This post is dedicated to my parents

Who I've realized are my favorite people in the entire world. They might be the only people who still check my blog every day for updates. They listen to all my problems - bike accidents, ass grabbing incidents, health issues, etc. They send me what seems like a package a week filled with goodies from home (including Skyline!) and are just all around fabulous! I know I could not have made it to 2010 if it wasn´t for their support - and phone calls. Love you guys!


So I know I haven't made a lot of posts lately, but I definitely think I should get an "A" for effort. I have had some pretty obnoxious computer problems but now we're BACK and I hope that this post will make up for the lost time.





So it's pretty pathetic that I haven't posted pictures since Halloween. Me, Madeline, Susan, Kerry and Heather (falta Jenn) - the Piura Peru 13ers - celebrating Halloween as the "Newbs" in our sweet tracksuits. The party was complete with an ice luge (how they found that I have no idea - I didn't even know there was ice in this country), talent show, pot luck dinner and bonfire on the beach.

Don Lazo (my socio comunitario), Brett, and I at Brett´s despedida (going away party). There were definitely some drinking circles and some dancing, the entire municipality took the day to be there. I´m really fortunate to have had Brett as a volunteer before me... he helped me so much and definitely showed me the ropes of life in Vice. I don´t know what I would have done without him. He actually recently just got married (December 11) to a Peruvian he met on his first night in Piura! Crazy! This also explains why people keep asking me if I´m going to get married here ¨just like Brett¨ hmm...

Madeline´s artisan, me, Dona Flora (artisan from Chalaco), and Socorro (artisan from Vice) at the Peace Corps office in Lima before the artisan fair. The fair was in November and there was a workshop the day before so we went down for that. All the business volunteers in Peru were invited and the fair took place in the US Embassy. I remember being blown away by the power of the air conditioning in that place, and also by the fact that I could flush toilet paper down the toilet. It was like being home! I guess we were technically on US soil..

Anyway, the fair was definitely a learning experience for my artisans and a stressful experience for me. We ended up selling less than 100 soles of products while some of my friends´groups sold almost 3000. That gives you an idea of the quality of our products and HOW FAR we still have to go. However, being in Lima was absolutely amazing. I didn´t like Lima during training but this trip was definitely a success. Not only were the business volunteers reunited for the first time since training, but we went out to some great places that played LIVE American music and I also got to watch my first and only college football game of the season. It was a little taste of civilization and it was definitely difficult going back to site.

Frank, Jess and Kim at Corner Bar in Miraflores, watching football, drinking beer, and eating cheese fries. Doesn´t get more American than that. It was an awesome afternoon of relaxing after a long and late night and shopping at the infamous ¨Polvos Azules¨where we were able to buy all the seasons of Entourage and Friends for 92 soles... 30 dollars. You need to see this place. It is awesome.

My delicious Thanksgiving dinner! We managed to make all the American dishes from food from the Peruvian market. I was quite impressed with my friends´cooking abilities. I obviously did not cook, but I DID slice the bread for the stuffing.

Me, Susan and Vince after Thanksgiving dinner.

Me, Beily and Susan - at the beach!

Before heading out - my parents specifically requested more pictures of me on my blog. I got more bug bites on this trip than I´ve ever had in my entire life. 48 to be exact.

Me and my little cousin Lucero on her 10th birthday. We went to Piura for dinner and I gave her some markers. I was the only one at dinner to give her a gift which was a little weird. I also made a card to give her and she didn´t understand the use of it. She kept being like, ¨This is for storing pictures, right?¨ After a while I was just like yeah. So far I haven´t witnessed a lot of gift giving in my family.

Lucero and her brothers. I wanted to post this pic to point out that across all cultures, boys will be boys. Also, just for your information, I had chicken for dinner, I did not eat the dish that is in front of them.

A bullfight for the anniversary of San Clemente, a neighboring town. I had never seen one before and it was seriously brutal. They killed two bulls!

Senora Rosa and Senor Hugo, my host parents, in the church in San Clemente.

I took this photo from the back of a truck on the way to visit some of my artisans in Chalaco. You can see a water tower in the distance and that´s where Vice is. This desert is what surrounds my town.

The artisans in Vice held a ¨Show Infantil¨to raise money for the association. There are two girls who came and led dances and gave out prizes to the kids. Lots of fun.

Me with Aranza, my cousin, and Ana Claudia after their first communion. This was one of my favorite days in Vice because I really felt part of the community. Everyone wanted me to take pictures with them and invited me to their family parties afterwards.

Andi and David, twins who I think are somehow related to me. I wanted to put up this pic because as most of you know, my brothers are twins and my mom´s favorite picture of them is one before their first communion in literally this same exact pose. She has made them remake the same pose during all important events for a photo which is why I remember. I took one look at this picture and really missed my little brothers!

I went to the graduation of my cousins Aranza and Wally and here they are dancing. In Peru you have ¨primaria¨which is 1-6 grades and then ¨secundaria¨which is 6-12 grades. They graduated from primaria. All the little boys and girls dressed up in black and red and danced for their parents and then danced with their parents and godparents. The principal and professors all made speeches and the ¨godparents¨of the graduation gave all the kids a bracelet. They made toasts, all the twelve year olds had a glass of champagne. There was a lot ot eating, dancing, and of course, drinking.

Then came something that I did not expect. The ¨hora loca¨or ¨crazy hour¨- this group of people came in dressed crazily with masks and on stilts with tons of balloons and fun hats. The point of this was to dance to an hour like a crazy person and of course I had to participate. This is a picture taken by my aunt Margo who had stolem my camera while the rest of us were in the train running around the whole complex.

Me with Senora Rosa and Senor Hugo. Everyone dressed up really nicely for the event and it was held in the resort place right outside of town. I was definitely underdressed for the occasion but pretty much everyone else was wearing clothes that were WAY too tight so I didn´t feel too bad about it.

Me and Lucero at the graduation. You can see the table decorations in the background. It was a really nice party, even by American standards, except maybe a little corny by American standards. I don´t know, I kind of forget what American standards are.

This picture is from my diagnostic presentation event. This woman is probably 100 years old and has been an artian her whole life. We are honoring her here in front of the group for her achievements and for teaching so many of the current artisans. Sweet heart. She started crying when I visited her at her house which was made of straw with a dirt floor. She is such a nice lady and I almost broke down talking with her. The reality here is so different.

In the Casa de la Cultura in Vice giving my diagnostic presentation in Decemeber. About 50 artisans showed up, my boss from Piura, and representatives from the municipality. We had a contest and also honored our ¨maestra artesana.¨ I talked for over an hour in Spanish and I think they understood at least 50% of what I said. Definitely a success - complete with the classic Peruvian refreshments afterwards. My biggest accomplishment so far - even if I had to give the presentation from my laptop because there was no projector.

Me with the winners of the conest - Merry Christmas Mom and Dad haha. Also, this is the first time I have worn business casual since I got to my site.

MY BIRTHDAY! 23! Thank you to everyone who called and wrote emails and messages! It really means a lot to me! My birthday was actually GREAT! Surprisingly. My family had a lunch during the afternoon for me and they all toasted to me and we drank some delicious wine (other volunteers may call it gross, but I´m partial to a good Peruvian red). Then I took a nap and was not really feeling like going to my meeting with my artisans but... it turned out to be a surprise birthday party for me! Here I am with some of the kids.

Me with the artisans, kids, and cake in the local. They all sang happy birthday to me and said some nice words. I broke down and I´m pretty sure I cried during my little speech. I honestly couldn´t believe they did that! Some of them even gave me gifts of artesania and the kids gave me some little toys.

I had the honor of cutting the birthday cake - which was still warm and delicious.

But the day does not end there! Later that night I went with my host parents and brother to a concert of ¨Corazon Serrano¨that happened to be in Vice that night. It was cumbia music and we stayed out dancing until 3 in the morning. I had a great time with them even though I stuck out like crazy at the concert. Definitely the tallest person there. This one was held at a sort of out door gym, it´s called the coliseum but I don´t want you to get the wrong idea, and there are no assigned seats it´s all just open dancing in front of a stage. The band also reads ¨saludos¨out during the concert, so you can write a message on a piece of paper and pass it up for the band to read. I got at least 3 happy birthday songs sang to me ¨nuestra amiga de los Estados Unidos.¨ Being the tallest person there, I danced all night with short men. As the night went on they became short drunk men. Their eyes were at the same level as my chest. I had to lay the law down pretty seriously with some of them... awkward. Anyway, it was a lot of fun and I totally enjoyed my Peruvian birthday celebration!

SO! Finally I am almost updated. I am going to Lima next week for in service training and will have wireless access and hope to make another post about Christmas and New Years then. You do not want to miss this!

Saludos!

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im so annoyed right now. i just spent the last hour uploading pics onto this blog and then the window closed and i lost all of it. i only have about 5 soles to my name right now so cant afford more time on the internet. in addition, i wrote a 3 page blog entry that this computer wont let me open. so unfortunately, it is you, reader, who has to suffer. ill upload everything later (next week after i go to the bank).

Sleeping in the Cemetery

Celebrating the 9th anniversary of the Artisan Association in Vice. I wanted to include this picture specifically because I think the height difference is funny. Everyone, believe it or not, is standing. You can also make out some of their products and the delicious cake that we ate to celebrate after singing happy birthday and making speeches.

Some of the women of Vice at the fair in Morroppon. The products in this picture are all make of sea shells. We actually had over S/. 100 or $33 in sales at this fair, the majority of them, surprisingly in my opinion, were from Artesania Marina. I think that the smaller towns that are in the mountains instead of the coast really think the sea shell sculptures are pretty and great adornments for their houses since theyre rare. Its definitely something to consider for the future.

Our stand at the fair in Piura. We were representing 4 organizations so the stand was over packed with products. They definitely need to simplify their displays and hopefully well be able to do that for the fair in Lima coming up in November. You can see the flowers they make, some of the sea shell structures, there is a beautiful rug to the right on the table which I am saving up to buy, and tons of other things.

One of the many processions that pass almost on a daily basis directly outside of my house. This one is to celebrate Senor Cautivo which is a Catholic religious celebration in Peru. We had a holiday and everyone wore purple. I have not been able to figure out what cautivo in this sense meanse in English. Another example of my constant confusion.

Susan and I hanging out at Madelines.

The sunset in El Faique over the Andes mountains. My site looks nothing like this.

The artisans at Vinces workshop presenting their promotional materials after my charla. They have brochures, a business card, and a sign to represent their association at fairs.

The director or the primary school and the vice-mayor (even though you cant see him) breaking hte bottle of champagne with a hammer to inaugurate the bathrooms.

The graves of my host dads father and his parents during velaciones. Velaciones is a tradition that is extremely prevalent in communities of Bajo Piura. On the nights of November 1 and 2 the entire community goes to the cemetery and lights candles and brings flowers and sleeps there. They do this to remember their family members who have died and honor them.

Most people set up tents like this one to block the wind and be able to sleep. It was like a fair in the cemetery. People had set up makeshift restuarants (I had some delicious chicken soup and tea), the teenagers were all sitting around together in the middle of the cemetery and people visited each other at their families locations.

After I got over the creepiness of the whole thing I realized what a beautiful tradition this is. All of the little kids were climbing over the tombs and just having a grand old time. And they also know who every single person is from their family who is buried there. Its a great way to keep family memories alive and to really reflect on the people who have made our lives what they are. Our Memorial Day looks pretty pathetic next to the Peruvian version of the celebration of generations of family.

Of course I couldnt miss out on the fun. There is a first time for everything - Book your plane ticket now and you too can sleep in Vices cemetery in November 2010!!

Steaks with Spoons

As I was sitting at my second inauguration yesterday (this time the inauguration of bathrooms at one of the primary schools – I have no idea what they did before they had these bathrooms), after I unveiled the plaque of the “obra” in front all the dignitaries of the district and was avoiding eye contact with anyone who might ask me to dance in front of everyone, the staff and parents of the school served everyone lunch. The second course is a huge plate of rice and some kind of meat/steak – whatever it was it was deliciously spiced and really tough. Like the title of this blog entry suggests, they give us a spoon to eat this with. I don’t believe that I have talked about the differences of eating habits between our cultures, mainly because I don’t see it a lot since I have the freedom of eating whenever I want and usually by myself, but I think this offers a great opportunity. Peruvians eat almost exclusively with spoons. Soup, rice, fish, meat, etc. When I told my little cousins that we usually only use spoons for yogurt and soup (they don’t really eat cereal here so the comparison would have been pointless) they were incredulous. The reason they can get away with using spoons so much is because they use their fingers a whole lot more. It’s totally normal to pick up the steak with your hands and gnaw at it with your teeth. To eat a crab leg (which has already been sitting in soup), you’re supposed to pick it up (while it’s covered in soup) put it in between your teeth to crack it (hoping you don’t crack a tooth, although this would explain why many Peruvians don’t have teeth) and stick your finger inside to scoop out the meat.

The past few weeks have passed pretty quickly. I can’t believe I’ve been at site for over 2 months now! There have been some funny moments and some really good days, but I have also gotten to the point where I don’t think everything is great anymore. I get annoyed more easily with people and frustrated with the culture when people piss me off. I knew the honeymoon stage would have to wear off eventually, but I’m definitely sad to see it go.

One great part of the past few weeks has been that I’ve gotten to travel a little bit around the department of Piura. The artisans had fairs in Piura City and in Morropon and of course I went with them. I’ve been to Piura a bunch so the city was nothing new but it was my first experience at a fair with the artisans. I also went to Morropon which is in Medio Piura, meaning that it’s in between the coast and the mountains. The department of Piura is unique because it has both Andes Mountains and desert coast so we have volunteers living in completely different landscapes. It was really nice to see a different town and a change of scenery. The higher up you go, the greener it gets, and in my opinion, the prettier.

Last weekend I got the chance to go visit my friends Madeline and Vince at their sites Canchaque and El Faique in Alto Piura (in the mountains) for a workshop for their artisans. The country side would take your breath away and I was struck by how clean and fresh and dust-free it seemed! I stayed the night at Madeline’s house and we all had a great night just chatting and eating some good old fried food. The workshop was a success! On Sunday I gave a presentation on promotion and spoke in Spanish for 45 minutes! I also led an activity afterwards for the artisans to design a logo to put on their own business cards, brochures, and signs. This was definitely a huge confidence booster. I know I’ll be ready when I start giving presentations to my artisans in a month or so after I finish my diagnostic!

But, as you all can expect, life in the Peace Corps is not all work without play. A few weeks ago I was approached at my house by a few women from Vice that had heard that I play volleyball and wanted me to “support” their team. I said of course, that I would love to observe and practice with them, that I love volleyball, and that I’m looking forward to seeing them play in the game that night. They then asked me to be the “madrina” or godmother of the jerseys for the team. Everything here has a madrina, whether it’s a new section to a house, a new car, whatever, someone baptizes it and there’s a ceremony. So, having the experience of baptizing the new classrooms at the school and knowing what to do, I baptized the jerseys, said a few words, and that was that.

A little background on the volleyball tournament going on in Peru right now: It’s exactly like the soccer tournament for men called “Copa Peru” for volleyball. Amateurs play on teams and there is a tournament for the teams to represent the district, then the province, then the department, then the nation. The winners of the tournament get $1500 dollars to split between the members of the team so it’s kind of a big deal. The first game I went to was of two teams from Vice playing to represent the district. I soon discovered upon arriving that I was not just there to “support” the team, but to play. I politely declined and said that it was necessary to practice with a team before playing with them in a game, etc, etc. The teams played and the team who had originally contacted me won the game. I went to practice with them the next night and it was a lot of fun to actually be playing again, and of course they were all excited to have a “matadora” – hitter, especially since the tallest of the players is probably 5’2”.

We reinforced our team with players from the other team (because you can take from other teams once they lose to make your team better) and were ready to play in Vice on Thursday night to represent the district in the provincial tournament. We played against a team from Sechura, the provincial capital, and they were really good. They probably played at about a JV level for Ursula and we were maybe at a 7th grade level, MAYBE. They obviously beat us but I had a few blocks (which no one here has seen before) and some decent kills and the kids were chanting my name “Estefani Estefani” and I was laughing the whole time really wishing that someone else could be there to witness this ridiculous spectacle. Alas, you are all in the United States and I did not capture this on camera, but trust me, it was really hilarious. After the game everyone was SO excited and wanted to touch me and hug me – I guess they didn’t believe me when I told them I played volleyball.

We played the next night in the site of one of the other volunteers, Rinconada, and we won but I had a bad game (still scored majority of the points) and was in a bad mood. I missed the next two games for the workshop in Madeline’s site, but we ended up losing and getting eliminated. But not before everyone figured out I played volleyball and wanted me to play and practice with them. I got back from the workshop and who do I find camped out at my house waiting for me but the team from Sechura, the team that advanced to represent the province in the departmental tournament. They wanted me to join their team and go to the tournament with them. They were willing to practice in Vice instead of Sechura and to only practice during hours when I was available. Although I was very flattered, I had to decline this request on the basis that Peace Corps would not be happy with me leaving me site all the time to play volleyball in the national tournament. Everyone in Vice wanted me to play on the team and I continuously have to explain that it’s not part of my job and that I’m really busy with a million other things. In spite of all this, I heard from my aunt yesterday that it was in the paper that “una norteamericana,” and then it said my first name, was going to reinforce the Sechura team for the tournament. I had to smile, I’m already getting press.

I have to admit though that it’s not the first time I’ve been in the papers here. You will be happy to know that my photo made the regional paper when I attended an informational presentation on the formalization of micro y pequenas empresas with my artisans. I was so thankful that I picture didn’t go in about the volleyball scenario. All the kids were taking picture of me with their cell phones and I wouldn’t be surprised if someone had given a picture to the newspaper. Yikes.

One last side note before I end this lovely blog post. I get all kinds of ridiculous requests as a volunteer here. Lots of people don’t understand why I’m here and think I’m magic and can produce all kinds of results. I think I’m going to start a section of every blog where I’m going to record the crazy things people ask me for and actually think I can do.

Ridiculous Request of the week:
My artisans asked me to pave the roads of their town.

On a slightly less ridiculous note (and only slightly), my host mom from Lima asked me to be Mario’s godmother. They are going to be baptizing him in December. I said that I need to think about that. Usually being a godparent here means that you are expected to get your godchild a really nice gift (which I don’t have the money for). And in the States, it’s typically a pretty big responsibility or commitment (which I’m not sure I’m ready for). I’ll keep you updated on the status of this new dilemma in my life.

Hope you are all doing well, thanks for reading!
Saludos!

Wish List

So a lot of people have been emailing me asking me what kinds of things I want or need. Originally, I did not have any answers for this question since I just recently arrived at site. However, now that Ive been here a while and the original excitement is wearing off a bit, I am starting to see where and how I can improve my life and comfort a little bit. I want to note that by no means is it obligitory or expected that you send me a package if you are my friend. This is just in response to the questions Ive been receiving. Also, dont forget to read my most recent post underneath this one! Thanks!

1) Books. Weve got a library here in Piura that is pretty extensive. However, it is missing the latest releases. Here are some titles that I am interested in reading that I do NOT have access to: Strength in What Remains - Tracy Kidder, The Lost Symbol - Dan Brown, Let the Great World Spin - Colum McCann.

2) Magazines. If you send a package I would GREATLY appreciate it if you just threw in a recent magazine that gives updates on the news. I like Time and The Economist. I also like US Weekly hehe.

3) Downy Wrinkle Release. I have gone through this stuff so fast since I dont have a closet and all of my clothes are folded. They sell travel sizes!!

4) Puzzles. Id love to have some educational puzzles to share with some of the kids I work with during their summer vacations. They love them here and call them Rompecabezas which means broken head - roughly. They use match boxes to make them. I could use all types for all ages. I think it would be particularly helpful if they were world map puzzles or any type of map because they could learn about where they are in relation to the rest of the world.

Again, this is only to answer questions that I have been getting. You dont have to send me a package! But I will love you even more if you do...

Do you think this is normal?

I spent yesterday afternoon relaxing downstairs in my house in Vice, reading Time Magazine while my brother watched sports on TV. Just like any other day in the States, right? Except that the magazine was over a month old (I still eagerly read it cover to cover) and the sport we were watching wasn’t American football, but soccer. In the past month or so I have definitely adjusted to life here at site. So much so that sometimes I don’t notice things that other Americans would notice and think strange. For example, every morning I go to run on the old Pan-American Highway before I start work. I run out of Vice and towards Letira, one of the casarios I work in, and pass various chacras where the people harvest rice, mangos, corn and other agricultural products. Inevitably, I always have to pause to let a herd of goats pass at some point during the run. I think nothing of this. The other day, one of the baby goats actually left the group to follow me and the boy who was in charge of them had to chase him down. An event that both I and the 5 or so other people watching thought was absolutely hilarious. I also want to mention that running here is basically unheard of. People get a kick out of me exercising and they all stare at me when I pass which was originally really really awkward but now I just don’t care. This explains why there were 5 other people standing around watching – there is usually an audience.

The thing about Vice is that it is a well developed town, definitely one of the biggest and most advanced out of the rest of my friends’ sites. I sometimes forget that not everyone in the town has certain things (like electricity or indoor plumbing). There are people here who have studied in the University or gone to medical school. My family has electricity, running water, and cable. The municipality has wireless internet. There is a library (although I have not seen actually books yet), auditorium, parks, internet cafes, restaurants, bakeries, and taxis. Therefore, I am always surprised when I see a little boy or girl walk outside of their houses and go to the bathroom 5 steps in front of the front door like it was nothing. The first time I saw this happen was enough to ensure that I always take EXTRA care not to step in “dog” poop. I was also surprised lately when my little cousins, ages 5 and 11, asked me what the piece of paper was that was stuck in between the pages of the book I was reading. I should mention that it is also REALLY weird to read here. I know that Peruvians see the advantage of exercising because some of them keep telling me that they want to run with me (which is kind of annoying because those of you who know me know that I like to run alone) to “bajar peso” or lose weight. However, they absolutely do not understand why anyone would like to read for fun. I guess this would explain why my little cousins didn’t know what a bookmark was or why I put it in my book, but it was still a surprise to me that such a simple concept that we take for granted would be so new to other people.

Despite all I have said about getting used to site, there are some things that I still feel weird about and I don’t know if I’ll ever adjust to. Breast feeding here is everywhere. So far I have seen mothers breast feeding their children (I say children, and not babies, because some of these kids can walk and talk) on the street, in meetings for the artisans, at artisan fairs, in the workshop, in restaurants, at birthday parties, and, wait for it, during mass. I have finally learned not to jump up and act surprised when this happens, but I am definitely not used to it. Peruvians are also very forward when it comes to talking about physical features. They call fat people gordos (which basically means fatty), tall people altos, and black people negros – to their faces like a nickname. They also call people who look like they MIGHT be Asian (any type of Asian – Japanese, Chinese, Korean, etc) chinos. A former president of Peru is Japanese and everyone, newspapers and magazines included, calls him the Chino. When I was showing pictures of my family to my cousins one day, I stopped at a picture of my brothers to prove that they actually were way taller than me (no one believes me because I’m already basically the tallest person here) and one of my cousins said, “Son chinos, no?” – meaning that they looked Asian because of their eyes!! So now, Andrew, you can no longer call Craig Chinaman, because you yourself are also chino. Anyway, back to the original story, everyone constantly asks me how much I weigh, which you absolutely do not do in the States. I have been using the excuse that I don’t know how much I weigh in kilos because we don’t have kilos in the States, but I tell them jokingly that when I know I will make sure to make a poster and hang it in front of the municipality so everyone can know. They don’t get the joke and always assure me that this would be a great idea. In my opinion, I am finally getting back into shape after a 4 year lapse of any real physical activity called college. However, my counterpart nicely told me the other day that I am “engordando” – getting fatter. Now, this is obviously not true as I do, in fact, know how much I weigh, but this is just an example of the types of comments that are appropriate here. He said it as a way to start conversation about the Peruvian food – because this is usually my cue to say “yeah, it’s because the food here is so delicious” blah blah blah. Needless to say everyone laughed and we continued with the meeting, yes we were in a meeting, like nothing had happened and afterwards I went to the Panaderia and got a big piece of apple pie.

So what have I been doing lately? Work has definitely started to pick up and I’m getting to know the artisans a lot better. I’m currently making an inventory of all their products and attending fairs with them to observe the process. There is a lot to do and I’m anxious to start giving charlas and improving their business techniques/introduce business techniques to them. However, I still have to work on my diagnostic, which is the document that is due in the beginning of December basically covering details of my entire community. I have to write a diagnostic in Spanish about health, education, government, demographics, history, ect. Then I have to present this document to community leaders. I have been interviewing leaders like the directors of the schools and health post to start the process. I have also gone to pretty much every meeting I have been invited to. These include a meeting about preventing domestic violence and promoting awareness by forming a group of promoters to inform the community about services available for victims, a meeting with at least 30 farmers about organizing themselves to better voice their opinions and rights, a meeting about the reorganization of the territories in Vice, a meeting of the Central Committee of Women that is in charge of activities for women in the community, and many, many more. I have also started teaching English in Letira and Becara, two casarios (or smaller communities) outside of Vice. Everyone wants to learn English so it’s just a matter of balancing my time and fitting everyone in without killing myself. I’ve also been asked to coach volleyball and give computer classes. I have also started knitting. Yes, knitting, and am currently in the process of making one of you lucky blog followers a fabulous gift. There is no point sucking up to me over email, Ive already decided who gets it! But dont worry, I think its safe to say that there will be many a knitted gift in all of your futures as the artisans get a huge kick out of this and its a great conversation starter. So basically, what I’m trying to say is that there is not a lack of things to do here in Vice – I always go up to my room exhausted after the day is over and I fall asleep easily. Life is good, and believe it or not, almost normal.

Weeks 2 and 3: You can communicate a lot without saying anything at all.

That’s right folks, the lesson of the past 2 weeks has been body language. I have relied on facial expressions to communicate mostly everything. If I don’t know what’s going on, I make myself look confused, unless I’m completely lost and then I just pretend to understand and say “si” a lot. I laugh, smile, and nod a lot. But I also have become an expert in reading other people’s expressions and can pretty much guess what they’re saying by the way they say it. It’s been one of the greatest tools in communication for me.

I really can’t believe that I’m already in week 4 of service. Next week on the 24th I will have officially have been in site for a month! It’s gone by really quickly and I’ve definitely enjoyed being here. Despite all I say about the language being difficult, I do think I’m starting to understand better. We watch a telenovela (soap opera) pretty much every evening and it’s been on since I was in Lima for training. When I first got here I didn’t understand a word of what was going on, but now I understand almost all of it (even though I’m still completely lost because I didn’t get the episodes at the beginning of the season). I never thought I would be so positive about a soap opera, but is has given me hope that I will eventually be able to communicate effectively in Spanish! Other than language being a constant struggle, I’ve had a great past couple weeks. Majority good or great days, with minimal bad moments. The only things that made for bad moments would have been the same in the United States. For one, I’ve been having computer problems which all of you know can be annoying so I won’t get into it and just leave it at that. The other has to do with the soccer players that lived in my town.

I mentioned them briefly in a previous post, but I’ll explain a little more in depth now. The team that was in my town was competing in the Copa Peru (Peru Cup) which is basically a national tournament for professional teams that are a few levels below the best teams in the country. From what I understood, they were a minor league soccer team. The guys on the team were between 17 and 29 years old and they all ate at the restaurant that my host mom owns. Since my family doesn’t really sit down to eat together since they all work in the restaurant, I was eating most of my meals with some of the players and actually have become good friends with some of them. They are from all over the country, some from Lima, some from Chiclayo (about 3 hours away) and some from Piura. They were my first and only friends at site because they are basically the same age as me and were really interested in what I was doing here in Vice. They also helped me to understand some of the differences between our cultures and taught me a lot of slang words in Spanish. ANYWAY, they tied last Wednesday, and the way the tournament works they were eliminated. They all left town, some of them to go home, some of them to reinforce teams that were still playing. I was definitely sad to see them go since we always had interesting conversations and also their games provided some excitement in everyday life here. The first couple days after they left were really slow, but now things are starting to pick up again. The tournament starts again in January, so hopefully some of the same players will be back to play for our team again then!

Things with my family are going really well. I have the most interaction with my host mom and her mother-in-law and they are both great ladies. My host dad was also actually in town last week and it was great to get to know him a little bit. He’s a musician (plays the saxophone) and lives and works in Huancayo (another department in the sierra of Peru). He’s got a ton of energy and loves to play cards which was perfect since I do too. I’ve learned tons of Peruvian games since I’ve been here but I have to say that Euchre is still my favorite. I also have gotten to know some of my host cousins as well. There are a ton (a huge family, as always here) but I’m slowly getting all of the information straight. This past weekend was full of family festivities. Saturday night I went to the Talent Show of the middle school where 3 of my cousins go. They all danced and had performances to celebrate the anniversary of the school. On Sunday we went back to see my little cousin Astrid be crowned as Miss Aniversario of the primary school. She was absolutely adorable with her little yellow dress, sash, and crown. On Sunday during the day I went to mass for the first time in Peru. It was exactly the same as in the States except for the fact that the church was packed. Standing room only, and we were late and had to stand. There were people outside selling tamales and baked goods and the kids were all running around like crazy. There are no “cry rooms” in Peru, that’s for sure. I took communion in my mouth for the first time in my life and have no idea if I did it correctly, and I was also really surprised to find that a TON of people at church (like more than half) hadn’t made their First Communion and didn’t go up to receive the host. I figured that since this is a majority Catholic country and that the people have been going to mass their entire lives that they would have received communion, but I guess not. After church, I went to the 1st birthday party of another cousin, Luis Angel, better known as “Chanito” (I have no idea why). You will be happy to know that it was just like an American Birthday, complete with a Winnie the Pooh theme, and a special appearance by Winnie himself! The one thing about Peruvian parties that gets me is that you go, sit down in a circle, and don’t really talk to anyone. The hostess brings around food plates and you take a little, they bring around desserts and drinks, but you never really get up from your seat to socialize. This works out great for me since I don’t know anyone really well and I can’t talk, but in real life I like to talk to everyone and wander around at a party. The majority don’t even dance, they just clap while other people do!

Work is also starting to pick up, I’ve started actually writing information down for my diagnostic of my town and artisan associations and hopefully in the next couple weeks I’ll start to write the actual document, which I’m dreading since it’s got to be in Spanish. This week (and all of them from here on out) I’m planning to meet with all four of my artisan groups twice. I went yesterday to one of the caserios and it went really well. The only problem was that I rode a bike there and completely underestimated how long the trip would take. It was about 40 minutes each way and this was the first time I’ve ridden a bike in probably 10 years. Needless to say my butt is extremely sore from the uncomfortable seat and this morning, the ride to my next meeting was not fun. But what can you do? When there is limited mobility you have to take whatever transportation you can get. This morning was the first time that a meeting failed for me. I went to meet another group of artisans and they weren’t working today. But I did talk to some of the people from that town and got to know a few more of the kids so it wasn’t a waste.

What I’m looking forward to: tomorrow there is a charla in the Casa de Cultura on domestic violence that I think will be interesting. The Mothers’ Club sometimes puts on workshops and this is one of them. I’m going into the city on Sunday night and staying until midday on Monday so I’ll get to see some of the other volunteers and get a little bit of administrative stuff taken care of. I’m also really looking forward the end of the construction on my house. There is still a hole in my ceiling which is supposedly going to be fixed by the end of this week since the mosquitoes have been eating me alive and there is literally a coat of dust on everything in my room. Im also looking forward to a concert Im going to go to in another volunteers town tomorrow night. Were going to spend the night there so it should be a lot of fun! Mostly I’m just looking forward to staying busy and getting to know the artisans and my work better.

Hope all is well at home! I’m bummed about the loss against Georgia, but I heard that the Gamecocks looked pretty good which is always encouraging. I’m sure it was a great time anyway! And I’m really jealous that we’re about to have our first home game this Saturday! I hope it’s a little cooler this year than last. I really enjoy all of your emails, if you have specific questions about what I’m up to just let me know and I’ll try to answer them in my blog. Hasta luego, cuidate!

Life in Vice

New cousins! Lucero, Astrid, Alesandro, Junior (above). Were in the restaurant after the team lost last Wednesday. Dont judge my hair, this was after riding 30 minutes on the back of a truck back from the game.

Me, Susan, and Heather on the roof of the Hostel we always stay at in Piura. Enjoying the first night away from site.

Aunt Lily, brother Dikson, cousin Chanito (birthday boy), host mom Rosa, me, and special guest Winnie Pooh, at Chanitos first birthday party. It was quite the event, with a tent, pinata, dancing, and more!

Astrid being crowned Miss Aniversario at the 19th anniversary celebration for Santa Bernardita in La Union this past Sunday night. Gorgeous.

The tent and decorations for Chanitos brithday party. At the moment I took this picture I was in my seat in the circle from which I didnt move until the end of the party. Mom, why didnt I ever get something like this?

Host mom, me and Astrid aka Betty, at the Anniversary Celebrbation of the sports club. This was two Sundays ago before the soccer team was elimated but after they lost the first game.

Me with Jose Maria, one of the members of the team, in my familys restaurant.

To celebrate the anniversary of the sports club, all of the kids made these torchas which also have candles in them and we walked around the town in a type of parade that night. Afterwards there was a competition and Astrid won 3rd place!

The mayor, his wife, and the contributors to the club carried the flag in front of the parade. Mayor Armando is third from the left.

Hope you all enjoyed the pictures! After several hours at the internet I am finally completely updated! Miss you all!

My Room

So here are some pics of my new room. I took pictures of all four walls so you can get a pretty good idea of where Im living. I think it is actually really nice compared to other volunteers. These pictures make it kind of look like a cell since the cement walls arent painted, but I dont mind it.

This is the right wall when you walk into my room. The door to enter is to the right of this picture. There is my bathroom as you can see. There is no shower curtain and even though I bought one I have no idea how to hang it and my entire bathroom gets soaked when I shower. You can see the whole in the upper wall where they are doing construction and right above that (where the sun is entering) is where the hole in my roof is located (hopefully not for long)!

This is my lovely desk with all of my things. I have tons of books and resources and the big pile of manila folders on the shelf to the left is what Brett gave me to help me get to know Vice and start my diagnostic. This is directly across from the entrance of my room and to the left of the bathroom. Notice also the jacket to my sweet track suit (Peru 13 got track suits). Directly to the left of my desk is where I have hung all the cards you have sent me to remind myself that I do, actually, have friends and family who love me and most importantly, can understand me.

My bed and dresser (FINALLY)! This is to the left of the door. The map is courtesy of my lovely parents and there is also a world map right above the white board that is courtesy of Kara Ridgways old French book. Im still looking for ways to decorate the walls so feel free to send posters! Also, if you know of a better way to hang things on concrete than duct tape, let me know, because I constantly have to add more to keep the map on the wall.

This is my door and window that lead into the hall way. I really need a curtain for the window (which my host mom says is going to happen soon) and a poster for the door (which hopefully you can send me) since you can literally see into my room and bathroom from the hall. Right now not many people walk back there but there is the occassional awkward moment. The sooner this is fixed the better!

Hopefully you can come visit to see this luxurious local for yourself!