¿Evo ya viene?

That's what the little girl sitting in her mother's lap was asking as a crowd of 10,000 people (mostly campesinos) gathered in the plaza de armas in Sucre. Sam and I pushed our way to the front as much as possible, also trying to steal a glimpse of the Bolivian President when he arrived. Bolivia´s first indigenous president Evo Morales represents the hopes and dreams of millions of Bolivia´s poor and marginalized, who have been fighting for centuries for equality and justice. The hope and excitement was tangible when the crowd surged to its feet as Evo´s slick black Infinity pulled in front of the Casa de Independencia.

Many in the crowd were dressed in their traditional regional clothing. All extremely colorful with funny hats resembling the conquistadors helmets. The air was filled with Andean flute music, dancing and marching with a lot of flag waving. Including both the Bolivian flag and the Andean flag, which happens to look quite a lot like the Gay Pride flag. The Andean flag represents the age old dream of reuniting the Inca Empire whose influence stretched from Venezuela to Chile and Argentina. Both, Tupac Amarú an indigenous leader from Perú who lead an unsuccessful rebellion in the 1780s, and Símon Bolívar from Venezuela shared this dream. Bolívar was present in Sucre on Aug. 6th 1825 when Bolivia gained its independence from Spain and was integral in forming Bolivia´s first government.

Unfortunately I didn't get a glimpse of El Presidente but Samuel jumped on top of a platform pack full of campesinos and managed to snap a few quick shots of his arrival. We had to dash off before his formal appearance since we had pick up some friend chicken to go and catch a night bus back to Cochabamba. However, it was exciting to be present at such a historical moment in Bolivia's history.

I wont even get into the detail of our ride back to Cochabamba. Suffice to say it was a headache and a half trying to figure out which bus we were on and since we opted for the non-bus cama version, the ride was cold, long and cramped. Its good to be back.