Encounter in highlands
Bolivia: The celebrated ‘Tinku’ dance, practiced in the heart of South America, literally means encounter or meeting. With the peculiar clicking sound of ankle bracelets made with sheep nails, dancers reenacted a time-honored Bolivian ritual on stage. For one week in May, especially in the northern region of Potosi, local people gather to engage in a symbolic fight. Originally quite violent in nature, the confrontation was considered as a tribute to ‘Pachamama’ or Mother Earth, calling for a successful farming season. ‘The traditional belief was the more blood that was shed, the better it was for Mother Earth,’ said Pablo Schulze, one of the dancers who also played a 10-string instrument called a ‘charango,’ resembling a ukulele.
