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Shadowing practice: 24hrs in the Highest City on Earth with No Laws (my scariest travel experience)

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  1. Hey, T -Boogey.0:01
  2. Just wanted to give you a quick update.0:02
  3. We made it to La Rincuynada and it's by far the sketchiest place that I've ever been to.0:04
  4. The fight's breaking out everywhere.0:11
  5. People giving us the looks as we walked around.0:14
  6. Yeah, it's...0:19
  7. I don't think I've ever been as worried going into filming.0:19
  8. I'll give you another update as soon as we leave.0:23
  9. Love you, buddy.0:25
  10. In our pursuit to explore the most unique and extreme places on our planet to tell meaningful stories about them, this one may be the riskiest of them all.0:31
  11. Welcome to La Rincuynada, the highest human settlement on Earth and heart of the Peruvian Andes Mountains.0:40
  12. Here, amidst the icy peaks and beneath the frigid surface lies a tale of contrasts where the dreams of fortune clash with harsh realities of life at 17 ,000 feet,0:47
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  1. 5 ,200 meters, above sea level.0:58
  2. 50 ,000 people have come here in the most unforgiving conditions in the hopes to find gold and other precious minerals.1:01
  3. In its battle frontier -like setting, miners live and work under the brutal Cachorreo system, trading labor for the chance to find gold.1:08
  4. Under this system, they mine for 30 days without payment, only to get a chance to mine for themselves for one day, and often get exploited in the process by1:16
  5. the mine owners.1:24
  6. Yet the promise of gold continues to drop people from all corners of Peru, reflecting the human capacity to endure hardship in the pursuit of wealth.1:25
  7. Today, Amar takes us all the way to Lima, Peru to begin his expedition to La Rincuynada.1:33
  8. Along with our cinematographer friend Corey, let me tell you they had absolutely no plan and no contact to reach once they got there.1:38
  9. They scared me.1:55
  10. We go around the world and we come to very interesting places.2:02
  11. How?2:09
  12. Yeah, yeah, I like your accent.2:09
  13. He doesn't speak English.2:12
  14. Christian, we have a question.2:14
  15. A question.2:17
  16. A question.2:18
  17. Can you drive up to Rincuynada?2:19
  18. Do you drive up to La Rincuynada?2:22
  19. Yes, yes.2:25
  20. For miners, I think.2:27
  21. Only go or return?2:29
  22. Both.2:31
  23. For two days.2:32
  24. Tomorrow we go to Hercules and we come to the world.2:33
  25. Go!2:38
  26. Yes, yes, yes.2:38
  27. Okay, I think we just managed to secure our driver.2:39
  28. Who's just the driver we met at the airport.2:43
  29. It was a decent price and it was just you less the whole time.2:45
  30. We're off to the promising start.2:48
  31. Every day that I've sent to someone, we're going to Rincuynada, everybody's like immediate response.2:53
  32. Like, whoa, be careful.2:57
  33. Yeah, even him when we were walking in, he was just like, yeah, it's very dangerous there.2:59
  34. That's the part that is worrying me the most is like our physical state waking up after tomorrow.3:04
  35. Taking in 50 % less oxygen for a whole night is very different than...3:09
  36. Oh, jeez.3:13
  37. We're doing a quick pit stop to just get an oxygen meter and some oxygen tanks.3:16
  38. Just because from everything I've watched so far, it looked pretty rough.3:20
  39. And not even rough when you get there, it's like rough on the way up there.3:26
  40. So, yeah.3:30
  41. The higher they went up in altitude on the drive, the more Amar started feeling the invisible challenge of letting Conada creeping in.3:32
  42. Hypoxia.3:39
  43. I feel like sh** already.3:39
  44. Just like very heavy -headed.3:40
  45. At altitudes exceeding 17 ,000 feet, the air holds less oxygen.3:43
  46. And each breath we take delivers fewer of those vital molecules to our bodies.3:48
  47. The brain, the most oxygen -hungry organ, suffers first.3:52
  48. Mental functions slow, decisions become harder.3:56
  49. A clear warning from our body that it is struggling to sustain its basic functions.3:58
  50. Prolonged exposure without proper acclimatization can lead to, as the body scrambles to adapt, increasing heart rate, blood pressure and breathing to compensate for the scarcity of oxygen.4:03
  51. This is not mere discomfort.4:13
  52. It's a survival response to an extreme environment that, if not mitigated, can be a fatal health risk.4:15
  53. Luckily, due to his previous climbing and skydiving experience, Amar knows what to look out for to identify if he's hypoxic or not.4:21
  54. This trip was particularly tricky because obviously we needed the guidance of some locals here in Peru.4:28
  55. And I think I posted on Instagram like two or three times.4:34
  56. But I think how sketchy all the videos and articles depicted this place just made me realize that I like, I want to take this risk with the least amount4:37
  57. of people.4:46
  58. We don't know what we're getting ourselves into and I didn't want to bring someone into something where I just couldn't guarantee their safety.4:47
  59. Last time was an altitude.4:54
  60. It was when I was climbing Mount Whitney for my 27th birthday.4:56
  61. But we're going two and a half thousand feet higher than the peak of Mount Whitney, which is just absolutely wild.5:00
  62. Got a driver, no translator, and our contact was one of the miners who was going to be up there.5:08
  63. He basically just didn't make it up from Lima.5:14
  64. He was supposed to fly out.5:17
  65. But we're going to find someone new.5:19
  66. A new face.5:22
  67. Quick lunch break.5:32
  68. We're about an hour and a half away from letting Kunada.5:33
  69. Hola, ¿cómo está?5:36
  70. Hola, ¿qué rico o no?5:37
  71. Safe to say that Christian is fully immersed with the vibe right now.5:41
  72. Moisture?5:45
  73. Yeah, de chicos, de chicos, yeah.5:46
  74. What do we got here?5:49
  75. That doesn't sound good.5:50
  76. We've got 87.5:52
  77. You're supposed to be 97 and above.5:53
  78. I don't think it's affecting my vitals yet, but that's not how hypoxia works.5:55
  79. 92.5:59
  80. Christian, that's it.6:00
  81. Wow, 92.6:01
  82. 92?6:02
  83. Hey, hey, hey, hey.6:04
  84. No, me.6:06
  85. Christian, is this your first time in Ricanada?6:08
  86. No, no.6:11
  87. No, you went.6:12
  88. No, why this way so you have to go?6:14
  89. No, that's good.6:15
  90. The drone already says high altitude, flat with caution, before I even took off.6:33
  91. It's a fact.6:38
  92. The last time before La Rinconera.6:55
  93. I am feeling it.6:58
  94. Are you?7:00
  95. Yeah, I'm feeling so nauseous right now.7:00
  96. Thanks for my head at first second.7:05
  97. Christian, the drone driver just told us that we're not doing it at first.7:08
  98. Look at the glacier.7:10
  99. Wow.7:12
  100. As they were initially struck by the beauty of the mountains, the harsh reality of the surroundings quickly cut the amazement short.7:18
  101. The This just has to be one of the saddest arrivals I've ever had in a place like, from just gorgeous views on the way up and then just this7:38
  102. sea of trash everywhere.7:54
  103. I mean, that's what happens when 50 ,000 people settle somewhere they're not supposed to, without the infrastructure necessary for them to be able to live there, and with just7:56
  104. illegal mining activity everywhere.8:04
  105. Shit dude.8:07
  106. This breaks my heart.8:09
  107. The first miner that we saw actually looking for gold was this woman on the side of the road, and I think women are not allowed into the mines.8:13
  108. So some women here just take up the job to pick up the scraps of the miners and look for any gold that they might have missed in it.8:21
  109. My name is Amar.8:40
  110. Adela.8:45
  111. Adela.8:46
  112. Adela?8:47
  113. Adela.8:47
  114. Adela.8:48
  115. How old are you working here?8:49
  116. I'm about four years old.8:54
  117. Four years?8:56
  118. How long have you been working here?8:57
  119. Eight hours.9:00
  120. Eight hours?9:01
  121. Eight hours.9:02
  122. Have you found anything today?9:04
  123. Have you seen anything?9:06
  124. No, I haven't.9:07
  125. Wow.9:08
  126. No, nothing.9:09
  127. It's just that I haven't seen any other chips.9:10
  128. Nothing big.9:12
  129. Wow.9:14
  130. I see you don't look at me.9:15
  131. I see you don't look at me.9:16
  132. I see you.9:18
  133. I saw a gold bit.9:18
  134. Oh yeah.9:21
  135. How much would this be?9:23
  136. Ten!9:30
  137. Ten!9:31
  138. Ten!9:33
  139. Ten!9:40
  140. Ten!9:41
  141. Ten!9:44
  142. Ten!9:46
  143. Ten!9:47
  144. Ten!9:47
  145. Ten!9:47
  146. Ten!9:49
  147. Ten!9:49
  148. Thanks for the questions.9:50
  149. Thanks for the questions.9:51
  150. Thanks.9:53
  151. Thanks.9:55
  152. Thanks, you're making English.9:57
  153. Don't go into the water.10:00
  154. What's going on?10:02
  155. What's going on?10:28
  156. People are temporary residents of the town.10:33
  157. So they just come for like mining days or mining months and then they leave.10:36
  158. But they say it's between 20 ,000 to 30 ,000 people.10:40
  159. And then there's the main town which is more permanent -ish buildings.10:42
  160. And then there's these like 10 houses.10:47
  161. So yeah.10:52
  162. I'm just watching.11:06
  163. La Rinconada is essentially as close to a lauless town as it gets.11:10
  164. And they quickly realized that filming here was going to be a challenge.11:15
  165. Amar then spotted some friendly looking miners from a distance.11:21
  166. And to his great surprise, one of them spoke English.11:24
  167. Here now is this...11:27
  168. Stangels.11:29
  169. Stangels.11:31
  170. Actually, two here is 5 ,200 meters of oxygen.11:32
  171. How is your oxygen level?11:38
  172. I'm going to go get the oxygen meter.11:40
  173. One sec.11:42
  174. Okay, thank you.11:42
  175. Moment of truth.11:44
  176. My favorite?11:45
  177. Yeah, I just loved his vibe.11:46
  178. I went up to him.11:47
  179. He was like, hi, nice to meet you.11:49
  180. He speaks English.11:50
  181. Wow.11:51
  182. Pretty good.11:52
  183. 93.11:53
  184. 93.11:55
  185. 76.11:55
  186. 76?11:56
  187. Yeah.11:57
  188. Wow.11:57
  189. He was like, and my heart beat is 111.11:58
  190. We are right here in the first day.12:00
  191. It's difficult.12:02
  192. There's oxygen.12:04
  193. And then, wow.12:05
  194. Are you under?12:06
  195. No, in three, four days.12:06
  196. You just...12:08
  197. Your body gets used to it.12:09
  198. Yes, yes.12:10
  199. How old are you?12:10
  200. I'm 27 years old.12:11
  201. 27.12:13
  202. Yes.12:14
  203. You knew that coming up here is dangerous.12:14
  204. It's bad for health.12:17
  205. All these things, right?12:18
  206. Yes.12:19
  207. Why did you still make the decision to come here?12:20
  208. In Cuzco, the protest about the president affected.12:22
  209. And then, no tourists, nothing.12:27
  210. Absolutely.12:30
  211. In Cuzco, for us to know job, then...12:30
  212. After pandemic, it just became really bad.12:34
  213. Yeah.12:37
  214. I'm calm here.12:38
  215. Yes, I like.12:40
  216. Yes, a little...12:42
  217. Respect, man.12:44
  218. Respect.12:44
  219. Here, it's more...12:45
  220. Yeah, yeah, yeah.12:48
  221. The liquids.12:48
  222. Yeah.12:49
  223. Basically, it's like the outcasts of society.12:50
  224. I think they just end up gravitating towards a place like this where, you know, you end up with some pretty rough personalities.12:53
  225. Thankfully, they are not some of those rough personalities.12:59
  226. We're like, just by walking earlier, we could just feel like it wasn't the best vibe.13:02
  227. What is planned for tonight?13:08
  228. No plan.13:10
  229. No plan.13:11
  230. No plan.13:11
  231. No plan.13:12
  232. If you can be our local tour guide and we'll be happy to pay you, it would be amazing to just like see it through your eyes so that we're13:13
  233. not just like walking with a camera, you know, one of you with locals.13:20
  234. And your smile is just amazing.13:24
  235. So, yeah, thank you.13:25
  236. Of course.13:27
  237. Could we like go for a walk?13:27
  238. You tell us, okay, this is where they do this.13:28
  239. Around this place?13:31
  240. Yeah, around here.13:32
  241. Yeah, of course.13:32
  242. But we are going to go tonight to the discotheque.13:34
  243. Yeah?13:36
  244. Great, man.13:37
  245. Yeah, okay, let's go.13:38
  246. Vamos, vamos, vamos.13:39
  247. We'll see you tonight.13:40
  248. To Balaz?13:41
  249. Let's go.13:41
  250. Yeah.13:42
  251. Hey, you're some YouTubers.13:49
  252. You're talking?13:52
  253. Todo, todo el mundo.13:54
  254. Welcome.13:57
  255. Welcome.13:57
  256. Welcome to Rinconata.13:58
  257. Yeah, thank you.14:00
  258. Yeah, thank you.14:00
  259. Wow.14:02
  260. Yeah, yeah, yeah.14:04
  261. And how much with a piece like this?14:05
  262. How much is the total?14:07
  263. Here it is valued at 2500.14:08
  264. And what is the total?14:11
  265. Like one day's work for you?14:12
  266. Or one week?14:15
  267. Maybe in one day, in one hour, or in half an hour, it depends.14:16
  268. What's your luckiest day?14:22
  269. Best day?14:23
  270. 15 grams.14:24
  271. 15 or 50?14:25
  272. 50.14:26
  273. 50.14:27
  274. 50 grams.14:28
  275. Depends, it depends.14:29
  276. In general, no?14:30
  277. Sometimes a girl or sometimes no bald toe, no?14:31
  278. It's heavier than it looks.14:36
  279. I'm brave.14:38
  280. You're not a difficult girl.14:41
  281. Very expensive, very expensive.14:42
  282. Muches gracias.14:45
  283. Thank you so much.14:46
  284. Appreciate it.14:46
  285. Thank you.14:47
  286. Yeah, man.14:48
  287. Bye.14:48
  288. Like everyone that works here, how much gold do you think every day?14:56
  289. Maybe one kilogram.15:02
  290. One kilo?15:03
  291. Or two kilograms.15:04
  292. Less than 10 kilograms.15:06
  293. Yes.15:06
  294. Who is?15:07
  295. Like yours guys, you know?15:08
  296. People's love.15:10
  297. It's not usual, right?15:11
  298. Yes.15:12
  299. Very rare.15:12
  300. Pringle, you know?15:14
  301. What were you saying about the shower?15:24
  302. Just here are the three showers, hot showers.15:26
  303. And the whole, and the entire town?15:30
  304. Yes.15:31
  305. For 50 ,000 people?15:32
  306. Yes.15:33
  307. Three hot showers?15:34
  308. Yes, for example, in this street, and other street, just three showers, no more showers.15:34
  309. Hello, guys.15:42
  310. Hello.15:45
  311. How are you?15:45
  312. Good, Mr.15:46
  313. Jalong.15:47
  314. Hello.15:48
  315. Hello.15:49
  316. This is a machine, right?15:50
  317. This is a big stone.15:51
  318. Grinder.15:54
  319. Ground.15:55
  320. Ah, I see, I see.15:56
  321. Which water, and mercury?15:57
  322. Mercury, okay.16:00
  323. And mercury.16:01
  324. Is this why people have a drinking water problem here?16:01
  325. Because mercury is mixed with the lake.16:05
  326. Pudel explains to us here that La Rinconada is essentially a ticking time bomb, as the very industry that sustains it is also its greatest threat.16:08
  327. There is heavy use of mercury in their gold extraction process, which has severe environmental repercussions, polluting the land and water with consequences that reach far beyond the town's borders.16:16
  328. It is also highly toxic, and leads to serious health issues for the miners and the wider community, including neurological and reproductive damage.16:27
  329. Now, all the lakes and water streams around have been contaminated and become completely undrinkable.16:35
  330. The name is Awichita.16:41
  331. Awichita.16:43
  332. Awichita.16:44
  333. It is similar like a woman.16:44
  334. The woman is sleeping.16:47
  335. Ah, like the face and then the butt.16:48
  336. Yes, maybe you see nothing.16:50
  337. Of course, the water earth.16:52
  338. Yeah, yeah, yeah.16:53
  339. Many years ago, the glacier and the town wall were all in this place.16:54
  340. Now, for pollution, years, two years, less glacier.16:59
  341. Less glacier.17:03
  342. Less glacier for the pollution.17:03
  343. Because people destroyed the mother earth.17:05
  344. Yeah.17:09
  345. No.17:10
  346. And how do you feel about that being here and working and mining, but you also, you care about mother earth and you don't like the fact that you have...17:10
  347. I recommend that my friends, please don't leave.17:19
  348. Trash or don't contain anything that we're going to put in the...17:23
  349. Trash.17:30
  350. Yeah.17:31
  351. No, no leave.17:31
  352. Because other people don't respect you.17:32
  353. They are drinking the plastic, the bottles.17:34
  354. No.17:38
  355. This is a problem.17:38
  356. No, for me, it's not good.17:39
  357. Yeah.17:41
  358. A magic.17:48
  359. Oh, no.17:50
  360. First of all, I can, I can already see it on my face.17:53
  361. I'm getting so puffy.17:56
  362. I just did that reading and it was 66%.17:57
  363. So now we're in danger zone.18:00
  364. Yeah, it's not healthy, huh?18:02
  365. No.18:03
  366. I'm worried about myself too.18:04
  367. Yeah, yeah.18:06
  368. Amar's oxygen levels were dropping to an alarming low.18:06
  369. They had to keep a very close look on him to make sure no serious symptoms would arise and be ready to descend quickly if needed.18:10
  370. So he's been here for eight years.18:16
  371. What was your first memory arriving here?18:18
  372. Accidents at the mountain, the rock.18:23
  373. The first thing he remembers here is just an accident that happened.18:25
  374. How often do you see people die here?18:29
  375. Almost every day.18:32
  376. Almost every day.18:33
  377. Almost every day.18:35
  378. You know?18:36
  379. La Mina and I hear in the discotheques, it's too dangerous because that building points coming out.18:37
  380. Wow.18:44
  381. Yeah.18:45
  382. I'm not just kidding.18:45
  383. Wow.18:46
  384. When was the last time he saw someone die?18:47
  385. 12 semanas.18:50
  386. 12 semanas.18:51
  387. In other streets, you know, if he goes.18:51
  388. Just...18:55
  389. Oh, yeah.18:55
  390. Yes.18:56
  391. Oh, f***.18:58
  392. Yes.18:59
  393. Wow.19:00
  394. Okay, so we have to be careful.19:01
  395. Yes.19:02
  396. Yeah.19:03
  397. Once the sun goes down, this camera goes down with it.19:03
  398. No, don't worry because, yes, we help you with everything.19:06
  399. Brother.19:11
  400. Brother.19:11
  401. Or somebody's crying!19:12
  402. You're a magnet to the good people!19:16
  403. You attract good people!19:18
  404. Yes!19:19
  405. Thank you!19:20
  406. You stand!19:22
  407. You stand!19:26
  408. You stand!19:35
  409. You stand!19:36
  410. You stand!19:36
  411. You stand!19:37
  412. You stand!19:37
  413. You stand!19:37
  414. You stand!19:37
  415. You stand!19:40
  416. You stand!19:41
  417. for tonight.19:41
  418. Got a window?19:47
  419. Got a TV?19:50
  420. Corey went outside to film the town at night but came back quickly after a sketchy interaction.19:52
  421. A guy came and tried to focus my lens and typically it's like playful and like, yeah sure this is how you focus.19:58
  422. And then he was like, how much?20:03
  423. And I was like, I'm not gonna say it.20:05
  424. Like, I don't know, you know, I don't know.20:07
  425. And he was like, okay, I snagged my water bottle and it just starts running.20:08
  426. And I'm like, what?20:13
  427. But it was only water so I was like, it's okay.20:14
  428. But that was, that set the tone for me.20:17
  429. Right after that I was like, okay, I don't want to carry my camera around anymore.20:20
  430. I don't want to do this.20:24
  431. Like, this is too crazy for me.20:25
  432. I'm pretty grateful man.20:32
  433. We just like came with nothing and made friends immediately.20:33
  434. We were given the clearest instructions not to leave with anything valuable from this hotel.20:37
  435. For telling us, we had quite the footprint when we came.20:43
  436. We were more liberal with our camera, like shooting and drone flying than other people who have been here.20:45
  437. So our driver, Christian, was just concerned that someone would have like marked us as a target.20:51
  438. So he actually gave us pretty sound like security instructions and what to do, how to get out, always be watching for people behind you.20:56
  439. But he's saying within half an hour, like this outside is just like, guys, you know, we're going to completely change it.21:03
  440. It's just going to be just drunk people who could stab you any moment.21:07
  441. So if you go out for like a quick hangout with no cameras, just like with Fidel and his other friends to see what nightlife is here.21:11
  442. It is a pretty dark reality with the amount of people who are human trafficked, particularly women.21:19
  443. It's estimated that around 2 ,500 women come up here from neighboring towns for prostitution.21:25
  444. Yeah, we're going to try and like be with the good vibes, avoid anything that looks sketchy, but ultimately call it early tonight and just be back here.21:31
  445. Ready for a night out in the most dangerous town in the world.21:40
  446. This is one of the sketchiest places that I've been.22:08
  447. You feel like the house and everything.22:11
  448. I don't belong here and I should not be here.22:13
  449. Wow, too wild.22:24
  450. It's too wild.22:26
  451. Yeah.22:27
  452. Wrapping up the night with Fidel.22:31
  453. He's got work tomorrow super early at another mine.22:33
  454. Thank you brother.22:36
  455. Appreciate it man.22:37
  456. Thank you.22:38
  457. We appreciate you.22:38
  458. No, goodbye.22:40
  459. See you later.22:40
  460. See you later.22:41
  461. Bye.22:43
  462. It's so cold.22:48
  463. I can't sleep.22:50
  464. I'm at 70 % blood oxygen level, which is an improvement for 66%.22:51
  465. I just went out, just saw it got to experience a very different life than anything that we've ever seen before.22:57
  466. Yeah, there's always like an element of just deep gratitude for the life that we've been blessed with.23:03
  467. To just have a hot shower and to be able to have a proper roof on your head.23:09
  468. The floor here is like unbearable to walk on.23:13
  469. And it's these little things that you start to take for granted.23:16
  470. There's so many people go to the craziest extents to be able to make ends meet.23:20
  471. Just some thoughts with my funny going to that outfit because it's cold.23:25
  472. Bring long johns, eat socks and see for sunrise for some pretty epic drone shots by the one and only Corey Martin.23:30
  473. Good morning.24:01
  474. It's 5 .30.24:03
  475. Not much sleep.24:04
  476. I'm back to no sleep at all.24:06
  477. I think I had like 45 minutes.24:07
  478. I have one of the strongest headaches I've ever had.24:09
  479. Feel dry everywhere.24:11
  480. I counted.24:13
  481. I peed eight times in nine hours.24:14
  482. Which is just a lot.24:17
  483. I wasn't even drinking that much water.24:18
  484. So Corey's doing?24:20
  485. I have a massive headache right now.24:23
  486. I swear going to the bathroom felt like my heart rate when I by the time I got back to bed I was just being, it felt like I just24:25
  487. ran a mile.24:32
  488. That's when I got a little scared.24:33
  489. I was like is this okay?24:35
  490. Quick check.24:37
  491. I'll be here.24:38
  492. Well this is better than the night.24:41
  493. The night I was beeping between 65 and 70.24:43
  494. Now it's 75.24:45
  495. We came out to just capture some of what's happening in the morning and we're still getting those very long stairs.24:55
  496. People confused in what we're doing here with the red and the camera like that.25:02
  497. I was reflecting on like how I'm feeling and just this very intense experience that we went through and it's like torn between like just such extremes like waking up25:12
  498. at the bottom of a glacier seeing the most beautiful view but being up during the night and hearing what was going on in the town and hearing gunshots and25:23
  499. hearing people scream and hearing people drunk breaking bottles.25:30
  500. It's this weird paradox between like being in one of the most beautiful places that you can be on our planet but also seeing the worst of what human beings25:33
  501. can do to our planet.25:43
  502. This is like what the third fight that breaks in the last half an hour.25:59
  503. But hostility.26:02
  504. Yeah.26:04
  505. Maybe that's our sign.26:04
  506. Get out of here.26:06
  507. You met the nicest guy in the town.26:08
  508. Now get the **** out of there.26:10
  509. Oh wow.26:18
  510. I think this is the best like vantage point to actually grasp how 50 ,000 people live in the highest city in the world.26:20
  511. We managed to fly the drone five kilometers to show the scale of what's happening out there.26:27
  512. Apparently where the glacier is is where the most amount of gold is.26:32
  513. So they are very keen to just get through it.26:36
  514. It's really dangerous because there's tunnels that are inside of the mountain underneath the glacier.26:38
  515. There's nobody caring about the structural integrity of anything so it almost feels like a ticking time bomb that the mine has been operating since the 70s and hundreds of26:43
  516. thousands of people have come through to do this and it's just layers upon layers upon layers.26:52
  517. No proper inspection.26:56
  518. I pray that people stay safe and that the government does something about it before it becomes this catastrophic news headline of thousands of miners just dying because one of26:58
  519. the shafts collapsed or something like that.27:09
  520. My intention as we leave this is just like be reminded like we're talking about how exciting it's going to be to take a hot shower when we get there27:11
  521. to be able to like have a seat for the toilet.27:18
  522. All these little things that we kind of dismiss in our daily life and we don't really think deeply about.27:21
  523. I think trips like this and being in places like this really gets you to like recognize the blessing that it is to be living a life where you don't27:27
  524. need to do that.27:34
  525. You don't need to leave everyone and everything to come to the most dangerous circumstances to be able to make a living.27:35
  526. Thank you everyone for joining.27:42
  527. Thank you Corey for being the wizard behind the camera and behind the drone and we'll see you next week.27:44
  528. We haven't said that in a very long time but we'll see you next week.27:49

Daily english conversation practice from a real expedition into La Rincuynada

This clip is Yes Theory arriving at La Rincuynada, the highest human settlement on Earth, and it gives you english speaking practice on two different registers at once. There is scripted narration setting up the place: gold, altitude, the Cachorreo labour system. Then there is unscripted talk with a driver they just met at the airport, questions asked twice because the first attempt does not land.

The recording is rated B2 and moves at 201 words per minute, faster than 63 percent of the catalogue, so the narrated stretches ask you to keep pace without dropping words. The accent is mixed: the host speaks a clear American English, and the driver answers in short, broken English shaped by Spanish. That mix is the point. Real conversation is not one accent talking to itself.

Real accent talk: lines that help you improve your english accent

A few lines here are worth slowing down for, both for what they say and how they are said.

  • "We made it to La Rincuynada and it's by far the sketchiest place that I've ever been to." One breath, four clauses stacked without a pause. Say it in pieces first, then try it whole at the clip's own speed.
  • "Yeah, yeah, I like your accent." The doubled "yeah, yeah" is filler that buys thinking time, and the line is literally about accent, a small joke to notice while you work on your own.
  • "Only go or return?" A driver's shorthand question, missing words a native speaker would keep. Compare it against the host's fuller "Do you drive up to La Rincuynada?" a few lines later, said twice because the first phrasing did not get through.
  • "Okay, I think we just managed to secure our driver." The hedge "I think we just managed to" softens a plain fact into something more casual, and it is worth copying that softening, not just the words.

How to shadow this line through the opening of the La Rincuynada scene

Work the opening in this order rather than jumping around.

  • Start with line 3, "We made it to La Rincuynada and it's by far the sketchiest place that I've ever been to," broken into its four clauses before you try it in one breath.
  • Move to line 12, the long narrated sentence about "a tale of contrasts where the dreams of fortune clash with harsh realities of life," and read it for the narrator's steady, unhurried delivery against the 201 words per minute pace of the rest of the clip.
  • Shadow the driver exchange, lines 24, 29, 30 and 33, where the same question gets asked, dropped and asked again. Say both the broken version and the corrected version so you hear the gap between them.
  • Close on line 39, "Okay, I think we just managed to secure our driver," for the hedge and the exhale in "I think we just managed to."
  • Once those four are solid, replay the whole opening once through at full speed and check it against your own recording.
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