Day 15

Day 15

Sep. 5, 2011

Monday

Morning: I was hyper. I had a peanut butter banana sandwich for breakfast with a pb/ nutella sandwich. SOOO good! This sparked a very happy and hyper morning mood. Splurging on comfort food is totally worth it. Played soccer with the brothers for awhile in the late afternoon. Spent the day doing English lesson planning. Helped Farid w/ his English homework again in the evening. The next day he reported that it was all correct. Win!

The English lesson, I should explain this. I spent most of my second week at the school district working on a project that the volunteer I replaced had started. It was a 'Myths and Legends' writing competition. Mostly I was typing up the winning stories that the teens of the Red Ambiental had written. Anyway, there is a man at the school district who works alongside my community partner there. I work with a woman named Fany who is in charge of the areas of Science, Math, etc. Profesor Manuel, who works alongside her, is in charge of language arts and communication, among other things. He saw this white girl in his office every day and saw an opportunity for his language teachers to get a lesson from a native English speaker. This works out for me, because I wanted to teach the teachers anyway. The way I see it, the most sustainable way to improve English skills here is to go straight to the sourse and work with the teachers.

Lucky for me, I have a lot of material from training that was put together by the English Teaching Committee that I could use for this. Without that resource, planning this lesson would have been a lot more work than it is. It's still a lot of busy work putting everything together. I am working on writing requests to the director of the school district and the directors of each school to allow the teachers to participate and request funding for basic materials, etc. Hoping for the lesson to take place by the end of the month.

Weekend Fun

Days 13-14

Sep. 3-4, 2011

Sat-Sun

Weekend in Trujillo!

Saturday morning in Ascope was really frustrating because Hans the internet guy came to our house and did not know how to work with a Mac. Boo. Discrimination to my poor little Apple friend. After almost breaking my phone because I was texting so furiously to release my anger I went to Trujillo, the capital of La Libertad for a nice relaxing weekend. Poor Joe, he was on the receiving end of those texts. lol. Hung with other volunteers. Took in some much needed internet browsing, English speaking, and quality time with Amanda Slack and Nicole. Slack turned 23 on Sunday. So glad I could celebrate with her!

Sunday brought a hot shower, a pancake breakfast, then some Starbucks and shopping followed by an afternoon of liberal internet use on Mac... which means Skype. Heaven.

Went to Plaza Vea and sprung for a jar of peanut butter at a price of 17 soles. It was worth every centimo.

Coming home to the host fam was nice. I gave them some things I bought for them in Trujillo: A shorter jump rope for Piere to have for his own, because he loves mine but gets it wrapped around his left foot all the time. Some Reese's peanut butter cups for Farid that I found at Plaza Vea...expensive but, again, worth the splurge. Snickers bars for the whole fam. Nutella and peanut butter to share. Nom. They were happy. I was happy to see them. It was nice. There was a very talkative dinner Sunday night upon my arrival. Fun times. I got lucky with my family :)

Note: the following day, Farid excitedly reported back to the family on how the peanut butter cups tasted. "It was like a sweet and salty cake, but it was pure sugar." Hehehe. I couldn't have described them any better myself. He loved them.

                                                                  Me*Slack*Nicole

Day 11

Day 11

1.Sept.11

Thursday

>9am- Run. Began too late in the day. Sun was STRONG. Lots and lots of sweat. Tough run, but it was good. 1 mile to the stadium. 1 mile on the track. the rest was out of town and back. At the stadium, I ran into a phy ed class. A group of girls ran with me. I wouldn't let them walk when they wanted to. This meant running slow, but it was really fun to get them moving. 9:30 pace. I'll take it for such a hot run.

> Went to mercado for water and sporade (Gatorade wannabe, and no I didn't forget the 't,' it's actually spelled like that) following the run. Ran into Maggie and Betty who were buying produce. Got some oranges with them and helped carry groceries home.

> Lunch with fam. Really yummy veggie soup they made for me because I was missing veggies. Delish. Served with radish/ beet salad and an egg over rice. Nom! Loved it.

>Helped Farid with English homework. He has an oral exam tomorrow. This was fun! Reviewed some words with Piere. I am getting sick with a head cold. Boo :(

Note: Farid got a perfect score on his exam the following day! Win!

Day 5

Day 5

26.Agosto. 2011

Friday

>Arrived at the high school in Macabí Alto with my school district community partners, Fany and Ysela, for the first Red Educativa Ambiental (it's a group of student leaders) meeting. Checked in, found a classroom, realized I'd be stranded there without toilet paper...

> The director invited us to coffee and chicken sandwiches. I felt rude not eating the sandwich, but I can't do the chicken... especially not before 10am. We were having a nice conversation and I was talking quite a bit, feeling more comfortable all the while. Suddenly, out of nowhere, what can only be described as a brass band appeared out of nowhere playing "Feliz Cumpleaños." Apparently, tomorrow is the director's birthday. I love it. Once the birthday song was over, they started playing a marinera sort of dance and before I knew it, Fany and the director were dancing in the middle of the room... and this was normal. I love Peru. I love these kinds of surprises.

>All attendees filter in for the day's event and we commence. Of course, we cannot begin without introductions and the hymn of Peru. Naturally, I was called on stage to sit with the important students. There I sat for the next hour watching dances, songs, speeches, etc. in front of the crowd. Not that bad. They didn't make me talk, that's a plus. The dances and music were awesome. I really like that little flute like thing with all of the bamboo looking things strapped together. There was this kid there who was really good at playing it too.

>AIDS workshop with the local nurse. After the nurse's presentation, the teens had to work in groups and propose ideas to promote the days theme (AIDS) in their own schools. After each group of leaders present their ideas, each school votes on the best idea. The winner's proposal then must be carried out by all of the schools. This is the general format for all of the Red Ambiental Educativa meetings. In the end, they decided to do an AIDS march on December 1st, or around that time. Some of the students really got into it. It is great to see natural leaders and I look forward to making them think outside of the box a little bit. They were really sweet too. They seemed, for the most part, to be forgiving of my Spanish flaws and lack of familiarity with what was going on. Afterwards, a bunch of them asked for me email address and asked if I had a facebook. That's so great. I am happy I have the first activity out of the way. I ended up leading the day's events for the student portion after the nurse's presentation and I wasn't quite sure what was going on, having never attended one of these events before. But I think it went well and I know I learned a lot for next time.

>Side Note- Snacks were served: chicha morada and tiny tuna sammiches. I took the chicha to not be rude. I managed to only drink half of it before someone came along and tossed it. Good maneuver. I will have to remember that. The sandwich? It was served on a napkin... I needed some toilet paper. Yes, I ate a sandwich I didn't want for the 'free' toilet paper-esque napkin that it came on. I have no shame.

> Would you like to help lead a parade? Why not! lol. Of course I did it. I led the parade w/ the director of the school and the girl who did the pretty dancing in her pretty outfit. The band came too. It was fun. The director pointed out asparagus warehouses. Tons of asparagus. I'm convinced all of the best produce in Peru comes from La Libertad.

> Lunch! I tried some baby goat. The tiny piece I had was very soft, but the rest I couldn't get off of the bone, and fighting with meat is not something I'm interested in. The pile of rice and chunk of yuca accompanying the cabrita were plenty enough for me. I am developing a love affair with ahi. Nom. Had chica morado... not a fan of that stuff. It's a drink made from purple corn and some splashes of lime juice. I had to choke down nearly 2 glasses today. Boo. Perhaps it will grow on me.

> Returned home to an empty house! Alone time! Abuela was home to let me in. I had myself some internet time, just a few minutes, then I went for a nice long (well, sort of) run. I met a few dogs who aren't afraid of my running rock, which is concerning. However, I found the other end of town where there is a long road that I can take to the next town over. I don't know how far away that is, but that is good to know for next season's marathon training :) On this road, I passed cows, sheep, donkeys, and a few people. Not many dogs. That is great news (: I like this part of town and am happy to run there. It's near the little mountains too. Win! I ended my run just as the sun was setting. It was a desert sunset with a bright red sun and a clear blue sky. SOOO pretty! Love it. I took some pics of this when I arrived at home. Then I jump roped for awhile, to abuela's amazement. Seriously, she's still talking about the jump roping.

> Bucket bath!!! A really long one because no one was home. Greatness :)

> Dinner. Arroz a la Cubana and noodle soup. My favorite things! Coffee followed dinner. Lots of good conversation. Then, they offered me a puppy! They said I could have one of the new puppies! Woohoo! Piere has to approve it though, he is the keeper of the puppies. I kind of want the pirate dog(he has a patch of black over one eye), or the one that looks like a grandpa. So excited.

> This is big. The rest of the fam came home from Trujillo with a GIANT dresser/ armoire thing for me. Gigante. It is so perfect. There is room for everything I have in there and, the best part is that, there is a long mirror on the front of it. Maggie told me they bought that one because the other ones were shorter and the mirrors were at a Peruvian height, which means that I wouldn't have been able to see my head. lol. Awesomeness. A full length mirror that I didn't have to buy, or haul back from Trujillo myself, or try to decide where to put.  Perfection! So excited to fill up my armoire with good stuff tomorrow! My host family is soooo great!

> I found my running Garmin! I thought I had lost or forgotten it somewhere, but it was just hanging out at the bottom of my bag the whole time. Woohoo! Best night ever!

Side notes- Fanny of the school district invited me to be the judge of the science fair in Sausal on Friday, September 14th. Because I'm new, I will be an objective judge... hmm.  I'm pumped. I'm totally qualified for this one, right? lol

Great Friday. Awesome way to end the week (:

Day 4

Day 4

25.Agosto.2011

Thursday

> Breakfast with the fam. Talked about how we did not feel the earthquake the previous day or night. Then talked about how we were going to kill, prepare, and eat ducks for the day.

>Cleaned. Swept the living room, bathroom, and kitchen. Chatted with abuela in her kitchen until she gave me random jobs to do.

> Ducks go down. Helped kill and pluck 4 ducks. Just watched for the first one, touched the second one, held the next two down. Duck #3 shit in my hand. That's when I stopped feeling bad. Plucked my little heart out with abuela. I don't mind plucking so much. The smell of dead duck in boiling water is awful though. Overall, it was sad and gross, but a good experience for me that I am happy to have had. Part of me still can't believe I did it. Another part can't believe I didn't faint. Bonding experience with the family. They especially enjoyed the handful of shit I got. "The duck's vengeance."

>Ate duck. Just a tiny bit. It was alright flavor-wise. Soft and not as greasy as I was expecting. I can't eat meat though. I can't get over the texture or the fact that there are veins and bone and skin attached to it. I tried it though, just like I said I would. The fam was cool about it and seemed happy I tried it.

> Phone call from Mom! Hooray!!! Miss her.

> Dinner. Had a long chat with the fam about many things, earthquakes, tornados, adolescence, fleas, slang, etc. Apparently, the way I was pronouncing 'pulga' (flea) sounded like 'puga' which is slang and translates to an English word, coincidentally beginning with the letter 'p,' referring to 'the female anatomy' as my host mom explained through giggles and rosy cheeks. Oops. They got a nice chuckle out of this one. Good little icebreaker that I probably won't be allowed to forget anytime soon. Nice chat. I like them.

Day 2

Day 2

23. Agosto. 2011

Tuesday

> Ate breakfast with abuela Betty and Tia Julie. They joked with me about eating fox. They said they cook it in the microwave. Because this is so ludicrous, I joked that, sure, you cook it in the microwave... with the fur and tail on and everything. They thought I was serious and are still making fun of me. Sarcasm is lost on this family.

>Maggie's friends came over to finish the diorama for Piere's school party. I colored and glued and helped where needed. Chatted when appropriate.

>Went to the school with Maggie and friends. Met/ bonded with the girls in Piere's class. It was love. They were so great and even gave me a big Minnie Mouse sticker. Then I met the director of the school. He invited me to meet with him tomorrow morning at 9am to discuss things I can help with, etc. WIN! Somewhere among these happenings, I was the center of everyone's attention and accidentally landed in a photo shoot which left me feeling like Santa Clause. One by one, every child whose mother had requested it had a picture taken with me. Even the moms wanted pics with me. I'm famous.

> Volleyball. I was bad. The moms loathed my presence on their skilled Peruvian court. We lost. Lo siento, new friends.

> Trip to Casa Grande with the fam to make purchases of candy for Piere's class party tomorrow and a new armoire for the fam. Market was interesting. Win! chatted with a man in the furniture store about Peace Corps and what I am doing here. G-ma Betty told him that her daughter adopted me for two years. He said he wanted to adopt me for life. Weird.

>No duck killing today. But I am told it will happen this week. The day before I arrived, 6 bunnies, 4 geese, and 2 cuys were born. The puppies that were born 2 weeks ago (during my site visit) are opening their eyes and starting to look less like cuys (guinea pigs).

Ascope Day 1

Day 1

22. Agosto. 2011

Monday

>Arrived in Ascope from Trujillo at around 1:30ish. Matt from Peru 14 accompañared me. He is my nearest neighbor and is almost done with his service here. In December he will move to Lima for a third year with Peace Corps. I was thankful for his help today. He introduced me to cocitas that were sold on the bus on the way here. They were 50 centimos and delicious. Toasted little coconut mounds. Tasted like no bake cookies without the pb and chocolate. A treat I am happy to know.

>Ate lunch with Maggie and Matt. Didn't talk as much as I should have. Good meal, good conversation. Gave a tiny speech at Matt's suggestion. It was effective. Maggie teared up a little bit talking about having me there and being happy to have me. It was nice. Matt managed to get us out of desert... I need to learn how to politely refuse food like that. You can tell he's been here for awhile :)

>Arranged my room a bit.

>Walked around town. Chatted with as many random people as I could. Bought a Sublime con galleta for the road at a snack stand. Snack stand guy is named Segundo, a good thing to know.

>Returned home and chatted with Maggie's friends. They are moms in Pierre's class as well, and they were all working on a diorama to present tomorrow at an event for the anniversary of the school. Had coffee with them, which included bread and avocado. Tasty treats. Chatted. They invited me to play volleyball tomorrow on their team because one of them is pregnant and they need someone to take her place. I gladly accepted my first official invite for something other than food. Maggie said I could spend the whole day with them tomorrow at the school. Win!

>Peeled potatoes with the peeler I brought for the fam. They let me help! Alright! I even taught Pierre how to use it and let him peel as much as he wanted, which was a half of a potato. He did great! I like being a big sister :)

>Dinner with fam. My Spanish was shaky with nerves. They are so nice to me.

>One last thing, I might be killing a duck tomorrow... not quite sure. Vamos a ver...

Day 1: Success. I feel good. I am happy here.