Visit the Witches’ Market of La Paz, Bolivia

Deep within the valley of the Cerro Cumbre Mountains of Bolivia sits a bazaar like no other. El Mercado de Las Brujas, or The Witches’ Market, is one of the most prominent attractions of the city of La Paz.

Merchants and mystics alike line the cobbled-brick streets, each selling their own oddities and wonders. Some of the more popular items include folk remedies like herbs, potions and talismans used for an assortment of purposes. Customers may want to wish a relative a healthy marriage or cast a curse on an unfaithful spouse. Each display features shelves stacked with items like soapstone figurines and statues, as well as carcasses of animals like snakes, turtles, armadillos, starfish strung up and hanging from poles.

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Perhaps the most notable products for sale are the many dried llama fetuses found around the market. While to the unfamiliar traveler this practice may seem morbid, the Aymara people instead indulge in the positive. Many locals who are in the process of constructing new homes lay these bizarre things in the foundations, with the intent of endowing the project with good luck and keeping workers out of harm’s way.

Traveling around the marketplace are the Yatiri — witch doctors dressed in black hats who perform psychic readings. While these people are friendly, it is always important to be polite and respectful, as they take their rituals very seriously. Travelers should not take photos of the Yatiri unless asking permission first.

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