Copacabana, Bolivia is a small town on the shore of Lake Titicaca, for tourists, it serves as a base for exploring the islands of the lake. As Bolivia no longer has any coast, Lake Titicaca holds the same fascination as the seaside for many Bolivians. Copacabana is also very close to the Kasani border crossing with Peru, so it has the chaotic air of a frontier town.
These two reasons however are not the main ones for the huge amount of visitors that flock to this unassuming town. Copacabana is a pilgrimage site for Catholics as its cathedral holds the gaudy statue of the Virgin of Copacabana. People come to ask for her blessing, especially for their cars. The blessing of the automobiles happens every Saturday and we witnessed huge queues of brightly decorated vehicles waiting in turn. We were there in early August which is one of the main religious festivals of the year.
Copacabana in also home to a large hill called Cerro Calvario. Pilgrims (both Christian and of Andean faith – the two are easily interchangeable in Bolivia!) make their way to the top leaving stone offerings to the mountain gods. There are also stops to receive a Pachamama (earth mother) blessing and burn it, have your fortune told, touch a lucky toad statue, buy small votive offerings such as mini-cars and shops or alcoholic offerings. The floor is strewn with confetti and, sadly, there is a lot of rubbish (not sure Pachamama would be too pleased about that). At the top of the hill there are a series of Christian crosses where people light their candles and pray. We hiked up for sunset over the lake and it was indeed very beautiful.
What struck us was the easy mixing of the Christian faith with older traditions which, with our Western eyes we have difficulty seeing as anything other than superstition. Is it any more irrational than organised religion though?! Maybe if you are into pilgrimages then this is the town for you, however we did not like the sort of mass trance of faith, and could not see it as anything more than a curiosity. Beautiful scenery, strange town!
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