Day 5

Today we spoke to Isabel Villalobos, president of the Fundacion arte y culturas Bolivianos. For the past five years they have been working with the lustrabotas, and one of their most exciting projects is the newspaper they produce, which ostensibly gives them a voice, a means of raising awareness about their circumstances. The papers sell for 4 Bolivianos (around $.50) and the lustras keep all profits. She got the idea from her son Jaime. While a student in the UK he had noticed a similar practice in which newspapers were distributed by the homeless. He brought the idea back home and it has become one of the bright spots of their organization. It is very clear to see this woman cares deeply about the shoeshiners, she looks at them as if they were her own children. She gets particularly upset when speaking of one of the ones that she lost. He was a young man she had been working with for over a year. And he had committed suicide. Another one fell asleep on train tracks and was run over by a train.

Following our interview with Isabel we had some lunch then headed to San Francisco to meet Cynthia and bring her to meet her son. Unfortunately, Cynthia was completely wasted, sniffing glue through her pink scarf. She was totally incoherent and so we couldn't go. Instead we Marlane, a woman of 35 who could easily pass for 55. She is missing all of her front teeth and most of the ones on the bottom.

She is a great character. She introduced herself as Marlane Maria Conshita Rodriguez Marita Bonita Malita Sanchita Gonzalez Santiago, and let out a big old laugh. She has a tremendous sense of humor, a natural performer, constantly playing up to the camera. I'd say as a lustrabota this can be very handy- in the 45 minutes we spent with her she had five customers. She has the kind of charm that can't be taught, and had the men and women who lay their feet on her little box, smiling the whole time. So not only did they get shiny shoes, they also were entertained. I'd say that's a bargain for just a few Bolivianos. Sitting next to Marlane was her son Johnathon, a little rascal who chewed bright pink gum that filled his entire mouth. I think he must have had five pieces in there. He said he wants to be a police officer, which drew a look a shock from Marlane. The police are seen as the number one enemy of the lustras. I asked him if he worried about the fact that his mother worked the streets. He said no, and Marlane playfully smacked the back of his head, 'You don't care about your mother, how dare you!', then threw a playful wink my way. Fluttering eyelashes, cheeky smiles, playful shadow punches, crocodile tears, were all part of her arsenal, all honed and sharpened through the 18 years she has spent working as a lustrabota. It was pure pleasure to speak to her. And then, out of no where, as unexpected and sudden as a lightening bolt, she started to cry. 'It is so hard, so hard. When I have no work it makes me so sad.' And then, just as quickly she stopped crying, and wiped away her tears. There were five shoeshiners to her right; she could not show weakness. As a woman she must be twice as tough as the men. Any vulnerability would undoubtedly be exploited. In fact less than 10 minutes after that moment, one of the men had started harassing her, complaining that she was using the wrong shoeshine box. They cost 300 Bolivianos (about $30) and so she must borrow someone else's. I wonder, though, if his issue was the box, or was it that he saw her 'moment'.

After filming we returned home and almost immediately Fabio complained of feeling sick. He had terrible shivers, so we went to the supermarket and got some medicine. I think it must be a combination of the high altitude, the cold room, and maybe the steak he had for lunch. This place is very hard on the senses. I've been told it takes a week to get adjusted to the altitude, and that's if you use that week to do nothing but rest. And we have been working flat out. So it's been extra tough. Fabio's looking a lot better this morning, but we're going to start a bit later today so he can recharge his batteries.