Friday, December 31, 2010

Happy Holidays

Hi all! I know it´s New Year´s Eve (or as the Dutch say, Old Year´s Evening) but I wanted to share with you my thoughts about the Christmas season here in Peru. I don´t know what it was, but something possessed me the day of Christmas to write in my journal the following. I hope you enjoy.

Twas the day of Christmas and all through the town,
All the creatures were stirring, everyone is around.
No stockings are hung, no chimneys are found
And there´s snow in the mountains but not on the ground.
The ladies in their mantas and I in my coat,
From a short winter´s nap, I have just awoke.
Yes, a nap I´ve taken, it seems for the first time this year
Because Christmas is celebrated at all hours here.

It begins Christmas Eve, with the Nochebuena meal.
Dinner´s at midnight and then, it gets real.
Chicken, potato puree and rice, a toast with champagne
Then out come the cuyes and you remember this dinner´s not tame.
Then we took our hot chocolate and our panetón
I offered my cookies to share something from home.
We wished each other ¨Merry Christmas¨with hugs for all
But before we could sleep our came beer, cold and tall.
At 1 or 1:30 I climbed into my bed
But the sleep was short-lived, hardly a dream in my head.

For at 5:00 Christmas morning I awoke with a start
To the sound of firecrackers, oh dear, attack of the heart.
I quickly got dressed and ran to the square
And found the church open, people singing and dancing there.
Each lady carried with her her own Christmas tree
From a branch covered with tissue paper, flowers unlike any you´d see.
They were singing and dancing around in a ring
And entered the church in pairs to worship the newborn King.

To combat the cold, they served drinks nice and hot.
This was the first Christmas I broke fast...with a shot.
Chamis, they call it, a calientito hot toddy
One quick swig and it will warm up the body.
Then a hot punch was served in a cup made of tin,
It was a very different sunrise service to participate in.
Then back to my house to turn on the gas stove,
For a breakfast of pancakes for my family, I strove.

Later, Saint Nick had come to visit via an NGO,
And I watched as the kids lined up to receive their ¨regalo¨
The dancing continued down in the square,
Then up the hill moved the party, it only seemed fair.
In a house made of stone, lunch was provided for all
They started drinking in the morning, everyone was having a ball.
Then we sat in the sun, my face burning perchance,
And then surprisinly one of the ladies invited me to dance.

I carried the asusena, the name for the tree
Knowing full well that all eyes were on me.
I danced and I danced as best as I could
But when the song was over, a little girl asked ¨Why did you dance no good?¨
Then we left the scene, a nap on my mind
And before I could sleep came the words for this rhyme.

What a day, what a day, what a day don´t you know.
All types of weather - sun, rain, hail - but no snow.
The party will continue through tomorrow day
And I hoope I can keep my heavy eyelids at bay.
Here I write Christmas day without electical light,
Still, Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night.


And a happy New Year! Blessings.

Friday, December 17, 2010

Where to Begin?

This is a question that seems to be popping up a lot. Where to begin? Where do I begin getting to know the area? Where do I begin getting to know the people? Where do begin to get to work? Where do I begin to start making my mark? And where do I begin to tell you about my first three weeks in my site?

So let´s begin by going through the other questions and how I have started to tackle them.

How have I begun getting to know the area? - In short. Walking. First up and down and up and down and around and around the hill that is our town. The school is at the top of the hill but I live at the bottom, by the plaza, municipality and just inside the gate. That´s right, gated community but don´t be fooled, the gates are in place 1. to keep the cows, sheep and goats out of the fields and 2. to charge the mining trucks as they use our road to get to and from the mine. There are about 4 main ¨streets¨ I would say though a car can only drive on 2 of them. Houses are of adobe, cement, wood or brick and are roofed by cement, tin or grass. Aside from wandering the town, I´ve taken to the hills to wander. There are a whole lot of paths and I can go up, down or across the two mountains between which our pueblo lies.

How have I begun getting to know the people? - Well, the walks through the town have definitely been helping. Sometimes I just go out for a walk with the only purpose of finding someone new to talk to. It works so far and actually, that´s how I met the woman who is now helping me knit my sweater. I also listen, attentively to the loudspeakers just down the street to try and catch the community events. So far this has led me to attend a few committee meetings, 2 town parties, 1 election and one wool dyeing workshop. Also because of this, I participated in the townwide trout harvest from the lake where I helped gut, clean, tag and package 5.2 tons of rainbow trout. And in these events I of course have met and chatted with more than a few people. Another thing I do is occasionally eat at the super cheap restaurant. For 4 soles I can get soup and entree and a hot beverage. If you´re unfamiliar with the conversion, 4 soles is about 1.30 dollars. The cook there, Silvia, is looking to be a good friend and later today I plan to make Christmas decorations with her.

Where have I begun to get to work? - Tough question. Technically, the walking, talking and hanging out is considered my work. Still, I can direct the conversations to ask about trash, trees and awareness. I´ve found out a good deal from the people including what they identify as problems and where they would like to see their town go. Garbage in the streets is an agreed-upon issue. I also rode with the garbage truck yesterday to see how their system works. The real getting to work will probably have to wait until the new mayor and new community board take office but until then, I am working with the kids over their ¨summer break.¨ In fact, tomorrow I will have my first meeting with the eco-club that the former volunteer began. I am excited to see what they can show me of what they´ve been up to and to hear what they would like to know.

Where to begin making my mark? - Way too early to tell but this is a question that I will continue to have in the back of my mind. Maybe so far, I have made my mark and will continue to do so as an example of an American to Peruvians and by the fact that now a small group of kids knows how to throw a Frisbee.

Blessings.