Potosi

We arrived in the mighty city of Potosi at around 2 am where all was still in the old town, high above the sprawling favelas of the newer city below. The Cerro Rico was illuminated all the way to the summit with red lights on the left, and green on the right. We stumbled upon the Hostal Maria Victoria, and quickly set about catching up with some sleep. It was only when we arose the following morning that it became obvious we had just spent the night in an antique cell belonging to a Domenican friar, as we emerged into the daylight of a tiny cloister, complete with a carefully trimmed central tree and plenty of rosebushes. This lodging was part of the old monastery attached to the church of Santo Domingo, with its impressive array of bells in the bell tower. What a fantastic way to get under the skin of the city of Potosi: a colonial gem, with the entire upper part of town being designated a UNESCO World Heritage site!
A hearty Bolivian-style breakfast of strong coffee, orange juice, cake, bread and butter with marmelade kick-started the day. Orientation and exploration began with a visit to the San Francisco monastery, where we climbed onto the roof to admire the cityscape beneath and the mountain above. It became obvious that the doorways of the grand, Spanish churches faced the Cerro Rico which made the European inhabitants unbelievably wealthy, whilst the doors of the more modest churches built for the indigenia faced away from the mountain, to avoid glimpsing the place where they would surely die. This city has an horrific past: millions of people died in the mines of this mountain groaning with silver. It is still being worked by cooperatives to this day, and just three weeks ago the left hand side of the summit collapsed due to the mining weakening the entire hillside. We decided with a heavy heart that for humanitarian reasons, as well as our on personal safety, we would not be entering the mine today. But we did descend to the crypt of San Francisco to see the skulls of the nobility who died here centuries ago.
The mighty cathedral is undergoing a huge project of restoration, and after climbing the bell-tower for another vista of the city, we explored the interior of the building, where the pillars have been completely re-gilded and painted.
It was time for a pit stop. Both Jon and Simon were eager to try Maté de Coca: the chewing of Coca leaves or the drinking of Coca tea is a widespread practice here to combat altitude and fatigue. The miners use it to numb their senses in order to persevere down the mine, where, incidentally, they will die within ten years. And just walking around this place at over 4,000m is very demanding, so the tea was a welcome refreshment as we explored the highest city in the world!