspension this time and we're able to get even a tiny bit of sleep, and if not at least we're saving on a nights accommodation!