Izzy Greenlees

This summer I have been awarded a travel grant by Newcastle University to explore the firey fiestas of Bolivia and Peru in order to determine how successful spiritual conversion has been in the heart of South America.

This project will see me: in the myst of Peru's vibrant National Independence Day celebrations, making a pilgrimage to the St James Festival on Isla Taquile, crossing the mighty Lake Titacaca into Bolivia, observing colonial artwork in Cusco Cathedral, witnessing baptisms in the mythical Copacabana, climbing the heights of the staggering Machu Picchu, descending into the depths of the Amazon Rainforest, visiting Sharmans in the Peruvian highlands, and taking a ride into the biggest salt plain in the world.

The aim of my project is to observe as many festivals as I can over 7 weeks and in the process I hope to come closer to determing what Christianity means to people in Bolivia and Peru today, and whether Christian practices are a mark of the triumph of Christianity or an act of colonial defiance.