Alasitas (not to be confused with toys)

NPR had an interesting piece on alasitas that I caught on the radio yesterday.  It was fun, but I’m bothered by the (very western) assumption that alasitas should be compared to toys simply because they are small.  This is something that Bolivians (in my experience) rarely say.  In the interviews here, they talk mainly about [...]

Natitas: Talking Heads of the Andes

“Ai, senorita, me gustaria tener su calavera!” “Bueno, senora, cuando ya no lo necesito, es suyo!” ["Oh, miss, I would like to have your skull!" "Well, ma'am, when I no longer need it, you can have it!"] Thus I entered laughing with a stranger into natitas in the Cemeterio General of La Paz on Nov. [...]

Halloween

I timed this trip in part to see “Todos Santos” and the Day of the Dead, celebrated here from Nov. 1-3. I’ll be in the campo for those days (so I won’t be posting here until afterwards) but I want to say something about the sudden appearance of Halloween here in La Paz. When I [...]

University Autonomy

The Entrada Universitaria was held last weekend in La Paz. Featuring thousands of dancers affiliated with various facultades at UMSA, the entrada is an important event for many students. What’s interesting to this anthropologist is that the Entrada is explicitly about UMSA as an institution publicly fomenting & demonstrating “national culture.” Furthermore, in an interview, [...]