The Pollera

There are certain things one needs to know in order to grace the Pollera – that huge skirt Indigenous Bolivian women wear.

I was a bit concerned when a friend wrapped a scarf around my waist to “protect it”, then started tying on one petticoat after the next, totaling three in my case, plus the arrestingly heavy pollera itself.

I was more than concerned when I began trying on the plastic shoes, which traditionally accompany the pollera outfit and after taking a few steps they fogged up…

I was downright perplexed, when I pre-washed my braided hair extensions and they came out tangled beyond repair. And I was in pain when the hairdresser managed to braid them in anyway, and told me to hold on to the chair as she yanked my braids hard enough to pull back my eyebrows.

All of this was in preparation to dance the Chuta…in “The Temptation” parade that officially ends Carnival and marks the beginning of Christ’s temptation in the church season of Lent.

The dance wasn’t so difficult, but as in penance, the procession goes uphill, no matter if you’re a woman who has to do the twirling part.

The best part though, was when the women dancing behind me decided my pollera was too loose and might fall (I still don’t believe them.) So in the middle of the street, in the middle of the procession, in the middle of the dance, they snuck up behind, yanked up my skirt, re-wrapped the cord that ties it on, and pulled so hard, I was gasping for air. Afterward the crowd applauded.

Thankfully there were no cow heads awaiting me at the end, as was the case in Oruro’s carnival celebration. Please see before and after photos: