• Handmade Culture,  Money, Economics, Politics,  Peru's Andes Mountains

    Peruvian Ingenuity at 15,300 Feet Above Sea Level

      Guy selling dolls at Qoyllur Rit’i 2008 The average Peruvian works so hard, for so little. El Fotografo and I met this souvenir vendor at the Qoyllur Rit’i pilgrimage in May. He was selling little handmade dolls of costumed dancers for 7 soles a piece. That’s about $2.33 each. They were cute. I bought one. To get to the plaza where he could sell his dolls, the guy had to travel for hours in a bus or truck to the town of Mawayani, which is about 13,800 feet above sea level. The good thing about Mawayani is they have toilets there. Then he had to climb a steep five-mile path up the mountains, ascending another…