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The Cristo is an enormous statue of Jesus Christ that sits high on a hill above Cochabamba and can be seen from just about every location in the city. Because the majority of Bolivians are Catholic, this is a very pious and profound monument.
Friday after we left the burn center, we made the trip to the Cristo, still recovering from the night before and opting to have a taxi take us to the top. After taking some great pictures of the statue and the panoramic views from the top, we decided to take a long flight of stairs and trail back to the bottom. The trip down was nothing short of absolute misery, as we endured no less than 3,000 steps, countless leg cramps, and borderline delirium from the altitude and dehydration.
As you can imagine, it was taking us FOREVER to make it to the bottom, and about 2/3 of the way down we got a little help in speeding us along. Out of nowhere, an 18 inch snake slithered out of the desert landscape next to us and stopped about 2 steps from where all three of us were standing. First, you have never seen 3 people move so quickly back up a flight of stairs in your life. Second, you have never seen 3 people take so long contemplating nor heard such creative ideas as to how they were going to get past a snake-infested step. Third, you have never seen three people, on the other side of said step, move so quickly down 700 remaining stairs in your life.
We realize that our masculinities may be taking a hit in re-telling this story and ask that you have a quick laugh and refrain from sharing this with your friends!
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