third week

Hola!

Starting my third week of training in Peru and things are starting to feel more ruitine. The other day, I even had to explain to a combi driver that I had already paid for my ride and that I didn´t need to pay again... in Spanish! I was very proud of myself.

Otherwise, things are looking good in terms of health and weather, etc. I still have not had any diarrea... but it is so funny to go to training each day and hear about everyones bowl movements. It is not a shy subject at all and I am still getting used to that. I´m sure you Duffy´s would have not problem here! The food continues to be good. On Sunday, my host Mom mad fresh juice out of pinnaple and it was delicious! Also, we get current volunteers coming in frequently to tell us stories and tell us about potential challenges, etc. It is great to hear voices of people in the field so we can get a feel for what it might be like.

Today I thought I would primarily tell you all a couple of funny stories about things that have happened or things that I have noticed in Peru.

Movies... So, my first day with my host family, they asked me what kinds of movies I liked. The big thing they were interested in was that I don´t really like horror movies. Since then, I have watched a horror movie with the family because I wanted to listen to Spanish and spend time with my host family. I was relieved that I couldn´t understand a word, because I didn´t want to be scared, but they eventually put english subtitles on and my and my host mom frequently covered our eyes and squeeled. The other kind of movie that seems to be really popular among my family are Asian action movies with a lot of REALLY tacky fight scenes and asians speaking spanish. I find it really hillarious, but usually don´t know what is going on.

Parties... Well, I don´t really go to parties because I cant stay out past 11pm because they lock the door and I wouldn´t be able to get in. However, I did get to meet up with a couple volunteers this past saturday for about an hour out and one of them told me a really interesting story. Apparently, 4 year olds birthday parties are a BIG deal here and are better then some wedding parties in the U.S. For example, a fellow volunteer´s family had a birthday party on saturday for their 4 year old with clowns, tons of people and a Barney. Apparently, the Dad of the daughter works in Spain and they never see him, so half way through the party, the Barney took off his costume head and it was the DAD!!! Everyone was so excited and crying, etc. I guess no one knew he was coming. I thought that was pretty amazing.

Finally, on Saturday as well, I went to Lima to do some training at a University and afterwards went out to lunch with a couple other volunteers. The process of ordering food turned out to be an adventure because all of us were mediocore at best at Spanish. So, when the waitress came around to tell us what the menu was, we made a big production about wanting a written menu... but we finally came to understand that on the weekends they don´t have one. So, then the waitress listed all the food for us and none of us had a clue what anything was... only understanding the words for chicken and rice. So, she explained them all several times, showed us her written list, and we conversed for about 20 minutes about what in the world everything was. When we finally decided to order, we just passed around her notepad and put checks next to the food we thought we wanted. In the end, I had no idea what appetizer I got, but ordered a main dish of chicken and rice... to be safe. It was a pretty funny restaurant experience.

Overall, I am continuing to have a great time and do feel like my spanish is improving! I get more and more excited everyday to do to my site! All the current volunteers tell us to be prepared to feel like rock stars, and that we will soon have a new respect for Brad and Angelena because everyone´s attention will be on us all the time. I´m pretty excited to see what I can do!

Lima

The weekend flew by! I am exhausted today from all the activity and Spanish practice. On Friday, the entire training group went to the city of Lima together for the first time. The experience of simply getting there was interesting enough. We rented out combi’s (busses) and filled them with gringos. Needless to say, we got a lot of interested looks from Peruvians in passing cars and busses. One bus of people actually took pictures of us because we are apparently a big spectacle. Also, an interesting thing about Peru (or at least the Lima area) is that they are about 20 years behind in terms of what kind of American music they listen to. I have heard more 80’s music and Michael Jackson recently then I think I have in my entire life. I thought it was pretty hilarious that on the way to Lima, the driver put in a special “gringo mix” of all 80’s music that… I’m not going to lie… we all really enjoyed and maybe even sang along to. It always feels good be able to sing along to music, even if it is something you would probably never listen to at home.

In the actual city of Lima, our teachers scared us silly about possibly being robbed. They made us walk around parts of the city, asking strangers about the safety of the areas we were in and what the most popular places to visit were. It was mostly awkward, but probably good practice. For lunch we ordered three whole chickens with fries (because they said they wanted to protect our stomachs by now feeding us raw food or veggies). It was deffinately interesting. Interesting fact, because lettuce is 95% water, we are advised not to eat it here in Peru because the water is contaminated. I have already internally said my goodby to fresh salads and hello to 200 varieties of potatoes!

The food continues to be delicious in my host family’s house. My host Mom is most definitely getting tired of me telling her that everything she makes “esta rica!” (it’s tasty!). I think she expects me to have a favorite food by now, but it hard to choose! I actually like all the potatoes, sauce, rice and chicken! I’m just glad I haven’t had choke down something that I really didn’t like it! Unfortunately, I continue to feel like a guest in my host house. I’m not home a lot, and when I am I try to spend time with the family. However, I always get served first for every meal, which I don’t like and don’t know how to change. I also always try to do dishes when I can, but my host Mom is always waving me away. Today however, I got the low down on local gossip from my host Mom. I´m guessing I understood less than half of it, but it was still really interesting to feel like I was getting to know things about the people and places in my pueblo.

Funny story of the week: When I actually did go out last night (Saturday), we went to a restaurant that was basically empty and filled a table with about 15-20 volunteers. While chatting and socializing, the bar was filled with (surprise!) 80’s and 90’s music such as YMCA, as well as some good old Peruvian tunes. What was really awkward was the large TV screen that was playing clips of really disturbing or sexual youtube videos! None of us could even talk because they were so distracting and hilarious.

Week two

Well, week two is not looking good for a couple of volunteers. La bicicleta (diarrea) struck a lot of people this week and they had to stay home puking out of both ends.... as they say. Luckily for me, I have not been the least bit sick yet... knock on wood. My family has had several volunteers and is always warning me about things like rinsing my apples off with clean water, watching out for the dogs etc. Every time I leave the house my host mom says be cautious of the dogs! But it is a challenge being cautious of all food and the water all the time. Even when I brush my teeth I use boiled or treated water from the training center because I am afraid of drinking too much unclean water.

In terms of Spanish class, it is always interesting. Yesterday we went to a nearby town on the terrifying Combis.. or little buses, and had a lesson in how to bargain in a public market. I´ll be honest, I was terrible... I didn´t even really try. I mean, who tries to bargain down the price of butter??? Anyway, it was something I never would have imagined doing in a class... how to not get ripped off because you are American. My host family had a kick out of that, because they know everyone always tries to overcharge the Gringos! Then today, we used our bargained for good to have a cooking lessons. We made Aji de gallina... which is basically chicken in a spicey, cheesy, nutey sauce with potatoes and rice. It was delicious, and my host Mom had made it the night before so I got to compare different cooking styles. MY class also made a cheese cake with strawberries. It was fun, but my teacher forgot to wash the strawberries with the clean water so she told me not to eat mine and she got to eat most of them! haha. It is really fun having active and interactive classes and working with students at my level and practicing together. I have really gotten closer with my three classmates because we spend 4 to 5 hours together everyday and are at the same level. It is great having them to talk to and laugh with.

Tonight, I am going to maybe play a bit of soccer! I´m excited, but most nervous, I don´t think I¨ll really play much because peruvians are serious about their soccer! Tomorrow, the whole training class is going to Lima and we all have to interview people around the city by ourselves... in Spanish! I´m nervous, but I figure I can make a fool of myself because I most likely wont see them again. Also, we are going to get food from an actual restaurant, which most likely consist of potatoes, rice, meat and more rice. But who knows? Maybe something exciting will happen... like vegetables!

In terms of my host family, the continue to be great. These days in the evenings they all sit around with me and laugh at all my mistakes in a loving way. My host brother teaches English at a school nearby and wants me to come to one of his classes eventually when I have time. Also, my host sister is taking me to a pool this weekend! My little 1 year old sobrina apparently continues to knock on my door when I am gone and follows me around the house when I am there. I love her to death and play with her whenever I can. The family has started calling me Tia for short, or aunty.

Anyway, I love you all and I will upload some more pictures soon! It is a bit complicated but I will work on it! I have definately taken a bunch as of late.

One whole week

Kids driving!! Nah, just in the my host Dad´s taxi goofing off.

My host sister and her daughter


Host Dad on his 60th birthday with a bunch of gringo Peace Corps volunteers.

One week down! It is amazing how long and short one week can week at the same time when your entire life has changed. I now have a completely new, but temporary, family that I am really enjoying and finally understand! Because everyone was always working and running in and out, I never really understood who was living in the house or who was who. Now I know I have three host brothers that are 21, 22 and 26 and one host sister who’s spouse also lives in the house with their one year old daughter. Finally I have my host parents. My host Mom is great. She is so patient and sweet with me. She makes me feel like I am back in middle school, always asking me how I am, noticing little things about me (like how itchy my legs are from all the bug bites) and explaining things to me slowly so that I understand what is going on. I feel like her heart is so big it could fit half of the world in it. My host Dad is also great, but I don’t talk to him as much. The other night was his 60^th birthday party and there was a lot of Peruvian dancing, cake, pictures, piñata and music! It was a blast! A couple other volunteers were there as well and we all danced. My host Dad is an amazing dancer! I was so impressed by his moves. Later in the night, I attempted to do what I like to call the Peruvian shuffle dancing and my host family was (or pretended to be) impressed! They actually said that me, la gringa, could dance!

Also, I met a little girl at the party and introduced her to my camera. I let her keep it all night and take as many pictures as she wanted. The pictures posted here are the result of some of her handiwork! It was a fabulous time and I didn’t have to feel awkward about taking pictures because I didn’t have to take any! Below is a picture of my little photographer with her piece of cake!

Other than the goings on in my host family’s house, things are busy all the time. My mind is always full of information and I am always tired because of the constant information overload. But, I am always a happy tired. The volunteers are divided into three groups based on our experiences and upcoming projects when we go to our sites. Right now, Peace Corps Peru is training volunteers for water and sanitation, environment and health. The training site is the place we all gather together to have our lessons in our particular fields as well as health lessons for the entire training class. There are 57 or 58 of us total. We are one of the biggest incoming groups. Last week, the environment group worked with the water and sanitation group to make a giant compost pile at the training site (see picture).

Finally, I went to my first mass on Sunday with my host parents and my friend Anni. First, my host Mom and brother took us around a park in Chosica, which was really nice. We all got some ice cream and then went to a short mass at a Catholic church. I went mostly for the experience and to listen to Spanish. There was a lot of music and not too much talking, which I really enjoyed.

I guess I will end by saying that the Spanish is still difficult, but it is manageable. Every morning I wake up and feel very shy because I suddenly feel like I cant remember anything and forgot it all in my dreams. But, as the day progresses I gain confidence and start talking and understanding more. By most evenings I am having rather in depth conversations and actually understand most of it. It feel great… until the next morning when my memory is mysteriously erased. I’ll know I have a handle on my Spanish when I can wake up and understand everything that is going on!

Estoy en Peru!

So here I am in Peru! I cant believe it sometimes, and sometimes I cant believe it has only been a week! We started out with a day and a half in a conference facility where we were promptly run ragged with information, interviews and more information. All was good though, and there were high spirits amongst all of us out of excitment for just arriving! We were then brought to the training facility on Sunday, where we were picked up by our host families. My host family is great! At first, I was very confused about who lived there and who didn´t, but I have slowly started to figure it out. I spend most of my time with my host mom, sister and neice who stay home most of the time. Each day, I am in training from 8am to 5pm, and then I usually stay for a little time extra for exercise that I will explain below.

I get time to use the internet every couple of days and it is in a rather hot internet cafe in my town. So, I have not had much time to update this week, but I am happy to finally write down a few things. My town is basically two roads going up a really steep hill with houses and small tiendas (shops) all along it. It gets dark around 6 30 and I get home from ¨school¨around 6 or later depending, and I don´t like to walk home alone in the dark. Even though my ¨family¨tells me that this peublo es muy tranquillo... or very safe and calm... aparently nothing ever happens in terms of crime.

So, other than my pueblo, my host family is doing very well. My host mom stays home all day and cooks and cleans. There are 9 of us (aparently) living in one house with one bathroom and she is always preparing food for us. Today I attempted to help her peel a potatoe with a knife and she finished three by the time I finished one. Everyone laughed at how chopped up my potatoe was. But it is all in good fun. Also, my host mom almost never makes red meat... which has been GREAT for me! We only eat chicken and fish, rice and veggies, all of my favorites. I think she is getting tired of me telling her how good the food is. But I am always serious! I love her food, its great. Most mornings, we get pan y palto or bread and avacado, which is probably my favorite possible breakfast minus eggs and creme cheese. My host mom and host sister are great and are patient with me while I learn. I also have a 1 year old sobrina (neice), who has really taken a liking to me. Whenever I come home I try to play with her as much as I can and whenever I leave she crys. She is always grabbing my finger and pulling me around wherever she wants me to go. It is REALLY cute and I love her to death. I also have two dogs, one little and one big! It reminds me of home... except they are much more free and can just wander the town and play with other dogs whenever they want. Dogs are a bit scary here. Today on my way home, one of them ran around me barking and I seriously thought it might bite me. I think this is the only time I have ever been a little afraid of a dog. Most of them are very mellow though, just laying aorund the streets and playing and fighting with each other.

As for the actual Peace Corps experience, it is very intense training. We have Spanish classes from 8am to noon every day, and then a lunch break with our familys, and then from 1pm to 5pm we have technical classes (for me, the environment) about things we can implement in our future communities, and health lessons about common illnesses and dangers in Peru. My spanish class is completely in spanish, no english at all, and only has four people including me, and I am at the intermediate low level. My teacher is really sweet and patient and has a lot of faith in us. At first I didn´t talk much and she asked me if everything was ok and I told her I can understand everything, I am just afraid of talking. She said that I am at a very good level and shouldn´t worry, because by the time we are done, I will know a lot more and will be in a good place. Ever since, I have felt more confident and talk a lot more durring class.

More interestingly, today, we had a health class in dental hygeine and diarrea. As one of my compadres put it, the main lesson was to ¨not eat diarrea.¨ Of coarse, the actual lesson was about how there is no flouride in the water so we have to keep our teeth clean. The diarrea part was more intense. Apparently more than 70% of volunteers get it, and it is the most common form of illness. He made us raise our hands if we had already had it (I haven´t yet) and told us to get comfortable talking about. I have never learned so much about poop in my life! It was funny though, and I guess it is more appropriate to talk about here. The second day in my house, my family explained to me that they call diarrea ¨la bicicleta¨or, the bicycle, because diarrea is an ugly word. And they often ask me if the food they give me is giving me the bicicleta. haha.

Other than learning about poop, I have enjoyed my group. I haven´t made a strong friendship connection with anyone yet, mostly just a lot of nice people that I talk to occasionally. My training group has organized an after school workout group that runs twice a week and does yoga the other two days because a couple people are yoga instructors. Not only that, but a bunch of people stay after to play guitar together and sings, etc. It is very trainquil at the training site and I really enjoy the after school sessions. In training today, the environment group made two giant compost piles. I learned a lot about compost today that I had never known and got really dirty in the process. It was a good time all around.

Also, yesterday, my head coordinator explained the places we might go as environmental volunteers. He said the majority of us will be bathing with buckets (which I haven´t had the pleasure of doing just yet) and that some of us will have no internet and no phone. Some of us will have one of the other, and some of us will have both. It scared me a little being so disconnected, but then I heard someone say ¨I think we all still have one foot in the U.S.¨ and I think he is right. I always look forward to sending and getting updates (please email me as much as you can!) but I don´t know how much longer I will be able to do that. I am half scared and half excited. But I always remember that this experience is nothing but good for me and I am learning a lot.

Funny thing about Peru that you may or may not have known
1. toilet paper goes in the trash, not in the toilet, because the pipes are too small and it will clog them
2. the word for the guinea pig meat everyone warned me about is cuy (pronounces coo eee)
3. none of the water is ok to drink... it all has to be boiled or something to clean it. Luckily, my family does this so I always have clean water around.

A week away...

One week before I set off for Peru and I have decided to start a blog at my Mom's insistence. She says it would be much better than attempting to e-mail everyone separately. To this, I couldn't argue. However, I do plan on e-mailing as much as possible because it is more personal.

I am packing my two big bags slowly. I think the waiting to leave is the worst. I'd say my biggest fear right now is of my blubbery, potentially incoherent Spanish that I am hoping will improve rapidly. But, overall, I am excited and anxious to get started! I cannot wait to be an official Peace Corps volunteer!