Sylvia Nora Manani Yacori
A challenge I've overcome: yes, it was a football achievement, it was just this
A dream for my future: to study Hospitality, this is my dream
Una esperanza para la aldea global: to complete my dreams I hope for the best for everyone
Sylvia is one of the friends from the Bolivia to Buenos Aires bus. She was also traveling alone, having boarded in La Paz and was headed to Argentina to pick up her little sister (she is one of a family of 8 sisters in total, no brothers). Her plan was to have just one night in Buenos Aires before making the return trip with her sister to Bolivia, to be back in La Paz for school the following week. Sylvia explained that although she is 21 years old, she's still at school because she took some time out a couple of years ago when she went to live in Brazil with an older sister and her family for six months. Her face glowed as she spoke about those months, saying she'd loved the Brazilian people, and teaching me the Portuguese for the useful phrase 'please can you talk slower'. She said she'd like to go back to Brazil at some point when she's finished school, she'd also like to go to Mexico, and she's hoping to study Hospitality and English, to be able to work in any of the Latin America countries.
Sylvia said she didn't have an email address because between studying and working in a t-shirt printing shop she doesn't have time to use the internet, but she gave me her number and we're hoping to see each other when I'm back in Brazil at the end of the year.
As well as Sylvia, the bus was full of individuals with fascinating stories. There was There were a number of young Bolivian couples, including two with tiny toddlers who behaved amazingly well considering the length of the journey and one couple who were moving to Buenos Aires with the hope of settling and finding work. This must also be common, because another of the driver's set of strict instructions at the border was that none of us must say to the Argentinean officials that we were intending to stay in the country any longer than one week to 10 days.
There was also Yola the older Bolivian weaver, who was coming to visit her sister. Yola really has the most beautiful, wise and kind face, with twinkly eyes and a warm welcoming nature. I'm also hoping to see her when I'd come back to Bolivia to learn a little about weaving.
What a bus-full of stories, hopes and dreams!
Wishing all my bus-mates good luck in this next leg of their journeys and stories.
:-)
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