Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Tarabuco
By far the most popular excursion from Sucre is to the small rural town of
TARABUCO
, set
amid crumpled brown mountains about 60km southeast of the city. The town itself is an un-
remarkable collection of red-tiled adobe houses and cobbled streets leading to a small plaza
with a modern church, but its real claim to fame is its
Sunday market
, which acts as a focus
for the indigenous communities of the surrounding mountains, the so-called
Tarabuceños
,
who come to sell the beautiful
weavings
for which they're famous throughout Bolivia. The
market is a bit of a tourist trap - there are usually several busloads of foreign tourists in
attendance - but it's still principally geared towards the indigenous campesinos of the sur-
rounding region, and the stalls selling weavings and other handicrafts to tourists are far out-
numbered by those selling basic supplies such as dried foodstuffs, agricultural tools, sandals
made from tyres, big bundles of coca and pure cane alcohol. If you walk a few blocks away
from the centre of town you can still see campesinos engaging in
trueque
, a traditional An-
dean system of non-monetary trade in which agricultural products from different ecological
zones are exchanged according to standard ratios - potatoes for maize, dried llama meat for
oranges, and so on.
You can pick up some nice
souvenirs
at the market, though it's best to have some idea
of quality and price before you arrive (have a look at things on sale on the streets of
Sucre). Small items like decorative
chuspa
coca-bags make good mementoes; larger items
like ponchos and shawls cost a lot more. Be prepared to bargain, but not too hard: many of
the sellers are poor campesinos who may be desperate to sell something so they can buy es-
sential goods to take home to their families.
Photographing people
without permission is
considered rude and can provoke an angry reaction: ask first, and be prepared to pay a few
bolivianos for the privilege. If you want a less touristy experience, try one of
Candelaria
Tours' trips
to Candelaria village.
