Poet. Photographer. Adventurer. Gypsy.

Lauren Tivey

Check it out » Photo Exhibit for The Camel Saloon

Bolivian photo exhibit I did for The Camel Saloon, at the link above. I love editor Russell Streur’s write up (thanks, Russell!):

Dear Saloonatics:

The Cocaine Museum, the Train Graveyard, the Guardian Bird and Grandmother Bowler.

Where do all the good things in life end up?

Bolivia.

And the Camel Saloon is totally delighted today to announce the opening of a new photographic exhibition at the joint: a festive, colorful and all around lovely journey to La Paz, the Salt Flats and all points within shouting distance, created especially for the tavern by the festive, colorful and all around lovely Lauren Tivey.

Please dust off the hiking boots and go climbing with the Shanghai gypsy herself at: http://eyeonbolivia.blogspot.com/

And feel free to stop by the other photography exhibtions, too:

Asian Caravan by Jeffrey Miller: http://camelsaloonasia.blogspot.com/

Eye on Wales by Cath Barton: http://camelsaloonwales.blogspot.com/

Eye on England by Andrew Taylor: http://camelsaloonengland.blogspot.com/

Eye on the Mojave Desert by Steve Prusky: http://camelsaloonmojave.blogspot.com/

The Camel’s advice for the day: Drink up!

Russell Streur
Barkeep

Doorway Series #45:  Tiwanaku, Bolivia (my photos).

A classic: Arrival in Bolivia scene, from Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Best outlaw-buddy movie, ever.

Train Graveyard Photo Group #2:  Yep, that’s me up there.  Outskirts of Uyuni Salt Flats, Bolivia (my photos). 

Train Graveyard Photo Group #1:  Outskirts of Uyuni Salt Flats, Bolivia (my photos).

Check it out » Bolivia Set to Pass "Law of Mother Earth"

This is exciting.  I so love Bolivia for this…

From The Guardian, 10 April, 2011:  “Bolivia is set to pass the world’s first laws granting all nature equal rights to humans. The Law of Mother Earth, now agreed by politicians and grassroots social groups, redefines the country’s rich mineral deposits as ‘blessings’ and is expected to lead to radical new conservation and social measures to reduce pollution and control industry.

The country, which has been pilloried by the US and Britain in the UN climate talks for demanding steep carbon emission cuts, will establish 11 new rights for nature. They include: the right to life and to exist; the right to continue vital cycles and processes free from human alteration; the right to pure water and clean air; the right to balance; the right not to be polluted; and the right to not have cellular structure modified or genetically altered.

Controversially, it will also enshrine the right of nature ‘to not be affected by mega-infrastructure and development projects that affect the balance of ecosystems and the local inhabitant communities’.

‘It makes world history. Earth is the mother of all’, said Vice-President Alvaro García Linera. ‘It establishes a new relationship between man and nature, the harmony of which must be preserved as a guarantee of its regeneration’.”

Follow the link above to read more.

Old truck, Uyuni Salt Flats, Bolivia (my photos).

A local on the streets of La Paz, Bolivia (my photos).

Doorway Series #29:  Copacabana, Bolivia (my photos).

Coca leaf use is legal in Peru & Bolivia, though the U.S. DEA  & INCB (International Narcotics Control Board) keep trying to shut down the trade.

This is a common, ancient practice among “…peasant farmers, miners, labourers and night workers. Soothsayers and indigenous priests use it in rituals passed down by their ancestors…Ancestral beliefs, confirmed by scientific research, credit coca leaf chewing with alleviating hunger, fatigue and sleepiness.”  Having tried it while in South America, I can say that yes, it definitely does work.  Perfect for a migraine, too!

Bolivian growers and their supporters have shot up a big middle finger in response to international pressure to outlaw use.  I respect this.  Coca leaf use is not the same as large scale cocaine production.  Let them keep it legal, I say.  Long live the coca leaf.

(my photo)

quote from: http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=41708