Need ideas for Bolivian gifts for family and friends in US

by Kathryn
(Cochabamba)

Hi there! I've lived in Cochabamba for 12+ years and each year I go back to California to visit family and friends, I bring the usual Bolivian chocolates, coffee, aguayos, and a few other artesanías... but I feel like that's getting old! Now that I have a daughter, more relatives are coming out of the woodwork to see us when we visit, so I need to bring a bigger variety of small gifts while staying on budget. Any ideas? Bonus points for fun gifts for kids. Thank you!!

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Dec 06, 2025
 Original Bolivian art is a great gift idea
by: Irene

I buy original paintings from Bolivian artists (usually signed by them whenever possible), and pack them flat, unframed, between two pieces of heavy cardboard. I frame them in the US.

Bolivia has some amazing artists who are well-known in Bolivia but not so much overseas. You can find original pieces in art galleries and museums for very modest prices. Usually the pieces displayed are for sale and you pay for them in order to reserve them for you, but you have to wait until the showing is over to receive the piece.

I love original art as a gift idea but I generally focus on artists that are somewhat modern, or who don't usually paint Bolivian scenery or villages, for example, although some of my friends do appreciate the more "Bolivianish" pieces. You can also sometimes find and purchase really lovely sculptures. Gifting original art just feels like a little luxury, and that you were really thoughtful about the gift.
Dec 06, 2025
 Papaya soda from Bolivia as a gift for US friends
by: Anonymous

My friends like to receive the unusual things I bring from Bolivia that they can't get anywhere else (or at least not easily, or not from many other places). One of these is papaya soda, which they really enjoy. I know, it's weird to travel with soda, but I purchase the small bottles de tamaño personal and I only bring about 4-6 each time. I place them in my suitcase, not my carry on, inside large zip lock bags. I've never had any open up or leak.

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