Bolivia 30: Life as a Peace Corps Volunteer in the 1960s

After completing all the application steps for the Peace Corps I received an invitation to enter a training program and go to Bolivia as a Peace Corps volunteer. It was the 30th training group of Peace Corps Volunteers to be sent to Bolivia. We were Bolivia 30. Now when I reflect on the experience of being a Peace Corps volunteer in the 1960s I recognize that it was a different experience than today’s version of the Peace Corps. We functioned without computers, cell phones or even telephones. We had no GPS to guide us, yet we travelled all over Bolivia and South America. Despite not having today's technology available, none of us from Bolivia 30 would trade our experiences for a modern version. In some ways we faced higher risks, sometimes living in relatively remote areas. But that also gave us more freedom. Of course, with more freedom came more responsibility. We had to decide how to allocate our time effectively. The political climate was also very different. Americans were looked up to and the people we encountered were eager to learn about the United States. And we learned that there are other cultures in the world and different ways of doing things. We took those lessons with us and it shaped the rest of our lives. The book is unique in that it incorporates personal stories from more than a dozen Peace Corps Volunteers who served in Bolivia during this period. Complementing the stories are 22 color and two black and white photographs taken during the author's Peace Corps service.