Westerners traveling to what I shall call Third World countries for reasons of tourism not only are looking for a bargain, they would very much like to feel superior to the other. It is possible that they are not even aware of this longing.
In places like Bolivia it is possible for a westerner to feel superior to most people living there because of the color of his skin, because of his money (a five-star hotel in La Paz cost less than a hostel in New York City) and because of his ability to leave.
In a city like Uyuny the westerner can wear the kind of clothes that would make him a beggar in Vienna, Paris or New York, and still think he is the master of the world.
Even his empathy towards the indigenous is part of the scheme to feel superior.
The picture is of my plant. As you can see this indigenous plant is once again dying in my Manhattan apartment. I need a reliable plant sitter.