How I Became an Angry, Culturally Insensitive American

OK, so when most people picture Bolivia they generally envision chubby cholitas with a cheek full of coca leaves tilling alpine fields while their herds of alpacas and an army of children tumble around the mountainside. While this Bolivia exists, people are disappointed to encounter La Paz as a big, bustling, and in many ways cosmopolitan city. I knew more or less what to expect and told myself that as a SOAN major I should anticipate the multiculturalism implicit in all modern cities and embrace the multifaceted spirit of today´s Bolivia.

That said, I have been shockingly intolerant toward the music that plays in the store next to mine. Cultural relativism breaks down in a pretty violent way when the alpaca goods store plays such classics at "The Godfather Theme," "Singing in the Rain," and "Born Free" on a loop for 9 hours every day. Also, these shmaltzy tunes are not in their original form, for our friendly local alpaca hawker has settled on acoustic reimaginings of these gems, heavy on the strings. I can handle Andean pan flutes and punishing recordings of reggaeton, but I have been pushed to the brink of extreme cultural xenophobia by this woman.

I will burn down everything.