Beware the Cold

I'm not sure that I've mentioned that it's cold here. Really cold.

It's no colder than Michigan in the fall, in reality. During the day it's about 57 degrees, and in the sun, it's pretty comfortable. At night, temperatures fall to about 30 degrees. Coming from Michigan, we should be totally used to this, right? The problem is that in Bolivia, there is no indoor heating, and very very few families use space heaters because the electricity is so expensive.

You would think that people who live in La Paz, where the climate pretty much stays the same the entire year, would be used to living in the cold. However, talking about the cold is one of the main conversation topics that I have with strangers.

Talking to the woman at the front desk of the gym:
Me: Hi! How's it going today?
Woman: Ahh, it's so cold today!

Running into someone in the elevator of my building:
Me: Good afternoon! How are you?
Person: Fine, but it's so cold!

Interviewing someone at the hospital:
Me: Wow, you are really wearing a lot of coats today! (They have to take them off for their blood pressure, weight, etc.)
Person: Yeah, it's so cold today!

During a Pilates class:
Instructor: You ladies need to make sure to wear two layers of socks next time. The floor is cold. You're going to get sick.

Measuring someone's blood pressure:
Woman: Ah! Your hands are cold! You need to wear a coat. You're going to get sick.
After the interview -- Make sure you put a coat on!

Leaving the gym:
Person: Where's your scarf? You need to cover up!
Me: Thanks, have a good night!

The cold permeates every aspect of people's lives here. For this reason, there are some rules you must follow to make sure you don't get sick:

• Don't take a shower at night or in the morning. It will make your belly cold and you will get sick. Always shower in the afternoon.
• Don't walk around with just socks on. Always shoes. The cold will come in through your big toe and make you sick.
• Don't eat lettuce when it's cold. The cold will go into your belly and make you sick.
• Don't drink cold Coca-Cola when you're sick. It will make your throat cold and you will stay sick.

When we do get sick, with a cold or diarrhea or what have you, it is definitely our fault. We forgot one of the rules for avoiding the cold, and for that reason, we got sick. Sometimes it's hard to remember all the rules to follow to keep the cold at bay, but the people here are nice enough to remind us of them.

Oh, Bolivia.