End of October 2006

I don’t have very much exciting news to report from the past two weeks. I’m still deep in the process of integration. It’s been nearly two months now in site, and by this time I’ve been able to meet a lot of people. I’m slowly becoming part of the community. I’ve learned a lot of Spanish I the past while. I’ve taken to a couple new ways of studying which are really helping. As I’ve said how many times, the language barrier is the only difficult part of living here, so it’s nice to see a little progress de vez en cuando. Anyway, here are a few random tidbits from the past couple weeks.

I’ve been fortunate to have been invited to a lot of meetings and gatherings in the schools, health center, and with the municipality which has enabled me to get a much better idea of what life is like here. I am now part of a community health committee meant to connect the health center with the citizens. I also spent half a day observing the panel making process. Panela is a special type of sugar which is darker than raw sugar and is 100% organic. Its flavor is similar to that of brown sugar as they both contain molasses. It was a very interesting process of extracting the juice from the sugar cane and boiling it down until nearly all of the liquid evaporates. Very little panela is actually sold here in Peru (I’ve yet to see it in a store), but rather it is exported to Europe. It’s very tasty. I look forward to adding to my oatmeal sometime in the near future!

Last Sunday I went on my first fishing trip here in Peru….without any string, tackle or worms----just our hands. I went with the 14 yr old son of the lady who washes my clothes. His name is Fernando. The river was a good hour hike town the side of the mountain…and when I say river, I really mean more of a creek. There isn’t much water right now, though that will change when the rainy season arrives. There were a number or sites, however where the water was 4 or 5 feet deep. There we attempted to snag the fish. I, of course, am a bit inexperienced with the whole hand fishing deal, so I came up ‘empty handed’. Fernando caught two little fish-which apparently is way below average. They wouldn’t make much a dinner, but he took them home anyway. The last time I went to the river my back turned a rosy red from the sun, so this time I made sure to limit my time in the water. Fernando also taught me to shoot his slingshot, which is really just an elastic tube and a piece of leather to hold the projectile. Later that day we made the trek back up the mountain. It took us every bit of two hours to return. It’s not like I’m in the best shape of my life, but I’m not in bad shape either… but I was exhausted when we finally make it back to Tunal. The only saving grace was the fresh fruit that we plucked from the trees from the fields. That’s one of the beautiful befits of living here. You can help yourself to limes, bananas, papayas, oranges, passion fruit and others as you hike through the country side.

I continue to play soccer daily. Little by little I am improving. I get to the ball pretty well, and have a lot of opportunities to score, but somehow I seem to always miss. I did score one goal a couple days back, but that doesn’t quite make up for the three of four that I miss every day! Yesterday I showed up at the field only to find that I was the only on who didn’t get the memo that there was no game. I decided to take a run instead. There is absolutely nothing flat about the place where I live. I ended up running down hill for a good 15 minutes which wasn’t too bad, but the run back a bit more of a challenge. It doesn’t help that the roads(which are of course unpaved) are covered with a thick layer of really find dirty/powder. The municipality has cover sections with truckloads of medium sized rocks which are to prevent the road from eroding when the rain comes…. Anyway, when I reached the top of the hill I was pretty tired. I was looking forward to a nice walk to cool down, when a man holler at me from his house inviting me in. I knew what that meant… There’s nothing I like less than drinking high proof canaso(moonshine liqueur) right after a tough run, but I did it anyway. Here in the sierra(mountains) it’s considered offensive to now accept the invitation to drink. So I sat with him and his buddy for about ten minutes and passed the dirty plastic cup back and fourth, forcing down the canaso.

I received a brand new Trek mountain bike from the Peace Corp two weeks ago, however I did not have the tool needed to assemble it. So it has been sitting in my room teasing me. I hope to find the wrench in the next couple days here in the city so that I can cruise the mountain side on my new ride.

I spent my first birthday abroad with my buddies here in Piura. We went out for lunch and dinner, went to a movie and ended the day watching the final game of the World Series. I also received five packages in the mail which really made my day!(thank you!) I’m now stocked up with books magazines and candy which the kids in my site will love!

Also always, my Spanish update: I’ve improved considerable in the past couple weeks. I’ve spent more time studying and practicing which has really paid off. I’ve got a long way to go, but I’ve gotta take one step at a time.

Thank you to all of you have been praying for me. I’ve really appreciated the messages, cards and packages I’ve received. I miss you all!!

A month and a half in

Another two weeks have passed by, this time a bit slower than the past couple. I had been quite spoiled with a steady flow of activities for the first month on site. Now that we’ve reached the normal pace of life here in Tunal, I’ve had an absurd amount of free time on my hands. This has its advantages as well as its drawbacks. For one, I’ve had more time than I’ve had for the past however many years to really reflect on life and have some quality alone time (more alone time than I’d prefer!). Because of my continuing inability to fluently communicate on site, I turn my ideas into internal dialogue. I suppose this is a healthy thing. I’ve also had ample time to listen to music, play guitar and even….read… yeah, you know I’ve got too much time when I finish a 371 page novel in 4 days!!(I’ve been reading Kite Runner which has turned out to be a quality book).

The downside of having hours to oneself is that it really drags on. Days feel like months. It’s during those times where my mind also wonders to what life in the states must be like right now. It makes me long to have just one day to be able to walk down the street and harmlessly eavesdrop on conversations-- not because I want to hear what they’re saying, but simply because I know the language so well that I can’t help but understand what’s going on!!

Life here at this point, as you can tell, is really an emotional rollercoaster. Some days I wake up and just couldn’t be happier with where I am or what I am doing. Other days I have to do everything I can to convince myself that I can survive two year here. Fortunately the good days outweigh the bad, and I’m slowly learning to smooth out the highs and lows.

I can’t say that anything extremely notable has happen in the past 14 days. I’ve really been focusing on the whole Spanish learning thing, and am constantly daring myself to step out of my comfort zone to converse with new faces. I have yet to find a permanent residence. For one reason or another it appears that I will not be living with the family with whom I originally had planned. I continue to live out of a suitcase in one of the guest rooms of the Municipality. It’s not so bad, however I look forward to actually unpacking my bags and having my own place….patience…that’s the key word in my life right now!

I have started to teach English in the primary school one day a week. This past Monday I took my guitar to the school and taught them the alphabet song. It’s not as if I, for even one second, think that they’re actually going to learn English, but rather it’s a way for me to get to know them a bit better. I mean, heck, I’ve been living in this country for four months now, and I’m still a good ways away from where I desire to be with language proficiency…so one day a week for a half an hour per class is not quite going to do the job.

One bright spot for the past couple weeks is that I have been able to get to know a number people better, and I feel quite comfortable walking out into the unpaved streets to greet my neighbors. One night I was up until 5:30am at a despedida, or going away party, for one of the dentists. We danced for hours. As you know, I’m not a huge dancer, but I really don’t have a choice here as it’s a pretty big part of their culture.

Food-wise, I am slowly beginning to appreciate the mound of plain rice that accompanies just about every dish. I like pretty much every plate except for one breakfast dish with consist of a saucy mixture of potatoes, carrots and what appears to be pieces of slightly undercooked chicken skin….with rice, of course. But really, the food is quite good. I’ve also had some of the freshest fruit juice that I’ve had in my life—straight from the tree. I’ve also grown accustom to drinking powdered milk which I bought in the city. It’s nothing like the frech, cold, skim milk from home, but I’ll have to do for another few months. Here they only drink milk warm, like tea, with sugar. Cereal with milk remains an undiscovered gem. They do have oatmeal which they call quaker(which sounds a bit different in Spanish). It took me a while to actually make the connection that it was oatmeal. What they call oatmeal, I would barely classify as such. It’s really more like making oatmeal and then straining the oats out, leaving only an opaque water with a few solid chunks. The last time I was in Piura I purchased a few bags of oatmeal so that I can some day make the real thing. I’ve also been rationing a bag of Reeses Pieces and two dark chocolate candy bars that my and Dad sent me. I’m nearing the end of the bag of Reeses, so each day I limit myself to about 5-10 pieces.

Anyway, I couldn’t really asked for a quieter, more relaxed life. It’s not without its drawbacks, but all things considered, I’m definitely fortunate to have this opportunity, and I’m content with where I am. Sometime it really seams unreal.