We went to the prison again on Friday, but this time under much more relaxing pretenses. Usually on Fridays, the volunteers go to the prison to pick up the kids, and take them out to the zoo, etc. Yesterday was the anniversary of the prison (a celebratory event, I guess) and there were fewer guards on duty, so they didn’t want us leaving with the kids. Instead we just hung out in the women’s courtyard and played with them. I made tons of origami balloons and star boxes; they were a big hit with the niños!
Later on Friday we went to “Señorita Identidad Sumaq Wataya 2010”; a pageant in which they crown the “Rural Miss Ayacucho” for Carnaval (the night before was the pageant for the city girls). The traditional costumes were way cool! We tried to guess who we thought would win, but we were way off. There were only 3 or 4 girls who didn’t look scared out of their minds, and the winner ended up being one of the more nervous looking girls. She hardly smiled the whole time! It turns out that the competition was less about personality and beauty, and more about authenticity and knowledge of the region they came from. Overall an interesting cultural experience. (Pictures below)
Saturday was--somewhat--a day to relax. We got to sleep in, which was great, and then we went to the first day of Carnaval parades at the main plaza. This seemed like a good idea at the time, but we didn’t realize that the water balloon throwing was at its peak, and will be until Monday. It’s literally stressful going outside. Not only do you begin to flinch every time a bird or butterfly flies by (because it may or may not be a water balloon), but the sound of children’s footsteps also becomes nerve-wracking. Top that off with incessant catcalls from drunk Peruvian men, and being laughed at by any and all locals because you are a “gringa muy mojada” (soaking wet white girl), and you have essentially become the butt of everyone’s joke. Needless to say, I’m ready for Carnaval to be over.
We actually didn’t end up dancing with Santa Elena Health Clinic today because they recently decided to join the strike, and weren’t sure if they were going to participate in the parade. Since there aren’t any other health clinics that CCS sends volunteers to, it looks like Laura, Natalie, and I won’t be working in a clinic for a while. Although I am disappointed about the strike, there are a lot of other really cool places we will work in the meantime. I’ll keep you posted!
Below are some pictures from around Ayacuho.
Girls from CCS in the Plaza Mayor
(Brunette on left is Kaitlan, blonde in the middle is Laura,
and the tall blonde on the sidewalk is Natalie)
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