Bolivia is a country of physical wonders. The Valle de la Luna, the mines of Potosí, the depths of the Amazon – the appearances of these places can collectively best be described as otherworldly. Even the altitudes at which many of its citizens live, and the climates they face, reach extreme levels not found anywhere else. Being in Bolivia can often be confusing and dissonant, as the mind can sometimes struggle to take in what is before the senses. In Bolivia, the very real world can seem surreal.
For her article ‘The Unearthly Beauty of the Salar’, Flossie Wildblood visited the vast expanse of the Salar de Uyuni, the strangest physical region in Bolivia, and arguably in Latin America. This place, the world’s largest salt flat, has more curiosities to offer visitors beyond vast, white, grainy plains. A railroad graveyard, volcanic landforms and thermal lakes provide equally curious locales. The Salar is also home to the Salvador Dalí Desert, a small area with rock towers reminiscent of images from the painter’s work. The resemblance of this place to his work has led some to believe that the Spanish surrealist was inspired by these Bolivian formations.
In this issue of Bolivian Express, our team used the idea of the surreal as a lens to explore many corners of Bolivia. In addition to the Salar, we traveled into the unconscious, showing connections between the ideas of Sigmund Freud, no stranger to coca and cocaine, to Bolivia’s most important crop. We look into what can be described as Bolivian altered states of consciousness, from the experience of taking sedentary journeys with ayahausca and absinthe to the horrifying practice of entombing oneself in an elephant cemetery, where the darkest of alcoholics condemn themselves to a death by drinking.
We discovered in our work the prevalence of surrealism in Bolivia’s creative endeavours. Although there may not be a large, formal surrealist movement here, there are in fact examples of this approach across literature, cinema, theatre and the visual arts. We talked with artists who are quietly toiling across the country to introduce aesthetics of the subconscious and the absurdity of life into their work.
Surrealism is a complex idea. It can take you to strange and wonderful new places within your own mind. Seeing our surroundings in a new way, in a manner that is perhaps more internal than external, can lead to new understandings of ourselves and our connections to the world. Whether it is through visiting strange physical spaces, seeking out understandings of the seemingly strange ways people navigate their lives, or through the breaking down of artistic inhibitions, seeing the surreal inevitably leads to self-reflection. One just needs to begin the journey. Come with us and see what we discover.
Download
Illustration: Nikolaus Cox - Flossie Wildblood
Judging from his recent loss in Bolivia’s constitutional referendum, President Evo Morales’ belief in his popularity may not be in line with reality. However, if the gifts he has received from countrymen and international organisations are any indication, he is extremely popular.
The recently opened Museo de la Revolución Democrática y Cultural de Orinoca displays this dichotomy perfectly. At a cost of 47 million bolivianos and sprawling over 3,858 square metres in the mainly agricultural region of Orinoca that President Morales once called home, it is a vision of modernity and power in an otherwise uninspiring town.
The museum is advertised as serving a dual purpose: both as a repository of Bolivian cultural history, told through the numerous gifts Morales has received throughout his presidency, and as a storage facility for the many more that are either duplicates or are not deemed significant enough to display. Within the collection, the gifts range from the banal to the bizarre. And with llama figurines constructed of salt and plastic helmets, the museum truly has it all.
According to Cuevas, ‘each object tells its story’ of Morales as a character and as a president. The copious amounts of football memorabilia showcase one of his major passions. All the major football teams in Bolivia have given him jerseys, and major overseas clubs such as Ajax, Real Madrid and Chelsea are also represented in the collection. Similarly, front and centre within the musical instruments’ case is a trumpet – apparently the instrument Evo played as a child, though unfortunately not the original. In the international section, the understated (when compared to some other countries’ gifts) model of the White House, gifted from the United States, illustrates the cool relations between the two countries.
The sheer volume of the collection is overwhelming; incomplete statistics of the gift totals show President Morales to have received 2,660 football shirts. One case is dedicated to figurines representing each region and community of Bolivia, whilst another holds the ceremonial sceptres that he has received. In the ‘fiesta’ section of the museum, there are altiplano carnival masks such as the famous Diablada. Furthermore, the international section is a treasure trove, with tea cups from China, multiple sets of Russian dolls and various lavish gifts from Cuba.
There are also some certified treasures. UNESCO has identified some of the costumes originating from the jungle areas of Bolivia as having special cultural significance. They are joined by countless amounts of tejidos and plumas.
Despite the curious nature of this collection, the museum stands as a paradox. According to Agencia de Noticias Fides’ María José Ferrel Solar, in a town of 243 households, of which 80 have access to running water and 12 to a sewage system, copious funds have been spent on the museum. It is a hulking example of city-building in something barely more than a hamlet, a glass marvel in a town of corrugated iron. This has led to some criticism of the museum. Although Minister of Culture Marko Machicao has said the museum will benefit Orinoca through tourism, there have been questions raised in Bolivian newspapers such as Página Siete that it is a colossal misallocation of funds to build something ultimately unnecessary in the middle of a town in need of so much.
The museum is a testament to President Morales’ tenure: grandeur in humble surroundings, the energy and joviality of the fiesta section, the focus on indigenous culture a marker of his successes in promoting the rights of the long oppressed. However, it has its flaws. It is out of place in its surroundings, far outshining any other museum in the country in a town a tiny fraction the size of La Paz. Whilst the inhabitants struggle to get clean water, tourists will be bussed in to visit the shiny new toy dominating the village. Many criticisms against President Morales can be explained away through inherent racism, misunderstanding or his larger-than-life personality. However, this multimillion-dollar shrine cannot.
Photo: Kit Fretz
The Otherworldly Beauty and Strange Myths of the Valle de la Luna
Picture this: it is 1969 and you are American astronaut Neil Armstrong. You have recently gotten back from the moon. Whilst in space you caught a glimpse of the Salar de Uyuni, one of the only natural phenomena visible from outside the earth’s atmosphere, and you decided that you had to visit Bolivia. You have just attended a football match in La Paz between The Strongest and Bolívar. You fancy a game of golf afterwards and come across a bizarre rocky valley close to the golf course. To you, the spires of weathered stone and the numerous gaps, holes and craters remind you of walking on the moon. Naturally, you suggest that this surreal landscape should be named ‘Valley of the Moon’, and its name has remained the Valle de la Luna ever since.
Are you convinced? Perhaps not. It’s one of the most common stories passed on by local guides recounting the tale of how Valle de la Luna got its name. Perhaps there is a shred of truth to the story after all, but if not, upon visiting the valley, it is not hard to see why someone thought the name appropriate. The crumbly earth creates a pockmarked effect on the ground throughout the area and the entire length of the valley is peppered with cosmic craters, eerie chasms and ominous-looking pits.
The twisting spires of the valley have occurred naturally. They are the by-product of thousands of years of powerful erosion caused by strong winds and heavy rains. The mountain that originally stood where the modern-day valley is situated was composed mostly of clay and gradually melted away to reveal the harder rock formations underneath. As the wind and rain continued to sculpt the crumbly sedimentary rock into ever-more interesting shapes, the weirdest and wackiest formations were given specific names by local guides. Walking along the treacherously narrow paths in the valley today, you come across wild shapes christened ‘the viscacha’s jump’, ‘the turtle shell’ and ‘the cholita’s hat’.
However, the potent erosion that sculpted this remarkable landscape acts as a double-edged sword. Having shaped and moulded the dramatic formations of the valley for thousands of years, the same processes of erosion could eventually destroy them. The valley’s high-altitude location subjects it to high-force winds and an annual average of 22 inches of rainfall. Moreover, the combination of heavy rainfall with La Paz’s harmful levels of air pollution presents a serious problem for the soft, sedimentary rock that makes up the valley. Being battered by acidic downpours during the rainy season is causing change at an alarming rate. These environmental factors, intensified by increasing contamination and the effects of climate change, pose a very real threat to the longevity of the site.
In the meantime, the beauty of this peculiar landscape lies in this very same process of constant transformation. The vibrant colours of the valley rock and the surrounding mountains create potent optical illusions. Everything seems both near and far. It is dazzling, as if you had just opened your eyes into direct sunlight, or peeked into a kaleidoscope. The spattering of red, blue, violet, gold and deep brown throughout the rock serves as a chronicle of the area’s fascinating geological history. The diversity of the mineral content in the stone, causing the variation in colour, is a common feature of sedimentary rock, usually located on the seabed.
According to local guides, this sedimentary rock found in the valley indicates that the whole area once formed part of an ancient and enormous inland sea, of which Lake Titicaca, to the north of La Paz, is the only remaining part. Thousands of years of climate change and subterranean geological shifts may have caused the sea itself to recede, but the sediment it left behind has been credited with lending the Valle de la Luna region a surprising biodiversity. Viscacha and various species of small birds and lizards are a common sight lurking in between the stony steeples. In addition to the fauna, the valley is also known to house more than 32 different species of cacti, including an abundance of the well-known local hallucinogenic, the San Pedro cactus.
""The legendary lost city of Atlantis could be buried somewhere in the region.""
Lake Titicaca, 50 kilometers away, plays a part in the valley’s mythology. The bottom of the lake, from which the first Incas were supposed to have emerged, is widely viewed as sacred by many local indigenous communities. By extension, the Valle de la Luna, which some believe was originally formed from same lakebed, is also a deeply spiritual location. The majesty of the towering spears of stone and the natural forces that have shaped them have led to the valley being used for numerous indigenous festivals celebrating Pachamama.
There have been numerous colourful myths and legends accorded to the Valle de la Luna, including ones featuring evil spirits that dwell in the dark, rocky crags at the bottom of the valley, tricking people into falling into the abyss and another popular story amongst local enthusiasts that asserts that the legendary lost city of Atlantis could be buried somewhere in the region that made up the ancient inland seabed.
Adding to the mystery of La Paz’s Valle de la Luna is the fact that some experts estimate that at the current rates of erosion, it may disappear altogether in between 100 to 500 years’ time. It is strange to think that this bizarre landscape, a testament to the power of nature that supposedly caught Neil Armstrong’s eye in the ’60s, could, in all too short a time, disappear without a trace. Perhaps a sudden disappearance would consolidate the legend of the place—a valley of ghosts that in time vanished into thin air and dissolved back into the mountains whence it came. Yet, it’s a sad notion that after thousands of years of being chiseled out of the stone by mother nature, the stony spires crawling up into the sky, the Valle de la Luna could eventually be lost forever.
Photos: Kit Fretz
The Salar de Uyuni is considered one of the most surreal places on earth. And day in and day out, visitors capture photos of its reflections and use its space to create comical distortions of perspective. But the area’s surroundings offer so much more: multi-coloured lakes home to thousands of flamingos; a rock shaped like a tree; geysers spewing sulphur into the atmosphere; and landscapes that look as if they were taken by the Mars Rover.
