An actual Zebra crossing

Anyone who has tried to cross the road in South America will know that Zebra crossings are just a complete waste of paint. And if you have been to Bolivia you will also know that they are possibly the worst drivers on the planet. However I loved this campaign in La Paz that consisted of people dressed up at Zebras trying to get cars to stop and pedestrians across the road safely. I hope they got danger money for that.

Who cares about advertising # 8

When you work in a Bolivian mine...

Despite being a relatively well paid job by Bolivian standards (2,000 Bs a month compared to 400 which is the national average) it comes at a price. The average life expectancy of a Bolivian miner is 45 years old. The youngest person I met on my trip down the mine was 13 years old and to be fair he seemed to be smiling. I know we were a nation renowned for mining but even in this day and age safety standards in Bolivia are appaling.

They even let me hold some dynamite which was about to explode in `3 minutos, mas o menos`. Jane doesn`t look quite as happy as I do about it.



And this is proof that I`m a planner who isn`t afraid to get his hands dirty.

Inventive spaces

Since I´ve been away I have kind of become obessed with toilets. Not just because a good one is often hard to find but some people think of them as more than just a functional space. After this one in Panama I have since come across this in one Ecuador.

A sort of toilet come research facility.



After you`ve spent time alone with your thoughts you can write your comments and categorise them into music, food, service and other.



Probably my best so far is this one also in Ecuador. I stayed at The Black Sheep Inn eco-lodge and this is the view from the number two.



And not like many ´Eco-lodges´ that are simply holes in the ground and you need to take your own toilet paper with you - this is a real one. Complete with a dry toilet where the remnants are fed to the ducks whose eggs make the Brownies you can by for a dollar.



I like the fact that people who have no perception of how things should be create things in the way that they actually should be. If that makes sense at all...