A giant cruise ship dominates the skyline in the city of El Alto in landlocked Bolivia, a symbol of the transformation of an Indigenous bastion keenly fought over in Sunday’s presidential election.

The “Titanic,” as the tallest building in the city is known, serves as the latest in a collection of uber-flamboyant neo-Andean “cholets” — a mix of chalet and “chola” or Indigenous woman — built by Bolivia’s Aymara bourgeoisie over the past two decades.

Victor Choque Flores, a self-made 46-year-old businessman, forked out millions of dollars for his “ship in a sea of bricks,” as he calls his futuristic 12-story palace which looms large over El Alto’s red-brick homes.

“It’s a bit like us,” he said, adding that while rooted in the past, Indigenous Bolivians are “looking towards the future.”

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