VERY INTERESTING: BOLIVIA

 Hello ladies and gents this is the Viking telling you that today we are talking about 

Fascinating Facts About Bolivia

1. Bolivia is home to over 30 official languages. 

Although Bolivia is one of South America’s Spanish speaking countries, this is not the only language that is widely spoken in the country. The 2009 constitution lists 37 languages in total, some of which are now extinct. 

All indigenous languages are officially recognised, with Quechua being the most widely spoken. As well as Quechua which is predominantly spoken in the Andes, Chiquitano is mainly spoken in the Santa Cruz department, Guaraní on the border with Paraguay and Aymara in the Altiplano.

2. Many people think that La Paz is the capital of Bolivia but that isn’t strictly true. 

When you’re reading about Bolivia, you may read that La Paz is the capital of the country. However, this isn’t strictly true. La Paz is the administrative capital, meaning that this is where the official government seat is. If we’re talking administrative capitals, it is actually the highest capital in the world. 

Sucre is located in the southern highlands of Bolivia and is the constitutional (or judicial) capital. This is because it is where the Supreme Court of Justice is located. Although La Paz is technically still a capital, Sucre is the true capital as christened in the Constitution of Bolivia. 

3. Salar de Uyuni, Bolivia’s famous salt flats, is home to the largest salt deposit in the world. 

Spanning a massive 10,582 square kilometres, Salar de Uyuni is actually as large as Hawai’i Island! Bolivia’s famous salt flats make frequent appearances on bucket lists and visitors often plan their trip to coincide with the wet season. This is because for a few short weeks every year, the surface water turns the salt flats into the world’s largest mirror! 

Salar de Uyuni sits where the prehistoric lake, Lago Minchin, would have been 40,000 years ago. A change in climate from wet to dry, combined with a large rise in temperatures meant that the lake dried up, causing a thick salt crust to form. Nowadays, the rate of evaporation is around 10 times more than the rainfall which means there will always be salt on the ground’s surface. 

Tours to Salar de Uyuni are easy to arrange from La Paz although some prefer to rent a car and have their own DIY adventure. If you’re feeling brave, you can eat the salt at  Salar, however, to avoid any debris from people’s boots, it is probably just better to buy a bag from one of the tourist shops! 

4. Bolivia is named after Venezuelan leader Simón Bolívar. 

You may have heard of the prominent political figure Simón Bolívar for his role in leading the Wars of Independence across South America. He liberated five countries from Spanish rule, his home country of Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia. 

Venezuela’s then-leader Antonio José de Sucre was given the ultimate choice on Bolivia’s future. Bolívar gave him the option of uniting Charcas (modern-day Bolivia) with either the United Provinces of Rio de la Plata or the newly formed Peru Republic. There was also a third option offered: to declare independence from Spain and go it alone. 

Sucre chose independence and in 1825, Charcas officially broke away from the Spanish. The newly formed country was named in honour of its liberator, Simón Bolívar. 

5. Bolivia is one of two landlocked countries in South America.

If you’ve already visited Bolivia, you will have heard that the country no longer has access to the ocean. If you are yet to visit, I promise you that at some point during your trip you will have angry Bolivians regaling you with the story of their ‘stolen sea’.

To cut a long story short, when Bolivia became an independent state in 1825, it controlled the Atacama Desert, meaning it had access to the Pacific Ocean. However, as disputes over control of natural resources blew up, Chile decided to move armed forces into Antofagasta, a Bolivian port city, resulting in a declaration of war. 

This is where things got really messy. According to the Bolivians, the Chilean forces invaded during carnival, meaning that everybody in Bolivia was drinking. As a result of this merriment, the Chileans were able to take Antofagasta and eventually gain territory from Bolivia, including its access to the ocean.

Although the War of the Pacific was a complex operation on both sides, the Bolivians have never forgiven the Chileans for invading during carnival, a covert mission that they see as breaking all the boundaries of common decency. After all, how could Bolivia defend itself when everyone was trollied?! 

Today, Bolivia is still fighting to regain its coastline but a recent ruling by the UN ruled in favour of Chile. The Bolivians haven’t let this deter them though, they still celebrate ‘Sea Day’ annually and have their own navy. In fact, the motto of the Bolivian navy  is: “El mar nos pertenece por derecho, recuperarlo es un deber.” This translates to, “ The sea belongs to us by right, recovering it is our duty.”

And as always have a chilled day from the Viking