Post Cards from Peace Corps

SPA- Is it worth it?

2008-01-01T14:17:00.000-05:00

*Likewise this article was written to other volunteers in Peru for a news magazine called Pasa La Voz. It however did not make the deadline. Yes, I dropped the ball...

SPA-IS IT WORTH IT?
Matt Lindsley, Peru 6

The SPA (Small Project Assistance) Grant is available for all PCV´s during our service. In Peru, former volunteers have used the grant in a variety of ways in their primary or secondary projects. Past SPA proposals include tourism and small business startups, youth initiatives (music, sports, clubs), reforestation, garden and green house projects, potable water/latrine construction, training courses/manuals, cooking stoves and even DVD production.

If you and your community have an idea, and can dedicate time to develop that idea, it may become a reality. Even after thoroughly exhausting your communities resources and beyond, you just may not have the funds to carry out your project. Don’t feel guilty in using SPA funds. You’ll have control over how it’s spent.

It’s probable that you’ll be buying very practical things, like materials, equipment, a person’s service, and other items. You’ll follow your proposal, completing tasks and spending along the way. It’s not as if your just handing over a check to ¨tal fulano¨ in your site.

The application process is straight forward and follows a manual. After many months of discussion, I sat down with my counterpart and we began the rough draft, step by step. After soliciting the local municipality to renovate our potable water system, we though about forming a new water committee (JASS) to manage the system. SPA funds would be ideal in facilitating a complete training for our newly elected JASS.

It took us roughly three months to complete the proposal. It’s not easy. PC asks for a lot of details. Participating in the PDM workshop was useful, but unfortunately the nurse I brought has permanently left my site. Deciding how we wanted to design the project and the logical progression was the biggest challenge. My counterpart was patient and did is hest to share the workload with me. If anything I gained some grant writing experience and learned much more Spanish along the way! It was also a strict lesson in organization.

My APCD, Emilia read over our rough draft and we made changes. She also forwarded ano6ther PCV´s proposal. This was extremely helpful for us in preparing the final draft. In just one month after sending the final draft we got word that the SPA review board had passed our project. Small details needed correction and than it was sent to Washington. Two weeks later it was fully approved.
Just when we thought the hardest part was over we still had an enormous project to execute. Fortunately it couldn’t be too hard because the proposal would carry us through the notions.

We were off to a late start (behind the intended work plan) for a number of reasons. Eventually we made some progress and moved forward. As of currently, the contracted microbiologist who is facilitating our trainings had to postpone the second and third sessions. He was sent to Ica to help with earthquake relief efforts. The JASS t-shirts are being made, as are the participant manuals. Meanwhile my counterpart and I have had to resort to plan b, c, d and e at times. This of course being much easier for him than I, since he’s Peruvian.

The greatest joy to come out of this project is to watch our JASS work. Since our training coincided with the potable water renovation the committee has assumed an important primary task. When the municipality sent a foreman to start the renovation without first orienting the locals to the project plan, the foreman quickly became frustrated because few locals came forward as the labor force. Until our committee of 10 (who were less than a month old) organized a town meeting to find a solution to the problem. Each JASS member has diligently supported the renovation by assigning tasks, supervising work sites, coordinating delivery of materials, and acting as an intermediary between the municipalities’ foreman and the locals.

I’m not preoccupied with the delay in our own plans, because this could have been predicted. As long as we finish the JASS training before I COS in the next few months. What I never expected from the JASS took me by surprise and has taught me a lesson- step back and allow someone else to take the reigns. Hasn’t that always been our job? Our goal? It’s happening and I’m here to see it!

So yes, SPA is worth it.

Some helpful hints:

1. Think feasibility in a long term or short term project. What are your objectives?
2. Don’t over budget; be realistic in your needs. Our proposal was easily accepted because we asked for a smaller amount of funds.
3. Print and bind your SPA proposal. Give copies to extended parties (my mayor, and MINSA CLAS director received copies). This legitimizes your work, is evidence of the proposed plan and will keep you on task.
4. Make it clear to the community that we’ve been granted a subsidy but only because a large percentage of the funds are coming from you by means of labor, transport, food, materials, etc. They will complete their part.
5. Even after receiving the SPA check continue asking locals to contribute with in-kind donations. Our training manuals are being subsidized by a local. This leaves more money in our budget to cover unexpected costs.
6. Ideally you can return unspent money.
7. Be honest with locals about how much money you’ve received and the plan for it. Technically the money is already ¨spent¨ if you follow your plan.
8. Maintain detailed accounting and save all receipts.
9. Monitor and evaluate the process of the project to make changes along the way.
10. Celebrate successes with your counterparts, you’ll need it.
11. Stay on task. But allow for miracles to creep in.

Trust Me- I´m a Foreigner

2008-01-01T14:11:00.000-05:00

*I wrote this article for an in-country publication to other health volunteers. My Jefe decided not to publish it, but I think its worth saving in this blog.

Trust Me-I´m a foreigner
Matt Lindsley, Perú 6

Back in 2005 when I arrived in Perú my host family in pre-service training warned me of their neighbors. They said they had kidnapped one of their cats and killed their dog. I could be next. Throughout the proceeding months I met many more Limeños, Ancashinos, and Liberteños. In general conversation with taxi drivers, bus passengers, and new co-workers, few Peruvians left out the reoccurring theme of making sure I was aware that A). I should be careful. B) Thieves will target me. And C). I shouldn’t ever trust strangers.

I began to feel a sense of insecurity and disappointment for host country nationals. Why do they speak so poorly of each other? Why were they quick to trust a foreigner and not their own countryman? What was it about this ubiquitous culture of accusation, fear, suspicion and distrust?

As I moved into my community and began to meet locals, form friendships and develop a closeness to my family I gained insight into the reasoning behind this notion. My community was very shy. On one hand they were eager to get to know me, but didn’t quite know how to approach me. There was this social awkwardness at first. Especially with kids. My mind shifted back to training and the repetitious topic of CONFIANZA. If I couldn’t earn to trust the locals I would be looking at a long 2 years ahead of me.

When out of site I usually stay with my same family in Trujillo. They provide meals and offer me a bed, free of charge. Consider it an extension of the house in Carata. My host mother would say. When I want to use the house phone, I always need to ask for the key-because it’s locked in a wooden console. And there is never toilet paper in the bathroom. Each family member brings their own roll in and out. The house maintains a small store, which is protected with a thick iron gate. All transactions are done between the bars.

I do not mean to trivialize the crime that exists. How many stories have I heard of relatives getting robbed or pick pocketed, buses being held hostage, and the typical looting and rioting in city streets. I only seek to understand an explanation of the origin of this behavior-both crime and distrust.

When my Mom and Uncle came to visit from the US, they too thought odd about the phone and toilet paper. It is my understanding that these safeguards are in place to impede an action from taking place. My uncle said, ¨This is a household not built on trust but built on distrust.¨ How can you raise a family that doesn’t even trust each other? And to an extent, that is how families are growing up- to not confide in each other.

If you can’t even trust your own father, mother, brother, sister, or child to not steal the toilet paper and not abuse the phone, of course you’d be skeptical of the neighbors, and the people across the street and the strangers living in our neighborhood- not to mention those from another town or another department! They must be CHORROS!

This paranoia must have roots that trace generations. Not too long ago in Peruvian history there were a couple of decades of terrorism, a coup d´ état, political instability and corruption. The alarming fact, that Peruvians know, is that their own people are responsible for its turbulent past. And that’s exactly why they trust you and I but few host country nationals.

I’m convinced that their horrific history has and will continue to manifest itself in modern day life, through the economy, business, tourism, local government, health and education. But when it seeps into the tightest woven structure of a society, the family, that’s disturbing.

I’m no sociologist, although it shouldn’t take one to recognize this cultural notion of desconfianza. We’re up against a tough system; fortunately we’re welcomed into this society and seen as a sense of hope. Take that and use it wisely. And when your work plans don’t prove immediate results, remember that this cultural notion exists everywhere and it may be to blame as a barrier to successful development work.

Unusual occurance....

2007-12-02T17:28:00.000-05:00

Just four days before leaving Carata something unusual happend. During all my time in the village, I regretted one thing that never happend. I hadn't seen a birth. Until friday Nov. 23rd. I awoke and looked out to the health post. But the door was closed. But not too strange at the same time. I had a couple of tasks to complete( wash clothes, pack up my room, and organize a few things for my replacement Kimberly). By 10pm Thalia the ostetrician was still not back from where ever she went. A neighbor was out on the street. I asked, "¿Donde ha ido Talia? and the response, "Se fue a Cayamus para atender un parto." My head was so full of things it didn't register.

At lunch time, Merli and I sat eating. "¿Y Talia?" Maybe she's lost. And so we imagined the possibilites. Maybe she fell in a hole like the dog did last year. We should go find her. 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!" Someone yelled from the kitchen. After eating I went to the health post to drop off a bag of a things and sort documents in my desk. Talia answered the door and I asked her about the patient in Cayamus. She didn't give birth yet. She was only 16 years old. Talia had been at the house all morning and still nothing. And than it occured to me like a news flash. Heres your opportunity. Take it. ¡APROVECHA!

The 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 see what I was selling in my room. We took out the board game Twister and played it on the patio. Two older girls, Fanny and Yessica stopped by for english homework help and I got a text message. "Ya me voy al parto- ¡Apura!" It was 4:30pm.

I grabbed my jacket, camera and flashlight and quickly ran down stairs- I said sorry to the girls who were wating with their text books- it would have to wait. Off to the health post. Thalia 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 got 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 Thalia responded, "Maybe she did, maybe we missed it."

Eventually we came upon the humble home where some people were waiting outside. 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.

I knew it would get dark in the next 1.5 hours. 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. Shoot, I´m glad I´ve had the luxury of having electricity during my service-even if it wasn´t the best. I stood watching, not knowing what to do. Talia seemed to have everything under control. Upon inspection Lydian was 10cm dilated. And Talia could feel the head. We thought, at any moment the babe will pop out. 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 still little to no progress. I asked if her water had broken. Nope. 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 a little appetite, so they gave her soup. I noticed the black beer bottle on the table. 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." Talia and I just looked at each other, shaking our heads. Lydian was up and off the bed to walk, 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 patients hand in the dark? Than where would we hang it? From the ceiling. Improvazation.

Lydian sat and squated, improving natural forces of gravity. She needed to push with every contraction she felt. The contactions were coming closer together. We took off her poncho and a blanket wrapped around her waist. I grabbed hold of something long and thick. An animal leg? I illuminated the area with a flashlight and sure enough it was a deer leg, two actually. They bring good luck during birth. Lydian´s father came in and sat on a chair. She squated in front of him holding his shoulders. Her dress covering her legs. Talia wanted to make an incision on Lydians vagina to prevent natural tearing from occuring. But the babies head was not yet visable 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? 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. Sweet. Luckly,I had already eaten dinner. The family invited me to a bowl of soup. Delicious!

In recalling the few things I remember from nursing school, beaking water was a very good sign. Lydian got up from squating 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 Lydians head. As if to aide in pushing out the baby with their own breath. And than as the screams got louder, I knew it 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 sheeps skin carpet where she squat. Talia quickly scooped up the babe, as I took pictures. She cut the umbilical cord.

The next day I sat thinking about lifes complexity. I am on my way out of this village and a baby just arrived. Symbolic I suppose.

2007-11-18T21:26:00.000-05:00

La Libertad Crew- We miss you Khaliah!

2007-11-18T21:14:00.000-05:00

holding on strong

2007-11-03T22:26:00.000-05:00

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 want 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 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

2007-10-13T20:24:00.000-05:00

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 their 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 4 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 mom’s was illiterate, so as she dictated the letter, I wrote. 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 2 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 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 whores couldn’t even help me with something so simple like a short letter. It wasn’t even for me, for Christs 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.

2007-10-13T20:11:00.000-05:00

POESIA

2007-10-13T19:57:00.000-05:00

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 an 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.

2007-10-09T16:04:00.000-05:00

Machu Picchu

2007-10-09T15:33:00.000-05:00

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 toes 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

2007-09-18T22:09:00.000-05:00

EARTHQUAKE UPDATE #4

2007-08-28T11:06:00.000-05:00

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

2007-08-28T10:59:00.001-05:00

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

2007-08-28T10:53:00.000-05:00

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

2007-08-28T10:41:00.000-05:00

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

2007-08-15T21:35:00.000-05:00

2007-08-15T21:21:00.000-05:00

Independence day on Santa Cruz

2007-08-15T21:18:00.000-05:00

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!

2007-07-08T17:54:00.000-05:00

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

2007-06-18T19:03:00.001-05:00

June Pics

2007-06-18T18:52:00.000-05:00

june brings joys and struggles

2007-06-18T18:38:00.000-05:00

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..¨

2007-05-20T15:19:00.000-05:00

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?

Jungle pics 3

2007-05-01T21:35:00.000-05:00

Jungle pics 2

2007-04-30T22:56:00.000-05:00

jungle pics 1

2007-04-30T22:31:00.000-05:00

It´s true....WE WENT TO THE JUNGLE

2007-04-30T22:20:00.000-05:00

Madeinusa.... I just finished watching it and every thing else on the DVD. What a spectacular film. And proudly madeinperu. So much of the cinematography reminds me of Carata. The music, the landscapes, the adobe homes, even the annoying buzzing a bothersome fly makes when it swarms near.

Mena wants to feed our aging cat poison, to put it out of its misery. But it’s not miserable. Sure, its arthritic bones struggle to climb the wooden shelf and up the wall to walk along the roof beams. But killing the cat and replacing it with a new kitten? De eso no me meto.

It’s been a weird week back to work since having an adventure in the Peruvian Amazon. Let me catch you up to speed- Holly visited- we’ve been friends since 4th grade-

I had a couple of days off for semana santa and knowing that our vaca days are scarce we’ve learned to take advantage of every possible day out of site! So a group of pcv’s were anxious to visit the selva. The original plan was to travel from Chiclayo-Tarapoto-Yurimaguas-Up the Amazon River (for 2.5 days in boat) to the city of Iquitos. Although enticing, that didn’t work out. There was an incredibly good offer to fly- $92 roundtrip Lima-Iquitos.

What a hot city. Your sweat sweats. Accompanying us was another vol, Bryan. We arrived at 130am in the city and checked into the worst hotel you’ve ever seen. Let me retract that….I’ve seen worse, and will continue to encounter far inferior places in my travels.
Bryan and I went out for water- and were greeted by 2 fabulous prostitutes on the street. What do you expect on Monday night at 2am? At least the beer was good at THE YELLOW ROSE OF TEXAS-inevitably the largest attraction for gringos in the city.

Much had been said about Iquitos before the trip. The more people I talked to the better it sounded. Imagine visiting the largest city in the world that is navigable by road. Due to its location in the middle of the Amazon, one must arrive by boat or plane. After seeing the city I understand the buzz. It’s unique in its own way but not very accommodating. Like most Peruvian cities it lacks a lot of infrastructure and personal convenience. The noise levels were obnoxious! Literally brought to new levels. Because cars need to be brought by boat, 99% of the vehicles are “mototaxis”, motorcycles with an extended 3 seat cabin. I affectionately call them “deathtraps” and they are everywhere in Peru but centralized in Iquitos.

Holly and I joked about it being THE LOUDON MOTORCYCLE WEEKEND everyday. When the bikes pilled up at stop lights idle, they created so much noise that any conversation needed to be put on hold until the next moment of relief.

So we ate some good food and took in some of the sites around the city like the Belen market (where hallucinogens like san pedro and iawaska, cocaine and animal parts are sold), and the floating city of Belen. We took a day trip out to a mariposaria (butterfly farm) which was awesome. This ¨zoo¨ is owned by a Peruvian/Australian couple who were totally into saving nature’s animals. A little too much…brings up memories of THE ISLAND OF DR. MONROE. or somethin´. we hung out with monkeys, birds, a giant anteater, large rats, a caupir (sp?), a leopard, and of course many butterflies. I learned a lot about these tiny creatures.

We left on a Thursday morning to stay at Tahuayo lodge on the Tahuayo River a tributary off of the Amazon. It was a comfortable 3 hour ride by speed boat to the lodge. Once arriving we moved into the elevated rooms (given the river level) and met our guide, JT who would take us out for the next 4 days. The meals were excellent, as was our guide, who successfully managed both English and Spanish questions from Bryan, Holly and I. He was willing to help us plan our itinerary from early morning to late night. We went out on hikes, took a swim with river dolphins, spear fished piranha, swung through the canopy on zip line, took canoes out for night trip, had a holistic session with a local shaman, and visited a dry land national reserve. The mosquitos were memorable. luckly we dosed ourselves in spray. the last thing i wanted to bring back was malaria. ps the antimalarial meds aren´t as bad as everyone says..least i didn´t have any wack dreams. only a voracious hunger!

We had a long conversation one night with Dolly the co-owner. She’s definitely the heart of the organization. I completely understand her stories and challenges with the local government over property, regulations, laws and crooked police and judges. As a volunteer in Peru, it doesn’t take long to familiarize oneself with the system. Have it be good or bad!

Their staff really went out of their way in accommodating us for the trip. It won’t go unforgotten. We have many great memories of the few days there, and pictures to last a life time. This region of the country is unlike any other place I’ve visited. The general environment of the lodge sparked my interest in learning about plant and animal species. Lastly, we made some new friends with a group of students and teachers from Seattle. The students we pleasant and respectful to everyone! What lucky high school kids! I wish I had that kind of experience back than!

see the pics!!

pics from march

2007-04-29T22:26:00.000-05:00

pics from feb

2007-04-29T21:50:00.000-05:00

---catching you up--

2007-04-29T21:27:00.000-05:00

Yeah, It’s been a while since I’ve put anything up on here. I am still in Perú. lol What can I say, time seems to escape oneself even in such a remote village like Carata, where everyday seems the same. One of the oldest women in town, Juana Juarez just asked me today what day it was, because for her- there is no difference between today or tomorrow.

Looking back since my last entry<-------I guess I have been a busy man. February’s highlight was going to the Peruvian version of Mardi Gras in Cajamarca (located in central northern Andes). A good size group of Peru 6ers rallied together to celebrate “Carnival” with water balloons and paint. We “ played” just one day, of that weekend, Sunday was definitely a day of rest. Another PCV printed up secret agent t-shirts for all of us to proudly wear as we were literally bombed with balloons and paint in the streets.

Small and large gangs of Peruvian youth paraded through the tight streets with home made drums and instruments, chanting as they doused anyone who looked dry. Meanwhile buckets of water were dropped from rooftops and balconies in the city streets. By the end of the day the balloons were all gone, the attacks seized and we joined the locals, bonded as one, sharing drinks and stories and united as carnival survivors. We marched, sang, and danced to the drum beat until the sunset.

Back to THE CHAMBA! Juan and I worked hard to get our grant written during the month of March. Originally our plan was to write for funds to contribute with the local government in a renovation of Carata’s potable water system. This large infrastructure project was long overdue and definitely needed. But it became publicly known that the municipalidad had decided to plan and finance the project. Excellent! So where could we fit in?

Sustainability-PC always wants us to work within a framework of consistent sustainability and this time I had an idea. surprise!? The municipality would come and direct the locals to rebuild their water system but never planned on actually training a small group in the maintenance of the system. If something broke, who would fix it? Would it stay broken for 20 years until the entire system was renovated again? Probably. But not today.
It sounds so simple but thats the difference between developed and developing countries. A plan for the future needs to be included. How can you expect farmers to maintain a water system or a new bridge, or a school or electrical system if no one teaches them how? Hello. It´s basic people! Lets problem solve before the problems occur!

We had written a detailed rough draft for the project plans-and it was a struggle. As a first time grant writer (in Spanish!) I can visibly see new wrinkles and a more prominent receding hairline on my 26 year old head! Juan was easily the best local to aide in the process but hardly the most ideal counterpart. He was struggling with health problems and not always available when needed. Nevertheless, given the structure of the application, 99% of the locals wouldn’t have been able to sit and help me write the 30 page document. Remember that more than 50% didn’t finish elementary school. Reading levels are extremely basic. It’s a miracle that Juan could do as much as he did.

I guess I can put my finger it…I didn’t write much on here in March because I was writing so much everywhere else! The last thing I wanted to do was open another word document!

Camp ALMA has been moving along-slowly. We’ve gotten together a couple of times collectively as volunteers to plan the 3 day retreat. And although it was originally going to be for adolescent girls, the mood has switched to adolescent men. We’ve also decided to ask a local youth organization to help in the planning to promote a cross-cultural exchange and encourage a lasting program. Keep your fingers crossed for success!

School vacation ended in March and is now in full swing. Alongside with the local first grade teacher we began a year long tooth brushing campaign for her students. They are a group of 17 five and six year olds. When I was home in December for Christmas my Mom and Dad received generous donations of toothpaste and toothbrushes from their dentists. To execute a long term project with this class, I presented the toothbrushes and toothpaste with the premise that they will brush morning and night.

Another volunteer, Mark started this project last year in his community. By piggybacking on his original project I’m implementing it here in Carata. This is how it goes….Each student receives a card every 14 days. The card lists the days of the week and a place for a parents signature in the morning and night. If the student successfully brushes his/her teeth 2x a day and gets it signed they will be rewarded. Every two weeks those students with their card signed will be able to participate in movie time in the health post. I also use this meeting time to teach them something else about oral health. A local Caratino named Victor who is always available to help, has agreed to print the cards on thicker paper using his company printing press in Lima.

SEE POSTED PICS
Missing your big ol´faces,
Mateo

Public Health

2007-03-05T10:08:00.000-05:00

A couple of weeks back I was in Trujillo for the weekend doing the usual. I had heard about one of family relatives-a 7y/o fell while riding his bike and was in the hospital with a broken arm. It seemed like a common accident, but was much more complicated than we thought. Alex needed surgery to place pins in his radius or ulna. After almost a week of hospitalization, Doctors performed x-rays claiming that the pins were poorly placed and he would need another surgery. Upon exiting surgery he was allowed visitors. Juan and I took public transportation to see how he was. At this point most of the extended family had been in and out of the hospital.

I said to Juan, “ I hope Alex has a TV, I know I’d be bored laying in bed for a week.”
The city hospital is nothing beautiful from the outside. Most sections are in a constant state of construction, theres very little landscaping, not the kind of place you’d want to spend even a day, nevertheless a week. The entrance- a chain linked fence- was crowded and busy with angry visitors. Some how we passed through carelessly. As we winded through the outside maze, passing ditches and projects half done, I thought about what my experience would have been like had I been assigned as a Peace Corps volunteer in a large city hospital. Would I have have lasted this long?

The more I thought about it, the better Carata seemed. We passed through an opening and entered the main entrance of the hospital. Juan had visited before and knew exactly where Alex was. I followed, at a slow pace. looking at the walls, ceiling, tile floor of this cement jungle. I worked clinical rotations in better looking mental hospitals in Boston. This was exactly how I imagined health care at the turn of the century in America. Where was Florance Nightingale when needed most?

How naïve had I been to think Alex had a TV in his room. There was probably one TV in the whole building, if that. Brigham and Women’s, Beth Israel and Boston Medical Center was how I imagined health care. How could it be much different here? For heavens sakes, Trujillo is the 3rd largest city in the country. I have never been so wrong…Alex was jammed into a room with three bedspaces.

The third floor pediatic wing buzzed with infant’s cries and children sobbing. In Rm. A, no curtain separted the patients, nor furniture. Save a small table side at the headboard of the oversized crib he lay in. Alex cried. He was not happy to see us, his pain was getting worse and the IV medication was slow to work. His uncle consoled him, and covered up his naked body with the adult size gown carelessly thrown over him. Where was the sheet? His mother Yoli and Aunt Sabina entered the room, with swollen eyes.

I overheard the RN tell the family that the IV solution they bought was not the right formula. They couldn’t hang it. It would have to be returned. I leaned over to Juan and asked what was going on. He explained that the family of the admitted patient had to purchase everything-themselves and bring it into the hospital so that the staff could use it. Gauze, thermometors, IV tubing, solution, medications, bandages, lotion, tape, toilet paper, casting materials, tissues, suitures, you name it.

What kind of absurdity! Can you imagine? Having to personally buy all those suppiles during a hospital stay? Most of the time it’s hard enough for the family to emtionallly deal with such a situation. Why can’t the hospital just bill the family for everything they used? Imagine lay people buying medications and treatment suppiles they’ve never heard of, or never used? It’s a recipe for disaster. Than an overtired nurse or doctor administering a incorrect medication! It goes against everything I ever studied in nursing school, every rule I learned.

A large green dinosaur was painted on the ajacent wall from Alex’s bed. He had calmed down, drifted off to sleep. When the guard politely told us visiting hours were over we went on talking quietly around the bed side. I could see the hospitalization was wearing on his parents. Each of them took turns, night after night sleeping on a broken love seat, waking at all hours to check on their son. In a hot, noisy, poor city hospital the only itelligeble sign of hope was the green stegasauras with a smile.

Kids that keep me going....

2007-02-11T21:49:00.000-05:00

Marisol and Fernado, Jesus loving ¨smack down¨

Working Hard or Hardly Working?

2007-02-11T21:34:00.000-05:00

As the weeks march on January turns to February. It hasn’t been a productive work month. But rather a productive thinking and planning month. We’ve meet with the mayor about our water project. Juan did his best to translate for me, for a man who’s Spanish is a about as intelligible as the sound a crumpled paper bag makes. If I understood correctly, the project has been written into the municipality’s budget. I just need to start the PC paperwork for my end of the financing. Meanwhile we await an engineer who is coming late February to assess the project cost. Tengo mis dudas sobre todo. Patience.

I’ve made it clear to my co-workers, Maria, Pilar and Juan that I’m focusing on 3 large projects this year. The aforementioned water renovation, recruiting and training local health promoters and forming a new water committee. Sure other small things will come up. But these three projects are key to the development of Carata.

As for a department in general, PCV’s from La Libertad will be holding it’s first ever Camp ALMA (soul) this year. Camp ALMA began years ago when PCV’s decided to bring together a group of young females from their communities for a leadership retreat. The goal is twofold, to transform the girls into role models and upon their return home to work in their villages as agents of change. Ideally, they would maintain the sustainability of the camp by leading others into service, good will and civic involvement.

My health in general has been very good. Mentally and physically. I´m back into life in the mountains and really looking forward to a successful year. Change is so slow to happen, but the more we keep at it the better the future looks! Thank you to all my dependable readers. I´ve enjoyed maintaining this blog to chronicle my experience, but most of all to stay connected to the US in a major way. Un fuerte abrazo. Mateo

i´m going home

2007-02-11T17:37:00.000-05:00

Many of the students at JSRHS asked me if I felt what could be termed culture shock upon arrival in the USA. I explained how the biggest surprises were really quite minor that I knew all along but had just forgotten about like, the plethora of hot water, a variety of foods and comfortable transportation. I went on to say that personally, I felt a stronger transition back to US culture in 2003. I had been studying Spanish in Costa Rica for 6 months and came home to begin college courses in Boston. I remember vividly the first couple of days.

The tremdous height of American men and women. The fact that English dominated every street sign, billboard and radiated from crowds. The cereal isle at the grocery store easily contained 75 brands of cereal! I wondered, is it really necessary for us to have that much variety?Nevertheless, I reintegrated and began back at the university. This recent trip was a flawless integration as long as I could remember to throw toilet paper down the bowl instead of in the nearby trash can!

What I never anticipated would frighten me the most. Going back to Perú. Call it reverse-reverse culture shock. Just when I thought I had been through it all-a short trip to the US disrupted everything. I immediately felt it when driving from the airport in Lima to our self nominated Peace Corps hostal-INCA HAUS. I rode with another PCV, Jane who ironically was on the same flight. We drove through an intersection in a poor part of the city and I was shocked to see small children performing acrobatics between lanes at 11:45pm. Was this really happening? I looked farther into the desolate distance at piles of burning trash in abandoned lots. By the look on Jane face, she sat quietly, obviously not thinking about the extreme poverty surrounding us. Welcome back to Peace Corps…..

I stayed in Lima a mere 24 hours to go back to the dentist and have my crown checked. That night I met up with a friend from Lima for dinner, Arturo and he dropped me off at the bus terminal for Trujillo. Juan was kind enough to meet me at 730am that next morning. He helped me with my luggage (enough for the two of us) and we went straight to la rinconada. The families neighborhood. Everyone was excited to see me, all the extended family of Juan and Mena. I unpacked gifts and gave everyone a little something from the US. We talked about Christmas and New Years. They were in a hurry to go up to Carata and although I wasn´t ( I wanted to stay in Trujillo for at least 2 nights) I decided to go with them. Big mistake.

Who knew you were supposed to ease yourself into poverty?

That first night in Carata was unforgettable. I had definitely arrived too quickly to my community without preparing myself for the reality. A tremendous homesickness came over me. I couldn’t bare to unpack my luggage because everything I brought back reminded me of Jenni, Dad, Mom, and Holly. It was horrible. I felt like abandoning my community, this job, this country and quitting to be back at home again. Saturday was an emotional day, I tried to think of the positives- but every thought was connected to home. I decided that I didn’t want to leave Perú but I wasn’t ready to get back into work. I needed a vacation or at least a break.

You see, my whole trip home was so excellent it’s hard to forget it and move on. I describe it as if I built a hard shell this past year, placing all my memories and happiness in the back of my head as a coping mechanism to adapt and overcome the challenges here. After going home I broke out of that shell, exposed myself to friends and family by opening all those hidden feelings of love and sadness, and happiness and fear and came back to Perú without thinking twice.

I think some volunteers don’t go home during their service because it’s just too hard to leave and come back.

The next 48 hours crawled by. My senses were awakened to new feelings. I smelled the familiar rain for the first time, and watched the thick fog hug the small village with new eyes. The smell of smoke that seeped through the red ceramic shingles permeated my clothes. The cackling of our neighbor´s donkey echoed into the night. The skyline of green mountains perfectly cut into rectangles glistened through the suns morning rays. This was the Carata I had forgotten, these small details of a tiny community at work.

A rush of emotions, thoughts and realities surged through my veins as I moved through the instinctual daily motions.

The California garden! Mud. The band plays. Rain. I’m not dancing. Sunshine. A pig grunts. Kids greet me. My phone, why did I leave it in Lima? Hola Cucha, How´s the fam? The unsightly trash. Our broken staircase. The key. Benito. Dogs barking. No water, again? Clear skies. My vitamins. What a sunset. Potato soup with symone. A heaping plate of white rice. One week. Where are the spices I brought back? A cold draft moves in. Comfortable, comforting bed. Camp Alma. Ann’s gone. Everythings green now. It’s a cold morning. More bread, please. 40º. 10,500 ft. I need to buy some more Listerine. Health post. Ya vengo. Maria and Pilar. Quality vs. Quantity. Last year. MINSA. ¿Como como como? No phone. The voicemail better be fixed. One week. Agua Potable. Health promoters. Water committee. New boots. Old boots. Alipio Bacilio. Smiles. Jeans. They each take turns. Jealously. T-shirts. His sons. ¿Cuanto costó? One week. Emily’s gone. Moldy rooms. Mi cuerpo no esta hecho de Madera. Chicki’s bouncing welcome. Cold shower. Vollyball. Uno. Play. Contra. We’re a good team. Flannel sheets. Agua cero. Water’s back. Lights out. 6 days later. It’s 7:30. Dinner time. La viuda de Blanco. Perú campeón. Lorca. Mana. Dina Pauker. A good novel. I forgot to floss. My bacín. One week. This would taste so much better with peanut butter. Iquitos. Holly’s visit. Huachos. Encuestas. Mr. Mayor. I can’t understand you. Jenni’s birthday. Rain drops on the tin roof. Don’t slip. Player 1. Ga-me over. More gifts. Boy cries. Donated toothbrushes and toothpaste. Meet Alex. Hop Scotch. Home made cookies. Should I coach volleyball? Washing clothes. Rent’s due. Fake like the foods great. How are Khaliah and Isaac? The door squeaks close. New wool socks. I should sweep the balcony. Make a grocery list. La hora de bajar. One week.

Late one of these past nights in January, I wrote a journal entry to myself.

“There’s something about this place that’s keeping me here. Unfinished work. There’s still too much to do. I cannot abandon this village. They have been abandoned by too many others. And so I began working again-differently this year. With specific goals in mind. I’ll try to be better to myself and not allow things/people to upset me. I have three resolutions. 1. Save more money. 2. Exercise daily. 3. Improve my Spanish.”

Christmas was more than good- Excellent!

2007-01-21T11:37:00.000-05:00

Going home- What a stretch since being in Peru for so long. I was excited, and nervous at the same time. I mix of emotions ran through me in the days leading up to the trip. When I finally arrived in Boston, I was greeted by my sister and best friend, Holly. In the next couple of days I saw many people, and quickly adapted to US culture. It was so convenient to have water and electricity everyday! I could have gotten used to it! And lets not forget the food! I didn't eat rice-once. Except in a sushi roll, but that doesn't count.

I even went to my old high school to give a presentation about Peace Corps and Peru. I found it difficult to share many experiences to students who have never been abroad but most were open to learning and asked intelligent questions. The school has changed a lot. Thank you John Stark, students and faculty for inviting me as a guest.

Christmas day came up quickly, we celebrated at my mom's apartment in Concord. Having the whole family together was similar and different from years past. We've learned to make new traditions. Jenni and Bill brought there dog, Bella who celebrated her first Christmas. I had brought many gifts and in return received practical gifts I could use for this next year. We ate a home made ham and relaxed. My dad, Bill and I watched "A White Christmas" and played with the dog.

I headed down to Boston for New Years to spend some time with friends, David and Josiah. Who both offered their apartments for a couple of nights. I showed them the carata video from August. I think this gave them a better perspective of life in the campo, instead of trying to imagine from photos. Joe and I rang in the new year with Dick Clark. 2006-What a year. What would 2007 bring?

Thanksgiving 2 of 2

2007-01-14T09:51:00.000-05:00

Wednesday Nov. 22nd

Huaraz is not quite as touristy as Cusco (where Machu Picchu is) but probably the second most next to Lima. Hikers from around the world come to trek the “Cordillera Blanca” “White mountain range”-one of the longest and highest chains of the Andes. Peaks reach heights of …..6,768 m, there are 22 hotsprings and more than 600 lakes. And a multitude of hikes to endulge yourself in, but most do the Santa Cruz or Huayhuash (pronounced Y-Wash) routes. The hikes differ in lengths and skill level. Next year in July/August a group of us are planning a 9 day trip through Huayhuash, and hiring guides and donkeys to carry our food, and gear.
To say the least I was happy to have arrived in backpacker’s heaven, especially with such a great group of friends for a couple of days of r & r. (to use an American expression). We settled into our hostel, La Colmena (the beehive) and unpacked. Some of the girls wanted to see an archeological site called Chavin, so we walked through the city to a recommended agency. The people are so completly different than in my region, I thought to myself. The women’s vibrantly colored skirts and their beautiful beige and green felt hats. It´s reminiscent to the serranos (Mountain men/women) from Carata, but because Trujillo is so modern and influences the sierra, most locals have lost traditions of wearing certain clothes.

I stayed back at the hostel to work on a presentation for mid-service checks and explore the city of Huaraz solo. I found a small Chinese restaurant for lunch, and called my friend Isaac while eating (what a bad habit) to see what he was up to during this holiday weekend. It occurred to me that Huaraz has a TATOO (backpacking store like EMS or REI) and even though I had no money, I thought it would be fun to check it out. But what was the address? The staff at California Café would know! The café, owned by an American-peruvian couple is one of the common hang out spots for pcv’s (peace corps volunteers). So popular in fact, that as I entered, I immediately recognized Mia, another Peru Sixer. Mia, is an environmental volunteer working in the town of Caraz. She would definitely know the address to Tatoo. I hadn’t seen her since December of 05. We had a lot of catch up to do, so I sat and talked. Erin B. was on her way to the café. I hadn’t seen Erin either, but heard the sad news that she was leaving Peru. She was having trouble in site, was unhappy and had decided going back to the US was the best option. I gave her a big hug when I saw her. I couldn’t imagine. She had just cleaned out her room, said goodbye to her host family and stood in the café doorway holding every memory and belonging in her hands. Will that be the rest of us come next year? Peacin’ Out.

I hung out with Mia and Erin for a little while later, than returned to my room to try calling my host family again. Mia took me to Tatoo and Andino Café, where our friend Mark was hanging out with his girl. Back at the hostal I finally got through to my host family, I wanted them to break into my room, find my passport and mail it to Lima. (It’s a long story, I’ll spare the details). I meet up with the Chavin group for pizza and we walked over to 13 Buhos for a beer. What a perfect day.

Thursday Nov. 23rd. It’s THANKSGIVING-but it’s not….

At least not for us in Peru. We decided all 15 of us, that we’d leave Friday for the cooking and feast and Thanksgiving day we’d go hiking. The group split up, I stayed with the craziest who agreed to travel out to Yungay to meet our tour guide extraordinare and dear friend, Erin S. This girl has spent many weekends hiking altitudes of 12, 13 and 14,000 ft. She was training for a marathon last I knew, but than withdrew due to injury. But she was still alright to take us on a day hike, Laguna 69.

We hired two taxi drivers to bring us to the starting point in Huascaran national park, and told them to come back in three hours for us. They wanted to be paid, but we knew they wouldn’t return if we paid them in full. A deal’s a deal. The views were amazing! We were surrounded by mountains at 3,500 m and planned to hike to 4,500 m. We packed enough food for lunch, enough clothes for the rain and enough water to stay hydrated.

It got hot walking through a valley between two peaks, I stopped to peal off some layers. As we walked the eight of us talked about future vacations and when we should plan a trip into the jungle or a long trek, like Huayhuash. These were the moments that I have enjoyed most about living abroad. Planning vacations with fellow volunteers. We get so bored living in our sites, and rarely get to see each other, aside from those who live close to us. Honestly, the breaks from work are helping me get through these two years with sanity.

As we slowly climbed the trail we passed a lake and continued around it. Two group members stayed back. Costeños! I could feel the air getting thin. And then it began to rain. Figures. November in the mountains? The rainy season had already began in Ancash. Thank god it was slow to start in La Libertad. We stopped, waited for the others and ate some snacks. Erin said we were getting closer to the hardest part of the climb, but than the trail would flatten out again. I was holding my own, I think all the walking I do in site really pays off for big hikes. It’s a good training regimen.

Rob started complaining of a stomach ache that had come and gone since the previous night but he still carried on. As the designated nurse, I knew exactly what was going on. Diarrhea. (I always get it when I hike) So I did what any good friend would do, offered my toilet paper to him. We eventually arrived to the crest and strolled along the flat basin. Up ahead we couldn’t see well because the fog was coming in deep. After scaling a few more parts the most lucent blue green lake lye ahead of us. We made it. Lunch time. In honor of the sexual innuendo of the trails name, we took a picture of us mooning the camera. The trail is actually called Nevado Chacraraju, but some Europeans re-named it Laguna 69. As we hiked down, the sky cleared and we could see the snow topped mountains above, they looked close enough to touch!

Rob and Mike were starting to feel really bad, symptoms of altitude sickness. They just aren’t used to such heights since living in flatter regions of the country. I felt for them. The best we could do was get back to the city, shower at the hostel and meet up for dinner. Over dinner we talked about who was cooking what and where for tomorrow. Thanksgiving was on! We remembered to call our families at home and went to bed early after feeling sore from the hike.

Friday Nov. 24
The cooking begins! Just as if we were in our households in the US preparing for Thanksgiving we did the same from three hostels in Huaraz. The dinner was planned for 4 o’clock at the Way Inn Lodge a few km from the city. The volunteers from Ancash, Erin, Mia, Ann, Mark and Erin had been raving about this lodge and there was enough space for the 15 of us. The lodge is owned by a young English couple who moved to Ancash a few years back. They gave us a deal for the night as long as we feed them.

I made banana bread, apple pie and helped Khaliah with her apple cobbler. What a treat! In total, we prepared stuffing, vegetables, mash potatoes, cranberry sauce, asparagus, a mixed salad, garlic bread, casserole and gravy. The turkey ended up being three chickens because it was easier to pay a chicken restaurant to cook it for us! In the end, it was all good. As the sun set the lodge owners told us the generator was down and we wouldn’t have electricity for the night. And just like seasoned peace corps volunteers we turned lemons into lemonade and played cards, board games, and drank late into the evening under candle light.

We slept outside the lodge in a man made cave which housed 10 twin beds angling around the cave walls from ceiling to floor. With all that body heat the place maintained a warm temperature during the night. It didn’t seem to matter that there was no lights, the sun would be rising shortly. I snuggled into my summer camp like home and slept soundly for the night.

Saturday Nov. 25

Erin convinced us that there was a great local hike close to the lodge to another spectacular lake. I was up for it! No rain…the sky was light blue, perfect. Two of our friends from peace corps Ecuador who had finished service and were driving a jeep around South America met up with us for Thanksgiving. Although they were off to Lima, and than to Chile they offered to give us a ride closer to the trail opening.

The trail entrance sign read- “Take nothing but pictures, Leave nothing but footprints, and kill nothing but time and mosquitoes.” Laguna Churup 4450 m. Our group was smaller for this hike, which was fine. Bryan, Jean, Anna, Erin and I had to work together to scale this trail. There were many advanced sections , one part included a hand made ladder, other treacherous parts required hands and feet and the help from a climbing partner. I almost slipped but caught myself. At the top this lake was as beautiful as the one we saw on Thursday. It was so crystal clear you could see the bottom. Surrounding the aqua color were glacial peaks draining from above.

Sunday afternoon we took a day bus to Lima and Monday morning we began mid service program meetings and health check ups. I wondered if I was carrying any unknown parasites. Only stool samples would tell!

Our program meeting for health volunteers was divided into two days. Fortunatly we got to hear from everyone in our group (13 of us) and see what projects they had completed since being in site for a year. I was truly impressed with everyones presentations. Fellow volunteers worked with water committees, planted community gardens, trained health promoters, coached basketball, acted in local theatre groups, spoke weekly on their own radio shows, filmed TV commercials, organized boys and girls leadership camps, participated in hand washing campaigns, worked with elders, raised guinea pigs, taught women to cook more nutritional meals, offered computer classes, built latrines and modern stoves, and almost everyone taught at least one English class. I got a lot of great ideas to bring back to Carata. And we shared insights into better practices. Such as, How can you increase participation? How do you verify learning? Is there a way to reward a family for improving their health? What incentives can we offer? What is sustainable about our projects, what isn’t?

The rest of the week in Lima was busy with appointments and meetings with our supervisor, Emilia. I had a physical-no health issues. And I went to the dentist. Isaac and I had a bet going about cavities. Even though we are both obsessed with brushing and flossing, we knew that after not seeing a dentist for more than a year we were bound to have issues. He who had more cavities owed a movie to the other. I lost. I needed a crown replaced. The bet should have been off when I found out there were two dentists doing our checkups. Our Dr. needed the help of two dentists because both the Environment and Health volunteers were together for checkups. Usually the Lima office does the groups separately, but because we wanted to see each other we petitioned for a entire Peru 6 group session. And we won. But I still lost the bet to Isaac. He was scheduled to see the female dentist (who had an enormous fountain in her waiting room!) and I got stuck with the not so gentle male dentist who was a perfectionist. Ouch-How do you say-“Use some more Novocain buddy!” in Spanish?

I got back to site early December and finalized a few last things to close the year. Our CODECO group planted the seeds in the school garden and labeled signs for each vegetable. We brought the youth group and the parents group together to thank them for their participation with a hot coco and fruit cake event. And I diligently worked on my four month report for Emilia. Damn, these PC reports are so painful, but its really the only formal documentation I have to do. So I suck it up and do it for the government.

And before I knew it I was packing for a trip home. The first time home in 15 months. Wow. Would I even recognize my own country? I think I was more excited about the food than my loved ones. Hi Mom and Dad, “It’s so good to see you”, “Can we go out for breakfast? I had been dreaming about The Friendly Toast in Portsmouth, NH for months. Bacon, Eggs, Tabasco and brown sugar home fries. YUUUMMM.

Thankgiving-1of 2

2006-12-13T16:13:00.000-05:00

On Monday Nov. 20th, I hiked out of Carata to Motil to catch a bus. I had been in site for two weeks and was stirring to get out. I hadn’t bathed for days because there was little water and I was too lazy to take a bucket bath (I prefer a full outright shower even if it is ice cold) but the water barely trickles from the sink with such little pressure.

Juan followed me on his dirt bike, carrying my luggage to the main road. No buses passed for quite some time. I could feel my nose burning in the sun. Where the hell was my sun block? Burried in my luggage. I have to wear sun block every day on my face-at such a high altitude I’ve burned easily. I was carrying a hiking bag and my laptop. Just enough luggage for ten days in Huaraz and Lima.

We waited, and waited. It’s really become normal at this point all the waiting that is. If I’m not waiting for transportation, I’m waiting for a meeting to start, or a phone call, or maybe a friend or for my mail in customs. I imagine any future waiting experiences in my life time, won’t even compare to all the waiting I’ve done this past year in Peru. I think I’ve waited more in one year than I have in my cumulative 26 years on the planet.

In this one circumstance I passed an easy 8 hours on the side of the road. Juan left to beat the threatening rain. More than 10 buses, 5 cars, 3 combis, 6 trucks and a mess of sheep and donkeys had crossed my path. Finally just before it got dark and cold my savior arrived-a mining bus. These buses don’t even pick up passengers-due to the contract they have with a gold mine companies north of where Carata lies. The big red beauty came barreling down the mountain empty, I’m sure they noted the helplessness in our faces. They could make some extra change by picking us up and as long as we promised to keep the curtains closed as we passed the high way control station. I felt like Ann Frank, hiding but thankful to be alive.

Oh, you may wonder why I waited so long for a ride? The day before was election day for local governments. As for the presidential election this election is also mandatory (It’s the only law Peruvians uphold). So with this in mind, buses were at their capacity. Everyone who works in one district had to travel back to their home districts based on their permanent address. This means a lot of shuffling of people from the coast to the sierra and vice versa. Juan and Mena have an Uncle who lives in Lima but votes in Agallpampa (my district) he travels a total of 12 hours to vote. And he did this three time this year for three different elections. Can you imagine? The absurdity.

That next morning I attended a nutrition workshop at my friend Khaliah’s site, Chao ( 50km south of Trujillo). She is a health volunteer from my training group and had been planning this event for months. She works with a group of health promoters in her community. Chao is a semi urban coastal town and completely different than Carata. The people, the food, the language…it’s really a contrast from my village in the mountains.

Khaliah had invited other health volunteers from different departments to act as guest facilitators for the day. I was delighted to help but also stressed to put something creative together and arrive in one piece since surviving the atrocious previous day. 8 health promoters attended and a nutritionist, and Khaliah’s counterpart, Margot and her supervisor, and the three of us volunteers.

One of our friends was planning on attending but the workshop but was trapped in her site to a strike and rioting as a result of the election. The public was obviously unhappy with the newly elected mayor and officials. They had closed the roads preventing any cars from coming or going and cut telephone lines. She had to be evacuated by peace corps.

(I later found out another similar situation occurred where my friends’ Jimmy and Lenah (a married couple) live. But the public rioting was so bad the town hall was burned, school computers were destroyed, and other public buildings ransacked. And I thought the college riots in Boston were impressive.

Just a side note, getting back to the nutrition workshop…. I really enjoyed seeing Devina (who works in the sierra of Cajamarca) and Adiana who works in the desert of Piura). I think the health promoters learned a lot from each of our sessions and appreciated the distances we traveled just to be present.

That night we all got on an overnight bus east to Huaraz, Ancash the most beautiful region of the Peruvian Andes. I didn’t sleep. Mostly because of the strange man sitting next to me. I actually woke myself up, startled, thinking he was stealing my glasses off my face. What a nightmare! Remember “Adventures in Babysitting”?

To be continued....

a real tourist

2006-11-23T22:07:00.000-05:00

Shortly after sending the new trainees back to Lima, and recovering from illness (I’m sure I’ve lost at least 10 pounds this year). I meet up with two friends for a well deserved trip south to the department of Ica. This coastal department neighbors Lima and is the home of five PC volunteers. It’s almost always hot year round, due to its desert-like climate, and can be a little overcast from the Lima fog and smog.

None of the three of us had ever been to Ica, and even though it’s only a few hours by bus from Lima we had been reading in our guide books that it’s a great tourist vacation spot. In spite of the fact that Peruvians think I’m a tourist everyday, (at least when I’m out of site) this time I really wanted to be a tourist. The trip wouldn’t be too expensive, as long as I could stay on a budget (yeah right!). We had planned to hit three of the major cities in the department, Pisco, Nazca and Ica.

I hadn’t been away from La Libertad for months and was really looking forward to a relaxing and adventurous trip. On Halloween my good friend Emily and I took an overnight bus to Lima, arrived at 7am and immediately looked for the bus terminal to the city of Ica. We knew it was another 4-5 hours south to the city of Ica and we wanted to at least do some site seeing that first day. In transit we passed corn, cotton, asparagus, banana, and olive grove fields. Our friend Amy, who lives in Ica recommended that we stay in Huacachina which is a beautiful oasis in the middle of sand dunes. The oasis once was natural water, but now it’s pumped in from a far. People told us the water had special healing powers.

We checked into a cheap but posh hostel ($10 a piece) and learned from the staff about the popular sports of sand boarding and dune buggy rental. Other volunteers had done it and we thought it was worth the experience. Besides, I though, “When am I ever going have the opportunity to sand board on desert cliffs?” I’m from NH for Christ’s sake! Emily and I thought about it over a drink at the bar by the pool. We met a girl from Ireland who had just come in from Nazca. She told us about the famous Nazca lines and how it was spectacular. She was terribly sunburned from hiking through Chile with a group of Europeans.

We left our hostel to go to the bank in the city of Ica and see if there was anything touristy we could do while waiting for Ann to arrive from Lima. Due to the fact that it was a holiday (All saints day) the wine vineyards were closed. But to our advantage the city museum was open. A taxi driver in Trujillo had told me the night before that it was a cool museum especially for the mummies.

And the taxista was right. Ancient mummies from pre-Inca civilizations of the Paracas and Nazcan people. What a site! I have a fond appreciation for hidden tombs, ancient burial sites, barbaric surgical procedures, and learning about the beliefs and customs from these Peruvian ancestors. The museum also had a fascinating display of deformed skulls-similar to the Chinese foot binding history, these ancient people believed in tightly wrapping the skulls of their infants. Resulting in cranial deformities and even death. The skulls looked like alien remains, oval in shape, instead of round. How creepy!

Ann arrived that night to the hostel, and we planned out the next three days. We thought best to see a vineyard, (Ica is Peru’s wine country) and than sand board in the early evening to save ourselves from the sweltering sun. We toured two wineries, known as “bodegas”. Tacama is south America’s oldest winery. We met a family of Spaniards that day, and joined their tour. They were impressed with our Spanish, and that we could hold our own at the wine tasting portion. I bought a bottle for my host family. Later we ate toured a less commercial, more authentic home made winery where we learned about the more genuine way to make wine. This place was called Bodega Lazo, and was definitely less touristy but fun all the same. We tried their Pisco-from the national Peruvian drink Pisco Sour- and I choked it down. It’s like 90 proof.

Sanding was left to the afternoon, back at Huacachina. We argued prices and eventually got what we wanted, S/.40 a piece. Ann who is the most practical girl I know (she brings a small backpack for a week long trip) had only brought one pair of shoes…heals. I said, “Your going into the dunes in those? Damn girl!” Evidently she had forgotten about this opportunity when packing so lightly. The dune buggies are large, hand made 4x4 vehicles that looked dangerous to even stand next too. But I jumped in. And we were off, our driver tearing through the little town to place us neatly on top of the impressive sand dunes. It was anything but neat, like an amusement park ride. I was jolted, jostled, and molded into a new human being as we speed through the dunes, flying through the air over hills and peaks. Sand blew into my eyes, and into my dread locks. Once stopped, we appreciated the view, and jumped back into the car, snapped seat belts (logical) and drove off to another cliff.

From this point we tried sand boarding, very similar to snow boarding minus the snow. And the board is very basic, I mean a child could have made it in shop class. A plain rectangle, double tipped, and fabric bindings. I laughed even harder at the thought of Ann in heals in the shitty bindings. But, as the soldier she is, she sand boarded barefoot. Now that’s hardcore. After a few tries, and a few face plants in the sand…I picked up the technique. I was part of the elite few on the internationally known, John Stark Ski Team at one point in my short life. And turns out, sand boarding is way easier than snow boarding or even skiing for that matter. They waxed up our boards and we were off. Even Emily and Ann, self proclaimed “non-athletic” were rocking the sand (no pun intended) and taking hilarious pictures.

The sunset from the dunes was remarkable. And than it was dark. And cold. That night was left for Nazca the much anticipated excursion farther south to see the lines. Now these lines are more than special, they are enigmatic ground markings that have bewildered scientists and locals for centuries. And they can only be seen from one place, an aerial view by aircraft. The lines in the desert sand were made by the nazca people in AD 300-1000. There are dozens of symbols but the most intriguing are of plant and animal life of that time period. We arrived that night in the city of Nazca and were bombared with tourism agencies and taxi’s the moment we stepped off the bus. I wanted very badly to be a Peruvian and not an American in that moment. Complete chaos, people yelling, and a decision needed to be made. I knew we wouldn’t be going through this if we weren’t such blatent looking tourists. A man yelled my name. I looked up and he motioned us to his taxi. He was a hotel owner whose co-worker had met up hours earlier on the bus ride from the city of Ica. We agreed to stay at his hotel, because it was ridiculously cheap, $3.00 a piece.

Let’s just say the hotel is not worth writing about on this blog nor to the publishers of Lonely Plant or the Rough Guide. It’s just a place to rest, I say. We were there for a mear 8 hours. Fortunatly I took the advice from somebody to not eat breakfast as the short flight over the lines can be nauseous provoking. We watched a short video from terminal as the pilot prepped the plane. And once aboard I clutched on to the barf bag. How romantic. Emily took most of the pictures out the side windows as I dry heaved. And once that passed I enjoyed the rest of the flight. And I thought I was conditioning myself of this motion sickness problem by taking such rustic means of transport throughout the country. I guess not. I have yet to throw up on a Peruvian bus. And god knows those little 15 hour rides can be torture.

We ate breakfast and took a long drive out to a series of ceremonial burial cemeteries where the Nasca people built underground tombs and mummified their loved ones in the fetal position. The sun has damaged some of the sites, but most were in remarkably good shape given their age. The coolest part was the hair of the mummies, visible, thick dreadlocks. Evidently the longer and thicker your locks the more prestige one had. Sounds like my kind of peeps.

Next, our taxi driver took us to a ceramic making artisan, and than to a gold mining shop. Both owners still use traditional means in their craft. The ceramic maker molds, paints and glazes his work all by hand and heats the pottery in a adobe like stove. He uses his own facial oils to glaze his work. Likewise the gold miner uses a special filtration process to pull gold properties from other precious stones, they than purify the gold by grinding it with huge boulders. It’s refreshing to see laborers who maintain the age old methods of their artisan work.

We did some shopping in the plaza of Nazca and visited another museum less exciting than other exhibits we had seen, but a very modern and clean place. I liked the aqueducts outside the museum which were still in their original state. Emily realized at that point that she left her camera in Huacachina the night before at a store. We took a quick bus back north to Ica to look for the camera. But upon arriving at the exact location where she remembered setting it down, it wasn’t there. Fortunately for someone, it was a good find. But that left us down on luck, spirits low.

Still to come was another bus ride north to Pisco. This third city was similar to Ica and Nazca, in fact there town centers are so similar I was getting confused about where I was. That’s a sign of real foreigner. Lost, Confused and Helpless. Luck for me, I had two female bodyguards. We checked into our hotel, recommended by Amy, and made reservations next store with a travel agency who would take us to Paracas and the national reserve. Amy who is a PC environment volunteer works in the reserve to preserve the Ballesta Islands. While I’m in the sierra teaching people how to washing their hands, she’s on the coast playing with seals, sea lions and penguins. ¡No es justo!
An early start of 7:30am got us on a tour bus to the reserve. We took a boat out to the islands and saw another mysterious figure in the sand (much like the lines) but of a large candle stick instead.

The fog swept in and as we moved further from the coast my bare legs trembled. Shorts. What a dumb idea. They were the only clean thing to wear. The Ballesta Islands were hugs rocks covered with a diverse ecosystem of birds. So many different species land there, some endangered, that it’s prohibited to land and walk on the formations. I don’t think I’d want to though, after seeing all the guano-(bird poo). The pelicans, terns, penguins, seals and sea lions were impressive. I filmed a short movie from the boat with my camera. We made it back to the dock, ate breakfast and took off to see the rest of the reserve which Amy said was not as impressive. “It’s mostly desert, Matt, but there is a rock formation called the cathedral which is worth seeing.” So Ann stayed back, and Emily and I went to out to the reserve information center and to the Cathedral. I imagined something like Stonehenge, but it was a cave built into a cliff side. It was very windy, and sunny.

We left the reserve and to our surprise, in the tour bus cabin (where we sat) sparks began to fly. Emily freaked out, just about attacked me to sling the door open and we both jumped out to watch in horror as the bus exploded. But nothing happened. We waited on the desert sand, the bus a mere 20 feet away and still nothing happened. The rest of the passengers, a high school tour group, their chaperones, and a married couple (all Peruvian) waited in the vehicle patiently for the problem to be fixed. Meanwhile, Emily and I stomped in the sand, swearing in English about what “could have happened”.

Once again, people thought we were crazy. We were motioned to get back on the bus and sit next the sparking dashboard, reluctantly we obliged. It was the death trap, or a long walk through the desert to the city. We passed straw houses, with thatched roofs and imagined what life would be like for those people. All the sudden my adobe room didn’t seem that rustic. Least I have windows and a door.

The rest of the trip was uneventful; we made it back to Pisco, than to Lima and took an overnight bus to Trujillo. I took out my contacts, ate an “empanada” and fell asleep to a lame dubbed movie.

Projects, Projects, Proyectos

2006-10-29T08:52:00.000-05:00

It´s been a long and busy month, this October. Certainly my heavy work load has made the time pass quickly. I´m continuing with my community health projects, and secondary activities, and as always finding a weekend here and there to escape to Trujillo for a break from the sierra.

I´m making house visits in Nuevo California to families in desperate need of health education. Since August we´ve covered many topics, handwashing, self esteem, decision making, oral health, communication, safe water, diarrhea, and reproductive health. I see little progress with the mothers and families, which one may say is depressing, but I know changing habits takes more than a few months of teachings.

The youth group I work with brings me a lot of enjoyment. They are full of energy and ideas, and have gone from a shy group of kids to a loud and boisterous bunch. We too have covered many health topics, those listed above and specific topics for their ages. Nutrition is a recurring subject (if they start to change their diets, they can see results as they grow into adults), we´ve played leadership games, and organized a cooking competition in the school. -The most balanced plate?-First Prize included a dish with meat, dairy, fruits, vegetables and grains! ¡Qué Rico! Those of us from the health post were judges and got to try all the food.

I´m also working with a group of parents-the moms and dads of kindergarten kids in town. This group has been harder to consistently meet with because the parents are busy working in their fields or in their homes. We´ve postponed and rescheduled many meetings. I have to use different techniques teaching parents about family health, many can´t read and have very short attention spans. Not to mention they bring there kids and toddlers to our meetings. You can imagine the environment, it´s far from conducive to learning. I found that I have to offer a lot of incentives to get people to attend, like free soap, tooth brushes, snacks, and free food.

Last week we hung up the finalized map on the health post wall. Juan and I had been working on it, on and off for 8 months! I´m very proud with the final project. It´s really a work of art and very useful for community health assessment and analysis. The house number projects cooriletes with the house numbers on the map, and every community member has been counted. Babies to the elderly.

This month we´ve also been furiously vaccinating everyone between 2 years old-39 years old for German measles and Rubueola. See, these are vacccines that Americans receive at birth, but Peruvians never had access to the vaccines, until now. After a long history of childhood illness and deaths, the gov. received foreign aide in hopes of vaccinating 100% of the population (of stated ages) to erraticate the viruses. The national campain is part of our work as peace corps health volunteers because we can educate, promote and organize people to participate in the campaign. Many of my friends are speaking over the radio or local television stations about the campain, and others are making house visits. I´ve been vaccinating too, but mostly helping with the record keeping.

And speaking of viruses....I just got over a viral infeccion, four days of hell. As timing goes this was the same week that 5 PC trainees from Lima came to shadow me in Carata. They also arrived with a trainer, and a language teacher. So not only was I suppose to train newbees but do it with diarrhea and vomit. Nevertheless we completed amazing projects in just four days, like building a stove, a letrine, and attending and teaching three meetings. They even helped me with my water project by collecting hygiene/sanitation data from the locals. I meet some great friends and was proud to be a part of their field based training. In just one year I´ve gone from trainee to trainer. It takes a village to raise a peace corps volunteer!

¡1 YeAr AnNiVeRsArY!

2006-10-01T21:43:00.000-05:00

On September 23rd I completed a full year in Peru. Since arriving last year, I don’t exactly feel different but I’m sure I have changed in spite of this work. I’m extremely thankful for surviving this long, and I’ve realized that its possible to get through the overwhelming 2 year commitment. What’s one more year after all this? The slow process of cultural assimilation is a bumpy road. Will things ever become normalized? In light of my one year anniversary, this entry is dedicated to exposing certain aspects of life in Peru that I find surprising, unimaginable, shocking and absurd.

In no particular order, here we go….(Let is be known that these “facts” may not be universal to the country, nevertheless are worthy of noting. Not to embellish on Peru’s problems but more so to report my personal findings in hopes of recognizing how far we’ve come, and how far undeveloped countries have to go.)

The legal system- It’s said that…

One can obtain a fake professional license for any career. Doctors, lawyers, nurses, pharmacists, accountants, police, etc, and they can find work relatively easily in these fields.

It’s not uncommon for peasants to occupy the land of others and claim (after 5 years of occupancy) the land as their own.

In light of the fact that small villages don’t have police, many locals for a community police committee and have been know to ridicule, torture and kill delinquents and thieves by barbaric means.

Police and lawyers can have connects with criminals and be the motivators behind incidents for their own financial profit.

During election time (voting is mandatory for all) votes have been falsified, proving that the stated voter is deceased, under age or non-existent.

Theft is so common in large cities that every storefront is gated and all transactions are done between the bars.

In the country side live stock and domesticated animals are stolen, poisoned or abused on a daily basis. Or they simply live underneath the kitchen stove as in the case of our guinea pigs.

Peruvians are masters of creating selling fake products. I’ve encountered fake currency, fake medication, fake electronics, CD’s, DVD’s, car seats, drivers licenses, ID’s, and worst of all, fake Winnie the Pooh costumes.

Driving is legal at age 18, although the law is not upheld, and almost all drivers don’t carry any of the correct documents, such as a car registration, license, owners papers, etc.

Education- It’s said that…..

Teaching is the #1 most common profession. Why? Because the salary is decent, the preparation is short (2 years), and the schedule is very very flexible.

There are so many vacation days during the school year that it’s not unusual for kids to only study 3 days out of 5.

The school day is 5 hours, not 7 and ends at 11th grade, not 12th.

The teachers get a day off on their birthday and at least 2 free days at the end of the month for pay day.

Less than half of first graders graduate from high school.

Our school kitchen in my village consists of an open fire pit where mothers and infants prepare un-nutritious food for youngsters.

After a long night of drinking, most teachers don’t “call in” but yet, teach while drunk or with hangovers. And when the teacher is actually sick, there is no substitute, only another missed school day.

Health and Environment- It’s said that….

The wood companies in Trujillo burn wood from their factories and the ash passes through the air coating local neighborhoods in a grey dust.

This month of Oct. the country will start a national campaign, vaccinating against measles and German measles. The target population is 2-39 y/o It’s evitable that someone will invent a fake vaccine (in hopes of making millions and moving to a neighborhood near you.)

I met a family who told me their daughter pooped worms.

People poop worms because they:

A). Drink contaminated water
B). Play in the dirt with animal feces.
C). Transmit the parasite through the “Fecal—Oral route”.
D.) Don’t wash their hands
E.)All of the above

It’s E.

Diarrhea leading to dehydration is the #1 factor causing a high infant mortality rate. When considering the prior statements A-D, the situation worsens.
People think that if they bathe (especially with cold water) they’ll get sick. So they don’t bath and they get sicker.

Belief in God is so strong that disease transmission is thought to come from above (as a punishment).

Most trash disposal is done by burying, burning or dumping (batteries, oil, chemicals all go to one place, the ground).

Lima, the country capital is so polluted with smog, the weather channel reports “partly cloudy” 364 days of the year.

Many rural and some urban areas have water only 2 hours a day. Water is than kept in open containers increasing the reproduction of malaria ridden mosquitoes.

A fun dare for peasants is to try ingesting plant insecticides to see if they live.

Other- It’s said that…

There is no return policy at stores, ever.

The rule isn’t “You break it, you buy it” better said, “You buy it, it breaks”.

More than 50% of locals in my village use their backyards (and those of their neighbors) to urinate and defecate.

Pregnant woman give birth squatting.

I’ve eaten or been served, goat intestine, cow liver, tongue, pig face, and skin, chicken feet, pig feet, sheep skull, rabbit, guinea pig, and raw fish.

A large percentage of Peruvian Catholics are couples who aren’t married, but live together and have children.

Some men have more than one wife.

Some parents don’t know the age or full names of their own children or spouses.

Illiteracy is a normal fact of life, not only for adults but children who aren’t in school.

No public or private bathrooms have toilet seats, or toilet paper, ever. BYOTP.

I read in Lonely Planet that in the Jungle there is an Amazonian parasite that lives in the water, if your pee in this water it can enter your urethra. Awesome.

If you don’t give a certain percentage of your annual earnings to the local church your business or family will be cursed the following year.

The average Peruvian makes less than $3.oo a day.

And my personal favorite...."Water that flows is obviously clean and drinkable." So than I ask, "Since my pee is mostly water and it flows, would you drink it?" And that really gets them thinking....

A letter to another volunteer, quotes

2006-09-05T12:00:00.000-05:00

Below is a letter that I mailed to a friend, Katie who lives in the department of Lambayeque in a rural town.

Tuesday Aug 29th, 2006

Katie, What up Cuz? We haven´t talked for a few weeks and you´ve been on my mind. Here in Carata I sit in my cold little room, the local dogs bark in the background. Tomorrow is a holiday, Sta. Rosa de Lima, so the town is even more dead than usual (but I like it that way). I feel like I´ve been in site forever. It´s been over two weeks, going on three before I bajar to Trujillo Friday morning.

I can´t really complain though, it´s just the usual commodities of life that I chase. I haven´t eaten real food in a while, nor taken a hot shower or spoken fluent English, but these are all things that I´m growing accustomed to living with out (surely, you are too).

What a long strange trip this Peace Corps adventure has been. Remember the P.C. advertisement with the man hanging from the 100+ directional sign pointing to different countries in the world? I thought, how exotic! But really, how gullible was I? Well girl, a year later, what do you think?

Yesterday I went to visit the local Alcalde in regards to agua potable. Juan and I wrote an oficio explaining the severity of the h20 problem and we had almost all the important people in town sign it (those with stamps of course). So, we hiked down to Motil a neighboring town, and jumped on a micro to Agallpampa.

The Alcalde was actually in his office! Que suerte! We explained the oficio, the project and a little about SPA without giving away too many important details (such as SPA= Free $US Dollars!). Unfortunately Mr. Alcade couldn´t give us a straight answer, if he´d support us or not. He was more interested in learning about US culture and the meaning of some damn English word he heard/saw on TV. Visgoshs. What the hell? I hate it when they that, how do you translate a made up word? What do you say, sorry Mr. Mayor, you´re an idiot, that´s not even English! The best I could come up with was Viscous, without hurting his ego, I explained the definition. Whatever. Later on, Juan was reading one of my Newsweeks and came across the mystery word, ¨because¨. What beautiful pronunciation.

I´m resigning from my current position as a English teacher. Ya No Ya. Lets just say, it´s not pretty. I feel used and abused and unappreciated. And P.S., I´m a health volunteer not an English teacher!

On a lighter note, this host family Emilia found is really growing on me. So much so, that I (gasp) really want to bring them back Christmas gifts from the US in January. The 9 y/o girl that lives with us, Merli is my little buddy. You could call her my host sister. We´ve begun reading fairy tales every night before bed. It´s good reading practice for her and me! Besides I´m learning all kinds of new Spanish vocab like evil step mother, wicked witch, dwarfs, and all the world of make believe. I´m going to keep up the reading with her, as long as she´s got the energy to do it!

What´s new in Laquipampa? Isaac and I should come up to camp. I´ve got this new tent that I don´t even use. In Oct. and Nov. I´ve got some free weekends. Are you game for thanksgiving in Ancash? I can´t wait. And just a few weeks after that I´ll be eating bagels and cream cheese with chai tea in the the good ol´ US of A.

Here´s a trip down memory lane...

Remember- Apple pie? Sushi? 7/11 Burritos? Berry Berry Kix? Tropicana Orange Juice? Movie Lovers Microwave Popcorn? Fudge? The salad bar? Apple Cider? Chex Mix? Pita bread? Tabule? Seven layer dip? Blueberry muffins? A-1 sauce? Enchiladas? Cus Cus? Ben & Jerry´s Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough ice cream? Egg Nog? Tacos? Veggie Burgers, Ants on a log? Waffles? Ranch Dressing?

I´m sure to make myself sick after eating all that, but it´s wonderful to dream! Love, Mateo

Here are two quotes related to how i´ve been feeling lately...

¨To succede in this culture it´s necessary to always have a plan B. Plan A is destined to fail for uncontrolable reasons such as relying on transport, weather, technology, and considering emergencies, your doomed. But the single most important reason for failure is depending on human beings. Things are reliable, predictable and safe in the U.S. In Perú, every element of life is chaotic and wreckless. For example, while writing this , I was conviently interupted to help retrieve a key locked in our health post. Plan A, pick or remove the lock. Plan B, break the window. We choose the later. ALWAYS HAVE A PLAN B.¨

¨I often find myself feeling angry, an anger that had been hidden deeply inside me for years. It wasn´t until this experience that it has emerged. I´m certain that these strong feelings are connected to my role as a volunteer. There is so much that I can´t control and it seems to spin into a helpless whilwind.

There is the continual lack of basic necesities like water, electricity, heat and comfort. The broken promises from community members, teachers, school principals, and work counterparts. The ubiquitous cultural habits related to punctuality, organization, prioritization, travel and contamination. And even more specifically, the ignorance, miseducation, disrespect and ungratefulness.

It´s these reasons that provoke such powerful feelings. I was accustomed to just floating through I cushy life with few problems. Here in Perú every action I take, hundreds daily, are done for different reasons. I´ve had to re-learn how to live as if I were Peruvian, just to survive. I´ve adapted my actions to conform to peruvian society. And personally, thats why this is the hardest job I´ll ever love.¨

Electricity, stone coffins, Gocta, and small doorways

2006-08-20T11:41:00.000-05:00

It’s been a long time……since writing. Here are my legit excuses! We didn’t have electricity for two weeks in July. Every chargeable item I own went dead. Including my laptop. The reason for the power outage is just as absurd as the duration of nightmare. A local man from Yamobamba didn’t like the fact that an electricity pole lay on his property so he took matters into his own hands and climbed the pole to cut electricity. This gesture not only cut his own power but that of 5 local villages. After hiring an attorney and asking for large amounts of money he said he would turn the lights back on. This game between the local and the municipality went on for weeks until there was finally a settlement. The local got his money and the villages got electricity. Nonetheless, people were pissed. I travel three hours to Otuzco one Sunday just to charge my cell phone.

The best part about the electricity game was that towards the end of the two weeks I went to Trujillo on a weekend to check snail mail, go to the bank, etc but most importantly to charge all my electirical items. I brought my razor, phone, ipod, and camera. This was a Friday. That night I heard on the news that the city would be “doing maintance” and there would be power outages from 7am-7pm. Was this a joke? I had just traveled four hours from the mountains to the coast to charge everything I own and there wouldn’t be power here either?! HELL I TELL YOU.

I called my uncle and sister that afternoon and they were shocked to hear that a city as large as Trujillo (pop. 861,044 ) could turn the lights off all day. Remarkably, the city ran a smooth as usual, just like any other day. Remember back a couple of summers ago in NYC when there was a power outage that wipped out most of the city? Americans were hoarding supplies like it was amegeddon. An in Peru? Just another day of uncertainty.

So that’s my first excuse for not writing in weeks. Next has to do with a long visit from a great friend Knox, aka Tio. Knox arrived the third week of July just in time to celebrate Peruvian Independence Holidays. He stayed in Lima with friends and made his way north to Trujillo to meet me. Surprisingly we connected without any delays or problems. I was elated to see him and excited about our next plans. Along with him he brought many toys from the states, like a waffle ball set ( an almost impossible find here), a thermometer, reading material, and a new pair of shoes. I was grateful. The most original surprise was a video post card from NH of my parents and his family. We watched it with my host family and they were awe struck at the houses, the motorcycle, the lake and especially the golden retriever who swam (UNDERWATER) to fetch balls. For some reason the dogs here don’t swim or play fetch! Weird, eh?

Above all, Knox had an excellent visit. We visited the capital city of Chachapoyas in Amazonas. Which is another department (state) half Andes half Jungle. I had yet to see any of the jungle in this country and was pretty impressed. We lodged locally in the city and took day trips touring local archeological sites and main attractions. We saw stone coffins (sarcophaguses) built high into the cliffs honoring the culture of this pre-incan civilization, the Chachapoyans. We visited the remains of an existing village called Kuelap and toured the intricacies of the stone structures. My favorite day trip was to an infamous waterfall called “Gocta” which was recently discovered and is claimed to be the third tallest waterfall in the world. We were so impressed, even our underwear soaked through in hopes of getting as close as possible. See pictures from Links Section.

As we made our way back from Chachapoyas through Chiclayo and south to Trujillo our next mission was to acquire a rugged rental car for the next week in my town, Carata. Knox jokingly compared, renting a car in Peru is like trying to rent a bulldozer. You can do it, but it’s not easy. Let just say tourism, has a long way to go in this country. The idea that you can simply rent any car model and be free to explore (as in most parts of the world!) doesn’t happen here. Travel is based on an amazingly thorough busing system, which is cheap and usually reliable (when the buses aren’t being high-jacked).

We eventually got a truck and got on the road to head east to the mountains. Knox was truly astonished to learn that the quality of roads was like nothing he had ever experienced. And this coming from a man who has years of experience driving on some of the worst terrain in Central America. I’ve gotten so used to going 2 miles an hour on back roads that resemble river beds, I’ve come to think it’s absolutely normal! We arrived in Carata and although he had seen pictures on the web, there’s nothing like the view at 9,000 ft. Home Sweet Home.

To prevent altitude sickness, we spent a good two hours eating lunch and trying to buy a birthday cake in Otuzco (2,000m). I’ve learned now, after the sad but true story of my sister and boyfriend who were genuinely miserable (but were good sports for toughing out a crappy time).

Knox helped me with work (house visits, English classes, etc.) and also spent time meeting the important people of my day to day life, the fam. We toured the town, and I introduced him to locals, kids and the drunks. I explained to him the challenges I face, and the hopes of achieving some of my project goals. We took two day trips, and really abused the rental truck. Fortunately it didn’t rain at all while he was here. In return for receiving the fabulous video post card, we made a short film from Carata for those of you back home. I’d like to find a way to link the video from this blog, any suggestions?

Ps- Knox made it home alright even with terrorism threats but he did arrive a little bruised and battered from hitting his head on door ways and fences designed for a country of midgets.

Carata´s Anniversary, H20, and B-Day

2006-07-02T19:06:00.000-05:00

June has come and gone so here are some updates from Carata Perú.

June 5th-8th brought four complete days of a fabulous party in my own village. The reason was to celebrate the town’s anniversary, and this meant lots of live music, dancing and the inevitable consumption of alcohol. For months I had been hearing about how great this party would be and that it was one of the best traditions, I obviously couldn’t miss it! And all the talk rang true. I was most impressed with the organization from locals and the amount of money spent. It dawned on me that these people really can get things done and work together if they have a common goal. We do have hope for future projects…maybe.

The first day of the party was complete with the receiving of the first marching band by the ¨mayordomo¨(who was the master of ceremonies and bankroller for most of the events). It continued with a procession of 8 donated cows that were killed to feed people for the week. The killing of the cows was incredible enough to witness. They were brought out to a field where men drove kitchen knives through their skulls until they dropped to the ground. I will never forget it. But wait it gets better…. The party continued with dancing and a youth talent show at night. The next day two more marching bands (of 25+ members) arrived. Rockets were shot off all day as early as 6am. Ann came from her site to visit and we danced, drank and hung out with my host family and the relatives (totaling 30 or more!). We watched a cock fight at an official corral, some local’s house. Cock fighting is a popular sport here, and very competitive and serious. Men raise specific breeds of roosters for fighting and bet on their performance. Ann was horrified, but I thought it was pretty sweet.

The electricity just went out, hours later I’m back retyping what I had written. The lights have been going out a lot lately. It’s so annoying. But I can deal with no electricity, it’s when the water goes. That’s really fun.

In the end the party was enjoyable, especially the ¨Castillos¨ which are large wicker towers they had built around town. At night they were lit and we enjoyed a pyrotechnics show of fireworks. Imagine a life-size erector set 6-8 stores high. Very impressive.

I’ve been working with other volunteers as a traveling theatre group presenting a simple play about a girl and her unhygienic habits. It’s a fun way for us to educate youth, especially the elementary kids and have a good time doing it. I’m eagerly awaiting the date when we reunite in my site to give the play to my school. I play a Peruvian doctor (very convincing, right?)

Another ongoing assignment is doing monthly water reservoir inspections in my town and surrounding villages. I’ve found that two of the four reservoirs have consistently failed code and could really use some help, one of the two being my own village! The water committee never meets, rarely cleans the reservoir, doesn’t treat the tank with chloride, and frequently encounter problems with broken tubes throughout the town. It’s a disaster really. I’m personally making an effort to work more in the area of water management with the ultimate hope of reforming the water committee, training them in how to work together, and how to maintain a healthy reservoir for the village. Our statistics show that the two towns with poorly functioning reservoirs are directly correlated with higher cases of illness and children with cases of diarrhea and parasites. Worse though, without clean water, we’re challenging communicable diseases, and that’s exactly what I’m trying to prevent.

June 17th was my 26th birthday, my first birthday spent out of country. I got some great phone calls cards and emails, thank you to everyone who contacted me! It was truly a wonderful birthday weekend. I traveled north to the coastal city of Chiclayo in the department of Lambayeque. My friends completely spoiled me by taking me to a country club to watch the US vs. Italy game, and eat and drink delicious food. A cake was brought out and moments later my friend Jean shoved my face into it (a Peruvian tradition). That night we went out to a club, and I received free drinks the whole night, complements of the club owner. It helps to know people I guess! Thanks Brent!

More recently, Juan and I have almost finished painting house numbers for the town. We’ve started nailing them to peoples houses and charging S/.1.50 equal to .45 cents. We’ve spent more than S/. 200.00 soles (Peruvian currency) on materials for the project. The idea is that we get reimbursed but sadly many people cannot even afford a .45 cent house number. It’s frustrating because we’ll surely be out money, but a common reality. I miss you all and think of you often from my adobe house in the mountains…Love Matt

PS- Congrats to PERU 7 who arrived at the end of this month, a fresh new group of Business and Youth Development volunteers!

Doc´s visit- 6/13

2006-07-02T19:03:00.000-05:00

6/13--I’m writing to you on a cold Tuesday night from home. I can honestly call Carata my home. I just came upstairs from having dinner in our small adobe kitchen. One of the school teachers and I conversed about the unlikelihood that the neighboring volunteer Ana would marry him so he could gain residency to the U.S. It’s actually a pretty common conversation, that we as volunteers have come accustomed to dealing with.

My room is warming up now, I’ve got the space heater on, but still wear a winter hat, and it’s probably a chilling 45 degrees outside. (Did I ever think I’d be cold in June?) The environmental diversity of this country amazes me. Some of my friends who live far north practically on the boarder of Ecuador, and south of Lima live in desert like conditions. It’s so hot they can’t even sleep. Some are talking anti-malerial meds, which in itself hinders sleep. Although I’m freezing at night it’s beautiful during the day, I really can’t complain. I just hope I get a chance to use my new tent one of these nights. (Thank God for therma-rests, smart wool socks and mummy sleeping bags). I keep on forgetting to buy a thermometer.

My English has gotten so rusty, I just spelled socks with an x. Sounds like box. The spell check is handy for gringos like me who have forgotten their native language…..

Today was Tuesday, a long day. I woke up a couple of times last night thinking I was going to over sleep and miss my 7:20am English class. Nope, still haven’t missed it but getting up at 6am or 6:30 is a struggle when it’s still cold and dark outside. The classes continue to discourage me, because I know that teaching about health will take these students much farther in life. This is how I see it, sure they’ll learn some basic English, but if they don’t understand the general concept of washing their hands they’re going to die from illness! Remember Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs? I do. Freshman year of college, Nursing Health Assessment. The theorist Maslow defined that humans first need the basics before anything else. Food, Water, Shelter. Health came way before “Second Language Classes”. Call me pessimistic, but its true!

I’m pealing paint from my fingers from working on a project today. We’re painting house numbers on blocks of wood for the village. It’s a big project, but simple and necessary. The houses are unnumbered and there are no street names. There are no streets really, just large paths separating neighborhoods. We are going to make over two hundred and continue from there to see if we need more. Eventually we’d like to make street names. I want to name a street after myself. Egocentric right? It still would be funny.

My doctor came to visit me Sunday. We have two Peace Corps doctors, a man and a woman both Peruvian. They are excellent and work extremely hard to monitor the health of the 116 of us. Jorge has won us over with his humor, wit and easy going personality. He was called up to La Libertad the department where I live to visit another volunteer who was sick, and as she became better he decided to take the opportunity to travel to a couple of our sites just to visit. He tries to visit every volunteer once in their site during their two years. Jorge arrived Sunday night, and after realizing the extent of the trip from my capital city, Trujillo, I hope he didn’t have doubts to immediately turn back.

Monday morning I gave him a quick tour of town, it’s so tiny you could miss it if you blinked! I explained some history and facts about my site, and we talked about planned projects I’m working on. He hoped to walk to Ann’s site but than it started raining, and we watched a world cup game instead. Jorge was a great help with the house numbers, taking pictures just like a tourist. He even visited me teaching English. (Jorge speaks English remarkably well!) the rain continued, amd trapped in Carata he made some phone calls and arranged to stay another day. He decided to try and catch a bus back to Trujillo this morning.

I honestly enjoyed the company, and was honored to have our Doc. spend as much time as he did with me. He tells me that when he visits volunteers he usually doesn’t stay overnight, especially two nights! We bonded and I got to know him a little better, since meeting him last year. Even more amazing, is that unlike other staff members Jorge travels like us (volunteers) when he can. He stays in cheap hostels, takes uncomfortable overnight buses, uses public transportation instead of driving and get this…hikes high altitudes! Most of our supervisors fly around the country to meet with us, or local organizations for meetings, or for site development. And when they land at the airport they are picked up in Peace Corps SUV’s. But not Jorge. For this reason and many others he will definitely be a memorable staff member when this Peace Corps adventure of mine comes to an end.

2006-05-21T11:52:00.000-05:00

Elementary students, my kids are older (13-17 years old).

Pesadillas de la Escuela (School Nightmares)

2006-05-21T11:26:00.000-05:00

5/18/06

I’m teaching English to 9th, 10th and 11th graders twice a week at the high school. This Tuesday was especially memorable….The class begins at 7:20am, by 7:30 their teacher, Orlando had arrived. The 24 9th graders arose from their desks greeting him as he came in to the room. Having missed last weeks class I asked him what was planned today and he said they were to take an “easy” exam. I then asked, “How long do they have to complete it?” Orlando responded, “Until they finish.” What? I asked myself. We could be here all day! Before he passed out the exam, I took a look at it. This is when I confirmed that Orlando really doesn’t know anything pertaining to the English language. The exam was full of errors! For example, “Whot’s your name”, “Hove you any sisters”, “He, Charles” (Hi, Charles), “Ello, Jhampiere” (Hello, Jean Piere), and the best was, “I hove not any whit wine”.

I’m not sure why Orlando was elected as the English teacher this year. I’ve been teaching with him since the beginning of April and he has not once tried to speak a sentence of English to me. I’m sure that he didn’t request to teach English, it’s more likely he was appointed by the school principal. Knowing this frustrates me, because some of the other teachers actually try to speak English to me and have a better understanding of grammar.

So, part of me wanted to laugh and the other part of me felt for the students and how much more confused they soon would be after reading the exam. Nevertheless, Orlando handed out the exam, and I watched in terror. What was I suppose to do?! He had made 24 photocopies of the exam which in it self is not a simple task (it included traveling 3 hours to Otuzco and 3 hours back). And I didn’t want to undermine his intelligence in front of the students, so I decided to meet with him after school to go over the results and fix the errors.

The test included three sections, translation of common Spanish questions into English, a section of matching and translation of English vocab into Spanish. It should have realistically taken 20-25 minutes to complete. I finished it in 5 minutes. As the students quieted down and began working, we approached 8am. Elementary school begins 40 minutes after high school, at 8am respectively. I usually have quite an audience of elementary students that gather at our classroom windows, and doorway. Most of them know me, and get excited to see me in their school. As it is still some what of an anomaly to witness me teaching another language, that many have never heard.

I’m used to the crowd gathering, usually it’s not a problem, I leave the room and tell them to go to class. But, since my students were taking a test I was especially annoyed with the noise coming from outside. I stepped out of the classroom a couple of times to scold the kids who were yelling my name, “Mateo!” through the windows and door. Since Orlando didn’t give them a specific end time, the clock clicked away and I became more and more frustrated. Orlando got up and left the room. One student turned to another, obviously cheating and I called him out. He looked embarrassed but don’t worry… it gets worse. Some students turned in their tests. Those finished began talking about the answers. We were coming upon 40 minutes since the exam was handed out. More elementary students gathered by the windows, I shooed them away. A girl asked her neighbor for help, and I walked up to her, asking “Would you like help?” “I’m sure I know a lot more English than your neighbor!” Although, it was a sarcastic joke to keep her from cheating I felt bad for humiliating her in front of everyone. Orlando came back, after a 5 minute sabbatical. I was about ready to collect the tests from each of the remaining students but I watched Orlando and he seemed to be fine with the current state of disorder. When 45 minutes had passed I asked him if we should just take the tests from them and he said, “No, let them continue.” I almost walked home.

I was just about ready to flip out, when a girl sitting next to the window, who was still taking her test, (mind you) began asking a younger elementary student standing outside to help her; she took out her notebook and began reciting to the older student! Do they have no shame? I motioned to Orlando and he went over to the students’ desk. Finally, he does his job, I’m thinking to myself. I collected the remaining tests and even though some were not done, there was no way they would ever finish, given the noise in the room.

I began lecture, with only 30 minutes left of class. Orlando wanted me to teach them how to write birthday invitations and thank you notes, but I refused to teach that, knowing that they couldn’t even write the date in English. Baby steps….Before I started, I asked if there were any questions about the exam. They sat in silence. “So you knew every answer, and you all got a 100?” Still silence. We stared at each other, and I went ahead answering some of the harder questions on the exam. I taught them the months of the year, how to write the date, and gave them homework. And we finished with a song, “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star”. Yes, I sang it for them, even though I was in a horrible mood.

Later that day, after school, Orlando and I met up. I explained to him that there were many errors in the test and next time he should have me proof read a document before he makes photocopies. He said the person that typed the exam made the errors, not him. BULLSH*T! As if I was going to believe that load. I wasn’t surprised that more than 75% of our students failed the test. I Guess we’ll be reviewing all that material again. Next time, I’m writing the test.

This is my life as an English teacher in Perú. Uneducated teachers, cheating students, non-conducive learning environments, non-existent parents, unmotivated students and teachers, the list goes on and on. A study by US News and World Report ranked education systems in developing countries. They found based on a countries GNP (Gross National Product) and other factors, Haiti had the worst education system, Perú was #2.

I recently bought a toilet seat for our latrine; I installed it and hung up signs inside the latrine wall, teaching the men how to lift up the seat when they pee. (Toilet seats are a rare find here, most people sit right on the ceramic or hover). It decided it was time for us to live in luxury. haha. Anyway, I was talking with one of the female teachers who lives with us about peeing on the seat. She told me that she heard you can get pregnant from a toilet seat. I laughed and than realized she was dead serious. I asked, “You think you can get pregnant from urine?!” And she said, “No, from semen on the seat.” I explained that that would be very unlikely, but she wasn’t convinced, as she was sure it had happened before. This mentality I may expect from a student, but from a teacher? Especially someone who is a mother of three children! ¡Viva Perú!

Goodbye April

2006-04-30T11:36:00.000-05:00

Goodbye April

I just came inside from washing my bike after a long ride home yesterday. I was too exhausted to even think about whipping off all the mud when I arrived home in the afternoon. I got caught in yet another downpour, and even though they tell me the season is changing, I’ll believe it when I see it… I changed out of my wet clothes, emptied out my back pack, and left it all to dry on my balcony. I had come from Chota to visit Ann and help her to explore a neighboring town called Cesar Vallejo. One of the locales, a man named Constante Reyes, had received word that Ann and I were American volunteers living in the region. He contacted Ann by walking two hours to Chota just to meet her and see if he could program with her. I was planning on visiting her, as we seem to have been talking turns,
(she visits me in Carata, and in return I visit her in Chota) this is a good way for us to keep our sanity.

She asked me to say the night and go with her on Thursday morning to this small village. In the past I have done day trips to see her, staying overnight at Ann’s host families’ house allowed me to see her reality. Even though we are both volunteers who live in the mountains of the same region and we’re only 2 hours from each other, we live very differently. She had warned me that her family was very campesino (read= countryfolk), but it wasn’t them that jolted me, it was the condition of the house in which she lives. She has a small adobe room in the basement of the house, with dirt floors, and plastic tablecloths covering her ceiling to trap the dirt that falls when there is movement upstairs. She’s been fighting a nasty case of bed bugs since she arrived in January with no such remedy to cure. In fact, when Peace Corps came to visit our houses, she was told to find help to pour a concrete floor and repair the ceiling or find another host family. I guess after living in the D.R. as a volunteer for three years, she really has seen it all and can live much more simply than I, or maybe I am just a gay man?!

The beginning of the month went off with a bang, I continued to do the census in Nuevo California, attended a two day workshop in Otuzco on sexual health and birth control methods, went to our monthly regional health post meeting, had a site visit from PC and my program director, missed a town meeting, and baby sat some kids during the presidential election on the 9th. Candidate, Ollanta gained the most votes, than Alan, and Lourdes. The second round will be held in 1 month between Ollanta and Alan.

The next week was Semana Santa, and we were given four days off to enjoy time away from our sites. I had plans to go to a beach in Piura (6 hours north) but decided to stay local in Trujillo to be accessible to Jenni, knowing that she would be returning from Cusco to meet me. I spent a couple of days at my friend Isaac’s site, Pt. Chicama on the beach camping with other volunteers and watching a national surfing competition.

Jenni drove up to Trujillo from Lima on Easter Sunday. How wonderful it was to see a familiar face from home. Bill and she had already been in Peru for four days, which meant they had plenty of stories to tell. We visited the oldest adobe city in the world, called Chan Chan an ancient Inca historical site, and stayed two nights in Huanchaco the closest public beach to Trujillo. We had a great time recalling the past couple of months, updating each other with details, and I was finally able to meet Bill, whom she is currently dating.

We left the coast to climb 9,000 feet into the Andes where I reside in my small village. I couldn’t have them visit Peru without passing through my personal residence. So we arrived, and that’s when I began to feel the indescribable range of emotions of having my own sister experience for herself, my current life. Not 5 to 6 hours later, both Bill and she came down with the typical symptoms of sorroche, altitude sickness. The next morning it still hadn’t passed and Bill was feeling the effects even worse. They stayed recumbent for a few hours as I washed clothes, later in the afternoon they were feeling better to walk around and see some of Carata. We walked through the center of town, the church, the school and played basketball with some of the local kids. Yes, basketball, they were utterly confused, trying to kick the ball.

The next morning I was awoken early by Jenni encouraging me that the only way they could get better was to get to a lower elevation. Rapido. They were both still sick with nausea, muscle aches, lightheaded, a loss of appetite, weakness and diarrhea. I got them some local medication from the health post for their symptoms, but knew getting back to the coast was the best remedy. Hours later when we finally arrived in Trujillo I helped them check into a hotel so they could recuperate. Although the two of them got sick visiting me, I was amazed to see them make the best of the trip by connecting with my host family, giving me advice about potential projects, entertaining local schoolchildren and sharing American culture with Peruvians. By the time my next foreign visitor arrives, I’ll know better as to have them acclimate at lower elevations before climbing such a height.

I came back from Trujillo to learn that cell phone service has reached Carata. The signal is weak…I have two bars, lol. But this means I can make and receive calls. My phone is now more than just a flashlight and alarm clock! It’s quite unbelievable to not have plumbing, nor heat, or any major appliances but yet there is now cell phone service. I’m just going to wait and see how many of the locals, who can barely read, run out and buy a cell phone. (It will happen I’m assured) I also started teaching English this month, twice a week I teach two hour classes to 9th, 10th and 11th grade. It has its benefits and disadvantages; we’ll leave that for another entry.

And so now that the month is over, and both Mom and Dad have aged one more year, I say goodbye to April. And happy retirement Dad, I hope you’ll have time to do all those things you’ve wanted to accomplish. Next up is May, when Rosa and I go to Lima to learn about the SPA grant and how we can fund a few of our many projects planned during my service. Until than, I leave you with a few quotes from Peru 3 volunteers who are just one month short of completing their two year commitment. Congratulations my friends…you’ve taught us it is possible to survive this long, strange journey.

“I’ve learned that PC is about learning to live…really live. It’s learning how to laugh and cry at the same time when you don’t know what emotion your feeling. It’s being able to humble yourself enough to say, “I don’t know” and accept the help that your friends offer. It’s not being afraid to see a different way of life and allowing that to change you.” – Lindsay Parramore

“I’ve learned not to smother a perfectly good silence with chatter. I’ve learned that life shouldn’t surprise me, yet always does. And the universe, demanding as it sometimes is, says, “Here, this is your clay, offered up to you on a platter. Create something that will last.” ¡Carajo! – Angela Jones

Life has become about the “journey not the arrival, the voyage not the departure.”- Lina Biber-Ferro

Pics from April

2006-04-30T11:25:00.000-05:00

The long walk home, A local resturant in Huanchaco,

Jenni and Bill, Thanks for visiting me!

Pics from April

2006-04-30T11:06:00.000-05:00

Camping on the beach, Local dancers in Trujillo, The surf competition

SEIS MESES!!!

2006-03-27T11:04:00.000-05:00

24-03-06

6 MONTHS! March 23rd made six months in country. 21 months left…. What have I learned since stepping off that plane in September? Too much to explain in a blog. I have become much more humble if anything. It’s the poverty I see, the mistreatment of women and children, the pollution, the alcoholism, the uneducated, and the illiterate. How can one country be so rich, so powerful and another be struggling to survive? These past months have made me examine my one personal life in the states. I’ve thought about how much water I’ve wasted, how much money I’ve spent on superfluous items, and how significant the inequalities between my home and theirs. And yet Peruvians continue pushing through life, struggling to make ends meet, staying optimistic.

I’m beginning to learn more about the national government here. As the presidential election closes in on us (April 9th) I hear nothing but talk of the candidates, their affiliate parties, dirty laundry and the history of political corruption. It’s hard to know who’s correct or if “the better party” even exists. The recent elections of Evo Morales in Bolivia and Michelle Bachelet in Chile has sparked interest in locals, especially because Morales is the first indigenous president since the mid 1800´s (last being Mexico’s Benito Juarez) and Bachelet being female. Of the three top Peruvian candidates (there are 23 in total!) one is a very strong female candidate named “Lourdes Flores”. She is currently well favored, but because she is from money people think she will only make change for the rich. I ask, aren’t all three top candidates from money? And the response I get is that of a light bulb going off in their heads…I just hope that Lourdes doesn’t get the boot just because of her gender, due to machismo. Another candidate (who is the people’s choice!) is likely to remove us from Perú if he is elected. I can’t imagine. Let’s hope that doesn’t happen, I would hate to have to finish my service in another country after living here for 6 months!

The first week of March was the last week of summer break for the local kids. I decided to run a kid’s camp to celebrate the summer and get them thinking about learning again. The camp ran four days, M-Th from 9am-12am. Each day was subject to a different topic within the framework of “OUR HEALTH”. We learned about hygiene and hand washing, nutrition, dental health, and the environment. I included as many games, art, music and ice breakers as possible. The kids ranged from 7-13 years old. I had between 7-10 kids each day. In looking back, I think it was a very rewarding week for me. I got advice and ideas from Ana, but organized and supervised the kids solo. Next time I’ll ask for an assistant from an older kid or one of the volunteer health promoters. I’m thinking about starting a weekly youth group to tackle more complex issues, like reproductive health, self esteem, gender roles, domestic violence, etc. See pictures!

I went to Lima on the 9th and stayed for a week. It was wonderful to leave my site, leave the department of La Libertad and take a break in the most developed part of the country. I got together with the small group of gay/lesbian volunteers. This was fulfilling as we shared personal experiences, offered advice to each other and caught up on some glbt related flicks such as “Brokeback Mountain” and “Trans-America”. If anything these few days gave me the opportunity to “vent” to others who understand exactly where I’m coming from.

The rest of the week was also memorable. Juan and I attended a PC training about counterparts. (This is what PC calls host country nationals who work directly with the American volunteer) We presented a power point presentation about our town, and what we’ve been doing since I arrived in Dec. I also had the opportunity to hear from other volunteers about their sites, and work.

Next week I’m beginning a series of home health visits in the town south of us. See PIC of sunset. With help, I will be interviewing every family (totaling 60?) about their specific health practices, the paperwork is overwhelmingly complete. It includes family make up, primary means of income, family communication, a house assessment, and current health concerns. From this information we will choose 10 families to work with for the next year. We’ll put every effort into promoting health habits, preventing disease and educating through pictures, skits, and group activities.

Jenni and Bill arrive during semana santa (second week of april), and will visit Machu Picchu (hella´ jealous!), then head north to see me and spend a couple of days in my town. I’m extremely excited to have visitors especially my sister. I’m very curious to hear what they think about Perú and witness their reactions!

Peace Corps reconnect in Lima, March

2006-03-27T10:38:00.000-05:00

Sunset in Nuevo Calfornia
our neigboring town.

Larco Mar, Lima with Juan

A PC training in Lima, explaining my site

Club de Niños pics

2006-03-27T10:24:00.000-05:00

Kids with cards, for National Women´s Day. We celebrated the important women in our lives.

The bottles are gardens that we started, with carrot, onion, beat and brocolli seeds.

Last day of Camp, outside the front door, causing trouble

Taking a break with a healthy snack, Apples!

Pics from Feb/March

2006-03-26T20:21:00.000-05:00

Carnival in Carata, the tree was erected, than adorned with tupperware, and cut down so that everyone could get something free. Similar to a Piñata, i guess!
Drunk man covered in paint, i was involved in a massive water balloon fight, good times! My Club de Niños and the famous hygiene song...PIN PON

Comments!

2006-02-19T10:43:00.000-05:00

Thank you all for your comments, your giving me strength from the States! It is wonderful to get a response and the great advice... I´ve changed the settings so that you are all able to leave comments without having to sign up as a ¨blogger¨member. Thanks again for sharing your thoughts...Love, Matt

rice and potatoes

2006-02-19T10:25:00.000-05:00

The rice and potatoes everyday are getting a little old. I’ve been grocery shopping in Trujillo or Otuzco when I leave site. This gives me the opportunity to augment my meals and change my diet a little. The daily multivitamin is essential, because I know I’m not getting nearly enough nutrients from all the carbs I’m eating. (Dinner can consist of pasta and rice soup, rice and potatoes, and some bread on the side.) I’m not eating a lot of fruit now, like I was in Lima or in the states, which means very little fiber. I found a fiber cereal called “Angel Fibra”, with raisins. It’s the equivalent of “Total”. But how do you eat cereal without milk? We don’t have milk because we don’t have a fridge. So, because I know I should be getting more calcium I’ve been buying powdered milk and adding water to each portion I consume. As for protein, we have chicken, but no red meat. I found a grocery store in Trujillo (and most likely the only one) that sells peanut butter. Yes, peanut butter. Peruvians have no concept of it, but this one grocery store imports many international foods. Thanks to God. On top of peanut butter I’ve been making a natural protein shake with a plant called Kiwicha grown locally. Maca is another grain that is high in protein. The ground/powder form can be purchased and added to water, boiled water that is….I boil all water that I drink.

And although these trips to the grocery store or to the market to buy fruits and vegetables are necessary it’s not easy. I can hike down (1 hour) to a town called Motil every Monday to got to the farmers market, or when I’m in Trujillo (4-5 hours away) or Otuzco (3 hours) I can go to a market or grocery store. Planning these trips has become easier, as I learn trails and bus schedules. Soon we’ll be able to eat some of our vegetables from our own garden. I tried to make pancakes and pizza last month, but I wasn’t exactly successful. You’d think such an easy thing could be done, but out in the country there are all kinds of obstacles!

My pancakes came out flat and burnt, for the lack of baking soda (which later, I was told is essential). The pizza was alright but very hard to cook evenly over a fire and with a stir-fry pan. Cooking over a fire is ridiculously hard, you cannot tell the temp, and it frequently goes out. I now understand why women cook the same things, one because of lack of knowledge and two because it takes a lot of ingenuity and creativity to cook anything different with such a primitive heating source. So in the end, no one liked my pancakes, not even the dogs, and the adults liked my pizza, but not the kids. I think the mozzarella cheese threw them off. I will continue to experiment, as I have much desire to teach the family about new ways to prepare/cook food and typical American food. P.S. Peruvians have never heard of burritos, enchiladas, quesadillas, or chimichangas. Unbeknownst to me, Mexican food never made it this far south, and it’s a sad thing that these Latin’s have never engorged themselves in such a delicacy…lol.

As summer winds down (less than a month) I’ve decided to run a children’s camp in town. It will last for a week, every morning from 9-12am. I’d like to facilitate healthy activities for the kids, such as a hand washing day, nutrition day, hygiene day, etc. and incorporate arts, crafts, games and songs. The week after, “Carnival” begins here in town, and although it is celebrated all over the country during the month of Feb. we evidently celebrate only the second week of March. Carnival is a celebration like Mardi Graz, minus the parades, floats and partial nudity. They celebrate by throwing water balloons, or by squirting water with water guns. The department of Cajamarca is notorious for their carnival celebration (last week of April, first week of March). It takes place in the capital city. Everyone is a target, it has gotten so bad in years past that the police have sanctioned certain hours for play time. Kids out in the country take carnival to another level (as I have heard), by throwing balloons full of paint, and even pig excrement. Thank you Peace Corps for not assigning me to Cajamarca, and boy do I feel sorry for the volunteers who live there….

I will be traveling to Lima (12 hours away by bus) for a conference on the 14th and 15th of March. It’s a two day event held at PC headquarters to reconnect and teach our counterparts about projects and funding. I’m bringing my two counterparts, Juan and Rosa. I hope to head out to Santa E. to visit my old host family, and take advantage of some of the finer parts of the country capital (read=American restaurants, shopping, and nightlife).

Last night as I was walking home from Chota, after a short visit with Ana, and I was struck by the beauty of a marvelous sunset. It span throughout the entire horizon, incredible colors of red, and purple and blue. I stood in awe, taking it in. Pinching myself as a reminder of the gift I was given to serve as a volunteer in such a beautiful country. I’ve come to find the sunsets here don’t last as long as ours. In just a matter of minutes it can go from dusk to complete darkness. I think it has something to do with the equator and the location of Peru. Don’t ask me, I slept through that geography class.

I think of all of you often, and wonder what life is like in the states. I mostly think of Boston and memories from these past few years. (P.S. my bedroom walls are adorned with dozens of pictures of you guys). Henniker comes to mind, and the realization that the poor in town are so much richer than the poor here in Carata. We have everything at our fingertips, and here, people go hungry. I understand why it’s so difficult for PC volunteers to come home after two years of service, that transition seems to scare me. It is often said that reverse culture shock is worse. When you realize it’s your own home, your own country that you’re afraid of, when you know you should recognize the world around you and you can’t. Just a thought…xoxoxox

I´m trying to connect a link to snapfish so you can see entire albums of mine. the link is here http://www.snapfish.com/home/t_=10136724 Eventually it will be listed on the right hand site of this site. There are currently old pics of mine from 2001-2005. Check it out!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JENNI!!

2006-02-05T11:16:00.000-05:00

February 2nd! Happy Birthday Jenni! I’ve been in Perú for more than four months now. It began to rain last week. Finally. The rainy season came late, but it sure came. It has been raining on and off for a week now, starting in the morning at 10 or 11am and continuing all day until evening. These “aguaceros” will last until March or April, and then the season will change to summer. Dry and hot during the day and cold at night. Meanwhile, I’ve decided to purchase rubber boots….

My mountain bike arrived this month. Peace Corps rents bikes to volunteers who live in areas where there is little transportation. It’s a great program, as the bike is free of charge, and after my two years of service I either return it or donate it to a replacement volunteer. Included was a bright red helmet. I am quite the eye-sore in town with my fancy American bike and flashy red helmet. Some of the country folk I’ve encountered on the road greet me with an open mouth and long face. Helmets do not exist in Peru. I may as well be an astronaut on earth in their eyes. lol

One afternoon, my host dad Juan and I were sitting in the dinning room. He was helping me with some grammar exercises. Our cook, Marta and her daughter, Merley and Jesus (Juan’s son) were out of the house. Hours later when the three of them came home, we watched some TV and waited for the rain to slow. Someone noticed that our chicken was gone. Sometimes they walk down from where they stay and come onto our patio, usually they stay there but they can walk as far as into the road as well. We were sure the chicken had escaped into the road and had taken off. Unfortunately no one had been around for several hours.

We looked everywhere for the chicken. Even I helped, knowing that chickens cost about 12 or 13 soles (and it would probably be my next meal) I was anxious to know its whereabouts. It began to get late and we ate dinner, pondering over the chicken. We came to the conclusion that it had escaped during the afternoon and was probably long gone or someone in town had brought it home for themselves. I went to bed.

Juan awoke early in the morning to a peculiar noise he claimed to be a rodent under his bed. The noise continued until he couldn’t stand it anymore and he got up. He saw a large white mass under his bed. Laughing, he managed to free the chicken and return it to home, up around the house. More laughable is the fact that Marta tells me she couldn’t sleep that night, because she was thinking about the chicken! She was so relieved to know that the meal had been spared and the mystery was solved!

This month I’m going to begin to work with two local farmers in town. They are both friend’s of Juan and trustworthy men. I’ve visited their fields and was impressed with their products and knowledge. They are growing potatoes (of course), corn, carrots, pura pura, lettuce, radishes, yucca, ocra, various herbs, apples, peaches, tomatoes, quiwicha, onions, and much much more. Many vegetables I’ve never even heard of. One of the farmers raises bees. Yeah, honey. I’m very excited about helping them out, learning how they work and the crop seasonal calendar. The more I can learn about what is grown in my community, the better. As I will be focusing on nutrition for many of my health presentations. I can’t expect people to prepare and eat food that isn’t available to them. This “internship” with the farmers will be very rewarding.

Anna, a volunteer from Peace Corps Dominican Republic arrived on the 25th. She is continuing her service in Peru and will complete her fourth year as a volunteer this year! She comes with tremendous experience, and a great understanding of Castellano. She lives a hour and half from me and is the closest volunteer to my site. We live in very similar towns, and we’ll be programming together over this next year. I’m delighted to have a volunteer close by, especially someone who speaks English and understands American culture!

ps Sunday night i will be celebrating the super bowl on a rooftop in Trujillo. GO PITTSBURGH, EAST COAST PRIDE!

2006-01-15T19:42:00.000-05:00

Junior, the local musician in town.

Merley and Jesus (who live with us).
Story-time with the gringo.

¡2006 update from Perú!

2006-01-15T19:25:00.000-05:00

The holidays have passed and I’m begining to see what normal life is like in Carata. Unfortunatly for us (pc volunteers) we arrived in the beginning of December which is a non productive month for Peruvians. Everyone is thinking about Christmas and new years, and not about work. Not to mention the kids end their school year in mid December as well. It becomes summer vacation. This worked out well for me though, as I have been able to meet the locals and participate in the festivities. What’s better than the holidays to bring people together? Christmas came and went, and although it was my first Christmas away from the States, I had an excellent time with my host family in Trujillo and their extended family. A Peruvian Christmas is similar to ours but much simpler. Each family member receives a few presents, “Paneton” which is fruit cake is consumed in mass quantities and everyone dances late into the morning of the 25th.

I spent the 25th on the beach of Huanchaco, the closest beach to the city of Trujillo. It’s a very tranquil surfer town, that isn’t very developed but still touristy. I hung out with other volunteers, ate a lot of delicious food (including vegetarian!) I can’t find in Carata. We all stayed at a hostel and paid $3.50 a night. My friend Eli rented a tent and slept under the stars. All and all it was a great Christmas. I came back to Trujillo and Katie, another volunteer took me by the store where she bought her mattress. I bought the same one, for 220 soles ($66.00). She said it would change my life and it has.

New Years was unreal. We ate a late dinner at 11pm and waited for midnight, dancing salsa from the music of the radio. At midnight we toasted with 12 grapes in our champagne (for 12 months of good luck). Then we went outside, met other locals on the street and doused homemade-life size-dolls with gasoline and lit them on fire. The burning of dolls is done in every town in Peru. The dolls symbolize the old year, and by burning them a new year can begin. It’s very pagan/voodoo. There are other superstitious activities for new years as well, such as running around town (in a circle) with suitcases for safe travel in the New Year, and wearing yellow underwear for good luck. The color yellow? I don’t know why.

On January 3rd Rosa (my counter-part) and I had a meeting in a near by town at the health center. I decided to take the opportunity to go to Otuzco and check my email. This is the only other place I can check email, unless I’m in Trujillo. I went with Ruth the niece of Juan (my host dad). We had lunch with another friend and I chatted via msn messenger with Mom and Dad in N.H. It was so great to hear from them, and see them “live”. But the day didn’t end there.

Getting back to Agallpampa for the meeting was an adventure I will never forget. I knew Rosa and I would be staying the night in Agallpampa (to return to Carata that same day would have been difficult in the dark.) so I figured I could take my sweet time in Otuzco. By 4:30 I was done with internet and shopping. I waited for a taxi and when one finally came by he wanted to wait until the car was full before we left. I anticipated this, as it is typical here. There are taxi’s called “colectivos” that carpool passengers. It ends up being a cheap fare, but you often have to wait until the car is full before leaving. Time is definitely not an urgent issue for Peruvians. In fact, that night I learned how unimportant time and schedules really are.

It was 5:15pm when we left Otuzco. The driver was to take us to the fork in the road where I would wait for any truck, bus, van, whatever that was driving through Agallpampa. I paid the driver and waited on the side of the road with the two others from my taxi. We got cold, and decided to wait in the taxi. Someone said at 6 a bus would be by. I got out a book and began to read. The woman beside me began asking who I was, and what I was doing(in Peru). I recited my rehearsed response, to cease her curiosity and went back to reading but was quickly interrupted by her verbose tale about a woman named “Barbara” from Minnesota. “No, I don’t know “Barbara”. I told her, looking at my watch. The U.S. is a big country. lol

By 7pm I was getting antsy, and thinking about walking to Agallpampa (which would have taken 2 hours or so). The three others in the car could tell I was ready to peace out by my comments like, “the bus should have been here by now”, “I’ve got to get to a meeting that’s probably over by now”, and “it’s getting dark, huh?”. They assured me that they wouldn’t rob me, (chuckling) and that they were honest people and that I should just wait it out. I wave of panic over-struck me as a realized I had left my USB drive in the back the hard drive of the computer in the internet café in Otuzco! We were only a 10 minute drive from Otuzco and I pleaded with the driver to take me back to see if it was there. He knew he could make some $ by driving me there and back, so he accepted. The other two passengers got out and waited on the street. I told them we’d be right back, thinking of the significance of the USB and how I would be crushed if it was lost or stolen, considering all the important files and pictures it contained.

Thank you, Jesus. The USB was still attached to the same computer where I once sat, hours before. It had gone unnoticed, as it was plugged into the back of the hard drive. Out of breath, and gasping, I thanked the internet attendant and took off running down the hill to retrieve my taxi driver. He wanted to wait until the taxi was full before we left again, and I forced a laugh, reminding him I needed to get to Agallpampa, which meant I had to catch that bus from the fork in the road. I told him I’d pay him 6 soles roundtrip and he finally agreed after some bitching. I looked at my watch and it was 5 til 8pm. I hoped we’d make it back before this supposed “bus” would arrive, if it would arrive at all that night.

We returned to the fork in the road, and I disembarked the taxi, paying the inflated price. At least the USB was safe in my hands. The same two passengers waited on the side of the road, updating me that nothing but logging and mining trucks had passed. Least I didn’t miss the bus, I thought to myself. The wind blew, making things colder; I pulled out my winter hat and put it on snuggly. The other two were pacing in the dark to keep warm. I asked them, what the deal was and they replied, “A bus is sure to come by at 9pm”. I joked with them that the most significant thing I’ve learned from Peru is that “demora”=delay, is a part of daily life. And explained how punctual we are in North America, and that everything runs on time. (a little white lie….)

9pm!! Are you kidding me! “I cannot, no, will not, wait 4 hours for a bus, when I could have walked in the dark 2 hours and arrived just fine.” I told the male passenger I would rather stay at a friends or a hotel in Otuzco for the night than wait any longer. I was cold, hungry and sick of talking with these strangers. I thought of my living room in Carata, where I usually was at 8pm watching “El Cuerpo de Deseo” a trashy soap opera that the whole country was hooked on. I looked up at the stars and decided to go buy something to eat from the tiny house lit by a kerosene lamp, for there was no electricity. I bought some saltines, (as there was little selection) crossed the street and offered the goods to my fellow passengers. The three of us finished the package instantly. I told them I’d wait until 9pm, but not any later, as I had made up my mind to walk to Otuzco and stay the night.

Every set of headlights that climbed the highway was mistaken for the bus. Larger trucks passed, none willing or able to take passengers. The police passed. I thought of stopping them and explaining my ordeal, but they didn’t look terribly friendly. By 9:15 I was pissed, still hungry and cold, and ready to walk. But my new friends on the street convinced me to stay, as they had over heard from another driver that the bus was indeed coming, they had just stopped for dinner. DINNER!! Are you serious! Don’t they know there are people, starving people, waiting for them!!! This was incredible!! More than incredible, ridiculous!

At 9:30 the bus arrived and I held back from yelling out “Hallelujah”. It was extremely packed, so full, the coldness I had felt from being outside for 4 hours was quickly alleviated and overtaken by the body heat and body odor from the dozens of other passengers. I hoped they enjoyed their dinner. I stood, cramped in the aisle next to two seats where 4 people and small dog sat. Now, how long would I be on this amusement park ride I wondered, 30 or 40 minutes until Agallpampa? It was too dark outside to see landmarks..I felt sick.

I knocked on the health center’s doors, hoping not to wake anyone, but not really caring if I did. “Hermus” opened the door and I jumped inside as if I was being followed. I explained the hell I had been through and he looked at me, as if I was crazy. With attitude, he explained the fact that there was no transportation back from Otuzco after 2pm, as if it was common knowledge. Scum bag. I asked where Rosa was and he said she had gone back to Carata, much earlier. The meeting had ended early and she was able to get back before dark. Sweet. Thanks Rosa, for leaving me….As if my night couldn’t have gotten any better.

Obviously there was some miscommunication between Rosa and I, because I was sure we were staying the night in Agallpampa. Whatever. Otherwise I would have come back earlier, say… before 2pm! I bought some yogurt, more crackers and juice from a store, ate it and went to bed at the health center. The next morning I waited another 2 hours for a ride home and started walking then got picked up by a logging truck, and rode in the back.

I ate some mango that day after lunch. That night I woke up dizzy, feeling sick to my stomach. I threw up various times though out the night, and took a couple of trips to the latrine with diarrhea. The next morning was the 5th, which began the town’s celebration of Three Kings Day on the 6th. I woke up Mena (host mom) and we walked to the health post to wake up Rosa. She gave me some kind of antibiotic and Mena made a disgusting re-hydration drink called a “suero casero”. I was sick all day Thursday and very weak Friday but out of bed to see some of the festivities. Two marching bands from Otuzco came and played all day and all night. The festivities ran from Thursday morning to early Saturday morning. Music played all night, and fireworks were lit off incessantly for 48 hours. It’s hard to rest when it sounds like gun shots. Three Kings Day was bigger than Christmas and New Years, and I was sick.

Since then I’ve been just fine. Trying to plan out projects for the month and new year. I had a successful program where I read a children’s book to a group of kids. Topic: Hand washing and general hygiene. The highlight was getting all the kids into the health post bathroom to wash their grubby little paws.

It’s hard to stay positive and motivated when I look around town and see nothing but work to be done. It’s depressing and overwhelming. I went for a walk to clear my head. As I sat on a stump overlooking the mountain range I tried to rationalize my existence in this community, for all that they think I am the strange American, they are growing to accept me. And for that I am thankful, but still struggling with the huge tasks that lye ahead. Projects that will take much more than two years to complete. Such as potable water, trash disposal, a recycling program, healthier stoves, cages for cuy, and general hygiene practices. The locals think they will get sick if they bathe (cold water=sick), they think it’s perfectly normal to drink tap water, burn trash and throw litter, and share a kitchen with dozens of guinea pigs and rabbits. This is what I’m dealing with, and it’s only the beginning.

I’ve realized that it is very easy to get overwhelmed by the enormity of these problems in my town. Ironically few think they are problems, this is normal life for them. It is me, someone from the outside who recognizes these discrepancies. And only I see them as tribulations because of my culture which idolizes cleanliness and sterility. If I can work to change the minds of these people, and get them to agree with me I’d be happy. It’s a matter of improving quality of life. But it’s going to take a lot of compromise on my part and theirs. And I have to remember to work with them, and not against them. Because where would I be otherwise?

dec 05- jan 06

2006-01-15T19:18:00.000-05:00

The doll burnings, new years.

First program in Carata, dec. 05

Merry Christmas 2005 !!!

2005-12-24T19:45:00.000-05:00

WISHING YOU ALL A HAPPY AND HEALTHY CHRISTMAS!! I´m spending this year with my host family in the city of Trujillo. We´ll begin the holiday at midnight on the 25th, with hot chocolate and fruitcake. They begin opening christmas gifts at midnight and stay up till 2 or 3am dancing and celebrating the holiday. During the daytime of the 25th, they relax, enjoy the company of family and rest from a long night. CHEERS TO CHRISTMAS IN PERÚ!!

American humor, gone. Comradely, gone. Invaluable advice, gone. The English language, gone.

2005-12-24T19:41:00.000-05:00

12-12-05
Just when I thought I had this whole Peace Corps job figured out, everything changed. No matter how much training/preparation we received these past three months, nothing could have prepared me for those first couple of days in my new site. The overwhelming feeling that this is my permanent home began to freak me out a little. Just when I was getting accustomed to my host family during training, the town of Santa Eulalia, and the different ways of transportation and communication, we graduated and moved.

“We” is an interesting word because “we” consisted of my allies, my fellow confidantes who were just as crazy as I am for accepting this assignment, and whom I began to trust and love. The 31 other volunteers whom I spent every moment with for the past 10 weeks have been scattered over eight different departments within Perú. I am at least four hours away from another volunteer. More likely five, given the means of transportation here.

Therefore, not only was it difficult to move into this new town, but more so to say goodbye to an incredible support system from other volunteers. American humor, gone. Comradely, gone. Invaluable advice, gone. The English language, gone. I really began to wonder how everyone else is doing in there sites, and how much I would love to hear about their experiences. But there’s no cell service, and the closest internet is 2.5 hours down the Andes Mountains.

I am now living without drinkable water, using a latrine (read: out-house), taking a cold shower once, maybe twice a week (if I force myself). The whole hygiene issue could be another chapter. There is no refrigerator, microwave or oven. My family cooks over a fire in a smoky kitchen. In my diet, dairy and vegetables don’t exist. There is one phone for the whole town. And when it rings, a young girl calls out for the person. Electricity arrived two years ago, and fortunately it works 24/7. We have a pig, and chickens, a rabbit, and too many cuy to count.

Did I mention how cold it is? And supposedly it’s summer here!?! It gets so cold at night, I’ve been sleeping in a bed inside a sleeping bag, with four blankets. And I wear long underwear. I can see my breath. It warms up during the day but not quite enough to wear short sleeves. We are having a drought this year and it’s affecting everyone. It hasn’t rained for months. Water usually runs out daily, so families try to save it in buckets, but that leaves even less for everyone else. I witnessed a woman kill a chicken with her bare hands yesterday. Then we ate it. If I eat one more serving of potatoes or rice I’m going to explode.

Although this entry sounds incredibly pessimistic I really wouldn’t want this experience to be any other way. This was the original reason why I applied for PC. Having become a comfortable yuppie in the states, it was time for a change. I wanted to be completely out of my comfort zone, I wanted to live in a place where I would be challenged, and I wanted to make sacrifices. I got what I asked for…..

Everyday presents a new challenge. Everyday I am slaying my dragons ( yeah Mag) but most certainly I’m building character and accepting this world around me as my new reality.

I´m a PC Volunteer!

2005-12-04T16:03:00.000-05:00

I have arrived in Trujillo, and will be traveling onto my site tomorrow morning. We´ve graduated from training as of Friday, and have officially sworn in as peace corps volunteers! I´m excited to be moving into my pernament home, but also sad to say goodbye to everyone i´ve been in training with. i may not see some of them until mid service conference, one year from now. we recieved our cell phones, equipted with built in flash lights, which will probably prove more useful in my town cause i won´t have any service. most of us won´t have service, but when we travel into our capital cities to get mail, or go to the bank we can use them. $10 a month isn´t bad for a phone.
Our Thankgiving, Peace Corps style-------->

If you want to communicate with me download msn messenger. you´ll need a hotmail address. this will probably be the best and cheapest way for me to keep in touch with everyone. msn messenger is very popular here and is on every computer at internet cafe´s. my screen name is ¨mateolindsley¨

I´ll be living in the mountains about 2 hours from the closest town with internet. therefore, i won´t be online as much, maybe once a week if that. if i´m online and you want to chat, say hi, i´d love to hear from you all. love you, Matt

The enormous welcoming

2005-11-29T18:58:00.000-05:00

Carata en la noche. ps. you can click on these pics to enlarge.
School teachers, my counter-part (in blue vest), and host father (in red).
School kids dancing at my welcome ceremony.

My introduction to the community.

"Carata"-home sweet home...

2005-11-29T18:15:00.000-05:00

The center of town. Aerial view of entire village---->
"Main street". ------>
Local school, elementary-high school.

Fotos from Ancash and La Libertad

2005-11-26T11:44:00.000-05:00

Ancoraca, Ancash a quechua community. Doug(in blue jacket) and
other pc volunteers from Ancash

Aerial view of Ancoraca

Huraz, Ancash. The depart. capital for some volunteers.

The end of training…and the beginning of service!

2005-11-26T11:41:00.000-05:00

Happy Thanksgiving! With only one week left of training, I’m feeling like it’s time to say goodbye all over again. This time it will be to the close friends I’ve meet over these past two months, my host family, and Peace Corps staff. They undoubtedly put together, the most comprehensive training to prepare us for just about anything in our sites. It’s like we just arrived; but yet, it also feels like we’ve been here forever! Strange how time plays with you like that.

I’ve overcome many obstacles to graduate from this training and become an official volunteer. All of us have had days where we’ve been sick, tired, had bad Spanish days, been hung-over, homesick, injured, stressed out and just plain sad. Fortunately those days were few, and we were able to look into the future and imagine the incredible work we will complete at our new sites. All my training projects have come to an end at this point.

I shadowed a nurse for a couple of weeks and made two health brochures for her clinic, taught local teenagers about productive internet use, and presented various “charlas” about nutrition, hygiene, diarrhea, and respiratory infections. I acted in many skits, collaborated with other trainees in a town clean up day, started my own garden at home, ran a 10K road race, and sat thorough hours and hours of training about leadership, motivation, community development and sustainability, the gov. structure of Perú, cultural awareness and sensitivity, and that was just the tip of the iceberg.

The most memorable week was our site visits and the anticipation leading up to receiving our assignments. We found out on a Tuesday afternoon and had 3-4 hours to pack so we could leave that night for our sites. After various interviews, our supervisors carefully placed us in communities they determined would be the best fit. Some of us will be working in cities or small towns, some on the coast and others in the mountains. I’ll be living in the Andes Mountain’s of La Libertad, in a tiny town called Carata.

During our site visits we were all paired with existing volunteers who’ve been in their towns working for at least a year. We shadowed them for a couple of days before traveling to our sites. I was fortunate enough to see two different departments (the equivalent of states), Ancash being the first than La Libertad. I spent 4 days with Doug M. His town is very similar to mine, and therefore it was a good match. He is also a health volunteer, so we did some house visits to new mothers, attended a couple of community meetings, celebrated the school anniversary, and ate meals at various houses in the community. Doug made an effort to eat all three meals at different homes his first couple months in hopes of meeting all the towns people. Although his town is Quechua speaking (an indigenous Incan language) and mine is not, I didn’t have too much difficulty understanding the people during my stay because most spoke Spanish as well. Doug has just completed his two years and is finished with his service, therefore he had some excellent advice for me as a new volunteer.

My community gave me a tremendous welcome when I arrived for the visit. Unfortunately I was only scheduled to stay 2.5 days but that didn’t stop them from going all out. From Trujillo, (the capital city of La Libertad) the drive out to Otuzco than to Carata is less than desirable. The road is paved up to Otuzco than becomes a one lane, winding dirt path, straight up the side of a mountain. The views are spectacular! I’ll be living at ~9,800 ft above sea level. The trip to Carata was a bit complicated with a few stops to meet important people I’ll be working with, and most are ecstatic for my arrival.

Three and half hours later I drove up to this small village, and awaiting us was a large crowd of people, mostly school children neatly organized in front of the health post. I asked a Dr.(who was with me) what this was all about and he replied that it was for me! 250+ towns-people were waiting for my arrival, holding welcome signs, banners and smiles on their faces. I was in shock! Could this really be happening? The children were very well dressed in school uniforms, each class had made their own welcome sign for me, some said “Thank You”, others said “Welcome Mr. Nurse”, or “Welcome Peace Corps Volunteer, Matthew”.

I’ve read stories about people’s first impression of their community, and never could believe this could be happening. I immediately knew I was perfect for this village. Their feelings were written on their faces, joy, anticipation, reservation, and fear. Most of the crowd stared at me as I sat on “stage” among the panel of speakers. I sat with the mayor, the school director, my new host father, and a doctor from a distant town. I knew I would have to speak but wasn’t worried because the whole situation was so surreal. And no warning this would be happening!?!?! Just another crazy day in Perú.

My new host family was already chosen by the community. Juan and Mena, are brother and sister and rent rooms to the school teachers in town. I’ll have a private room, but have large meals with 8-10 people daily. The house is one of the oldest in town, but is perfect for my needs, and everyone seems friendly and positive. Juan gave me a tour of the town, and Mena cooked my meals during the stay. They have a husky and two small dogs. I also spent a lot of time with Rosa who is my counterpart, the main person I will be working with. She is a technical nurse, which is basically an LPN in the states. A health post had been built 6 years ago in Carata but wasn’t opened until Sept.of this year, for lack of staff. Rosa agreed to move to the town and open the post.

The two of us will make up the staff, for the 700 people of Carata, and 3 other surrounding villages. I will not be working as an R.N. in the traditional sense of treating patients, but I will be making house visits, teaching, training health promoters, working with traditional healers, creating health campaigns, assisting Rosa, and visiting the local schools in the other villages. My exact position is unclear, as I am an unusual volunteer who happens to be a nurse. My role may continue to change throughout my service. I met with the school director and he’s convinced I’d make a great English and computer teacher(which is hilarious because I wouldn’t know how to begin to teach either of those subjects, nor do I have any experience!) It seems like everyone wants to utilize me in some capacity, which I foresee as challenge (read: defining my role). Needless to say, I feel very accepted, comfortable and wanted in this strange new town, and they’re waiting with arms wide open. Love you all, Matt

2005-10-31T19:04:00.000-05:00

Our house in la parca.
Teaching at a comedor popular.
Happy Halloween!
My host family, The Almendaris's.
Miraflores, Lima. A rich gringo section of the city.
My abuela.

the journey continues

2005-10-31T18:44:00.000-05:00

Wow, time sure does fly… I hoped to have written an entry at the one month mark, but since last week slipped by so quickly, here’s to 5 weeks in-country! So much to report on…! My host family continues to amaze me everyday. They are so warm and affectionate. I’ve begun to understand my sister’s dry humor and have even developed a hilarious repartee with her. Her brother is just as cool, very eager to teach me about music and fútbol, help me with projects, and like every good brother, tease his sister. I met Blanca’s mom (the most eccentric grandmother) who stayed with us for a week. She a retired psych nurse, who’s very witty and wise. We could talk for hours. P.S. she’s the same age as Gigi!

Papi (Blanca’s husband) has come home the past couple of weekends and stays for a while before heading back to work which is 6-7 hours in bus. He’s a very educated, worldly man. I can tell he wishes he lived closer. He works for a Perúvian radio station. I’m convinced that this first month could have turned out much differently had I not had such a welcoming family. They are making the transition much more feasible.

Here’s a list of some things I’m still getting used to…..

Cold showers.
Getting electrocuted while taking a shower.
The milk and cheese.
Our morning wake-up by “Paulino” the parrot.
Saying hello to EVERYONE on the street, at all times of day.
Greeting women cheek to cheek.
Eating cuy. (More bones than meat, I’d try it again)
Throwing rocks at local dogs when running.
The constant smell of burning trash.
Hitch-hiking. (yep. It’s sketchy)
Eating soup with chicken claws in it. ---<
Breast feeding in public. (it’s just, normal)
Walking up every morning and convincing myself this is not a dream!

I’ve found a couple of favorite foods/dishes and drinks. The fruit here is alright but doesn’t compare to Costa Rica. Perhaps in another region the fruit is better. Beer is very cheep and not bad. There’s a malt brand I like (weird?) and of course the national cocktail, “Pisco Sour”-which is a great mixed drink. Aside from the food, I can feel myself slowly adapting to the Perúvian way of life, which is very laid back and passive. The general attitude is typical of many latin countries, “If it happens it happens, if not, we’re not going to worry about it”. Meetings often start late, sometimes hours late. Nothing every runs “on schedule”, and greetings are very important, both arrival and departure. One may ask, does anything every get done?! Yes, but at a different speed, in it’s own way. I just have to remain open to the “unexpected”.

Peace Corps pre-service training continues to kick our asses. We’re not even considered volunteers until we graduate. All the locals in this town know of the Peace Corps, because of the other groups that have come through. They call us “aspirantes” which means candidates or applicants to Peace Corps. We’ll “graduate”, and “swear in” in one month and officially start our 2 years of service on Dec. 3. The training hasn’t been that bad, it is very similar to other leadership trainings I’ve been through, for Americorps, or as a R.A. in college.

Learning/Improving my existing Español could be better. I was convinced that we would be speaking very little English when we got here but the majority of our training is in English. This is due to the fact that there is a large range in language abilities among the 33 of us. By the time our training is up we are all expected to be at an mid-intermediate level of Spanish. We had Spanish interviews our first weekend here, fortunately I tested above the minimum requirement. My class is basically a joke, not because it’s easy, because Peace Corps doesn’t really know what to do with us. I’ve had to take it upon myself to learn my grammatical hang-ups.

So although the language class isn’t stressing me out, the side projects are. We visited a very poor school and sat in on a class. The town is so bad off, the first thing the principal said to us when we arrived was, “I’m sorry”. (for the condition of the school) The walls were paper thin, supplies were at a shortage, many of the kids hadn’t eaten breakfast, and there was no running water. And yet, spirits were high, they couldn’t get enough of us, and made the most of what they had. We’re going back this week to do a play about hand-washing, bacteria and parasites.
We also visited a “comedor popular” our equivalent is a soup kitchen. This town in the mountains was much better off and small, but modern. All the roads were paved and although there are only three shared cars for 2000 people, most don’t need to leave the mountain. After working in the kitchen for a day, we came back two weeks later to give a presentation about nutrition, and hygiene. I even got to make an announcement over the town loud speaker to invite the farmers working way out in their fields. Our presentation was huge success.

This is my first position as a development worker and I’m beginning to see why Peace Corps exists. I didn’t need to study nursing for 5 years at a private university to be effective here. My common knowledge will take me very far. On of my challenges in being a successful change agent will be, helping to build a sustainable community without using financial resources from the outside. The old sayings, “Teach a man to fish, and he’ll eat for a life time”, and “It takes a village to raise a child” are proving to be true. Sometimes the resources are available, and the current state can improve it just takes a good idea and some motivation. God, I love this job.

I’m running in a 10k road race sponsored by Nike next weekend. 5 of us from P.C. are running together. I’m really not in shape to be running such a race but it’s mostly for fun and has motivated me to get out and exercise. It’s good for my mental health too. We had a Halloween party at my place this past weekend. I was a pirate. Complete with a hook and everything. My host dad’s ingenious ideas worked perfectly! I was impressed with the variety of costumes, everything from Freddy Mercury to a tapeworm (yeah Jocelyn!). We rocked out, devoured s’mores next to a bon-fire and indulged ourselves in some American foods, such as Doritos, Oreos, chip and dip, fruit salad, brownies, caramel squares, bruscheta, and the ubiquitous party favorite, Jello shots. Oh it’s good to be an American. It was probably the best Halloween I’ve had in a long time and it’s not even celebrated here! Until next entry…

the begining!

2005-10-08T20:15:00.000-05:00

In just one week, I’ve begun a new job in a new country and moved in with a new family. Yes, it has been a lot to digest. 35 bright Americans met in Arlington, VA on Sept. 21st to begin a new chapter in our lives as Peace Corps volunteers. We’re a diverse group from every region of the US including Alaska, Washington, Texas, Florida and New Hampshire. We come with tremendous experience in the fields of health and environmental education.

None of us could imagine what exactly we would be doing in South America for the next two years. But we knew the uncertainty excited us and the mystery sent shivers through our bones. We had quit our jobs, sold our cars, gave away our pets and said goodbye to our loved ones to board a plane for a new life thousands of miles away from home.

Peru is what would become our home. A country of 26 million people, with an unstable economy corrupt government and one unpopular president after another, it is also booming with possibility. There are few places in the world that offer snow covered peaks, sandy deserts, fertile valleys, and dense tropics.

We stepped of the plane and met Kathy and Michael who head up the Peace Corps Peru staff. We stayed in Huampani a town outside of the capital last weekend. The staff introduced themselves and we discovered our new name is Peru 6. We are the sixth group from the states since 2002. Outside, the mountains surrounded us and the air was dry and dusty. Never have I lived in such an environment. The weather was bearable, low 60’s in the morning and late evening and low 80’s during the day. Nothing new for a “New Englander”.

They drove us to St. Eulalia a small town in the mountains where we would begin a ten week training and meet our host families. We dropped our bags and explored the training center like the new cast of “real world” in their new crib. There are small class rooms, large meeting rooms, an outdoor patio, a basketball court, a garden an empty pool and many offices. Perfect!

As we waited on the basketball court for our new families to arrive, I could help but feel like a dog at an SPCA waiting for a worthy owner to come and purchase me. Blanca and her daughter Carola (16 y/o) where the lucky ones. They were eager to bring me home and introduce me to the rest of the family. I met Alvaro (17 y/o), and the grandparents who live next door. We also have two labs, Bunker and Willy and a couple of cats who live on the roof, parrot another cat with four kittens and about 50 “cuy” ( guinea pigs) that the family will sell to eat once they are full grown. Yes, “cuy” is a delicacy here as is rabbit.

We went running out of the house a couple of hours after I arrived due to a small tremor from an earthquake a couple of miles away. Another small tremor passed on Wednesday at school. Evidently this is common this time of year. Sweet. St. Eulalia is very poor and health is definitely a priority for people. The craziest thing is that these people are pretty well off. They have portable water, electricity, waste disposal, farms and transportation. My permanent site will have even more poverty. Everyone is town has been kind to us, most know what were doing here. My family has had two other “aspirantes” living with them in the past during this temporary training.

The next ten weeks will be grueling due to the amount of work we’ll have to complete. I’ve already begun multiple projects, including shadowing a local nurse, planting two large gardens, running a computer class, and teaching a dental health program. We’ll be visiting schools, health centers and soup kitchens in the area to get a better idea of what to expect. The training staff want us to be very prepared before we move to our permanent sites! Love you all, Mateo

photos from first week

2005-10-08T19:18:00.000-05:00

A hike with local peruvian kids, and Sarah. An aerial view of our town.

At the training center in St. Eulalia, eating lunch.