"It's always an Experience"

This week has been yet another whirl wind in Peru. Each day presents itself with things I did not expect to encounter and I am always learning about myself & the area that I am now living in. On Tuesday of this week Jose and Blaise helped me move out of my family’s house in Pueblo Nuevo and into the area of Chincha Baja. Though they were very loving someone had sticky fingers & liked to use a lot of my stuff, electronics, food, money – well you get the picture. The conditions of their home were also a lot harder to deal with than I had expected. I kept trying to remind myself that if it is good enough for a family of five I should have no problem with it, however it is a lot easier said then done. The area of Pueblo Nuevo is also fairly dangerous from what I have gathered from the family and people within the school, Fe y Alegria. I wasn’t able to walk outside the house alone, and the Internet was out of question. With an independent study due for Scott Klein at SJU, I’m sure you can imagin

e the slight issue there.

I sort of feel like a gypsy here in Chincha Baja, and it is a little unsettling. I am temporarily staying at Jose’s because he has a spare room, warm water & yes you guessed it, the Internet, but his brothers from Canada will be coming soon and I will evacuate another place in Peru moving along to the next. It is supposed to be close to Jose’s & in Chincha Baja where I can walk around in the day without any problems, as long as I am aware of my surroundings. But I kind of wish I had a place, that I knew I would be in for a while and could get used to everything about it.

Wednesday of this week hit Peru with a bang. If you haven’t heard we in the Chincha Alta area experienced an earthquake, and it nearly knocked my socks off. I

t was a 5.9er on the Richter scale and it certainly got me out of bed. At first I wasn’t to sure what was going on because the rumbles did not coordinate especially with my dreams of veggie pitas & falafels but I got the picture once I heard the words outside the window. There was thankfully very little damage and everyone in the area was safe. The room I am staying in at the moment faces the street so I was able to hear the dogs barking & the people yelling. There is also conveniently a community phone located just outside the window as well and of course after the quake it rang off the hook. I got little sleep thar night, but made up for it in afternoon siestas the next day. Just another story of course, because I haven’t accumulated enough in my travels so far.

Living in Chincha Baja has posed a little difficulty for my work placement in Fe y Alegria. As I had understood it there was someone in Chincha Baja that I could travel with because it is a pretty good distance, but either between a lost in translation moment, or the deal fell through it doesn’t look like it will work out. Blaise, who is my contact person here, is also very busy with his own projects so somehow I have wound up on the doorstep of Jose, and I feel as though now I am his project. He has been wonderful to me & I can’t imagine not meeting him but I also feel like kind of a burden. He is working on many projects here in Peru & and I

don’t think he really needs anything else to occupy himself, but here I am- bags and all. Yesterday as Jose, Blaise & Ishmael brainstormed where help was needed I was able to dedicate some serious time to the ever looming independent study. I also took a big breath and walked around the plaza de aramas in Chincha solo & ventured to the market for fruit & vegetables with Jose. Mmmmm my favourite!

Now this is where the story gets a little funny: because I’m not really sure where I’ll be working or what I’ll be doing so as of now I’m trying to get involved with anything & everything Jose suggests because I’ve learned that being busy is an important part for me while I’m away. So yesterday I went to the adult education centre in Chincha Baja and met with all the professors and I ended up going door to door with some of them raising awareness for the opening

& trying to sign up students from the area. I go all the way to South America and end up doing the exact same thing I did this summer in Canada- I thought it was pretty hilarious when I realized what exactly I would be doing for the evening, but just like in Ca

nada most of the people are fairly nice & even a few offered us a little break, which just like in Canada I greatly accepted. Today is yet another day, and I’m not exactly sure what it will bring or what I’ll be doing but there is never a dull moment down here & something will always bring about a surprise.