Cable Cars Connect El Alto Plateau With La Paz In The Valley — Images by kenne
A PAZ and EL ALTO, Bolivia — In these two cities, geography and rank stand in inverse relation. La Paz — the seat of government, old money, and a lighter-skinned elite — sits in a valley. Above it on a high plateau is the frenetic city of El Alto: poorer, younger, and generally darker-skinned. La Paz has always looked down on its upstart younger sibling above.
Now, that relationship is being challenged, and this urban Möbius strip, where down is up and up is down, is getting a new twist. A mass-transit aerial cable-car system, a cross between a ski gondola and an elevated train, is being installed to better connect them, chipping away at the physical barriers and possibly some of the psychological ones.Read more here.
I was stationed on the Japanise island of Okinawa for 18 months, 1967-68. During my stay, it was not uncommon to see some people wearing facemasks. This was something I was not use to seeing, so I asked why?
I was told that the person probably had a cold, and out of respect for others, they were hoping to not spread their germs. “Out of respect for others, ” I thought. How nice and novel. It told me a lot about the people of Okinawa. Since then, I have noticed that when I see someone wearing a facemask in public, they are of Asian descent.
Now that the world is experiencing a pandemic, it would be nice if we all showed respect for others by wearing a facemask in public. One of the things we have learned about this virus is that we can have it and not experience any systems, yet spread the virus. By showing respect for others, we can stop the spread of COVI-19. Wouldn’t that be novel?