So about every two weeks or so, I’ve had just about enough of my remote site and go into Chota with my other peace corps friends for a weekend full of good food, English, and best of all internet. But this weekend, little did we know, things would be a bit different.
It started first with the cell phone signal. Usually I have pretty good signal in my site, but for some reason I didn’t have any on Friday. I thought it was just a fluke, so I didn’t start to worry until I got to Chota and I still didn’t have signal. Didn’t think it was a big deal until I realized that without cell phones, there was no way to find out where my friend was. So decided to go to the restaurant we always go to and just play on the internet until she gets there.
So we go to our restaurant and find out…no internet. Without cell phone signal, the internet doesn’t appear to work. So that wasn’t the greatest news, but I figured people would be working to get the signal back in no time right? Then my friend Barbara, who finally found us at the restaurant, reminds me that “Annie, we aren’t in America. This is Peru.” Which means sometimes things don’t get fixed so quickly…But no sweat, I thought. At least we can still watch a movie or something on my computer, but no…here comes the kicker.
We find out that on Saturday, the city of Chota was planning a black-out to do some maintenance on the electricity. So there you go folks: no cell phone, no internet, and no electricity. It’s almost as if I was back at my site. Ha.
So what did we do? We went and played basketball with some friends and their host family and then went over to their house for some good ol’ “Jenga” and lunch. Turns out that without phones, internet, and electricity, we actually had a pretty fun day. So when the electricity finally turned back on and cell phone signal came back, we weren’t so desperate to run back to it all.
So lesson learned? Life still happens without electronics, and it’s not all that bad. But do I still love cell phones, internet, and electricity? With my whole heart, yes.
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Saturday, January 23, 2010
P-P-P-Pictures
Here are some photos from my past couple of months...enjoy!
Making banana pancakes with my Cajamarqueñas chicas
These crazy boys did a community map for me (Part of my communnity diagnostic)
Farmer Annie! Me planting semillas with the help of my padres: Brocolli, Radishes, Zucchini, Pumpkin, Lettuce, Spinach, and Cabbage! Yum Yum!
My host grandma pouring fresh milk to take back down the mountain. There is nothing like fresh milk! (Sorry, couldn't resist...)
My living room complete with TV and DVD player. My room is right on the left.
Caras Locas with my relatives. Selene, the one with the spatula, is waving the Panchamanca, the traditional peruvian food of the sierra.
My cousins and brother making Papa Rellenas, glorified french fries with eggs stuffed inside. MMmm good!
New Year's Eve 2009! My whole family and our two burning muñecas
Coffee and puffy jackets make Annie a happy girl!
The Christmas stockings I made my host family
My Room and all it's glory. Here's hoping to cement floors pretty soon...
Christmas Eve dancing the night away...
My kitchen...it looks more like a storage closet, but it does the trick.
Me and my host cousin and friend posin' with the muñecas
Introducing...the CHALI!
Señoras and Senores, are you tired of carrying that heavy bag over your pained shoulder? Tired of being caught in the rain without an umbrella? Tired of not having anything to wear when doing your washing your last pair of pants?
Well LOOK to further…Your answers have finally been answered…thanks to the CHALI!
The Chali is a multifaceted, brightly colored, finely crafted, piece of cloth that really has it all…
Need to haul manure to the chacras, but don’t have a wheel barrow? No problem! Just Chali-it!
Need to sit on a wet, dirty ground waiting for the next combi to arrive? No problem! Just Chali-it!
Need to carry your 5-year child to the health post? No problem! Just Chali-it!
The Chali is easy to use…Simply, lay your Chali on the ground. Next, place whatever you need to carry in it and then, gather both ends and hoist it up over your back, and simply tie a knot. It’s that easy!
The Chali is a certifiable and trusted all over Peru, just listen to one of our many supporters…
Juana Marina Carajulcra Ruez of San Juan de Lacamaca says “The Chali has made a world of difference in my life. Before I had to make 2 or 3 trips up the mountain a day because I didn’t have enough hands to carry all my potatoes back. But with the Chali, I only need to make that trip once and can be back in time to milk my cows before lunch!”
The Chali has revolutionized blankets everywhere by using the strongest part of the body, the back, and have put all backpacks to shame by a having limitless capacity. There is no knowing how much a person can fit in their Chali.
Well LOOK to further…Your answers have finally been answered…thanks to the CHALI!
The Chali is a multifaceted, brightly colored, finely crafted, piece of cloth that really has it all…
Need to haul manure to the chacras, but don’t have a wheel barrow? No problem! Just Chali-it!
Need to sit on a wet, dirty ground waiting for the next combi to arrive? No problem! Just Chali-it!
Need to carry your 5-year child to the health post? No problem! Just Chali-it!
The Chali is easy to use…Simply, lay your Chali on the ground. Next, place whatever you need to carry in it and then, gather both ends and hoist it up over your back, and simply tie a knot. It’s that easy!
The Chali is a certifiable and trusted all over Peru, just listen to one of our many supporters…
Juana Marina Carajulcra Ruez of San Juan de Lacamaca says “The Chali has made a world of difference in my life. Before I had to make 2 or 3 trips up the mountain a day because I didn’t have enough hands to carry all my potatoes back. But with the Chali, I only need to make that trip once and can be back in time to milk my cows before lunch!”
The Chali has revolutionized blankets everywhere by using the strongest part of the body, the back, and have put all backpacks to shame by a having limitless capacity. There is no knowing how much a person can fit in their Chali.
According to Lindomira Flor Idrogo Garcia of Ahijadero, “I’m able to carry more than twice my weight of firewood on my back using the Chali and the best part is I can even KNIT while I go down the mountain.”
The Chali can be used to carry large loads of anything imaginable from firewood to small children to roof tiles to tanks of gas. It can also be used in cold weather to bundle up or hover under during the long rainy season. It even can be used as nice dining room table cloth, once cleaned after use. The uses are really endless…
So hurry up to your local mercado and haggle yourself a good deal with the Chali. Prices start at 20 soles, and don’t forget to ask for your chela!
My Host Brother and Cousin going to Grandma's House...
Friday, January 08, 2010
Rhinestones are a girl's best friend
So since the holidays are now over, I finally have to think about my job at hand: my community diagnostic. And frankly, that is a daunting task. And since I don’t have any projects going at the moment, I find that when I have a lot of time on my hand, I tend to over-analyze things (analysis paralysis as it is called…) and question my being in Peru. So when I get in those moods, what always cheers me up is….CRAFT TIME! My latest project has been wanting to BLING-out my cell phone, so I set out today in search of rhinestones...
But something as simple as finding rhinestones in the U.S. seems to turn into a major goose-egg hunt in Peru. If I were in the land of amazing (aka U.S. of A), I would simply jump in my car and drive to Michael’s arts and crafts and maybe even stop by Dutch bros to grab a quick coffee…all in the span of 20 min.
In Peru, however, first you have to figure out how to say rhinestones in Spanish which you awkwardly try to describe as “those things that are like pearls but sparkle and are small.” Then ask a person where one might find rhinestones and are pointed to the nearest fabric store. Go to the fabric store and stumble through your half-hazard description and get shown buttons instead. Then find another fabric store nearby and instead of finding rhinestone, find men’s underwear called “stripper” (no joke!). Then almost give up, but find one more fabric store. Go in and get told they don’t have any, but get shown another store where they think they might have them. You walk in and think you’ve hit the jackpot, as there are spools of sparkly ribbon and glitter everywhere. Again describe the elusive rhinestones that you are so feverishly looking for and instead are shown sequins, which you determine to be just as good as rhinestones. Then it finally dawns on you that the cell phone you were planning on “be-dazzling” with rhinestones is rented and therefore, cannot be defaced.
You walk away and shake your head while trying to control you laughter, as laughter is probably the only thing that will stop you from crying.
So another day has come and gone and Peru has gotten the best of me. But tomorrow is a new day…with new possibilities…and new craft ideas...
But something as simple as finding rhinestones in the U.S. seems to turn into a major goose-egg hunt in Peru. If I were in the land of amazing (aka U.S. of A), I would simply jump in my car and drive to Michael’s arts and crafts and maybe even stop by Dutch bros to grab a quick coffee…all in the span of 20 min.
In Peru, however, first you have to figure out how to say rhinestones in Spanish which you awkwardly try to describe as “those things that are like pearls but sparkle and are small.” Then ask a person where one might find rhinestones and are pointed to the nearest fabric store. Go to the fabric store and stumble through your half-hazard description and get shown buttons instead. Then find another fabric store nearby and instead of finding rhinestone, find men’s underwear called “stripper” (no joke!). Then almost give up, but find one more fabric store. Go in and get told they don’t have any, but get shown another store where they think they might have them. You walk in and think you’ve hit the jackpot, as there are spools of sparkly ribbon and glitter everywhere. Again describe the elusive rhinestones that you are so feverishly looking for and instead are shown sequins, which you determine to be just as good as rhinestones. Then it finally dawns on you that the cell phone you were planning on “be-dazzling” with rhinestones is rented and therefore, cannot be defaced.
You walk away and shake your head while trying to control you laughter, as laughter is probably the only thing that will stop you from crying.
So another day has come and gone and Peru has gotten the best of me. But tomorrow is a new day…with new possibilities…and new craft ideas...
Saturday, January 02, 2010
Goodbye Christmas, Hello New Years!
(written in my room on Dec. 31, 2009)
So Christmas has come and gone, and things are more or less back to the way things are. I tried to remind myself of the experiences I was having rather than focusing on the things that I was missing and that more or less worked. I mean, it’s not every day that you get to celebrate Christmas by having a dance off to 80’s music with your very inebriated uncle. That is for sure, but hey, I’m not going to have another Christmas like it, so better enjoy it right?. Christmas Eve was full of everything I thought it would be: dancing, beer, paneton, dancing, cocoa, and more dancing…and as soon as midnight rolled around, everyone said “Feliz Navidad” and went on their merry way.
Christmas day itself was a bit uneventful in that I slept in until 10:30 am (which is the longest I have slept in ever in Peru), had the biggest and weirdest breakfast ever (cold soup, rice and cuy, left over paneton, and biscuits in honey), then basically sat around outside enjoying the sunshine. I also opened the rest of my Christmas gifts my parents sent me (and I mean “rest” because I couldn’t wait 5 days to open them all…sorry Mom), and had my own mini-Christmas in my room complete with Handel’s Messiah playing in the background.
My stockings were a hit with the host family. I think they forgot that they were to be filled on Christmas day, so I had to bring them to them or else I’m pretty sure they would have hung on the wall until the New Year. I had stuffed them full of sweets and a small gift. For my mom I gave her some earrings since she had her ears pierced, but didn’t have any earrings. Well I had the earrings wrapped at the market in some wrapping paper, so as she would get to open at least something…When she pulled out the wrapped gift, she starting stroking the paper and saying how beautiful it was and asking where I had bought it. It then dawned on me that she thought I had actually given her wrapping paper for Christmas, so I politely told her that there was something else inside. Needless to say the earrings were a big hit. Take THAT American consumerism!
Since then I’ve been trying to occupy my time to the best of my abilities since people still appear to be on vacation. All the professors have left, since school is out and the majority of them live out of town, and as for the health post, most of my community partners are still on holiday vacation. So I’m mainly been biding my time with my host family by hiking up the mountain (to grandma’s house we go...literally), planting my first garden (let’s see if I have my mom’s famous green thumb), learning how to make papas rellenos (glorified French fries stuffed with meat), and eating my first REAL sierra-style panchamanca (complete with bananas!). I’ve also taught my cousins and brother the chorus to “Jingle Bells” and they haven’t been able to stop singing it, so the Christmas spirit may very well last until summer at the rate they are going.
But now comes the time for yet another Peruvian celebration: New Years. It’s basically like Christmas only bigger, better, and stuff on fire. Like any other holiday, Peruvians do it up in style and New Years means burning life-sized dolls made of old clothing and stuffed with hay. My host dad, at this very moment, is putting the finishing touches on our two dolls. Unfortunately I didn’t have any clothing to spare, as my clothing is few and far between, but that wasn’t a problem. My host family appears to stock pile old clothing special for this occasion. New Years also consists of some other “not-so-American” customs, one being to wear different colored underwear: yellow (luck), red (love), and green (money). My host mom bashfully admitted that she only ever wears red underwear on New Years. Ha. Oh my! Peruvians also crawl under the table to eat 12 grapes come midnight, as well as bathe at midnight. 1. I’m not sure we even have grapes and 2. I have a hard time getting in the cold shower during the hottest hour of the day, so not sure how I feel at the dead of night. And last, but not least, no Peruvian celebration is complete with dancing and the passing of the beer bottle. So it looks like I’m in for another night to remember…
Everyone keeps on asking what Americans do to celebrate the New Years and honestly I don’t even know. I mean, as far as my past New Years’ go, it mainly consists of hanging out with friends and more or less watching the Time Square party on TV. But somehow watching a giant ball drop is not the same as seeing a life-sized doll go up in flames.
So on that note, I need to go find my lighter… Hope everyone has a great New Year! Espero que tengan un Feliz Año Nuevo!
Now for some photos from the past few weeks:
Making French Toast in my kitchen
The view outside my house. The yellow building is my health post, we are neighbor-ee-nos...
This is our only source of water, which is right outside our front door. That is my host mom, Adela, collecting some water to cook lunch with.
This is me and my cousin Marion, who just graduated high school...their graduations are a lot like our proms, but I never recieved the dress code memo. ha.
So Christmas has come and gone, and things are more or less back to the way things are. I tried to remind myself of the experiences I was having rather than focusing on the things that I was missing and that more or less worked. I mean, it’s not every day that you get to celebrate Christmas by having a dance off to 80’s music with your very inebriated uncle. That is for sure, but hey, I’m not going to have another Christmas like it, so better enjoy it right?. Christmas Eve was full of everything I thought it would be: dancing, beer, paneton, dancing, cocoa, and more dancing…and as soon as midnight rolled around, everyone said “Feliz Navidad” and went on their merry way.
Christmas day itself was a bit uneventful in that I slept in until 10:30 am (which is the longest I have slept in ever in Peru), had the biggest and weirdest breakfast ever (cold soup, rice and cuy, left over paneton, and biscuits in honey), then basically sat around outside enjoying the sunshine. I also opened the rest of my Christmas gifts my parents sent me (and I mean “rest” because I couldn’t wait 5 days to open them all…sorry Mom), and had my own mini-Christmas in my room complete with Handel’s Messiah playing in the background.
My stockings were a hit with the host family. I think they forgot that they were to be filled on Christmas day, so I had to bring them to them or else I’m pretty sure they would have hung on the wall until the New Year. I had stuffed them full of sweets and a small gift. For my mom I gave her some earrings since she had her ears pierced, but didn’t have any earrings. Well I had the earrings wrapped at the market in some wrapping paper, so as she would get to open at least something…When she pulled out the wrapped gift, she starting stroking the paper and saying how beautiful it was and asking where I had bought it. It then dawned on me that she thought I had actually given her wrapping paper for Christmas, so I politely told her that there was something else inside. Needless to say the earrings were a big hit. Take THAT American consumerism!
Since then I’ve been trying to occupy my time to the best of my abilities since people still appear to be on vacation. All the professors have left, since school is out and the majority of them live out of town, and as for the health post, most of my community partners are still on holiday vacation. So I’m mainly been biding my time with my host family by hiking up the mountain (to grandma’s house we go...literally), planting my first garden (let’s see if I have my mom’s famous green thumb), learning how to make papas rellenos (glorified French fries stuffed with meat), and eating my first REAL sierra-style panchamanca (complete with bananas!). I’ve also taught my cousins and brother the chorus to “Jingle Bells” and they haven’t been able to stop singing it, so the Christmas spirit may very well last until summer at the rate they are going.
But now comes the time for yet another Peruvian celebration: New Years. It’s basically like Christmas only bigger, better, and stuff on fire. Like any other holiday, Peruvians do it up in style and New Years means burning life-sized dolls made of old clothing and stuffed with hay. My host dad, at this very moment, is putting the finishing touches on our two dolls. Unfortunately I didn’t have any clothing to spare, as my clothing is few and far between, but that wasn’t a problem. My host family appears to stock pile old clothing special for this occasion. New Years also consists of some other “not-so-American” customs, one being to wear different colored underwear: yellow (luck), red (love), and green (money). My host mom bashfully admitted that she only ever wears red underwear on New Years. Ha. Oh my! Peruvians also crawl under the table to eat 12 grapes come midnight, as well as bathe at midnight. 1. I’m not sure we even have grapes and 2. I have a hard time getting in the cold shower during the hottest hour of the day, so not sure how I feel at the dead of night. And last, but not least, no Peruvian celebration is complete with dancing and the passing of the beer bottle. So it looks like I’m in for another night to remember…
Everyone keeps on asking what Americans do to celebrate the New Years and honestly I don’t even know. I mean, as far as my past New Years’ go, it mainly consists of hanging out with friends and more or less watching the Time Square party on TV. But somehow watching a giant ball drop is not the same as seeing a life-sized doll go up in flames.
So on that note, I need to go find my lighter… Hope everyone has a great New Year! Espero que tengan un Feliz Año Nuevo!
Now for some photos from the past few weeks:
Making French Toast in my kitchen
The view outside my house. The yellow building is my health post, we are neighbor-ee-nos...
This is our only source of water, which is right outside our front door. That is my host mom, Adela, collecting some water to cook lunch with.
This is me trying to find out who my "Amigo Secreto" was...and by jobe, I got it right!
This is Brando, one of my host dogs, and my friend Diana at the 6th grade graduation
This is a map of San Juan de Lacamaca. I live in Sector 4 (81 families).
This are some ladies in the caserio, Ahijadero, about a 45 min walk from my house. The women in my site where the typical clothing of the sierra: skirts, cardigans, and tall hats. And most every woman I know can knit up a storm.
This is me and my cousin Marion, who just graduated high school...their graduations are a lot like our proms, but I never recieved the dress code memo. ha.
A little girl in a caserio where I helped vaccinate dogs.
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