Perhaps the best place in La Paz to learn about Aymaraculture is the Mercado de las Brujas (Witches’ Market). Here, the Andeanindigenous group sells its clothing and handicrafts alongside herbal remediesand magical amulets. Discover the beliefs of the Aymara, see some of theirstranger artefacts and buy some memorable souvenirs to take home with you.
Browse the narrow streets in the La Paz city centre linedwith the stalls of the Witches’ Market. Notice some of the mystical items forsale, including healing toucan beaks, longevity-granting turtles and luckyfrogs. Watch locals rummaging through the variety of herbs, potions andamulets, searching for just the right item to cast a certain spell. Witchdoctors loiter around the market and grant paying customers their fortunes. Thehats and coca pouches of the witch doctors set them off from the market’s othervisitors.
Don’t miss the mummified llama foetuses, products of theWitches’ Market that you are unlikely to find elsewhere in the world. Aymara“witches” create these high in the Andes Mountains, and the foetuses aresupposed to serve as an offering to the Goddess Pachamama (Mother Earth). Alocal customer will buy a foetus and bury it beneath a newly constructedbuilding so that the goddess will protect the structure from harm.
The Witches’ Market also features a large selection ofAndean handicrafts without spiritual connotations. Buy a knitted sweater, atraditional musical instrument or an alpaca-wool blanket so you can take apiece of the Andes home with you.
Reach the Witches’ Market from La Paz’s main tourist strip,Calle Sagárnaga. The market lies on Calle Jiminez and Linares just off the mainstreet. Both the Church of San Francisco and the Museo de la Coca stand nearby.
Open daily, the Witches’ Market is operational from sunriseuntil sunset. If you ask permission first, you may take photos of stalloperators, although they may demand a few bolivianos (the national currency) inpayment. Most stall owners speak Spanish exclusively, so it is best to havesome Spanish language skills when visiting the market.
