A [Rainy Season] Update

They warn us about rainy season. They say to get your books out and prepare to be bored, and maybe even depressed. I've seen a lot of rain in the past few months. Today it has rained almost all day. Last week there was a thunderstorm that took the power out and some people here had never seen anything like it (they're still talking about it). But I'm not depressed, not at all. In fact, this has been a refreshing, cleansing time for my soul. I've been working out (hard), teaching little kids- and learning from them of course, and just enjoying this slow time to pray, focus on my bible study, get lots of rest, visit people, and take a step back to analyze my projects and what I want to see this year. My whole perspective on time has changed since joining Peace Corps, and now  a few months seems like a super short amount of time. I'm not in such a rush to start projects, since I now understand that things take time here. At first I didn't understand why this program was two years, and wasn't even sure if I'd stay the whole time. But after 6 months in my site and almost 9 in the country, I get it now and I'm at peace with staying (praise God).

I'm learning to enjoy the little things like the few old ladies in town who just light up when they see me- one who always tells me how pretty I am (confidence booster for sure!), another wants me to take her to the states with me...mind you she must be in her late 80's at least :) I went to visit this one the other day and she introduced me to literally everyone that walked by, telling them in Spanish  "Come and greet this gringa...she's from the US!" and just wanted to know about the states and all sorts of things. These kind of experiences I like to define as authentically  "peace corps."

Along the same line, another really cool thing is that here in this small town most everyone knows me, and many by name (esp the kids). I think everyone deep down wants to be known, and its awesome to have that and to know that I'm having an impact here at least by being a bright spirit to the kids in town. Yesterday some little girls I know stopped me on the street and just wanted to play with my hair and ask me questions and take pictures with me (on their brother's cell phone, ha). They held my hands and just wanted me to pick them up and love on them- it brought such joy to my day. I love that kids don't hold back and just love without fear.

Now the school year is about to start and I will be in a new season of life. I'm excited to see what that brings and thankful for this beautiful (rainy) season experience. Enjoy the pics!

1. Me and my girl Meg at Carnaval!

 2. Peace Corps friends who came in town for Carnaval...(we live sometimes overnight bus rides apart)

3. Us and the kids at the closing ceremony for Vacation School :)

January Joy

Hey All!
So its harder maintaining a blog than I thought, but I'm not giving up! Here are some highlights and pics to keep y'all in the loop.

• Started Vacaciones Utiles (like summer school) two weeks ago with my sitemate Nick. I LOVE it! We have 80-90 kids in one classroom, but we get to teach them whatever we want. Last week we focused on environment. The little girls are SO cute and they love to hold my hand and be by me. Its a nice change of pace to have a different schedule as well
• Me and Nick started cooking lunch, which has been really nice- more freedom in the schedule to eat when we want and eat really healthy
• Had training in Chiclayo/Lima for community banks/microcredit. Really excited to go back and help improve the banks we have/start new ones in the rural areas. I think they are a great project because they encourage saving, and help people improve their lives by taking out loans to invest in something like a small business or selling fruit in the market. And we brought community partners so they can help promote/facilitate the banks with us and it will be way more sustainable that way
• Looking forward to Carnaval in February- one of the biggest fiestas in Cajamarca!
• Coming home from training with a new perspective and rejuvenated to push forward!
• Loving my church in site, such a blessing. Hoping to get closer with some of the women there.

Our kiddies!

Me and my gfs enjoying milkshakes during training!

Alison's visit!!

My host siblings at Christmas!

Pics Only!

Hey All,
This time I'm just gonna post some pics with their explanations so you can literally "see" more of my life here.
Chao!
Jackie

1. Henry in his favorite daytime lounging spot...

2. Some of my Christmas decorations (little ornaments with my family pics inside)...thanks Aunnie!

3. The kids out in the campo where I do my community bank...they LOVED the camera and got the biggest kick out of seeing themselves on the screen! haha

4. Only the most beautiful capital city...Cajamarca!

5. Today was the Anniversary of the Province of San Pablo... the Mayor is in the middle in the blue sash. They had a parade, fireworks, traditional dances, a soccer game, etc.

6. Me and my host sister Greysi- she was a flag-bearer..so cute!

7. My artisans and their "goods." Check out the swans made of recycled paper!

1.

November happenings!

Okay so there went a month and I have SO much it would be impossible to write. So I'm going to focus on some highlights and then talk about my day...here we go!

1. ALMA camp- we put on a camp for high school girls in our region a few weeks ago. It was so great. Each volunteer brought 2-3 girls to the capital city for a weekend of games, laughter and learning. We covered themes of self-esteem, drugs/alc, sex ed (they don't get this in school), gender differences, and had them do a mock problem-solving project in teams. I got to lead dance aerobics in the morning and we also had a spontaneous dance session where we taught them Cotton Eyed Joe, the Electric Slide, the Soulja Boy,  and more...so fun! Our Country Director also came and had great things to say about it.

2. Thanksgiving Break- a break it was! I had an amazing time relaxing on the beach with a few close friends. We made a wonderful meal and it was very special...if I had to be away from home, it was the place to be. I also got to see a bunch of friends who were in transit to other vacation spots around the country (Sidenote: Peru is SO big with so much to see, I wonder if I'll get to it all!).

3. My host mom's birthday party. First of all it was on a Monday night- but here they don't let that stop 'em. My family killed 2 ducks they had been raising in our neighbor's yard and it was the best duck I've ever had...soo delicious. So we ate and the beer/wine started getting passed around. It wasn't a huge party, but they had no lack of alcohol. We danced and danced, and every time I looked at my watch another hour passed. Midnight...one..two am. Nick (my site mate) and I saw the beer winding down and thought the party would be ending soon. Then they brought another whole box of 12 beers (the big ones, not personal size) and the fiesta continued. Finally at 4am we wound down...whew! It was a blast but I think it threw my whole week off sleep-wise. Good thing her birthday is only once a year!

4. I saw the funniest thing the other day, and I have to share. I turn the corner to go down to the high school with my site mate Nick and we see a lady, with a broom and water, literally washing the telephone pole outside her house. I don't understand why, but they wash the sidewalks- and even street areas sometimes- here. They say it gets dusty...but I had yet to see someone washing their telephone pole...ha! I couldn't stop laughing.

5. Another funny anecdote- There is a random clown I have seen twice in town who tries to woo me with his 3 lines in English- the same 3 lines both times. "Where are you from?" "Welcome to my country" "I love you, I love you so much!" Haha I couldn't even help but laugh.

OK today... I got to go to the "campo," or the rural area outside town where there is more poverty, to give a talk on personal financing/family budgeting to a bunch of teachers and it was a really neat experience. This community hardly has anything compared to where I live...a plaza, a health center, a municipality, one store, and a few schools. They don't have electricity except when they run the generator. I had the privilege of meeting Flor (means flower)- the janitor at the health center- when I went to help bring the snack for the participants. She captured my interest right away. Turns out she is 23 and single like me, and more outgoing than many campo women (they are often super timid and reserved, esp around me). It broke my heart to learn that she never got the chance to continue her studies past elementary school, when her dad got hurt and couldn't work- meaning they couldn't afford the school supplies/uniforms. But the most humbling part about it was she was not bitter/upset about it. She took up knitting and selling her products to support herself and her family. She really impacted me, and I hope to somehow work with her and the community of Tumbaden (even tho its pretty far away).

Enjoy the photos below...( yayyy they uploaded this time!!)
Until next time, be blessed,
Jackie

Projects!

Hey Everyone...It's been a while since I wrote, and some projects are beginning to form, so I wanted to give you the update:

• With the help of the local municipality, we've started an artisans group that meets every Monday afternoon. We have about 25 women (with more wanting to join) and they are working in knitting, crochet, recycled products, and other types of textiles I don't know how to say in English :) I am really excited to see where this could go, and with the support of the municipality we are better off than on our own.
• Had a presentation on Wednesday with the Chamber of Commerce I'm working with here that was started by a past business volunteer. Getting people to participate can  be super challenging, so we weren't expecting much. But about 35 people came out, many being small business owners. Most said they were interested in joining us, so I hope the momentum continues and we are able to function as an active group (up until now we have just been looking to find more members).
• Had the first meeting of the Community Bank I'm starting with a women's group in a rural area about 1.5 hrs walk from where I live. After some mis-communication/uncertainty and a lot of patience while it got worked out, we got started and the women put their first shares into the bank. It must be weird/uncomfortable to them to "give their money away" - or at least feel like they are, but some of the ladies helped me reassure the rest of the group that the money is staying within their group so they can save and take loans out, and that the interest will be shared between the group. I hope to take the President to the training we have in January since we need to bring a "socio" or community partner...we'll see!
• Last night was my brother and his fiance's engagement party, and I had sent them a video of congrats and another video I made with my English class where I taught them how to say "Congratulations Jason and Kristen" ...they showed them on the big screen and they were a big hit! I got to talk to a bunch of family/friends at the party as well, which made me feel a part of it :)

Ok I'm gonna run...English class in less than an hour! But I have internet in my house now, so I will be more accessible...BIG praise! Miss you all and feel free to reach out!

Jackie

Last week was the week of fiestas, (4 birthday parties in 5 days!) so I have my work cut out for me…here we go:

·         “La Hora Peruana” is a common thing here that you hear from the Peruvians themselves…it means that things will start approximately one hour later than is said. For example, if the meeting/event starts at “3pm” it really won’t get started until at least 3:30 but more likely closer to 4. One of the only exceptions I have seen so far is with fiestas, or parties. People like their parties here, and they show up on time.

·         It always starts off kind-of stiff because they set up the room with chairs along the walls and everyone sits very quietly waiting for it to begin. In parties where there is alcohol involved, the mood shifts substantially from the beginning to the end of the night.

·         The style of the party depends on the age level, but some things are universal- there is one table that holds the food, candy, cake, etc and you don’t touch it until they bring it around and serve it to you. For kids’ parties, the tradition is popcorn, jello, lollipops, mazzamora (a thick liquidy sweet drink made from purple corn), soda, a piñata, and a cake… oh and more candy. They usually serve food, too. A typical Peruvian dish for parties is ahi de gallina, which is potatoes with a delicious yellow cream sauce (made with milk, crackers/bread and chilies blended together) and shredded chicken.

·         There is always really, really loud music and dancing.  Even at my host sister’s 6 yr-old birthday party, the music was up and the little kids were dancing in groups and pairs. I got to lead them in a little dance circle J

·         The dancing is most commonly to salsa, cumbia, or whino (I’m totally spelling that wrong). Whino is an ironic name because it actually sounds like they are whining in some of the songs. But it’s growing on me and they love it here in town. The dance to whino is really cool- it’s a partner dance (all the dances here are) and basically you jump and stomp your feet to the rhythm and occasionally rotate sides with your partner. It’s really fun!

·         They sing “happy birthday” in English first then Spanish. Not sure where the tradition started, but it always amuses me to hear the thick Peruvian accents sing “hhheppy bartday”

·         La Hora Loca (the crazy hour)- this happens at the end of the party- and it really is crazy! There is certain music that goes along with it, and there are balloons, streamers, spray confetti, and entertainers. Saw my first one at one of the parties…enough to make your head spin!

·         My host brother turned 14 and his party was really fun- his friends sung in their own style and shoved some cake in his face and we danced a lot. Nick, my sitemate, was there too, and they had us show them how “Americans dance.” We even did the “going fishing” move..ha!

I feel like there is more to say but I can’t possibly write it all. I’ll write again soon with some more cultural tidbits!

I can’t believe it’s October already! Craziness. In Maryland its football, fall and the start of the school year. But here things are a bit different, so with the advice of a good family friend (thanks Mr. Pat J), I’m going to share a bit of the intricacies of life and culture here…Take it with a grain of salt and remember there are strange things about American culture, too.

1.       You can’t flush toilet paper down the toilet- the pipes aren’t strong enough. Also, its BYOTP, or bring your own toilet paper, because you often won’t find it in the bathroom.

2.       Here the school year starts in March and ends in December, but right now the teachers are on strike so they will likely be going through January.

3.       They are all about their fiestas (parties/fairs). Since I’ve been here there have been 2 already, and I haven’t seen the biggest one yet. Parades, dancing, music, and culture. I like that they have traditional dances and celebrations, we don’t really get that in the US.

4.       It’s totally PC to call someone “gordita” (little fat person), “negro,” (black), “china” (if they look like Asian), or “gringa” (white person) if their skin is lighter. They are actually used as terms of endearment. They are very direct here about physical appearance and no one gets offended.

5.       In general, the cultural is more indirect with saying “no”- in fact they don’t often take no for an answer. You have to make up an excuse if, for example, you don’t want to have a drink or eat something with a group.

6.       It is thought that cold drinks are not good for you, but cold showers are okay.

7.       Here they take mototaxis to get around town- Three-wheeled bikes with motors more or less. They have a steel frame but the material of the body is more like canvas, and the sides are open. It’s quite funny the first time you see it. And they drive super fast. They only people that have cars here are the wealthy and they transportation companies.

8.       You can walk almost everywhere, which I really like. I can walk to work in 5-10 mins and find pretty much everything I need in the local stores. They have internet cafes too but the signal is really weak.

For my next post, I’ll brainstorm some more and share more details. It’s starting to seem normal here so it’s harder to point out the cultural differences, but I suppose that’s a good thing J

Until Next Time!