The Prado (the last night)

It is a complicated story, mostly having to do with American Airlines, but I spent the last  (and unplanned) night in a hotel downtown. These are some pictures from some walks along the “prado” - a plaza like area that forms a median on the principal road in the city center. It is a pleasant place for just walking around, especially in the early evening.

I thought the landscaping was especially noteworthy. I’m not sure it is all that common to see this much green and well cared for landscaping in a large public space in the middle of a city.

In harmony with the “occupy” something movement in the US, the prado had some “occupants” as well, although the purpose wasn’t that clear. I never saw much activity, but there were some people in some of the tents at times. Being an obvious American in Morales’ Bolivia (and a republican too) and knowing the Bolivians’ reputation for a fairly quick trigger on protests, I decided to pass on asking many questions.

This is the major university in La Paz that is right on the Prado. That evening a fairly large group of students (men and women) were out on the Prado performing some sort of dance. The mural suggests that Milton Friedman’s famous Capitalism and Freedom may not be part of the required reading or July 31 (his 100^th birthday) a notable event. This is unfortunate and in contrast to Chile, where Friedman was instrumental in helping steer its economy to market based/capitalist system which is now (or at least its relative prosperity) the envy of other Latin-American countries. Bolivian students, as would most other students these days, would likely benefit from a little more Friedman and a little less Che.