Real life in Bolivia: behaviour during the trip / Begging

Tourism in an emerging country like Bolivia can be beneficial, if only you keep in mind some basic behavioural rules during your trip.

You must avoid to give money to children because it encourages them to beg (Why do I have to go to school if I am given money easily?). It is better to encourage human interaction; why don’t you help a child by giving him, after a constructive conversation, some school material (book, pen…).

A lot of Bolivians, who live in remote countryside of the Andes, continue to daily wear some wonderful traditional clothes. It is important to be respectful by asking their consent when you photograph them, trying to focus on human relations.

Avoid to give money to take a picture, in order to not encourage certain “folklorisation” of traditions and ancestral customs.