Tuesday, August 30, 2011

A Cleansing Experience


As Americans we often take for granted the fact that showers, baths, and hot water are constants, not luxuries. Well, that expectation definitely went out the window when we all arrived in Peru. The first weeks were filled with adventures in bathing, with many stories including buckets, cold (I mean freezing) water, and a wide variety of qualms concerning where and when it was appropriate to wash. After the two months of a quick game of freeze tag with one’s shower, I am truly starting to understand the joy of cold water trickling down, shortening my breath, and waking my spirit. The blood pumping vigorously attempts to heat one’s body; and I now question whether or not a hot shower is the way to go. In fact, many Peruvians love it so much that cold water is preferred, while hot water is considered bad for you.

Daily Dinámica: Create a fantasy story about dealing with strange misunderstanding concerning water, for example.

Once upon a time there was a young girl living a quaint village in a country called Peru. She had a lovely family that took good care of her, and even though her customs were strange, they treated her as one of their own. One day, the young lady came to here training center and told her comrads about a glorious shower she had with warm water spewing from the fosset like a rainbow of skittles in a commercial she once had seen. Oh how joyous she was, but the next day…her expression was much more of confusion and dismay. Her family had brought her to this same fasset where the magical warm water came from and started to explain “Oh lovely girl, no worries! It is fixed! The water is no longer warm! You may take all the cold showers you wish!”

The End


Passing Time with Old Timers



One of the beautiful things about every country is that there are babies, kids, teens, adults, and old people…geriatics if you will, or viejos if you want to  be Peruvian. For those that truly know me, or have met me period. I love to talk, chat, and talk some more whenever I get the chance, so why would that change in another language? It does not. I have to say Peace Corps picked the right country for me, because this place really has some people that know how to..exercise their ability to extend their lung capacity. My favorite conversationalist are the viejos though, the elderly of Perú.

In any place on this planet, the viejos are the ones that have been there and done that.  They know what it was like when time began and how much the road they stand on has changed (literally and figuratively). Not really having grandparents growing up, it is a special treat to turn any random wrinkled woman lazing about into my future foster grandmother.

I am pretty sure I have seen Peru pass through the ages while talking to these vibrant women (usually a couple times since every stories is repeated like a scratched CD during your your favorite song). I have spoken to a man in his 100’s, women in their 80’s, and the stories are some of the most interesting, amusing, and informative in my three months here.

Juana Alua (85): She moved to La Libertad as a 10 year old because both of her parents died (one may have been murdered, I’m not sure) and she helped raise her brothers and sisters. She is still in good health and has few pains. She told me their were two types of pineapple…”blanco y colorado” white and colored. I got to hear about the various time periods of Peruvian history and the diffculties of a young woman in the 30’s and 40’s.

Oldest man in Perú (107): Looking good for his age, take this man’s advice. “Meat and chicken are shit; eat lots of fish, vegetables, and salads.” He actually pulled out his ID so that we could double check his real age.

Iliana (¿?): When she was a girl her mom made her a leather hat so that when she went and robbed oranges, she could keep her head safe. I am not sure why she would need protection, but she is somewhat deaf, so I could ask. Camaná, which has no oranges now, once had the sweetest and best oranges in all of Perú. She misses the variety of sugar cane that once grew here and is was suprised to see all the onions growing. (Even though her son-in-law owns an onion farm).

Daily Dinámica:  Timing Old Timers
Materials—your watch (or cell phone) and patience. As you begin a conversation with someone that is at least 75+ years old, start the stop watch. Be careful, you may think the conversation may end quite a few times, so be sure it is not just a long pause or they may just be starting over again, so hold out to the end. Take notes, they may be useful.


And the Wheels on the Bus


So, despite my colleagues advicing me against this for my own sanity, I am starting a log of how many hours I am spending on buses. The most popular way to travel here in Perú, bus travel is not what you remember from high school field trips. First class gets “cama cama” where your seat leans all the way back into a bed, otherwise it’s a little bit better than an airplane seat. You do get blankets, pillows, a desent dinner and breakfast. I’ve enjoyed “Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief” the past few times. Most important of all though, is Bingo. Yes, you can win a free trip on some of these buses by playing bingo. Of course, the bathroom is for Urination Only, but luckily Imodium is given to us like Inka Cola by our doctors, so no worries on that 16 hour trip.

Hours Logged as of August 30, 2011: 84 hours

Daily Dinámica: Experiments in Sleeping

See how much you can try and sleep on the bus, all you need is a creative mind. My current theories:
1.)    Don’t sleep for 24 hours before
2.)    Drink heavily before getting on the bus (just kidding, that is NOT allowed)
3.)    Take sleeping pills
4.)    Ear plugs and Blind fold

Saturday, August 6, 2011

WAIT, CAN I GET A REDO?

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

FAMILY MATTERS


Noone ever really knows what to expect when they hear they are going to be living with a host family; like Mr. Gump said himself, boxes of chocolate are not always predictable.  So needless to say, the situations that arose out of the first few weeks living with them were more than note worthy. Some of my favorite stories are as follows:

Volunteer: I need to wash my hair.
Host Mom: No you don’t.

Of course my question in this scenario would be, why didn’t you just do it anyway. Her response being between the lack of spanish and the control of water coming from her host mother, she was at a stale mate.
No worries, she managed to get the job done a few weeks later.

Volunteer: I have flees
Host mom: Oh, there must be dogs at the training center
Volunteer: No
Host mom: Oh, you must be playing with dogs on your walk home
Volunteer: Nope
Host mom: Well it definitely couldn’t be our dog then.
Volunteer: Of course not

She managed to make a miraculous recovery from flee bites after administering a dose of flee powder to the beloved family pet.

Volunteer: I don’t eat meat
Host family: No problem! Here’s some chicken
Volunteer: Thanks, but I don’t eat meat
Host family: No worries, it’s just chicken

Oh the joys of explaining what one considers the definition of meat.

These are just a few that I found quite amusing, although something new pops up almost every week. 98% of our families are loving, caring, and protective. They love seeing us improve our Spanish and get to know the Peruvian culture. Just like all families, they are diverse, different and unique. I am not without my own “tontarías” while talking with my family. Let’s just say that I first thought my brother and sister were husband and wife. Luckily I figured out they were not before I said anything too foolish.

Daily Dinámica: Arbol de Família
Materials: pen and paper, and more paper, and a few more pieces of paper
Try and figure out if you can make a family tree of your host family. Most likely it will take a few hours, so grab a beer or two! Don’t forget that each person has about four names each, so do a few finger exercises before you get started.