Arriving in Potosi after another overnight bus, it was immediately apparent we were in the world's highest city at 4070m. Even before we got off the bus I started to feel a bit dodgy, and it only got worse. Thankfully the English guys we met in Sucre had recommended a hostel to stay at, so we were able to get a taxi straight there instead of having to find one ourselves. The beds weren't ready yet so we had to walk around for a while, so we got a nice cheap lunch and checked out the local market. However, we both started feeling really lightheaded and struggling for breath, and it wasn't a pleasant feeling. I only got worse and felt like absolute shit - hard to breathe, lightheaded, nauseous, whole body ached and I couldn't sleep. Someone in our dorm gave me a valium but that did nothing, so I tripled up the next night. Luckily there's not really much to do in Potosi apart from the mine tour, so I was able to get some altitude sickness pills and rest up for a day before we did that.
As a city, Potosi is pretty damn depressing and the unescapable pollution from the vehicles really puts you off walking around at all. It's hard enough to breathe as it is without throwing noxious gases into the mix. Thanks to the discovery of silver and ore deposits in the mountain Potosi is set against, it was the biggest and wealthiest city in Latin America by the end of the 18th century. Little of this former glory remains, but thousands of people still risk their lives daily by working in the mines.
We'd heard good things about the mine tours run through the hostel we were staying at, so we booked for the 8:30am tour on a Friday morning. There were quite a few of us but we were split up into groups so we had a van and a tour guide for each group. Our first stop was to a random little place to get geared up - pants, jacket, gumboots and helmet fully equipped with light. We could also buy bandannas, and later on in the market, face masks, to guard against the dust. Then we stopped off at the miners market where we bought gifts for the miners we came across on our tour. They appreciate anything, but the most popular gifts are coca leaves, water, soft drink, cigarettes, alcohol (96% spirit) and of course dynamite, along with ammonium nitrate. If such a store existed in any western country, kids (and quite possibly adults too) would be getting pissed and blowing shit (and themselves) up every week. After a brief visit to the mineral refinery we finally arrived at the mine, and it was at about this time we started to wonder what the hell we'd gotten ourselves into.
Headlights switched on we trudged single file into the abyss, our guide in front and another guy bringing up the rear, on hand to lead anyone back out if they freaked out. I was just hoping it wouldn't be me. The first part of the tunnel was walkable, but we had to duck at regular intervals to avoid smashing our heads, especially the tall guys like Kurt. Then came the first challenging part - crawling down a narrow passage to visit the devil, or 'Tio', that the miners worship to protect them in their hell below ground. The working conditions the miners have to endure are so appalling that they believe God doesn't exist in such a place, and if they don't worship their Tio he will punish them by causing a collapse or some other horrible death.
It was shocking to see how the miners work - mostly by hand with basic tools, pushing and pulling trolleys by hand (300kg empty, 2 tonnes full), no safety provisions and no ventilation. They survive their entire shift (anywhere from 4 to 24 hours) solely on coca leaves and water if they're lucky enough to have it, as the dust would contaminate any food they take down. And temperatures can vary from freezing to a stifling 45 degrees. The cherry on top is the exposure to noxious chemicals, which eventually kills most miners of silicosis pneumonia. Sadly, most people in this town have no alternative to earn money, so the day they enter the mine is pretty much a death sentence.
As we came across miners the guide would ask them their name, their age and how long they'd been working in the mines. Their ages ranged from 21 to in their 40's, but most had started when they were just a teenager (14-16). They could barely spare breath to talk and were grateful for our gifts, but a bottle of water isn't really going to do shit for them. Thankfully we didn't actually see any kids working, but another group saw a 16 year old. If you've seen the documentary 'The Devil's Miner', it really is that bad.
Throughout the 2 hours we were down there, we had to crawl forwards and backwards on our backs or stomachs through narrow shafts, climb up and down dodgy rickety ladders and walk bent over at the waist to avoid the low ceilings. The high altitude combined with the claustrophobic conditions made breathing so difficult, and our legs were like jelly from constantly walking in a squat. I honestly don't know how those guys do it day after day, year after year.
It was definitely a unique and eye-opening experience, but we had no idea just how physically demanding or scary it would be. So after only 2 hours, with muscles aching and lungs heaving, we were thankful to get the fuck out of there.
After only 3 days in Potosi we were ready to move on, and preferably down, so we headed south to Tupiza.
No comments:
Post a Comment