And if you travel by bus in these countries, you are bound to encounter the bus busker. Perhaps not on the modern long-distance buses which roar smoothly between the capital cities, but certainly anytime you travel a slightly shorter distance or opt for a lower fare class.

These are the buses of smoky exhausts, narrow aisles, worn seats, and dirty curtains. The ones with a musty atmosphere redolent of dust and unwashed alpaca wool, where passengers optimistically try to shove huge bundles into the overhead racks, children are perched uncomfortably on their mother’s knee, and the conductor makes a last-minute dash into the terminal to try to round up a few more passengers.