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We have visited quite a few beautiful colonial towns on our trip so far. The Spanish and Portuguese certainly knew how to colonize😉 Although following along that cobble stoned path, Sucre is a fairly unique city in Bolivia. Back in the day; say 500 years ago, Bolivia was very different. In fact what we today know as Bolivia used to be a much larger region. It encompassed Paraguay, southeastern Peru, Northern Chile and Argentina, and much of modern Bolivia. Sucre was founded in 1538 and for much of its history it was the preferred the seat of Spanish royalty who lived here in the better climate while they could remain focused on the riches gained from nearby Potosi.
To this day the city remains the seat of the Roman Catholic Church in Bolivia, and Sucre is also the constitutional capital of the country. But that is a touchy subject that we’ll chat about a bit later. Located in the south-central part of the country, Sucre lies at an elevation of 2750m (9,000 ft). This relatively high altitude gives the city a cool temperate climate year-round. Sarah and I thought the weather was perfect: dry, sunny days with a cool breeze
Welcome to Sucre
Myself and Logan share some drinks with the locals at a street party at night.
Our bus ride from Potosi to Sucre took about five hours. From the group that went through the Salt Flats and Potosi remained Sarah and I, and Logan and Yael. We all booked into a nice hotel In Sucre just off the main Plaza 25 de Mayo, and being a Friday night we hit the town for a few. It was to be a big weekend before we started school!
Spanish School
While travelling South America, Sarah and I want to learn the language; makes sense after all. We did one week of basic, basic in Montevideo and met a local lady for a few hours of tutoring in Buenos Aires. Now it was time to really try and get down to it so we signed up for three weeks of classes with Sucre Spanish School. After checking three different schools, we were most impressed by SSC. It offered a more intimate experience and had a real family feel. We met with the director, Claus, and felt very comfortable as we learnt about the course. We could really design it as we wanted it which was great. In the end we signed up for the three
weeks of classes, six hours per day, with a family homestay also.
As it turned out, our homestay was with Claus and his lovely Bolivian family. It was such a great place to stay for the three weeks: a delicious breakfast and lunch that was different almost every day, our own grand bedroom with private bathroom, and we stayed with a truly fantastic and friendly family. We would all eat together each day and chat in Spanish which forced us to improve our conversation skills and even the kids, especially young Keity, were great to chat with and learn from also.
Sarah and I got used to the routine of waking up at 7.30 and grabbing breakfast at 7.45 with the family and Will, another guy who was also doing the homestay. We’d walk the 15 minutes to Sucre Spanish School in the morning and then come back for an incredible lunch. Every now and then we’d also pop across to a nearby café for some mid-morning Saltenas, the delicious meat filled pastries. After lunch we’d somehow manage another two hours of class or an excursion until 4.30 and then we would either:
• Watch Man Utd at a
Easter Egg Hunt
Sarah eyes one up, but Katie is quick.... local pub if it was Champions League Day.
• Grab a beer, and have dinner.
• Play Walleyball with Sucre Spanish School on Friday / Or Sarah would go to cooking class with SSC.
• I’d go to the gym or to Kimax class; Kimax being a kickboxing / aerobics session.
• Sometimes we could also watch foreign films at Joyride café.
• We also had a nice round of golf with Claus, and an interesting ride home when we hitched a lift!
After the three weeks our Spanish was much improved. Ahora, esta excelente hablar espanol con la gente cuando estamos viajando!
Easter
For Easter Sunday we had a real nice barbeque, and the family kids did an easter egg hunt. Sarah and I also went to church which, as you can see in the photos, was beautiful.
Santa Teresa
Sarah embarked on a mission one day to get some produce from the nuns at the local cloister…as you can see from some of the pictures it was quite funny. She had to knock on the revolving hatch window and speak in Spanish with the nun behind the hatch. The mission was successful and Sarah emerged
Through the little door...
Sarah tries her luck to buy from the cloistered nuns at Santa Teresa. with a bag full of biscuits, even though I am sure I remember her originally wanting marmalade!
Protests
…are quite commonplace in South America, definitely in Bolivia. While we stayed in Sucre, there were demonstrations and street blockades related to teaching wages. This didn’t really affect us, but other people we met were prevented from travelling as the blockades extended beyond Sucre. More on this in our La Paz blog…
Football
Thank god for football! I’ve done fairly well with keeping up with my habit, or possibly addiction, to the sport. Yes, I did schedule Spanish classes around Manchester United games - luckily Sarah also really likes watching the games and grabbing a brew too. In addition to watching the Red Devils, we also managed to watch a live game in Sucre featuring the Bolivian team from the 1994 World Cup – the only World Cup for which Bolivia have qualified. Even though they were all touching 40 years old, the boys still got moves! The World Cup team beat the regional team of Chuquisaca 2-0.
We met quite a few people in Sucre, and I was especially glad to meet Nick from London who organized some footie
Amigos
Yael, Logan and Sarah on a night out for lads who were travelling. We can take things for granted, but I have really been appreciating playing soccer on the road. Cheers Nick!
A little bit of history
Aside from having a lot of fun, Sarah and I have also enjoyed finding out a bit more about what’s going on and what’s been going on in the places we’re staying. South America is rich in history, and here’s a few interesting notes on Sucre:
• The town was founded in 1538 as La Plata, later changed name to Chuquisaca and became Sucre in 1825.
• Known as the Ciudad Blanca, or White City, because of the tradition that all buildings in the colonial town center are painted so.
• In 1991, Sucre became a UNESCO World Heritage Site
• In 1839 the city became the capital of Bolivia, but it saw the Bolivian seat of government move to La Paz in 1898
• In 1898 an effort to move the capital to La Paz resulted in a civil war. The outcome was a compromise: Sucre remained the capital in name and law and the seat of the Supreme Court, but the executive and legislature moved to La Paz.
This remains a tetchy situation….
• In November of 2007, three protestors were killed in Sucre during a conflict over the seat of the capital. Pro-Sucre protestors were supporting the move of Bolivia’s capital from La Paz to Sucre. Three deaths occurred and as many as 200 people were injured. Many in Sucre blame the Morales administration for sending the police into the conflict and thereby causing the deaths. The protests came to a disturbing climax when students took indigenous supporters hostage in the Plaza de 25 de Mayo. As a result, the tension between pro and anti-MAS supporters remains high in and around Sucre
MUSEF
We visited a couple of museums in Sucre but this was my favorite. As you can see from the photos, the festive masks are quite incredible. Masks like these are worn in the many festivals throughout Bolivia including La Diablada, a legendary festival held in nearby Oruro (Sarah and I promised ourselves that we have to make it to this some year soon).
Next up….we’re off to La Paz to catch up with our friend Ignacio.
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Barbara Huchro
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Sucre
Thank you guys for sharing your travels with us. The pictures are absolutely amazing and I always look forward to receiving them. You both look so relaxed (imagine that!!) Safe travels to you!