La Paz

After finishing in Quesimpuco, we left at 3am for La Paz.  The group had an afternoon and a day to spend however we liked.

Interesting house built on an abandoned structure, outside of La Paz.

Marches and celebrations everywhere, this is just one of many we had to pass.

One of two entrances to La Paz.  We ended up eating at an Argentinian steak house and sleeping very well that night.

Stephen, Jake, and I decided to go for a mountain bike road the next morning down the Yungus Road- commonly referred to as "Death Road" or "The world's deadliest road".

the tour company was very touristy, but it was a great opportunity to see different landscapes.  The ride covered something like 10,000 feet of elevation change.  We started with snow and ended in a jungle with parrots.

Stephen and I racing

one of many forced and staged photos.

the road is dangerous because it is very narrow and cars still use the path occasionally.  Luckily, no American has ever died on the road; we kept the streak alive.

The middle, slightly above cloud level.

The end.  COMPLETELY different than Quesimpuco.

The beginning of the ride

A shot of La Paz.  The "downtown" is located in the center of the bowl.

Our last night included a musical performance with dinner.  Of course dancers appeared, and inevitably I had to get up and dance in front of everyone.  It was a very fun night to end our Bolivian experience. Also, Llama steak wasn't half bad.

Last Day

Recording a video that summarized construction philosophy and engineering design for the community to reference as they continue building the system throughout the year.

Right after we finally got water to flow through the sprinklers.  People were laughing, crying, and generally very excited to see such progress in 6 days.

Goofy kids always wanting their picture taken.

The irrigation team on our last day

All of Auburn together on the last day

Day 5

Three birthdays celebrated during the course of the trip.

We needed a propane torch to heat metal rods up to puncture the PVC.  The team enjoyed taking turns transporting the torch to site.

Installing a Bolivian vacuum breaker.

Stephen enthused by our contraption.

Demetri wondering how many days of ditch digging were left.

Josh making sure Mark glued the PVC correctly.

Me, taking a picture of everyone else working.  It was a very long, but productive, last day.

Day 4

The PVC pipe we worked with came in 6 meter long sections.  You can see here our first run at fitting and placing unions to allow the pipe to go down the mountain.  Difficulties include the mountain's 45 degree slope, placing the pipe through as few rockfields as possible, and ensuring the weight, pressure, and energy of the line are not able to pull the pipes apart.  By burying the line and installing heavy cement anchors (thrust blocks) we hope to overcome geographical difficulties.

A local decided to open the tank's valve in order to spray his friends with water.  The climb up the steep pipeline was fairly difficult; the water definitely didn't help his friends out.

Pipe to carry the water away from the tank when it is drained for cleaning or irrigation.  Very rocky soil.

Mark talking with our friend Modesto.  Modesto was not my biggest fan because he thought I was intentionally calling him Molesto (honest hearing problem).  We became fast friends once we cleared up the miss understanding.  Modesto always carried a radio and wanted us to dance to the local Quechuan music.  On the last day he made sure to find me in order to ask me to buy him an American made radio, because his Chinese ones were always breaking. Modesto is a strong believer in ranking products by country of origin.

My friend Stephen and I summit-ed a nearby ridge in order to spy on a project by World Vision.  It was getting dark when we left, so we decided to run down the hill.  We descended 400 feet in less than 2 minutes- leaping over stone walls and flowing arroyos that blocked our way.  The shepherds gave us the most puzzled looks when we would fly by unexpectedly.

Day 3

Every year, Auburn's trip coincides with Bolivia's Independence Day celebration.  No villager is allowed to work on the holiday; instead, the schools host a celebration that includes dances from every grade.  Having arm, leg, and facial hair makes you quite popular with Bolivian children (as they rarely see it) and I was lucky enough to be pulled into the festivities.  I can tell you that I will not be pursuing a career in Bolivian dance.

Different groups of Auburn City partner closely with the local school and church in Quesimpuco. As a result, we have strong relationships with a number of community leaders simply by city association.  Here Jake and the local priest are having a hymnal jam session on their mandolins.

We snuck back to the job-site in the afternoon and continued our surveying and assessment for line expansion.

Dr. Duke taking a photo with Benjo.

Elaborate stone walls and animal pens can be found scattered across the entire mountainside.  This donkey is serving hard time.

Day 2

Day 2 was chaos.  During the course of Day 1, I started to pick up on conversations the Bolivians were having concerning their vision for the project- their vision was significantly different than what we had planned for and agreed to.  During Night 1, I moderated a 2 hour long conversation that my friend Stephen called, "The Negotiation."  We had to understand where the community was coming from with their change request; they needed to understand the limitations we had and the dangers of "Engineering from the hip".  We eventually gained alignment and agreed to construct a demonstration unit for pressurized sprinklers that would minimize materials used, freeing the materials up for an alternate pipeline they had in mind.  We also agreed to survey and assist in routing the future pipeline, as well as constructing the main portion the future line would tie in to.  "The Negotiation" ended with an agreement that Day 2 would strictly involve the Auburn Students surveying and taking data- a.k.a no pressure to start physical work.

We arrived at the site day 2 to find 20 villagers waiting for work.  Rather than send them home, we scrambled to find beneficial work for them while we began a hasty reassessment of the project.  We also took the time to explain to everyone present the scope of the project (with the help of our translator) and to answer any question workers had about the ultimate capability of the pressurized pipeline system.

Members of the community holding up a topographical survey and poster of their mountainside.  It was a cool moment that really got people excited about their future ownership. It also gave people confidence that we had been spending time thinking about the project.

A view of the tank. The PVC pipe shown lower-center is fed by a waterfall several hundred yards away.

By the end of day two, we had completed: an initial trench from the tank to the demonstration terrace, preliminary work at preventing runoff from eroding tank foundations, and preliminary evaluation of future pressurized line expansion along the mountain.

Day 1

Quesimpuco is located 11hrs by Jeep from La Paz.  Half of the drive is on rutted, dirt roads that are barely wide enough for one car.  After the stress of passing vehicles on endless switchbacks, we had a pleasant night's sleep at the bunkhouse.  The first morning we were there, we attended a community hosted welcome ceremony.  It included indigenous dances and endless performances of "The Ants Go Marching On" by the high school band.  There were many speeches given and it concluded with every person present shaking hands.  Above is a picture of the Auburn team wearing flower wreaths that inspired the Bolivian flag's color choices.

Shortly after the opening ceremony.

During the rainy season this valley is completely filled with storm water.

This view is from the bunkhouse.  Directly above the house is a grey spot.  The grey spot is the tank we came to work on.  Each morning we hiked about 3 miles to the tank with all of our gear to begin work.

On the first time visiting the fields to be watered (view from tank).

Finding our bearings some more.

You can see terraces that are used only during the rainy season.

The irrigation team shortly after finishing the hike to site... it is an exhausting walk.

Our adviser Dr. Duke is second from right.  Green shirt is CasiMiro, the leader of the farmer cooperative that we work closely with.  He is always smiling and was very helpful.  Huber is on the far left; he works with the NGO that hosts us while we are in Bolivia.  He occasionally acted as a translator, although once he was convinced my Spanish was better than his English, he became monolingual.

Getting measurements.

Using rope to measure a typical terrace (75' x 30')

The three amigos contemplating how much work they have. Carson, Miguel, and Jake collected survey data for every terrace on the mountainside we focus on... took 4 8h days.

A meal at the bunkhouse we stay in. It has three bedrooms filled with beds, as well as a kitchen and bathroom facilities.  The generator would kick on for a couple hours each night so we would have light to cook and eat by.