📸 Photo

RUSTY

was Uri, a German backpacker with an unkempt beard who had made the dilapidated El Carretero hostel his new home.

Uri was an expert on anything to do with South America. His attire was an eclectic assortment of local apparel picked up during his travels: a scarf from Chile, a Peruvian poncho, an imitation Ché Guevara beret and necklaces made from rainforest seeds sold by Brazilian street hippies. He was too tall and skinny for any of it to look right, but somehow he carried it off. The truth was, all these fashion accessories lent him a certain kudos among the other travellers.

When I talked to Uri, the basis of Thomas’s fame became more apparent: not only was he the prison’s tour guide, he was also its resident cocaine dealer.

'The best coke in the world comes from Bolivia,' Uri informed me, sitting up on his stained dormitory mattress in order to light his second joint of the morning. He deliberately directed a stream of smoke my way.
'And the best coke in Bolivia comes from inside San Pedro prison. The inmates manufacture it in laboratories inside.'

The fact that convicted drug traffickers could continue their trade from prison would have struck me as ironical in any other country. In Bolivia, it didn’t warrant comment.

'So, you know this guy Thomas who does the tours, then?' I asked.
'Of course. He’s my main supplier. Why? How much coke do you need?'

I liked the way Uri said need instead of want. 'So, how do I get to the prison?' I asked, ignoring his offer. 'And how do I find Thomas?'
'Just catch a taxi,' he answered, making his way towards the door that hung tentatively by its remaining hinge. 'But don’t worry about finding Thomas. He’ll find you.'

☠

I set out that very afternoon. Chilly air blanketed the city of La Paz even though the day was beautifully clear and the sun abnormally brilliant. At three thousand, six hundred metres above sea level, the thinner atmosphere imbued the light with a slightly surreal quality. The sky emanated a rarefied, crystalline blue, and everything looked sharper and more in focus. Above the city basin, the snow-capped peaks of Mount Illimani loomed unrealistically close.