In Bolivia, if you ever find yourself in prison, make sure to bring some cash.

The system here is such that the prisoner or their family members are responsible for their care and feeding. The federales conveniently provide a walled, enclosed area surrounded by guard towers, electricity, and, with any luck, a release date. Beyond that, prisoners must fend for themselves for pretty much everything else, including finding a place to sleep among the maze of rundown buildings, open spaces, and corridors.

In my case, I had a release date at the end of the day. We were providing medical treatment to the prisoners over the course of a week while visiting La Paz, the capital. Each day, the guards would unlock the front gate for us, and much like the prisoners, we were left alone (without the guards) to fend for ourselves throughout the day. This is a place where you don’t want to have any altercations and certainly not run out of medications before the end of the day.

With the freedom to move throughout the grounds, every corner turned revealed another view into a life of the incarcerated serving as a poignant reminder of the human stories behind the stark prison facade mostly hidden from view.