Border Crossing Bureaucracy

Yesterday we had a 12-hour drive from Argentina to Bolivia, with a three hour stop at the border. It was an eye-opener: while just about everyone else was walking straight through, Raul, who has been guiding us through this trip, had to get a dozen forms signed and stamped, visit half a dozen border offices, get photocopies, get them stamped again, visit another office, wait in line for ages, etc, etc. As he explained to us, the border guards were asking for money 'for beer and food', but each time he refused, so they kept on making him go through the bureaucratic process.

But we got through in the end and then drove hundreds of miles through Bolivia's poorest region: scattered mud and brick huts, mad dogs running after our 4x4 as we drove through small villages, across deserted plains and through rocky valleys, leaving swirling clouds of brown dust behind us. As Raul frequently pointed out, there is a huge need here for solar energy as most communities we came across had no access to electricity.

John