Playing with Dynamite

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We loaded onto the bus to Potosi after a good pizza in Uyuni. After being in the car all day coming back from the salt flats we were not looking forward to getting back on the road. The journey took six and a half hours, and we were dropped on the side of the road somewhere in Potosi in the pitch black at 1.30am. Nothing new there. We waited to be hounded by the usual taxi drivers, but surprisingly this didn't happen. Eventually a taxi came round the corner so we took our chances and dived in. We were headed to La Casona Hostel, the room had been booked for us by Honey Tours in La Paz, we were soon to realise with a hefty booking fee.

We were exhausted and had to get up early for the mines tour, so we just wanted to get to bed. Obviously then there had to be a problem. The hostel had no record of our reservation. After a lot of to-ing and fro-ing we were eventually given a dorm room instead of a double which we had paid for. We woke to a lovely (not) freezing shower, where Katie had a change of heart and decided she did not want to go 14km into the mines. So it was a very rushed ten minutes before the minibus left in which we ran to the main Plaza for her to book onto the exterior trip.

The silver mines in Potosi have been mined for thousands of years, and during the Spanish revolution the Spanish stole enough silver to build a bridge right from Bolivia to Spain. Nowadays there is not a lot of silver left, it is mostly minerals and lead are being mined. The mines are absolutely huge and occupy the inside of a mountain, as well as going underground 14 floors. The conditions are really horrific, so much so that the miners constantly chew coco leaves and drink 96% alcohol when they are inside. Miners work from as young as 12, and can spend 8 hours a day in the dark, 7 days a week. Most are part of co-operatives where the average wages are £100- £200 a month. Even though Bolivia is cheap, this really is a poor wage.

Katie's Trip

So with my fear of being underground and not being able to breathe, I decided it would be wise not to risk taking the trip and ruining it for everyone else. We patiently tried to explain the situation to our hostel manager, to find out whether there was the option to take a different tour. He obviously had no idea what we were talking about, but fortunately a girl sitting in reception overheard our conversation and chimed in that she was taking an exterior tour of the mines at 9am. It was already 8.45 so I thought there was no chance I was getting on it. Luke insisted we ran to Koala Tours' office to try anyway, so off we went puffing and panting in the highest town in the whole world. Talk about out of breath.

Fortunately we made it there and were able to book onto the trip, although it was surprisingly more expensive than the trip that actually takes you inside the mines, at £15. What rip off merchants. Anyway I was glad I was going to have a productive day, and most of all that I would get the chance to play with dynamite, so I skipped back to the hostel like the cat who got the cream.

It was just myself and Karolina on the tour (the girl from reception) so we had the guide to ourselves, fortunately spoke English. We first went to the miners market where we were encouraged to buy gifts for the miners that we would come into contact with on the tour. We bought some juice and coco leaves, and were able to try the 96% alcohol which I refused. We also bought the dynamite in the miners market, to light later on. There are no restrictions in Bolivia on who can buy it which was quite strange, but we haven't noticed kids playing with it or anything.

After the market we were taken to the refinery where they extract the minerals. It was really loud inside, and the walkways were wooden planks suspened over who knows what. The only warning we were given was 'Don't touch anything, its poisonous' and on we headed into the depths of the factory. It was quite exciting being up close to all the whirring machinery with no protection of regard for health and safety. We would never be able to do anything like this at home. At the end of the refinery our guide grabbed hold of a pan of silver and smeared it on our faces- not cool considering they were probably still covered in poison.

We then got back in the jeep and headed up the mountain inside which the mines are situated. The cliff faces were really steep from the side of the road but I was used to this by now. Our guide told us that it was now the time to chew some coco leaves. I was scared that this meant I may not be able to breathe at the top if I didn't, so obeyed. Basically, the leaves are meant to be sucked so that you only take in the juices, which subdue and numb the senses. I didn't really like having them in my mouth as it was really difficult not to swallow them. We continued up the mountain and I decided to take the risk of not having anymore. I made it to the top but it was hard work at the altitude. The guides however were bounding up with their leaves intact. Near to the top the car stopped and we got out. We spent the next hour or so hiking to the top pinnacle over wobbly rocks. From the top of the mountain there was a beautiful view over the town and the surrounding mountains. We sat and chatted to the guides about the conditions of the mines, and various local interests, including local football.

We climbed back down to the car where we were driven to two different entrances to the mines, and we were able to walk about 5 minutes inside. Surprisingly the ceiling was high enough that I didn't even have to duck down, but seeing how dark it was, I was extremely glad that I hadn't opted to go on the full underground tour.

After venturing inside the mines, we had the greand finale. Our guide prepared our dynamite into a bomb like in the cartoons- he then attached the fuse and lit it. We were encouraged to pass it around and pose for pictures, bizarrely I trusted the dynamite and wasn't even a bit scared. Eventually the guide ran off with it and dumped it at the bottom of a cliff, and we were able to watch the explosion which was so cool. I wish we had bought more dynamite for a bigger explosion though.

Luke's Trip

My trip started much the same as Kate's, with a stop at the miner's market. We purchased gifts for the miners, then continued on to the mines.

We all had to dress up in protective clothing including trousers and wellies so that we wouldn't get covered in dust and poison. The mines were a labrinyth of dark narrow passageways and openings where miners would be working. We met up with a number of different miners who told us about how they work, and what they are looking for. Our guide told us how if silver is found nowadays, it is often kept hushed, and miners lock up the area they have been working in when they leave at night. Often, different groups of miners will be following the same vein of silver, and when they realise and come to meet, they often have wars involving dynamite with short fuses which results in deaths which are labelled as 'unknown cause'.

The conditions in the mine were horrible, as temperatures can reach up to 45 degrees, and there is little oxygen due to being underground at high altitude. In order to help cope with these conditions the miners chew golf ball sizes of coco leaves, and drink the strong alcohol. We were encouraged to drink the alcohol and chew coco leaves whilst underground. I only tried three small shots, but the coco leaves really helped with the breathing. We ended up going down to the seventh level of the mines through a series of holes and ladders. I was asked to help people up and down being the tallest on the trip. When we got to one cavern, our guide prepared a stick of dynamite and forced it into a gap in the wall. When it exploded the whole of the mines shook and the helmet fell off one of the guy's heads in my group. The guide told us to imagine the effects of when they set off 32 pieces at the same time, which is apparently common practise. I'm surprised the mine is still intact.

At the end of the tour we were shown a shrine to the devil. The miners toss alcohol on the floor to ward off the devil who they believe they are close to underground. They make peace offerings in the form of llama foetuses, and it has been known that government clean ups have uncovered dead babies.

After our tours, we met back at the hostel then decided to go out for a pizza and beer. We then headed to the bus station in a manic rush after finding out from reception that we were late. We made it in plently of time, and Luke was really excited to find a little street vendor selling English toffees at 3 for 10p. We were relieved to find out that the journey would only take 3.5 hours, but we were so exhausted and could not wait to relax for a few days in Sucre.

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