We’re stuck in Puno, Peru, a town next to Lake Titicaca. We’d planned to take the bus six hours to La Paz this morning, but all the roads leading into Bolivia have been shut down. The border is, in effect, closed.
Protesters, most of them indigenous, have shut down roads throughout Bolivia. They’re angry that the government’s planning to export natural gas from Bolivia to be sold through Chile’s ports. Not only are the protesters demanding free gas, but they’re upset that Chile’s ports will be used–that stretch of coastline belonged to Bolivia before it was lost in a war.
Things are supposed to be back to normal tomorrow, but bus companies still aren’t selling tickets to La Paz, as they’re not sure whether or not roads will be clear. So in the meantime, we’re sitting tight…