I am looking for the rules for Bolivia, a Canasta type card game. Betty

Wow, there are a TON of rules to Bolivia.  My family has played it for years, and I've played since I was seven or eight.  Sadly, I haven't played in 3 or 4 years now, but I'll do my best to remember everything.

First, the card point values.

2 - 20
Red 3 - 100
Black 3 - Minus 100
4 - 5
5 - 5
6 - 5
7 - 5
8 - 10
9 - 10
10 - 10
Jack - 10
Queen - 10
King - 10
Ace - 20
Joker - 50

In order to start laying cards on the table, you must 'go down'.  To do this, you need to have enough points to total the following:

If your team has 0 to 1500 points - You have to meld 50
1505 to 3000 - You have to meld 90
3005 to 5000 - You have to meld 120
5005 and up - You have to meld 150

So, if you have the start of a run with a 7, 8 and 9 of hearts, you have 25 points towards your meld.

Wild cards may be melded as a set of their own (three or more), so if you have two jokers and a deuce, you have 120 points towards your meld.

A 'dirty' canasta is one that has wild cards mixed in, a 'pure' canasta has no wild cards.

A 'run' is seven consecutive cards.  Run's can not contain wild cards and are always between 4 and Ace.  Because of this, the most important cards to hang onto (aside from wild cards) are 8, 9 and 10 as they are always represented in a run, regardless of where the run is (4 - 10 or 8 - Ace or somewhere in between)

A 'wild run' is seven consecutive wild cards.  It can and typically will be a mixture of 2's and Jokers.

When the top card of the discard pile is a wildcard, it may not be taken.

A game-winning score is 15000 points in Bolivia.

Runs and canastas are worth the following:
Dirty canasta - 300
Pure canasta - 500
Run - 1500
Wild run - 2500

The discard pile can be picked up if you have two of the last card discarded, or if the top card directly plays into a run that's on the board.  So, if a 5 of spades is discarded and you have two 5's in your hand (regardless of suit), you can use those to pick up the pile.  You MUST use the 3 5's (the two from your hand and the 1 at the top of the pile) to start a canasta, but you can use the rest of the discard pile for any runs you need to work on.  You also cannot pick up the pile until you or your partner have met your meld, but you can use the points of your newly formed canasta to help meet your meld.  If you do this, you cannot use any other cards in the discard pile to meet your meld.  you cannot pick up the pile if a wild card, a black 3 or a red 3 are on top of the pile.  Also, if a wild card has been discarded at any point, it is turned sideways on the pile.  Once a wild card is discarded, the pile can only be picked up if you have a pair of the previously discarded card.  You cannot pick it up if it plays into a run on the board.

Hmm. . there are a lot more rules, but that's all I can think of at the moment.  Now I wish I could go play :P

zv