In this episode of Peru, eh?:
- Pictures (Chacrasana), Lima, Training places
- Definition of Dog Rocks
- 3 de Octubre Fiesta (including the famous/infamous Toro Loco)
- My family
- Other things I may remember
- Also I’m going on a shadowing trip so there will be a post (or something) about that
Dog Rock
/dôg/ /räk/ - noun- 1: A rock found on the street,
ranging in size from a pebble to a baseball that is used to scare away street
dogs. Typically only used as an
intimidation factor when confronted by a dog, however it may be used to “fire a
warning shot across their bow.” When
thrown the goal is to not hit the dog, rather it is to impose your dominance by
throwing near the dog. 2: A type of
rock & roll genre music that is enjoyed by canines.
3 de Octubre Festival
In the neighborhoods of
Chaclacayo is a quaint, beautiful little town called 3 de Octubre (named for
the day it was founded). We are
fortunate enough to have aspirantes living in 3 de Octubre and they invited us
to their community for a party. The
party was to celebrate a virgin. I am
not sure what form she took, but apparently when an image of a woman is seen in
a religious context that is enough cause for an annual celebration.
This was a
fantastic way the day: live music, good people, dancing, cheap beer, and
fireworks. Lots and lots of fireworks
lit off from everywhere imaginable. Lit
from rooftops by mothers. Lit from the
center of the dance floor (outdoor basketball court). Lit from hoods of cars. And most impressively, the toro loco.
In the
estados unidos there is constant worrying about losing fingers, eyes, noses,
ears, and pretty much every other body part that could be lost to
fireworks. In Peru this doesn’t seem to
be the case, and it makes for one of the most spectacular sights imaginable:
the toro loco. Imagine a device about 4
feet long and 3 feet wide that is equal parts metal and flammable materials. Now draw a bulls face on it. Now cover it with fireworks. Finally put this contraption on the shoulders
of a man, light the fireworks, and have the man trot around the dance floor
showering everything in a 15 foot radius with sparks. Sounds cool, right? That is the toro loco. It is a spectacular spectacle that is quite
possibly the greatest thing I have ever seen be socially acceptable, and I am sincerely
hoping this catches on in the States.
My Family
My host
family is pretty sweet. In Peru it is
common for many generations to live under one roof, and it is unfathomable why
anyone would move out at the age of 18.
My house consists the following people:
Maximo (Father):
Retired military, super chill dude, from the mountains
Cecilia (Mother): Ama de casa (cares for the
house), incredible cook, from the jungle
Johanna (Sister):
Works somewhere, loves dancing, super helpful for all the things I don’t know
how to do.
Tonio (Brother):
Works somewhere, plays soccer
Fiorella (Married
to Tonio): Works somewhere, sometimes helps me with my homework
Melisa (I
think she is married to Dante, the third child): Here on the weekends and
sometimes during the
week, laughs at me a lot, but in a good way
Kiara
(Daughter of Tonio and Fiorella): 4 year old girl, turning 5 soon, goes to
school, likes to be twrilled in the air
It is a
super fun place to live, but it would be way better if I could speak more
Spanish. We have gotten pretty good at
me guessing what they are saying, however it could be much better. I don’t talk much (pretty much when spoken to
or when I have something super important to say) and mostly listen. Conversations at breakfast typically consist
of me talking about which volunteers are sick, and which volunteers are
healthy. Conversations at dinner
typically consist of lighting fast Spanish from the native speakers and a
gringo looking thoroughly bewildered.
Still a fun
time.
Shadowing
Trip
Part of
training consists of a shadowing trip of another volunteer’s sight. I shadowed Jacob in Sausal, La Libertad with
Mark and Deborah, two other aspirantes in my program. Shown in the photo below is a huge pile of corn that is left out to dry before it is shipped around Peru. This was a common sight during our trip.
Our trip
started on Tuesday afternoon when the 11 people going to La Libertad ventured
to Lima for dinner. After a fantastic
dinner of cow heart (incredible) and a round of free pisco sours (used to lure
us into the restaurant) we headed for the bus station. We were told that because this was our first
time traveling in Peru we would be given first class bus transportation for our
trip. I was initially skeptical having
never traveled by bus and thinking that first class bus travel would be a
similar experience to riding in the back seat of a fully equipped Toyota
Camry. However, I was mistake. ITSA Bus travel features double-decker busses
with fully reclining seats and more than enough leg room for the average
Peruvian (6’6” Americans need look elsewhere for sufficient leg room; however
it was significantly better than I anticipated). We departed at 9:45pm and were given a meal
and a movie before we all fell asleep.
Sleep
sucked, that is all I have to say on that subject.
We arrived
in Trujillo, La Libertad two hours later that scheduled. This was news to us, as many of us had no
idea what time it was, what time we were supposed to arrive, or were drowsy
from sleeping. After a quick trip to the
hardware store for toilet seats, Jacob took us to a Starbucks where we feasted
on breakfast sandwiches he brought and coffee (also taking advantage of, what
seems like, one of the finest bathrooms I have ever used). Following Starbucks our journey began.
We commandeered
a taxi to take us 45minutes to Sausal.
There we quickly ate lunch and headed out to the field to build
latrines. In Sausal, at least for us,
the main mode of transportation was mototaxis.
Imagine a huge, rickety, three-wheeled motorcycle that seats 3-4 with
standing room on the back. This took us
out of the city and into the desert farmland where Jacob was building his
latrines. Cool latrines, but nothing to
special to report.
The next
day (Thursday) was 9ish hours of working/watching Jacob work. Again, nothing to exciting, but great
experience.
Friday we climbed
a mountain outside of Sausal. Much
steeper with sketchier footing than the mountain in Chacrasana, but we all
survived and were treated to fantastic views of the surrounding desert/agriculture
areas. Following our mountaineering we
ate lunch and celebrated his sisters bday (the big 16!). After we hopped on a series of mototaxies/taxies/buses
and heated to Huanchaco for a day and a half at the beach (if anyone asks we
were working).
Friday and
Saturday were pretty chill. We watched
the final rounds of the World Longboard Championships (surfing). This was a super cool event and a great
excuse to hang out on the beach, eat ice cream, and drink a beer. This is a super glossed over version of the
day, but essentially it consisted of the beach (we were completely unprepared,
sporting hiking boots, long pants, and long sleeve shirts), sea food, ice
cream, and a beer or two. Then the bus
ride home (see several paragraphs earlier, except in reverse).
What you
can look forward to in the future:
- Bus driver strikes
- Tres de Octubre Part 2
- Chosica
- Peru Country Clubs
- Hopefully more picture (it takes a long time for them to upload)
