What Culture Shock?

While almost every aspect of the culture in Bolivia is new to me, I don’t think I have had any trouble adjusting to it. Because of my little expectations coming in, I have not found my self shocked by any of the new experiences. I think I have been able to learn an immense amount from the cultural differences. The time we have spent here has flown by. This can be attributed to the long work days and the busy weekends we have had. In Bolivia, people work until late in the day (around 6pm) but have a 2–3 hour lunch everyday. During this time, everyone spends quality time with friends and family over a large meal.

The work culture in Bolivia is a lot more laid back than in the United States. Nothing runs as efficiently and nothing is expected to run as efficiently. I have found this both refreshing and frustrating at times. This week was our first week of math classes with Bolivia4ward. We are working with close to 80 kids from ages 6–17 on a wide variety of math topics and science experiments. This has been a test to my spanish speaking abilities as the kids do not speak a word of english. Many of the kids come from orphanages and heart wrenching backgrounds which makes the work more rewarding. The education system in Bolivia does not provide much individual attention to the children so many kids in the same grade are at very different math levels. I look forward to acknowledging the impact we can make in the following week of classes.

While I have not been here for long, we have managed to pack in many excursions. I went to the indigenous festival celebrating the winter solstice, I climbed to the tallest peak in Cochabamba in the Andes Mountain Range, I went to a music festival in a local park,and I went to a water fountain park across the street from our apartment. These adventures have been a defining part of my time in Bolivia. They have allowed me to interact with locals and learn about the culture first hand.

I am incredibly grateful to be spending my summer in Bolivia and I look forward to the many adventures to come!