Unusual occurrence....

Just four days before leaving Carata something rare occurred. During my service in the village, I regretted one thing that never happened. I hadn't seen a birth. Until Friday Nov. 23rd. I awoke and looked out to the health post. But the door was closed. I had a couple of tasks to complete (wash clothes, pack up my room, and organize a few things for my replacement Kimberly). By 10am Talia, the obstetrician was still not back from wherever she went. A neighbor was out on the street. I asked, "¿Donde ha ido Talia?" (Where did Talia go?) and their response, "Se fue a Cayamus para atender un parto." (She went to Cayamus to deliver a baby.) My head was so full of things it didn't register.

At lunch time, Merli my host sister and I sat eating. "¿Y Talia?" Maybe she's lost. And so we imagined the possibilities. Maybe she fell in a hole like the dog did last year! We should go find her. Even worse, maybe...she's dead! (I'd like to think based on my influence that Merli has become a much more creative and imaginative girl after living with a gringo for two years!) "¡Ya regresó!" (She's returned!) Yelled someone from the kitchen. After eating, I went to the health post to drop off a bag of things and sort documents in my desk. Talia answered the door and I asked her about the patient in Cayamus. She hadn't give birth yet. She was only 16 years old. Talia had been at the house all morning and still nothing. And then it occurred to me. Here's your opportunity... Take it! ¡APROVECHA!

The patent's family planned to call Talia when the patient, who's name was Lydian, was closer to giving birth. I explained to Talia to call me so I could help. And she agreed. The rest of the afternoon went by quickly. Merli and Susan wanted to play 'volley' for a minute than helped me pack up my room. I felt a mix of emotions about leaving. The girls were quick to distract me from my thoughts. We took out the board game, Twister and played it on the patio. Two older girls, Fanny and Yessica stopped by for help with their English homework and I got a text message. "Ya me voy al parto- ¡Apura!" (I'm going to the birth, hurry!) It was 4:30pm.

I grabbed my jacket, camera and flashlight and quickly ran down stairs- I said sorry to the girls who were waiting with their text books- it would have to wait. Off to the health post. Talia was practically ready. The trails to Cayamus are confusing. It's a maze of tree farms and tiny roads-trails really, that wind around the few houses that exist. I've gotten lost more than a few times. I said to Talia that I hoped the girl didn't give birth yet, it would have been a waste of time! And Talia responded in Spanish, "Maybe she did, maybe we missed it!" I hoped not.

After a good 30 minute walk down the steep mountainside, we eventually came upon the humble home where some people were waiting outside. A baby lamb greeted us at the door. Inside a small room, Lydian lay covered in blankets. She got up and began pacing the room with her Sister-in-law. At least she felt like walking. That was a good sign. She was in a lot of pain, and still very pregnant. She was wearing so many layers of clothes and a poncho.

I knew it would get dark in the next hour and a half. It didn't look like there was electricity in the house. Another night with candles... It seems like those without "luz" spend a lot of money on candles. I'm glad I've had the luxury of having electricity during my service, even if it wasn't constant. I stood watching, not knowing what to do. Talia seemed to have everything under control. She assessed Lydian and said she was 10 centimeters dilated. Although to me, she didn't seem to be in active labor. But what did I know? It was only my first time seeing a birth. Talia could palpate the infant's head. We thought, at any moment the baby would come, just a little longer! However, we were terribly wrong.




It got dark and cold and the poor patient was not making any progress. The family called Talia this morning at 6am thinking Lydian was ready. False alarm. All day, the pains came and went, 12 hours later there was little to no progress. Her water still hadn't broken. I was confused, because wasn't 10 cm almost the end of labor? And wasn't the water supposed to break before that? Could Talia be wrong? By 8pm, I knew I would be there for the long haul, and possibly all night! Frankly, I wanted to witness this and that included the boring parts too.

Lydian had little appetite, so they spoon fed her soup. I saw a brown beer bottle on the table, through the candlelight. Than I noticed how they forced her to drink out of the bottle. Pregnancy and liquor. Hmmmm. I asked the family, "Isn't that bad for her?" And they replied, "Naaahhh, we've mixed punch into the beer." A homemade epidural? Talia and I just looked at each other, shaking our heads. Lydian was up and off the bed walking, the contractions were coming and going with more frequency. IV access was crucial. If at any point we needed to give her pain medication or heparin, we would need to give it quickly. Imagine placing an IV in a patent's hand in the dark? Than where would we hang it? We had no IV pole. From the ceiling! Improvisation in Peru.

Lydian sat up again and squatted on the floor, improving natural forces of gravity. She needed to push with every contraction she felt. The contractions were coming closer together. We took off her poncho and a blanket wrapped around her waist. I grabbed hold of something long and thick. What? I illuminated the area with my flashlight and it was a deer leg, two actually. They bring good luck during birth. Go figure. Not listed in the standard nursing manual. Lydian's father came in and sat next to her in a chair. She squatted in front of him holding his shoulders. Her dress covering her legs. Talia wanted to make an incision to prevent natural tearing from occurring. But the babies' head was not yet visible and we would have to wait. I wondered if it would be a boy or a girl?

Another hour went by. It was 9:30pm. We were all a little worried. What was taking so long? Was she not pushing hard enough or was there a complication? I took her blood pressure. It had not dropped since I last took it. Nevertheless, we decided to call the ambulance at the health center in Agallpampa. Within an hour they could be here to take her to the health center and induce the labor. Shortly after making contact with the ambulance via cell phone her water broke! Luckily, I had already eaten dinner. The family invited me to a bowl of potato soup. Delicious!

In recalling the few things I remember from obstetrics in school, the water breaking was a very good sign! Lydian got up from squatting and Talia and I examined her. We still couldn't see the head and thus, didn't want to make the incision. Every contraction that followed was cheered on by Lydian's Mother, Father, Sister-in-law and us. "PUSH!" They yelled, "DON´T PULL!" And with every push the Mom and Dad would blow on Lydian's head, as if to aide in pushing out the baby with their own breath. And than as the screams got louder, I knew this was the moment. Lydian pushed and screamed and all of the sudden a baby girl slipped out from between her legs and slid onto the sheep's skin carpet where she squat. Talia quickly scooped up the babe, as I took pictures. She cut the umbilical cord. The ambulance arrived another 2 hours later.



The next day I sat thinking about life's complexity. Here I am, all caught up in the fact that I'm on my way out of this village. And at the same time a baby just arrived. Symbolic I suppose.

La Libertad Crew- We miss you Khaliah!

holding on strong

We finished the water committee trainings that were dominating my life for the past three months. I was happy to despedir a Hugo our microbiologist who came up to Carata 3 times but was consistently late and unreliable the whole time. I think the committee learned something from him, but i´m still bitter about the whole thing. The JASS (water committee) got their start up tools and uniforms. We´ll be closing out the grant paperwork and account.


For the last couple of weeks in site I´ll be meeting with them to continue with the annual work plans, writing bylaws, organizing their check book and accounting, making minor repairs, and the monthly fee we´ll charge the families. Thank god I have a replacement volunteer after I leave. There´s still so much to do!!! Development is so frickin´ slow!

I´m holding on strong during these last couple of weeks in site. Since my last post I helped organize another year of field based training for new trainees. This year we went to Julcan and San Augustin in the sierra and Tecapa on the northern coast of La Libertad. It was a productive week. Fortunately I didn´t get sick, like last year. No one wants to remember a viral infection. yuck.

I went back to site after the training for just a day than took off to Lima for med checks. The good news- I´m healthy enough to return to the USA. As long as washington agrees. the bad news- I´ve lost 13 lbs since 2005 and have abnormally high hemoglobin levels since living at such a high altitude. My cells have changed. Weird.



Some of my fellow P6er´s are peace´n out. Like Khaliah. Good luck girl. I´ll miss you. Even though I´ve got a million and 10 things to do this month before I leave, I´m going to appreciate my last month in the Peace Corps because I´ve been blessed with a wonderful site, decent job opportunities, great friends, a caring family, and a reliable staff to support me along the way. This is mypeacecorps. And it´s coming to an end. Whooa. I didn´t think I´d ever be able to say that. Cheers to Carata.

Strange Occurrences: 7/10/07

Strange Occurrences: 7/10/07

I hiked up to Doña Maria’s Bodega to buy some fruit the other day and we began talking about my short time left in Carata. She tried to convince me to stay, and because this wasn’t the first time someone has pulled this one on me I used my rehearsed line (“I’d really like to stay…”) But the fact is, “I miss my family and need to return to them”. Surely any Peruvian would understand that since family means so much to them. Doña Maria listened contently, until I finished and than casually said, YOUR PARENTS ARE MILLIONAIRES. It wasn’t phrased as a question, nor as to clarify a doubt, but as fact! My parents are millionaires. I stood there on her dirt floor, stunned. How do you answer that? Mustering a thoughtful response, and at the same time, withholding my laughter, I told her the truth. “Actually, they aren’t millionaires.”
Shit. This Town. Wow.
In the same day, just a few hours later, I went with the nurse to visit the public school. We needed to coordinate a few upcoming dates. The second grade teacher “Grober”(pronounced grover-like the Muppet) whom we wanted to talk to, was not in his classroom but his students were. We stood outside his room talking with the 3rd grade teacher “Eder” who was the acting principal in his absence. Attendance is obviously a problem for teachers and the principal. When Grober didn’t return, Eder sent one of the 2nd graders to find him. 10 minutes later the kid came back and explained that Grober was in a saloon-but would be right back. As we waited, I became impatient and entered the 2nd grade classroom. The kids were out of their seats, pushing each other, yelling my name and leaving in big groups for the bathroom. What chaos. I was immediately reminded why I didn’t go into education. And yet as a nurse I always feel like a teacher, especially in the Peace Corps.
Grober never came back, so I asked the student who went out to look for his teacher. “What could he possibly be doing, why hasn’t he returned to class? And the student replied, “Esta tomando”. (He’s drinking). It occurred to me later, that I was the only one surprised. The second graders were used to the idea of being left alone for hours while their teacher spent the morning in a bar.
Shit. This Town. Wow.
The following day, would be extremely busy, with two meetings in the morning, and one in the afternoon. I woke up early, ate breakfast and headed down to Nuevo California, walking. Our camp was planned for that Friday and I was struggling to get everything in order for the four campers I had chosen as participants. One of the assignments we arranged as camp directors was a written letter from each parent to their child. This was to be done secretly so that on the 3rd and last day of camp, the campers would receive a letter of encouragement from their parents. It was an activity that the self esteem committee had planned. Generally speaking, few parents congratulate their kids for their successes. Even fewer parents praise their children in this culture. We decided it would be a meaningful activity for both parents and campers.
Since I agreed to bring four kids from Carata (and neigboring villages) that meant four letters from four different parents. I walked to each of their houses, which are not in close proximity of each other, and having visited two houses the day before I left the other two for this morning. Yesterday’s visits went well, I reviewed the camp details with the parents and completed the letters with the mothers. It was a little difficult to explain the concept, "write a positive letter of reinforcement to your son/daughter". But don’t tell them we’ve written this letter, they will receive it at the end of camp. !?!?!!? I gave the two mom’s examples, What would you like to tell him/her, that you never say? One of the moms was illiterate, so as she spoke the letter, I dictated. The other mom didn’t want to write (so I offered to write for her) fortunately she understood the concept and was quite eloquent in her letter to her daughter, Edith.
When I arrived in Nuevo California, I found the other two mothers working with a committee of other locals. They were behind the soup kitchen digging up an open space. It was obvious that this was a community effort, each family was required to do their part of the labor. Knowing this, I hoped to pull the mothers out for a few minutes to write their letters and let them get back to work.
I called “Diva” and “Zoila” from the crowd and they came over to a bench were I was sitting, one at a time. I reiterated the letter writing activity for their son/daughter. Both gave me the same response, “Don’t you see we’re busy, in the middle of work?”. I told them I understood, but that they knew about this assignment, and if they wanted their kids to attend the camp, this was a requirement. “But Mateo, if we don’t get back to work, their going to deduct us. We’ll be fined.” “You write the letters.” I said, “Listen, this is suppose to come from you, as a parent.” “I’m not asking you for a lot here!”

Yesterday, the first two mothers, sat with me. They thought about the letter, they expressed interest. They imagined their kids receiving the letters, and the smiles on their faces.
These women returned to digging, and I sat on the bench, fuming. I couldn’t believe that these two  couldn’t even help me with something so simple like a short letter. It wasn’t even for me, for Christ's sake, it was for their own son/daughter. Maybe they didn’t know how to write either, or maybe they could, but didn’t want to. I thought the threat of being fined for not working was a pretty lame excuse.
I wanted to say, “You’ll be fined, so be it.” “ Do you know how much Peace Corps is paying to invite your kid to this retreat?” “ It’s considered a scholarship, all expenses included, they won’t spend a dime!” “And your telling me you can’t even write your child a note about why you love them, and that you support them!”
Shit. This Town. Wow.

POESIA

Oct. 1st 2007
Day 738. I ate 14 potatoes today. Never again. I’ve determined that I’m more likely to get explosive diarrhea when I eat at someone elses house in the village and than take a vigorous hike home, scaling steep hills. Waiting 30 minutes to 1 hour is definitely necessary to prevent this reoccurring problem. It’s nice that other families are inviting me to lunch now, but it’s killing my digestive tract. Another origin of the diarrhea could be the exposure to new bacteria in a new cooking environment.

When I came back from Christmas this year, I gave a friend of mine my old hiking boots. Mom and Dad had bought me a new pair. The former weren’t really that old for Peruvian standards.The Timberland’s were probably the best gift Alipio had ever received. Surely an upgrade to his yankees (sandals made out of tires). Alipio just held the boots in his hands, admiring them, and thanking me.

So it’s October now, and up until now, I’ve never seen Alipio wear the boots. Were they so amazing that he didn’t even want to wear them? Or did he give them to one of his 9 sons? Esgar who’s 15 years old, has been spending a lot of time at our house. I asked him yesterday about the boots. Evidently one of his older brothers wore the boots to Otuzco and drank so much, he passed out. And the boots were stolen right off his feet. So who knows where my old boots are nowadays? Hopefully someone is getting good use out of them, even if they were stolen.

What else is new here? Well, after months and months of planning our youth camp came and went. Last weekend we brought all the participants together between the mountains and the coast in a town called Pedregal. 36 adolescents participated, and they loved it. We played a number of problem solving games, decorated journals, made jewelry, baked with solar ovens, invited outside speakers (college students and professionals), performed skits, and even got a good scare from a ghost during a bonfire. The camp themes promoted 1. Education 2. Leadership and 3. Self Esteem. It was a roaring success. The invitees have limited opportunities to participate in such a retreat.



Ode to Carata
I think I’ll live without a refrigerator from now on. And a washing machine, and who needs a dryer anyway. Or an iron? Please. Ironing clothes seems odd. Unnecessary really. Hand washing clothes is a great stress reliever. I haven’t seen a real kitchen stove in years. Heck we’ve been cooking just fine over the fire. How much would an oven cost anyway. Too much. Tissues are a big waste too. It wasn’t until PC that I stopped buying them and began using toilet paper for everything. I usually bathe every 3-4 days, pending water that is, and change my clothes every other day. Baby wipes are the perfect remedy for quick and easy hygiene. What a funny looking word. The bathing boycott however will probably have to be broken if I want to integrate back into American society. And date again. Rice will always be apart of meals from now on, I’m addicted to it. I don’t even taste it anymore. It fills you up though. When I eat any other meal without rice, I don’t feel like I’ve eaten. Maybe I’ll stop washing my hands with cold water since I’m destined to get sick from doing that. I could bring dirt floors back into style. Upon arrival to the USA, How about in my first apartment I tear up what ever floor exists and put down dirt. The longer it’s there the more broken in it becomes-almost like carpet. We used to drop glass and it didn’t even break. I wasn’t until they poured a concrete floor that we really started breaking dishes. And cuyes. No kitchen is complete without 20 feral guinea pigs at your feet. God, I’m gonna miss this place.

And I don’t think I’ll ever really be able to complain about anything in the USA ever again. Because it could NEVER be as bad as it’s been in Peru.

Things I miss: Carpets. The smell of cut grass. Driving. Berry Berry Kix. 90 Watt light bulbs. Public trash cans. Rollerblading. Comfortable bus seats. Cold juices. Bacon. Making breakfast. Poping popcorn. Halloween. Reading the Sunday paper. Taking trains. Arriving on time. Calling old friends. Toilet seats. Walking the Charles River. Smooth roads. Playing catch.

Things I’ll miss from Peru: Cebiche. Huayno/Cumbia/Salsa music. Otra Cosa (Vegetarian Restaurant). The Spanish language. “Inviteme” concept. The idea of time. Papa a la huancaina. Marching bands. Donkeys. Little old men with no teeth. People opening beer bottles with their teeth. Adobe walls. Political signs. Protests. Holidays. Newsweeks. The RPM. The PCMO. The APCD. Enriques burly arms. Yapas. Straw hats. Being tall. And feeling tall. Yellow tin roofs. Dusty, dry country roads. Ticos. Estations. Inca haus. The Mediterranean restaurant. Speaking spanglish. Quinua. Pooping in plastic cups. P6!

“I´m no poet”
Sure it’s been hard. Theres no water, no electricity, no bathrooms, no phone lines. The food has made me sick more than a few times. The government’s corrupt. Most locals have given up. And yet month after month I remind myself-you’ve changed so much. Now it’s time to depart, with whom do I start? My family or friends, I can’t believe it’s the end. This long, strange trip through Peru has redefined even you.

Machu Picchu

On Aug. 1st my Mom and Knox Turner arrived for a two week visit. Finally, after almost 2 years, I’d have the opportunity to visit Cusco and Peru’s most famous attraction- Machu Picchu. We decided to leave one week for Cusco in the south and the second week for the north- Trujillo and Carata. Mom claimed if she were to make the trip all the way to Perú she couldn’t miss out on seeing Carata.

I met the two at Aeropuerto Internacional-Jorge Chávez and we stayed overnight in a hotel nearby. Only looks were deceiving. From the website, ¨Hotel Victor¨ appeared impressive, clean and comfortable. Fortunately for us the place was locked into a gated cul-de-sac, because the surrounding neighborhood was a real slum. Imagine dirt streets, condemned buildings, broken down cars on every corner, and garbage burning on the side of the road. It made the Bronx seem like Beverly Hills. Just when Perú defined poverty, the slums of Lima redefined it again.

PC has wanted to place more PCV´s in the outskirts of greater metropolitan Lima, but in almost every case of site development they couldn’t even find suitable homes that met safety standards. Straw mat lean to's just don’t cut it. Some say there is more poverty in Lima than any other region of the country.

The following morning we awoke and went back to the airport to fly to Cusco. A 50 minute flight or a 30 hour bus ride. With those kinds of options who wouldn’t fly? There’s word of a new train from Lima to Cusco, but I think it’s just wishful thinking. Cusco was everything I imagined, excellent food, a clean, colonial atmosphere, and more history to absorb than any other Peruvian city I’ve visited. Everything was going as planned until my Mom came down with a paralyzing pain in the back of her head. She said she could feel it moving from behind her ears, wrapping itself around to the front. When the pain didn’t cease, we got worried and rushed to a hospital.

Surprisingly, we were quickly attended and the bilingual staff made us feel more at ease. The Doc seemed to think it was only stress related, and wanted to admit her just to err on the side of caution. What a frightening experience though, especially for Mom to loose even more of her independence in another country, in a different language with a bizarre health care system. She agreed to stay overnight and physical therapy scheduled three visits. An IV was started to relieve residual pain.
The hospital tour wasn’t part of the itinerary but at least Mom was in the city when this happened. We were scheduled to start an expedition with Q´ente Tours (Q´ente= Hummingbird in Quechua) that Sunday, which meant camping in the sacred valley on the way to Machu Picchu. We wouldn’t recommend the hospital, but rather, the Dutch run Niño’s Hotel. http://www.ninoshotel.com/

Sunday morning began early with a hotel pickup by Q´ente. Carlos introduced himself as our young, humble guide for the next four days. We drove out of Cusco heading west to the town of Izcuchaca than to Huarocondo and finally to Socma. Adobe homes whipped by in the van window, farmers attended to their cattle and the bright warm sun rose above the green mountain tops. Our group was small, just five in total, two babes from Wales, Jennifer and Anna, and the three of us. Our staff on the other hand consisted of 5-6 men, various horses, food and equipment.

That first day we hiked slowly, as Carlos stopped to teach us about culture, history, geography, politics (and everything else under the sun really). As we winded up the switchbacks, we came across a beautiful waterfall. An archaeological site was pointed out to the left, former Incan ruins I suppose. Lunch was served picnic style. We ate and rested and hiked another 20 minutes to the unofficial campsite. (The first choice campsite, farther ahead, didn’t have water) The sun set, and as darkness fell upon us, it got cold! We were at 3,400m. Carlos taught us about the southern hemisphere’s solar system. Fascinating.

Breakfast was served and we took off for the second full day of hiking. We left the village of Perolyniyoc and huffed up to Arrayan sweating. Breaks were necessary. I felt like we had reached the highest elevation at that point. From this pass we were confronted by neighboring snow capped mountains. I had read about Mt. Ausangate and had been thinking about a trek through that part of southern Perú. At 6384m it’s the highest Mt. in southern Peru. Carlos pointed it out as the third peak to the left. As we made our decent I thought about how sacred this region was, and allowed the Incan concept of respecting nature to set in.

What a unique experience, to walk the same route that an ancient civilization had inhabited. This was even more meaningful than last weeks trip on Santa Cruz in Ancash. Mom was holding her own, actually I was very proud. Considering she was a recent hospital patient 2 days before and presently scaling 10,000ft mountains with little difficulty. Knox was up for the adventure, as long as he didn’t have to sleep by the tent door.

The third day was easily the hardest-75% of the trek was hiking downhill on very slippery terrain. Fortunately we stopped to see a quarry and a burial tomb along the way. In an effort to descend faster, Mom rode one of the horses for a minute but quickly dismounted, exclaiming, “It was the scariest thing I’ve ever done in my life”.

We passed some aqueducts and spotted the train tracks to Machu Picchu in the distance. Ollantaytambo became visible in the valley below. After lunch by the river, we thanked the staff and took off in a van to the town of Ollantaytambo to catch the train. I took my boots off and slipped on my Reefs. Heaven. Our feet were badly blistered and bruised at that point.

If only we had more time, I would have loved to wander those ancient streets. This unique village was bustling with tourists but maintained an inviting, comforting feeling. It occurred to me that one could easily spend 2-4 weeks in the entire sacred valley region, sightseeing between Cusco and Aguas Calientes before even seeing the trophy site-Machu Picchu.

The train was a welcomed change of transport, since walking the past 2.5 days. We desperately needed to shower. Carlos claimed the hotel in Aguas Calientes was casi 5 estrellas- laughing under his breath as any seasoned Peruvian guide would do. Clearly there are no 5 star hotels south of Texas.

So I just laughed when my mom stood naked in the shower, waiting for water. We called the reception (by shouting down the hall-mind you) and they sent “some guy” who accidentally pulled the knobs right off the shower wall-spraying water everywhere. We changed rooms two more times before actually taking hot showers. This town is known as Hot Waters for heavens sake. 5 stars….Riggggght.

Dinner at a Thai restaurant made up for the substandard hotel and a quick dip in the hot thermal baths encouraged a good night’s sleep. That next morning (Wednesday) we’d leave for Machu Picchu early, before the big crowds.

Wake up! Here’s the moment you’ve been waiting for! MP! The surrounding green mountains were a lush green, even during the dry season. Actually the periphery is better described not as mountainous but as towering tropical peaks. The Urubamba Valley is breathtaking. These peaks protected the fortress from intruders. Although our time was limited, Carlos took the five of us to the most popular sites, explaining in detail the current theories behind this mysterious site. We had the chance to wander- And although I would have liked to climb Huayna Picchu (A tall peak across the ruins) for lack of time, we walked to an Incan bridge. It was time to head back to Aguas Calientes and eat lunch before catching the train. I had head about the “chaskys” (sp?) from other PC volunteers who have been to MP but had forgotten until I saw little boys running the switchbacks down the mountain, chasing our bus, screaming their way down. Dressed in traditional Incan gowns, these little messengers recreate the traditional message relaying system for present day tourists. Impressed, with their “skills to pay the bills” I easily gave them a tip when one boy boarded our bus. It was surely more impressive than the musicians on city buses, or the Maca/anti-parasite/vitamin/teethwhitening salesmen on buses to my site.

I hated to leave Cusco, but it was time to head north to La Libertad and pay Trujillo and Carata a visit. From Cusco we flew to Lima. To pass the time between flights we played a rather enjoyable 2 hour long game of world geography. The flight to Trujillo is short- a mere 50 minutes compared to the 9 hour bus ride. For the first time in Peru’s history TIME MENT MONEY. I love traveling with rich gringos-spend a little extra to save time. What a concept. My Peruvian host family would op for a painful 20 hour ride-above a tractor trailer to save a few bucks. Not the Lindsleys.

That next day we toured the city by means of errands-the bank, post office, laundry, etc. In the afternoon we drove out to Salaverry a port town, to visit some fellow Americans. A US navel ship (USS Comfort) was anchored out at sea and two groups of health personnel had been split between two public schools. One in Salaverry and the other in Trujillo. For a full week the floating hospital provided free health care to the public. We caught them on a Thursday, at the end of their week, but managed to get a tour and learn about the program. The ship had been on tour for a number of months through Central/South America. They saw patients for dental/vision problems, cleft lip/palate surgeries and more. I was very impressed with the organization and leadership by our military. We were guided through the large school with a sergeant whom was happy to have Peace Corps volunteers helping with translation. Unfortunately we didn’t get to physically help, nor translate because they were finishing up for the day. However, I enjoyed just watching the Peruvian Army and the US military join forces to offer health services and build classrooms.

That night we visited my host family-the extended family that is. The neighborhood is called La Rinconada and it’s one of the poorer regions of the city but certainly not the poorest. When I come into town from my site, the family makes room for me to stay. I’ve saved a lot of money that way (instead of on hotels, restaurants) but usually there’s no water, nor toilet seats, average food, hard beds, rats, cockroaches, and lots of screaming babies and/or children. In spite of all that, the chaotic atmosphere is exciting and definitely a different environment than home. For example, one morning I awoke early and found the baby, Fernando sitting on the kitchen floor eating a tub of butter. Grinning, he looked up at me and I thought, there’s a breakfast of champions.

Mom was down with the house though, she meet Gladis, Melva, Jhonny, Jesus, Anel, and Fernando. Knox was a great translator between the group and we told them all about Cusco, the hospital and Machu Picchu. It’s sad to think that they may never have the opportunity to go, due to economic strains and this “World Wonder” is in their own country. Than on the way back to our hotel I lost my wallet. It fell off my lap onto the floor of the taxi as we got out. It was one of those forgettable moments of realization in the middle of the street. MY WALLET! NOOOOO!!! I patted my sides down instinctively for the next hour hoping it would suddenly appear, but it was gone. I called our safety and security director, Enrique Navarro, and he talked me through the process of canceling the cards, and filing a police report the next morning. My wallet contained S/.100 (Nuevos Soles) which is roughly $30.00. Only a PCV would make such a fuss over such a small amount of cash.

So instead of heading up to Carata, we went on another unplanned tour of the police headquarters (La comisaria) to file a complaint. While in line I could hear the officer behind his cardboard thin wall, chicken pecking on a typewriter. And I thought, “Wow, This could take a while…” Finally, I walked into his office and immediately noticed the enormous crucifix of Christ on the wall, and to the left of it, an X-rated poster of a topless gringa. What a dichotomy. The entire country has these sharp differences-opposing one another. Que raro.

Saturday morning we left for Carata, but we only reached the town of Poroto, 25km from the city when the radiator on Johnny’s taxi pooped out. We could either wait on the side of the road and hitchhike up to Carata (3 hours away), or turn back so he could get it fixed and than leave in the morning. Driving at night was not an option. Way too dangerous, especially the way he drove. So we turned back and stayed in La Rinconada another night. Slightly depressed, but getting used to disappointment, we decided to see a movie. Usually that’s a foolproof means of entertainment. Although one time the volume went out and the whole theatre began screaming at the film operator. Lucky, we had no such problem.

The hotel in La Rinconada was laughable. You could designate it- Ghetto Hotel #3. Although it’s known as “THE SWEET LIFE” (La Dulce Vida) to locals. I began to think Knox and Mom were beginning to either give up on Peru, or settle right into the insanity. The speeding taxis, begging children, public urination, missing shower curtains and toilet seats, feral dogs, trash piles, endless waiting, contaminated water (when available), gnarly food, rock hard pillows, and destitute poor were just too much for one vacation. The past 24 hours had been hell, a hell that was the nadir to all previous months of preparation.

At last we arrived in Carata, we had missed yesterdays meeting with health promoters, who wanted to meet my fam. It was irrelevant at that point. We could count all of our limbs and that was more important. I sleep like a dead horse that night. I’d bet that Mom enjoyed Carata, we took her up to the Cruz, and to the reservoir, to see the water project. Knox and her dispersed gifts to the family. They even brought some sand dollars (surprisingly intact) from the ocean, and we told them the story of the doves inside. They had never seen such a thing. It was a gift from our family to yours, Knox explained.

In the end Mom finally saw Carata, and spent two nights in my site. The electricity when out the second night, but we didn’t even care, at least we had each other. The morning they flew out of Lima a 7.5 magnitude earthquake hit southern Peru. At that point they were on their way home to Concord, NH. It sure was an unforgettable trip.

Another popular trek near Machu Picchu is called Choquequirao. Those that have been there are saying it could be bigger than MP. An online source states,

"Choquequirao (Golden Cradle) is considered the Sister City of Machu Picchu, because of several similarities, it hangs 1,500 meters above the Apurimac Canyon, and Machupicchu hangs above the Urubamba canyon. It was a religious and administrative center. It is at the same latitude and it is a large citadel with more of 8 hectares, only one third has been uncovered and every day archeologists are finding new things."

Trip to Cusco

EARTHQUAKE UPDATE #4

This is the last and final update about the earthquake. News reports currently state the death toll is 500+ and rising. Additionally, More than 1000 injuried and there have been 400 aftershocks recorded of varrying sizes. All I can say is, It´s time to come home....



Dear Volunteers,

The second phase of the relief effort is in full-swing as international and Peruvian organizations focus on building temporary shelters, improving sanitary conditions, and passing-out blankets and food. Unfortunately, there continues to be distribution challenges which has led to a few instances of looting and public protest. Many of you have asked for information regarding donations to organizations that are helping in the relief effort. The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is partnering with the following organizations to help those affected by the earthquake:

Catholic Relief Services (CRS)
CARE
Samaritan's Purse
World Vision

Any of these organizations would be good choices for friends and family to make monetary donations to help this worthy cause. They all have websites and easy instructions for making tax deductible donations.

In terms of Peace Corps/Peru, we are in the process of identifying the suitability of partner agencies in Ica in order to decide if and when to initiate the Crisis Corps program. Crisis Corps Volunteers work under a similar model than other Peace Corps Volunteers as they rely heavily on the support of counterpart agencies to structure their work. We hope to make a definitive decision regarding Crisis Corps in the coming weeks. Also, we have discussed the possibility of using in-country Volunteers for short-term assignments in Ica.

EARTHQUAKE UPDATE #3

Estimados Voluntarios,
The situation in the affected areas has stabilized. The strategy for helping the affected areas is transitioning from rescue work where the emphasis is on searching for survivors, providing emergency medical care and passing-out food rations to the recovery phase. This entails the construction of temporary shelters, temporary work programs for the residents of the affected areas, and the removal of debris and the demolition of unsafe buildings.

The next phase is the rebuilding of civil society which should begin in earnest in the next two weeks. National and international relief agencies will concentrate on helping the affected towns and communities regain a sense of "normalcy." Projects will certainly focus on reopening the schools, reorganizing the municipalities, repairing irrigation canals and water systems, restoring damaged buildings and providing social services and counseling. This phase is where Peace Corps Volunteers can make a significant impact in improving the lives of those affected. To this end, I have been in contact with Crisis Corps to begin developing a strategy where Volunteers can work in an organized and effective manner to provide relief and development assistance. Five staff, including myself, and the five Ica Volunteers will be traveling tomorrow to affected areas to visit with and offer support to their host-families and counterparts, assess the possibility of these Volunteers continuing to work in Ica, and conduct an initial assessment of work opportunities for Crisis Corps Volunteers.

On Monday, I will send you an update regarding our findings and more information about the possible addition of the Crisis Corps Program to PC/Peru and how it may effect you.

In related news, many Volunteers have asked how there communities and/or family and friends back home can help with the relief effort. Currently, the US Embassy is compiling a list of reputable national and international NGOs that are accepting monetary donations for the purpose of providing relief assistance to Ica. On Monday, I hope to forward you the list. In-kind donations such as blankets, food and medical supplies are discouraged by most relief organizations working in the area.


That is all for now.

Saludos,

Marko

EARTHQUAKE UPDATE #2

Dear Volunteers,

The second day of the natural disaster has brought about more information. The towns of Pisco, Ica and Chincha have reported wide-spread damage to buildings and homes. These towns and the surrounding areas are without electricity, water or sewage systems. Relief efforts are being conducted by Peruvian governmental agencies while the impacted areas are also receiving support from the United States, Colombia, Bolivia, Chile, Venezuela, Israel, Spain and the European Union. Unfortunately, there has many incidents of looting and robbery. Security will continue to be an issue, but hopefully the crime rate will decrease as the government establishes order in the affected towns.

In last two days, we have received numerous requests from Volunteers to travel to Ica to help with the relief effort and/or organize donations of food and medical supplies. However, an effective needs assessment of the impacted areas has yet to be conducted by the government or other organizational entities. We expect to have more information on Tuesday on what the region will need in terms of supplies and assistance. Between all the national and international agencies in the area, there appears to be enough specialized personnel providing immediate assistance. In fact, President Garcia has stated that there are enough doctors and nurses in Ica and what the region requires now is engineers and construction workers.

Over the next week I will speaking with Michael Hirsh and meeting with Senior Staff and Volunteers to discuss ideas on how we can provide assistance to the communities where Rachel, Joselyn, Nicole, Abigail and Amy are serving. Regarding a more widespread initiative for PC/Peru Volunteers to help in the Ica region, I will also discuss this possibility with Staff, PCVs and PC/Washington.

In other news, the Emergency Action Plan was successfully completed. We were able to contact all Volunteers and Trainees in 30 hours. Thank y'all for your cooperation. It was important that we keep you informed about the earthquake as well as confirm your whereabouts. Also, I spoke to Peru 7 about a PC/Panama Volunteer who was vacationing in Peru. He contacted us about an hour ago, so the Panameños are surely relived to know that he is safe.

That's all for now. I will send another update on Monday

Saludos, Marko

EARTHQUAKE HITS PERU

Below are excerpts from emails written to us from Marko Dolan (Program and Training Officer) during this natural disaster, which occured on Wednesday August 15th 2007.




AUGUST 15TH 2007
As most of you know, last night at approximately 6:40pm an earthquake measuring 8.0 struck the department of Ica with Pisco and Chincha the most effected. There are reported to be more than 450 deaths and 1,500 injured. Lima and Arequipa were also effected by the earthquake, but damage was considerably less with only one fatality reported. Regarding Peace Corps Volunteers and Staff, we feel extremely fortunate that the five Volunteers working in Ica were not in the department at the time. They are safe and accounted for.

The roads are transitable from Lima to Pisco, but only passenger vehicles are allowed since at least one of the bridges between Ica and Pisco has suffered structural damage. Due to safety concerns, however, Volunteer travel to Ica is prohibited until further notice.

On the positive side, all planned programming and training events will take place as scheduled. Despite the intensity of the earthquake, neither the training center nor the Surco office were effected.

In response this natural disaster we have activated the Emergency Action Plan (EAP) putting all Volunteers are on "Alert " status. What this means is that we are in the process of contacting all of you to make sure you are okay and are aware of last night's earthquake. So far, we have contacted almost everyone, but we are still unable to get a hold of the following Volunteers:

Susannah Brower
Rachel Levy

If anyone knows there whereabouts please let us know. We need to speak to them directly in order to complete the instructions detailed in the EAP.

Lastly, if you haven't contacted your family I would highly recommend that you at least write them. PC/Washington has received many calls and emails from concerned parents requesting news.

Thanks for your understanding during these difficult times. Our prayers go out to the towns and communities of Ica.

Keep safe and I will send out another update tomorrow.


Marko

Independence day on Santa Cruz

On the 25th of July Peace Corps invited Khaliah and I to speak on a diversity panel in Lima . The new training center is now located in Chacalacayo a town much closer to the PC office than Santa Eulalia. Khaliah (a Black PCV), Dennis (an Asian PCV), Hannah (a Jewish PCV) and myself shared our experiences to the new aspirantes. They are a talented group of new trainees soon to be PCVs in just a few weeks. During my training I immensely enjoyed the visits from current volunteers. They were much more interesting than staff members and easier to relate to knowing that we too would assume their role. Every volunteer led portion of training was my favorite part. Knowing this, it was exciting to be invited back. Each of us on the panel answered a series of prepared questions such as, What challenges have you encountered based on your situation?, and Are there advantages to being a minority volunteer? After the session, I talked with some of the trainees individually and many commended me for coming out to Juan. It´s wonderful to meet strangers who because of their home country accept and embrace differences. I rarely feel that in Peru.



That night I took an overnight bus from Lima to Caraz, Ancash ( 8 hours). I met up with Katie and Mia. We packed up some last minute food items and took off on our trek. None of us have extensive trekking experience but we had been told that Santa Cruz was a great 4 day, 3 night trek for beginners. By starting on a Thursday and we knew we would end on Sunday the 29th. We drove out of Caraz to Cashapampa where we met Victor the ariero ( encargado de los burros) at the Parque Nacional Huascarán. Victor loaded our bags on his donkeys and we entered the park. It was 11am. Our goal was to arrive at the first base camp by passing through the Santa Cruz ravine to Lake Ichiqcocha. At 4:30pm we arrived and Victor had set up the tents. It began to get cold and dark. We were all exhausted. Katie began cooking on the gas stove (no open fires in the park!) while Mia and I unloaded the other bags and prepared the sleeping arrangements. The brown rice and tomato soup was wonderful. We were so tired that as the sun set at 6:30pm we piled in our tents and fell asleep by 8pm. It began to rain. That following day we woke up early to a frost and cooked breakfast-oatmeal, fruit, eggs, and bread. Mia and I washed up by a stream, filled up our water bottles and returned to the camp. This second day was much easier, since sleeping well. Victor said we would only need to hike until mid day to reach the second camp. As we hiked through the valley we I looked up at some of the surrounding mountains of Aguja (5888m), Pumapampa (5582m) and Caraz (6020m). I felt incredibly at home passing these ancient landforms. What a view! As we crossed streams , winding paths, and other hikers, we slowly came upon the most beautiful mountain range I´ve ever seen.



Three snow capped peaks welcomed us into their arms at base camp 2. I was annoyed to be setting up camp at 1pm since I was still feeling strong for another couple of hours of hiking. Victor knew best. It was almost impossible to make the pass between mountains and arrive at base camp 3 in the same day. It would be too dangerous in the snowy/icy conditions at such altitudes. We needed time to acclimatize and rest for day 3. Since it was still early we hung out with some German friends we had met, talking and listening to music. It began to sprinkle, for fear of a down pour, we prepared a small meal and stayed in the tents until sun rise.



On day three we got out of the tent and frost had covered it. It began to snow! This was my first snowfall in Perú. The flurries covered our bags and equipment as we packed for the day´s hike. I filmed a panoramic of the site. We were surrounded by Alpamayo (5947m), Ririjirca (5810m) and Artesonraju (6025m). How spectacular! As the sun rose, clouds cleared showing the true beauty of these three peaks. We ate a full breakfast and took off to the right side of Ririjirca. As we climbed, a brilliant blue lake was located out of view in a crevasse of the peak. Our trail winded up and around the lake and up to Punta Unión (4750m) the pass between two peaks. We rested at the top with Victor and began the accent passing smaller lakes to the Huaripampa ravine. We camped that evening in Colcabamba and noticed the change in altitude. At 3300m it was dry and not nearly as cold at night. It didn´t rain but Sunday morning we woke up in a wet tent. The floor had leaked, or a nalgene bottle opened in the night. Luckily I stayed dry on top of my therma-rest and mummy bag. Mia, Katie and I were ready to end the trip, knowing we just had a few more hours to hike to Vaquería (3700m) where we would look for transportation to Yungay. It took only 2.5 hours to hike into Vaquería, but an hour to load the van, and three hours to drive to Yungay (including the repair of a flat tire). From Yungay we contracted a taxi to Caraz to unload at Mia´s apt. That night we drove to Huaraz and stayed in La Colmena- hands down the best hostel in Ancash!

--
Matthew R. Lindsley, BSN, RN
Voluntario de Cuerpo de Paz
Carata, La Libertad, Perú

News-Noticias-News-Read all about it!

Peruvian Mines Exploit Child Labor

Huamachuco. In recognition of child’s rights day a disturbing news story was uncovered close to Carata, ( 80 km North) in the mountains of La Libertad. Non-formal artisan gold mines have existed for years. Owned by private small companies, they’ve been digging into mountain-sides on their own land. It wasn’t until larger companies like Barrick for example who have had success and prospered from their work; other mining operations popped up and decided to search for their piece of the pie. Because they are small family owned mining businesses the same rules and regulations do not apply. The laws are very loose, and therefore can be bent. And like many Peruvian independent businesses, corruption and exploitation run rampid.

Minors are being offered $2-3 a day for working in these dangerous mines, which at any moment could tumble, suffocation those inside. 8-15 year old boys wake up early in the morning and instead of heading off to school they hike up the mountain side where they meet the Forman who puts them to work sorting rocks, sifting through pebbles and other back breaking activities. To make matters worse, open pools of cyanide help speed up the process of identifying the precious gold when dissolved properly. One boy testified that he accidentally got trace amounts of the deadly chemical on his hands and he was burned severely. A bird drank from the open pool and died instantly.

When reporters eventually contacted the owner of this non-formal mine (he refused an interview) he denied that minors were being exploited or that his mine was breaking federal laws. His workers prevented a second camera crew to the site arguing that it was private property. The local municipality and police are turning a blind eye to such an obvious ring of child labor profit gain. The mayor of the district was also “shocked” but sources say he has been connected to by way of bribes and fraudulent activity for years.

Teachers and Physicians On Strike

Lima. In mid June Peruvian physicians went on strike, refusing to work until some grievance is remedied. Since recently other health care professional have joined the doc’s, by closing their hospitals, health centers and posts and only attending to emergencies. Most professionals are outraged with the amount of work and the small pay received for such long hours. One nurse who preferred to remain anonymous stated,
“It’s an outrage really; we are forced to make all kinds of sacrifices, and for what? Our government does not appreciate us, nor do our patients!”

Health care professionals are expected to return to work relatively soon, but the teachers are just getting started. On July 5th they instituted a national strike, and although only 15% of teachers in the department (state) of Lima participated, they were out in full force. In some parts of Lima and Junin, police were forced to use tear gas to prevent crowds from rushing governmental buildings. The teachers state they will continue the strike indefinitely until changes are made.

The Peruvian government feels no pity for the teachers, because they know that the majority are unmotivated, uneducated adults that want more rights and more pay and less responsibility. The teachers believe that the government wants to privatize the education system, leaving them out of work. When in reality, the board of education wants to train the low achieving teachers to help improve their abilities. The president, Alan Garcia states that those teachers who participated in the strike on July 5th will be sanctioned, as will their principals and superintendent who declared the day off. Furthermore, for everyday that teachers are not working, they won’t be paid, and replacement teachers will be sent to their schools.

Telefonica Gets Cut Short

Callao. In a country where cell phones are becoming affordable and service reaches many rural areas, one may think telephone land lines are a thing of the past. Actually, it’s costing Perú much more to lay lines than build towers. But not for the most logical reason. Although mobile phone use is growing, that hasn’t stopped the telephone company giant, Telefonica from installing land lines in those places-especially urban areas- where pay phones and home and business installments are needed. Telefonica may need to reconsider every new connection due to a new scam that is plaguing the telecommunication industry. The scam is costing so much damage, that it’s probably cheaper to continue building cell towers than connect traditional cable from pole to pole.

Here’s how the scam works. Scrap metal companies hire crooks to climb phone poles to cut and steal the cable. Even meters are stolen from the poles, leaving them barren. The goods are sorted back at a warehouse where the copper is removed from every working part of the meters and cable. Copper can be sold for a much as $20 by the kg. but not in Perú, in China. You guessed it; the stolen copper is being exported and sold on the black market in China.

Telefonica has received hundreds of calls from pay phone users who pump coins into a dead system. They’ve had to recall every site that gets stripped of its lines. The most ironic part about the scam is that a few men have been electrocuted to death climbing poles and cutting live wires. Other criminals have been caught (alive), and many warehouses have been discovered by the police. In a society struggling to develop, their own people prevent the progress by such foolish acts.


“In reality I believe that economic advancement and respect for individual rights are closely linked. Society cannot fully maximize its economic advantage without granting its people civil and political rights.” Dalai Lama

More June Pics

June Pics

june brings joys and struggles

June 15th 2007
I’m sitting here in my room with a laptop and cat on top of me. Trying to type. He’s a pretty well behaved cat, much more civilized than Saltamonte, who we had for 6 months last year. Tarapoto is orange and white. He’s been purring since the day he arrived from Otuzco, and hasn’t stopped. I’m really the only cat lover in the house and he knows it, so he’s naturally formed a fondness for my lap. Physically I’m feeling better, after being sick for over a week. Earlier in the month I had this nagging cough that wouldn’t go away, than it continued into muscle aches, diarrhea, and a general malaise. I was having trouble sleeping, but still able to go about day-to-day activities as long as I didn’t exert any strength. I didn’t have energy. I started feeling well for a couple of days, and than one afternoon out of no where I threw up! That night I was feeling the same symptoms. By the next day I was almost 100% better. How strange. I almost always blame my sickness (which is usually diarrhea) on the inadequately prepared foods in my site, and everywhere else I eat. But my host family thinks it could be contact with animals, the dogs and cat in the house. Who knows? They also think that it’s bad luck to sweep at night, and won’t mix bananas and milk together.

Before I leave Peru I’m going to make a list of familiar beliefs- some are just hilarious. And some American ones are too…. I mean side walk cracks?

I invited two fellow volunteers to my site for a weekend at the end of May. It hadn’t rained for almost 2 weeks and was turning into the dry season. Isaac and Khaliah had never been to Carata and were looking for a break from their costal sites. Both live within two hours of Trujillo, from the north and south, whereas I live to the east of the city. They got permission from PC to visit and we planned a presentation about their work to my villagers. They arrived on a Friday afternoon and I hiked down to Motil to meet them. We got to Carata in the dark. The next morning I showed them around town, and we prepared for our afternoon presentation in the health post. I was surprised to see my new health promoters and some town authorities strolling in –late but as the saying is, better late than never. Mejor tarde que nunca…

Isaac spoke about trash disposal and environmental work and Khaliah presented her success stories with her health promoters from the community of Chao. I enjoyed taking a back seat role for once. The locals took pleasure in meeting other volunteers and were curious about where they were from, Isaac being from San Diego and Khaliah from Tampa.

We planned to camp sat. night and brought all our equipment down to a beautiful site away from the center of town on a quite hillside. Our camp fire was quickly going as the sun set. We made some grilled cheese sandwiches and s’mores for the locals and explained the tradition of camping to a couple of them who live close by. The culture of “camping” isn’t very common in the region where I live, tourists typically visit other parts of the Andes, especially the department of Ancash. The villagers in Carata had never even seen a tent and thought it was pretty strange that we were going to spend the whole night outside. I tried to explain that it was no different than the huts they make alongside their potato fields where they act as Shepard’s to prevent theft. I need to start making more grilled cheese sandwiches, if only we had sandwich bread locally!

I’ve been to a couple of other volunteers sites, and have really enjoyed it. Every community is so different especially if you factor the varying climate and weather. Costal communities are different than sierra communities and in between the two there’s a wonderful mix of low altitude tropical areas where pineapple and bananas are grown. The ecosystems range from dessert to dry forest to wet high altitude and productive vegetable fields and green hillsides with tree farms.. It’s quite a range. I pass through all of this from the route I take out of Carata to the coast. Aside from the nature aspect of visiting others, I’ve enjoyed hearing about peoples projects, meeting their families and counterparts and thinking about how their day to day life is similar and different than mine. PC told us we should never compare sites, but we always do, everything from language differences to food, to customs. I think in the end Khaliah and Isaac enjoyed Carata. We even filmed a little with Isaac’s new cam.

I’m trying to stay focused on work and give it my all during this last 6 months. I’ve got a lot of things juggling around at the same time, my tooth brushing club, a clean classroom contest, health promoter trainings, the potable water project, a youth camp and the beginning of our grant project. Maria is insisting that I help complete home visits, and a teacher training. Merli and I have been playing a lot of volleyball, since the weather is consistently sunny.

My program director, Emilia comes to visit on July 2nd, Peace Corps makes a habit of trying to visit each volunteer 2-3 times during their service. Our sites are so far from the main office that usually our program directors won’t make it on every visit but a local coordinator or security official will come in place of them. I’ve had more than my share of visitors since arriving in 2005. Language teachers, trainees, my doctor and other program directors and security staff have come for the day or stayed a couple of days.

Emilia and I are going to meet with Maria and talk primarily about my work load- which is getting to be too much to handle. As Maria’s health promotion assignments pile up, she has been putting more and more on me. And the more I refuse the worse it gets. I was so feed up in May with the situation that I put Emilia and Maria on the phone together. And even though they talked, nothing changed. The route of the problem is that Maria’s org. MINSA (the Ministry of Health) bases their work principals on quantity instead of quality programs. And Peace Corps believes in quality programs, regardless of the amount. Ideally I’d rather do 3 quality projects than 10 poorly done projects. Lógico.

In fact the Ministry of Health has such high standards and tries to do so much that their employees can’t possibly attain all of the goals. So what do they do? For fear of loosing their job, staff members falsify documents, lying about programming certain events or hosting community meetings, or visiting houses. Last year Maria’s supervisors insisted that we hold three informative sessions on rabies. When I refused to do it (because I was too busy with other assignments and didn’t think rabies was that important) Maria made up false documentation saying that we taught the three sessions.

It’s quite sad for everyone because the patients loose out, the staff become masters at deception, and in the end state documents which are sent to the higher governmental levels are plainly artificial and meaningless. The current system hurts the progress of the country. A country that needs to progress. I’d bet that it’s safe to say half of all health care documents are manipulated in some way, from tiny changes to complete fabrication of data. The Ministry of Health needs to re-evaluate their goals, and make the proper changes to make things more realistic, more attainable and thus producing better results. As I felt overwhelmed when first arriving to Carata, due to the amount of work to be done, I soon realized I couldn’t change everything. I had to focus on a few manageable tasks. Unfortunately the government who oversees health policy has yet to grasp that idea.

I feel stuck between a dysfunctional Peruvian system and my own organization’s program goals that I agree with.

Compromise has been a struggle. Emilia wants me to focus on fewer projects while Maria insists that I help more on assignments that I don’t even want to do! And she doesn’t take no for an answer. I told her I don’t have time nor agree with monitoring four communities’ water systems. She begged, and in the end, as a last resort stated, “It’s easy, just make it up. Have anyone sign the documents”. I refuse to work like that, doing half-ass projects. That’s the last thing that Peru needs! She gets angry when I can’t help, and tries to guilt me into it. All because it’s her head their going to have. I’ve said many times, “These are your responsibilities, not mine; your organization is asking you to complete outrageous tasks, not mine. I will help you when I can, but ultimately you’re responsible. If you can’t handle the work load, talk to your supervisor instead of being immoral!” Moreover, Maria doesn’t understand my role. I’m available to assist, but not to be taken advantage of. Peace Corps and the local agency should collaborate together. So when Emilia comes for her final check-up of my site, we’re going to have a discussion with Maria. Putting feelings aside, the truth will emerge. And based on our conversation, maybe Carata will get a replacement volunteer maybe not.

At least I can look forward to a little reprieve, when my Mom and Knox come August 1st. Before their arrival I’m going on a hiking trip through Santa Cruz for 4 days (I’m postponing Huayhuash until after service). And than meeting the two in Lima for another vacation to Cusco where we’re taking an alternative route to Machu Picchu. I’m more than excited and knowing that these trips are coming up, it has helped me get through the drama in Carata.

“We can see that all the desirable experiences that we cherish or aspire to attain are dependent upon cooperation and interaction with other sentient beings” - Dalai Lama

Thank you for sending birthday wishes my way, Sunday the 17th had a bizarre start but good ending!

¨Keepin´it retro, expected from the get-go, let my mind shine like a halo..¨

Hi Everyone, Your emails have kept me going, thanks for continuing to write them. I haven’t always written you back, mostly due to the lack of an internet connection, and a well constructed reply which I would rather draft from my laptop than an Internet Café. With that said, this letter was written 2 weeks ago…..

Life as a PC volunteer continues, since arriving in 2005 I’m taking on the status as a seasoned volunteer while the months pass. It’s exciting to help train and guide the newbies when they arrive. (2 new training groups arrive a year). We’ll be expecting “Peru 9” in June, a group of roughly 30, half belonging to a Youth Development program, and the other half, Small Business Management. I may be asked to speak on a diversity panel during their training in Lima to discuss my experiences as a gay man. (I’m currently 1 of 2 “out” volunteers!) Out being a loose term, because I’m certainly not out to everyone, mostly staff and volunteers.

As for work, I’ve become busy.?! The pace however is nothing compared to the American lifestyle. I haven’t completed a full 8 hour workday in months! Hey, I’m not complaining. Since January we’ve (the community that is) have organized a couple of projects/programs to keep the gringo ocupado. We’ve written a grant to fund a training for a water committee, organized a 6 month “clean classroom contest”, recruited local health promoters, completed many house visits, and alongside other PCV’s, we’re planning a boys camp in August. The grant was recently approved by Washington and we should be executing the project during the month of June! What a relief! In addition to this project the local government has decided to finance a $42,000 potable water renovation. After months of meeting with local authorities and pressuring them to act, they’ve come through. And put the money where their mouth is!

I’m committed to staying in Carata until Dec. 5th, which will be my last day and exactly 2 years from the date I arrived. I’m in the process of asking for a replacement volunteer to continue the work with locals, and help sustain specific projects. This is all exciting and terrifying at the same time. The locals are already acting funny about me leaving- 6 months too early! I’m sure it will be a mix of feelings when saying goodbye. The family I’ve met here are irreplaceable. I just don’t want a big party-Peruvian parties are horrible. (Imagine broken beer bottles, bad music and even worse dancing)

Ok, so in the mean time….Before I permanently leave Peru, there’s at least one more vacation I’m planning. A group of us are organizing a 9 day trek in July through the “Cordillera Huayhuash” (pronounced “why-wash”). Cordillera means range in Spanish. This is one of the most well know ranges of the central Andes. If you’ve seen the documentary- Touching the Void you’ve seen Huayhuash. It’s absolutely amazing, although we’ll see snow capped peaks in the distance- we will not be ice climbing! The 165km circuit reaches heights of 6000m and higher. I live at 3200m in Carata. It’s warm during the day, with cold nights all year-round.
We’ll be crossing 5 high passes through turquoise glacial lakes, open valleys, and forests teeming with rare species of plants and birds. (I saw an endangered condor last year on a hike close to this region). Many former PC groups have done this trip-but it is not easy. The altitude and length of the trip is intense. Upon returning, those that I’ve talked to, describe it as a spiritual experience.

I’ve learned a lot about the mountains since living here, but this trip is going to be a challenge. Let me tell you a couple more things before asking questions. We’re renting a guide, porters, and donkeys to carry some of our gear and food. We’re going with a recommended company. Every night we’ll be tent camping. The staff will cook with us. I’m guessing we’ll be a group of 10-12 max. The weather changes frequently, with highs and lows and likely rain. (Although it’s considered the dry season in July, I know it will rain at least once!)
With all of these being said, I need to know:

What’s the most important food to pack? In what quantities?
How much water should I bring? (for my own consumption)
How can we prevent common injuries, altitude sickness, or diarrhea?
What are the necessities that I should include in a med kit?
Aside from the usual tents, sleeping bags, and camping supplies should we rent anything special like rope, tarps, or fire wood?

Since the trip is far enough away, I’ve got time to plan. Your suggestions are welcomed!

P.S. SpiderMan 3 was a waste of money! Great effects, but horrible acting! What happened Toby and Kirsten?

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