Under the blue sky is a Golden city, or Why you are traveling to La Rinconada
Residents of the Peruvian city of La Rinconada, located in the Andes near the border with Bolivia, live at the altitude of 5100 meters, under the clouds. Despite the location, this place since its inception, forgotten by God and cursed by people. But La Rinconada is actively growing and the population of the city increases on the eyes.
People the highest city on the planet is attracted not by the fresh air and Alpine views. La Rinconada is a zone of ecological disaster, and the circumcircle are more like landscapes of Chukotka. The only occupation of the inhabitants of this settlement is gold mining, which is contained in the local rocks.
Today the city is home to 30 thousand people, 99% of which are somehow connected with gold mining. Here there is no agriculture and other industries, except mining. Fashionable boutiques, shops, fine wines and Souvenirs here, too, not to find, but as not to meet, and tourists. Everyone in this village put at the service of "the Golden calf", and in his shops but the most simple products and cheap booze, buyers offer clothing, picks and miner's helmets.
Located near the equator, La Rinconada, due to the high location, is the realm of eternal late fall — residents all year round not breaking up with woolen clothes and warm shoes. The town has no sewer, water and district heating, and deprived of the asphalt street is mired in tons of garbage.
During snowmelt or the rainy season between the homes of citizens, similar to shipping containers, boiling water. It streams carry mercury and other toxic elements used in the gold mining industry. Ecologists have discovered that even 250 km from Sochi mercury content in groundwater is several times higher than normal.
In General, the city is more like a large factory, whose Director was crazy — at the doors of houses instead of cars parked trolley, and at the intersection of piles of dumped parts of machinery mixed with the household waste.
La Rinconada does not have authorities and the police, and the school there is only one. People who came here for a couple of days, has a small selection of hotels only rent housing in the mining town for the local public house.
Every month the city is up to 10 murders. There is rarely robbed because of the rich is almost there and spend money just not on that. The main reason for the bloody crimes — drunken knife fight between the miners and the showdown after playing a game of cards.
Looking at this hell on earth you would think that the locals here hold large salaries and intricate factors, but it is not. Work here system cachorreo that the world is not found anywhere else. This word is translated from the local slang as a "joke" or "banter," which very accurately describes the essence of the system.
According to cachorreo, mine workers work 30 days a month, without receiving a penny salary. For the reward they come for 31 days, and each allowed to take with them as many gold rocks as he can carry away in a basket on his shoulders. Will be in the breed is gold or not is a matter of chance, therefore the majority of citizens live below the poverty line.
It should be noted that the Deposit in the Andes it is difficult to call a rich in the precious metal. To produce a modest wedding ring from the local gold, it is necessary to process 250 tons of rock and to release the suffering land of half a kilogram of mercury. Officially, several mines Sochi extracted 10 tonnes of gold a year, although it is likely that this figure is understated to conceal the real turnover of local dealers.
The majority of citizens, but work at the mine, in your free time trades in the illegal mining of the precious metal in the vicinity of the mine. If not for this additional income, to be in Alpine Eldorado would be unprofitable.
The average life expectancy of men in La Rinconada is 50 years. Women, who are forbidden to descend into the mine live a bit longer. The wives of the miners work on the surface, as the cogs of the mechanism that siphons gold out of the bowels of the earth.
There is not enough basic food, medicine and even air, but only from the beginning of the XXI century, the city's population increased by 235%. The only broken road leading to this terrible place under a low leaden sky, is never empty.
Well, after reading this text, you have become a little more appreciative of your life and work?
Keywords: Andes | Gold fever | Gold mining | Poverty | Peru