|
|
|
|
vol.8 no 4, March 2003
In Vallegrande, its very hot. Today, we walked our two miles to the Internet and water is running off our noses. Since we arrived, we've had a lot of weeding to do; the gardens are overflowing with them from all the rain and heat. Then there are the strawberry plants, which keep producing berries. We keep picking them day after day and making them into jam ; we've become jam-making experts. Micheal has been attracting a lot of attention since he brought a saw that makes it faster to cut up and process wood. You should have seen the crowd during the initial tries. The cabinets are being made more quickly than last year.At the end of the day, the volunteers drag themselves home, make supper, wash and then go to sleep no later than 9:30.
The children went back to school on February 1 st this year. Since then, some stirring events have taken place. The government wanted to tax salaries of 8000 bolivianos, $1600 Canadian. The citizens protested and the idea was withdrawn. At the same time, the police asked for a raise of 40% and occupied the police stations. The army cleared them out of there, and fired at them in large cities throughout the country, leading to 31 deaths.
Don't worry, it's calm here but there is no school for young people for the next two days. We continue to walk around with no problem but we are waiting before deciding if we will go to visit another city.
In the meantime, we send our greetings to you.
See you soon,
Monique and Micheal Hazel
February 16, 2003
