What Lurks Beneath Velcro, El Alto Aeropuerto
Round two – attempt to fly to Rurrenabaque. Yesterday it was raining, flights canceled.
Today, we awoke before the sun. The cab ride to the airport on a road that ascends above La Paz. City lights spread upward into the nighttime sky blending in with the stars.
El Alto --
A uniformed man swings his hand towards him, gestures for me to come close. He points to my daypack which just rode through the xray machine. I hand it over. He lays it on a table as though about to perform surgery and begins violating it – searching through all its compartments and cavities. He pulls out a red pouch, opens its top and unzips it. Inside he pulls out a silk bag. He opens its velcro clasp, fiddles inside, and one by one pulls out – Ninja Turtle, Sharkie E. Thrash, and Tintin.
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The pilot, in a blue sweater, approaches and speaks to us in French. He explains that it’s raining again in Rurrenabaque, that the runway there is made of grass and dirt, that if it’s too muddy we won’t achieve landing. He apologizes, flights will likely be canceled.
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