Feliz Dia de Independencia!

Yesterday was Peru's Independence Day (from Spain in 1821?). Anyways, I am posting a picture here of the potluck that we had yesterday. My host family is related to three other families here in Yanacoto and each of those family all host a Peace Corps volunteer.

I don't want to brag (but you know that I secretly want to so here goes). I had the grand idea the day before that us 4 volunteers should prepare a potluck lunch for a get-together with our host families. Hence, each of us prepared 2 to 3 American/Chinese/Mexican/Italian/Jewish dishes...and all in time for their Indepence Day. I made curry lo mein, Fuchi Fu (which is their version of egg drop soup), pb & j sandwiches (cut into elegant triangles), and wine spritzer. (Aren't you impressed that I actually cooked?) The other volunteers made lasagna, taquenos, cheesecake, chili, Jewish potato pancakes, chicken tacos, etc. I think our families were really touched. My host dad made a speech at the end that almost moved me to tears, but I, fortunately, was man enough to hold it in...until later.

Our time in Yanacoto has suddenly become very limited due to the fact that we'll be moving to our permanent sites in a matter of weeks. As such, we just wanted to show them our appreciation. It dawned on me the other day how much changes we've gone through. We've moved to a foreign country, have done our best to adjust to life here, new language, new people, traveling to various locales...and all this is a matter of weeks! Whew! Fortunately, our host families have really made things so much easier...They continue to pack my lunch everyday and even wash my dirty socks and underwear...EWWWW!!!! As such, I hope they enjoyed their Americanized independence day!

Mi sitio esta en Cajabamba!

It was a really exciting day! Finally after months of waiting, we finally found out our Peace Corps assignment!

We, unfortunately, do not get to pick our assignments or where we'll be living so the suspense of not knowing your life for the next two years has been horrible! Can you imagine entering into a program overseas where you had no idea what you would be doing and where you would be going for the next two years!? And on top of that, people looked at you like you were insane for doing such a thing! They could have been recruiting me for Operation Human Shield in the Peruvian army and I wouldn't have known!

But all's well ends well. Since we are "overseas," our site locations were floated onto a paper boat and it was our job to find ours and fish it out. I tried to upoload the pictures in chronological order. First, we are waiting in anticipation to fish out our boats.


Then I fished out my blue boat from the sea and discovered that I am going to the sierra, Cajabamba, which is a city of about 8000 people. Cajabamba is close to the places that I traveled to last week so it'll be a lot of sun, but with more traditional Peruvian folks. I'll be traveling there the week after next week just for a week-long visit. Afterwards, I'll move there permanently in late August.


Awk! I still can't believe that this is my life! I hope you all are doing well.

Estoy muy emocionada!

Tomorrow is an exciting day for us. Up until this point, we have only been ¨trainees.¨ Our days have been spent lazying away on learning how to be effective ¨volunteers¨for the next two years.

(A bit of background: For the first three months of the volunteer´s service, the trainee attends daily classes with other trainees and lives with a temporary host family so that they learn to integrate into a Peruvian family. Hence, my home and family in Yanacoto are not real; they are only temporary until I move in to my permanent site with my permanent host family for the next two years. This permanent site can be anywhere in Peru, although Peace Corps volunteers generally serve in one of two areas: the sierra or the coast. Some volunteers are placed in the jungle, but this is becoming more rare. Mostly, 2 year site-host families tend to be poorer than training-host families, more isolated (think authentic National Geographic Peruvians), and less exposed to foreigners in general. This should be an interesting two years!)

Up until now and since I first got accepted into the Peace Corps months ago, I have been left wondering what I´ll be doing and where I´ll be doing it. However, that will soon change. Tomorrow we will finally find out about our sites!!! I am hoping that I get placed in a bigger site on the coast, but we´ll see. Either location offers pros and cons in the areas of safety, types of foods served, internet access, etc. And no matter what happens, I´ll be happy that I´m in Peru and will make my new site my home.

The day will be really bittersweet because our Peace Corps experience doesn´t really happen until we´re out of training and in site. But at the same time, we´ll also be forced to leave each other. The other trainees have been my lifeline since I´ve been here and it will be weird to feel ¨alone¨again. :( Anyways, after we find out, we´ll be traveling again. Our graduation from training doesn´t actually occur until Aug. 21, but the week after next, we´ll all be taking a one week visit to our sites. (Get ready for lots of pictures that week!)

I don´t know if I´ll be able to sleep tonight. I am so nervous and excited and twitter-pated and anxious and....

P.S. A word about training... It is long and tedious! But I do enjoy the Spanish classes immensely. When I first arrived in Peru, my Spanish was intermediate-low. Now, I am at the minimum level required by Peace Corps--intermediate medium. This is good news, because it means I won´t be sent home for my lack of knowledge in Spanish (although I can still be sent home for other things...see Peace Corps manual for drinking on the job, drinking tea made from coca leaves, drugging, kidnapping young children/old people for organ trafficking, etc.).

Mas fotografias...

I don´t know how to turn these pictures, but here are some more of other towns. Peru is gorgeous. In the sierra, the sky was really blue and clear.

Fotografias de la semana pasada...

Some photos from last week. We went to five different sites. The first photo is of the city Cajamarca, which boasts about 200,000 people. The second and third photo is of a smaller site called La Grama. It is not really a touristy town, but it does boast a swimming pool filled with hot spring water! I got to swim (and use it as my bath). Hee hee.

He regresado!

I'm back in Yanacoto! I'm still going to post pictures when I get them, but after another 16 hour ride, I just want you to know that I'm safe! In a week's time, we traveled to five different sites and got to experience so much! Still, I was excited to see my host family again and get back onto a normal schedule.

Some highlights:

We went on a two hour hike to our next site through the sierras....bags and all! I was extremely proud of myself! The Peruvian sierras are gorgeous. Very Jurassic Park scenery...minus the scary dinosaurs.

I survived staying in a 5 soles a night hostel. 5 soles translates into like $1.75 a night. Must I tell you the conditions?! And especially being a (former?) germaphobe! I have learned to do a successful "Amazonian squat" over the toilet. I think there are pictures (of the hostel, not the squat) and I'll post them when they're up.

The entire trip overall. I have so many stories now! I know I sound like a broken record, but I know how lucky I am and how rich my life is here. Many people don't ever get experiences like these and I hope that when I come back to the states, I will be a better person through them.

Some low-lights:

Right after we arrived in San Marcos while lugging all our bags, a boy of about three years old approached us and tried to take our stuff. He looked like he had been living on the streets for quite some time and was drinking from a cup. The worst part was that he appeared to be drunk. It really affected me a lot. We were told that sometimes adults will give their kids alcohol to get them drunk and just because they think it's funny.

Because we were all together for a week, we spoke a week of straight English. When I tried to talk to my host family again today, I sucked major ass.

The 5 soles a night hostel.

Estoy en Cajamarca...

Sorry, no photos yet. I didn´t bring my camera, but I will post some soon because we´re all sharing photos. My trip has been very busy and very eventful. My only complaint is that I have been eaten alive by bugs here. The bug spray all failed to work and I am in agony even as I write this. I think I might be allergic to the bug bites so my leg is swollen, painful, and filled with red splotches. I´m pretty sure that my legs will never look the same again, but I´ll wear the scars with pride.

Tomorrow is our last day here before we get back on the bus for our 16 hour bus ride. As much fun as I´ve had, I think I´ll be ready to go back. I miss my host family, my routine, etc.

I hope you guys are all doing well. I know that I´m blessed. I haven´t been able to stop smiling this week.

My first package from home!

:) :) :) Oh boy! Oh boy! It´s peanut butter...Jif no less! Yummy! Peanut butter is really hard to find here. Thank you to my sister, Wendy, for splurging on me. It was really exciting to get mail from the US and I hustled over there as quickly as I could.

I really miss the small things from the US. The other night I had a dream that I was at home in the kitchen making some toast for breakfast. It was the most mundane thing in the world, but it felt so real that when I woke up, I was instantly homesick.

Thank you so much! I´m going to use this gift wisely and share with my host families.

I´m traveling again...

Next week is field based training, which means that we´ll be on the move again. My group and I will be traveling to Cajamarca, Peru, for one week to get more hands on training. We´re leaving on Saturday and taking an 11 hour bus ride from Lima to Cajamarca.

You can´t tell by the map, but the ride will be up through the mountains, etc. Cajamarca is in the sierra and there is even a hot springs there. (I looked it up and I think I´ll finally have a hot shower there! Well, at the springs anyway but not at the hostel.)

Besides training, we also have other activities planned such as a 2 hour hike up the terrains and an overnight camping trip.

The best way that I can sum up my Peace Corps journey so far is this: Imagine planning a trip to somewhere foreign, where you feel completely out of place. Everything that you see and sense is new and different. Even a mundane trip to the market turns into a learning experience. As much as I have missed the US, I am still in awe that I am in Peru and that I get to call this my life. Wow!

If you talk to my father, please reassure him each time that you see him that I am ok. I have only been able to speak to him once and he doesn´t get access to this blog. I´m always worried that he´s worried. :(

Take care, everyone!

Celebration after the 4th...

What better way to start the day (after a night of partying) then to hike all the way up the mountains in Yanacoto to search of hieroglyphics?? While this may sound and look very glamourous (hence, no shots of myself), I must confess that I almost died!! It was, like, two hours of climbing! And for someone who is devastatingly out of shape, again, I almost DIED! Anyways, Yanacoto has a very rich history and there are often tour groups who take this grueling hike just to see what I saw today. And if my Spanish was better, I´d be explaining to you what this rich history is. But since my Spanish is still very basic, well, just enjoy the pictures!

PS In one photo, we are pointing to some ancient pottery. But, then of course, since my Spanish is still so bad, I might be pointing to some ancient beer bottles from last weekend.

Happy Belated 4th!

My first 4th away from the states! No, there was no American hot dogs, fireworks, or Bud Light, but the Peace Corps volunteers all got together for some potluck (I made chicken fried rice), house partying, and then dancing at the Peruvian discoteca. Ha ha. One thing I learned last night: I can´t salsa worth crap, but it´s just as fun to make an idiot of yourself doing the sprinkler or running man in front of a bunch of Peruvians. I had a blast!