Into the depths of Cerro Rico: The Mines of Potosí
Despite being the most popular tour in Potosí, and the reason why most people visit the city, tours of the cooperative mines of Cerro Rico are not for everybody. The experience is memorable and provides an insight that merely hearing about the miners and their working conditions never will, but it can be physically and mentally uncomfortable for some. While women were discouraged from entering the mines in the past, lest they bring bad luck, this superstition has not really had any force in the last decades, so anyone who would like to experience what life in Potosí is like for most local families are free to take part. For more than 400 years, Cerro Rico has defined Potosí, and even though so much mining means that the mountain doesn’t have much time left, it’s still that way today.
15,000 miners work in the mountain’s 400 mines, most of which have several levels. (Although most of the work takes place at the lowest levels, tours do not descend to such depths because of safety considerations and because they are quite uncomfortable.) Expect low ceilings, and steep, narrow passageways that can be muddy and rocky. If you suffer from asthma, you will not want to enter at all due to the dust particles, and claustrophobics should definitely abstain as well.
Most mine tours are guided by ex-miners and begin in the morning. (There are afternoon tours as well, but the morning tours tend to spend more time in the mines.) First stop is the miners’ market in downtown Potosí, where anyone can buy dynamite, ammonium nitrate, and fuses for about US$2 without even needing a license. Here, you can pick up some gifts for the miners that you will meet during your visit. (The miners must buy their own explosive and tools and do all of the work by hand, selling their production at the end of each week for the best price they can negotiate.) Afterwards, you head to a refining plant and then on to Cerro Rico itself. Your safety equipment will be provided, but you will want to bring water and a handkerchief for your mouth.
Upon entering the mines each day, miners salute the statue of Tata Kaj’chu which sits in the entrance of each of the mountain’s 400 mines. In the dark underworld of the mines, this figure representing the devil is supposed to hold sway. Calling him Tío (Uncle), they ask for protection and give offerings in exchange for the minerals they take out of hell. On Friday nights, there is a cha’lla (offering), wherein alcohol is poured on the ground before the statue, lit cigarettes placed in his mouth, and coca leaves laid out. Getting into the spirit, the miners join the devil in his drinking and smoking. Most miners are Catholic, but offerings and requests to Christ are only made as far as the sunlight reaches.
Most mines which are open to tours have a small exhibit in the first level which sheds light on some of the mines’ history and the issues miners face. By level 2, you are mainly crawling, and then slide down to the following level through a sort of wooden chute. Level 3 is more spacious because often materials are sorted at this level. Temperatures in the mines range greatly, from very cold to 45C on the fourth and fifth levels. Most tours end with a dynamiting demonstration, so that you can feel the force of the explosions, noticeable even at some distance.