February 18, 2005

Hello Rotarians,

I'm writing to let you know that I'm here in La Paz and doing well. For the past couple of weeks, I've been enrolled in a language program and doing a homestay with a very friendly family in the suburbs. This week I interviewed with the Universidad Mayor de San Andres, where I'm going to be studying and I was accepted with no problems, so starting March 7 I'm going to begin my masters' program in development studies. People here have been very friendly and they all are very excited to talk about what I plan on studying, with a wide variety of perspectives. I have already learned so much about the ethnic and class situations here which are very well defined and sometimes contentious. I am planning to study the issue of group rights for indigenous groups here. Bolivia is the most indigenous country in Latin America, with about 60% of the inhabitants identifying as indigenous. This creates some really interesting political and social situations, as people of the Aymara culture are existing in La Paz, which functions as a very metropolitan center of government and trade.

Last night I went to the Rotary meeting for the Miraflores Club. There are 7 clubs in La Paz and this is the one I was assigned to. It's pretty small-about 14 members, all men, but they have a very strong sense of Rotary identity. My host counselor here is a doctor who lives in La Paz named German Terrazas Rovira. His email address is gterrazas@unete.com. If you have any need to contact him, you should know that he doesn't speak any English, so I'd be happy to relay any message if need be. As for the club meeting I went to, it felt much more formal than those I have been to in San Diego. Everybody was wearing a suit and tie and there was a more strict protocol for the process of the participating in the proceedings.

I realized yesterday that I do not have any kind of token to symbolize my ambassadorial role here. Should I have brought a banner from the San Diego district or something else? If there is something you could send to me, I could give you a mailing address. I am currently in the process of preparing my presentation that I will give to various clubs around Bolivia and I just wanted to check in with you guys about any ideas you might have for an appropriate offering of goodwill to other Rotary Clubs. I want both of you, and the entire San Diego District to know that I greatly appreciate the opportunity to live, study, and connect with the people here, Rotary and otherwise. My Spanish has improved drastically over the past two weeks and I'm very anxious to get my own apartment, start studying at the university, and participate more fully in the community here in La Paz. It is an incredibly vibrant city. Please let me know if you have any other questions about my experience here. I brought a digital camera and I hope to be able to send some pictures soon.