Palm Sunday

Semana Santa has begun! Palm Sunday was a blast. We started off the morning by attending mass at the main cathedral, and although we couldn’t understand anything that was going on, it was still a great intro to the day ahead. After mass we grabbed some ice cream and watched a procession that was passing through the Plaza Mayor (the first of three that day).

 Waiting outside the cathedral before Mass

The 1st procession of the day

Right after lunch we went to the other side of town, where, we were told by Rudy and Marisol, was “the place to be”. They were not wrong. The whole street was taken up by what can only be described as a giant Peruvian block party. People, horses, donkeys, llamas, and alpacas alike were dressed in traditional costumes, and everywhere you looked, free food and beer were being doled out. We ran into our program director, Rudy, who not only introduced us to his whole family, but to the Mayor of Ayacucho and his family as well. 

It seems I always have to include one cute animal picture, so here is today's: A Llama in a Peruvian costume.

There was music, dancing, drinking, and eating all the way up until the procession started, and once it had passed, everyone followed it all the way back to the Plaza Mayor. It was a long but fun walk, and when we arrived we (naturally) stopped at La Miel for some cake/empanadas/milkshakes while we waited for the third procession of the day. We waited for what seemed like--and really was--hours to see Jesus arrive on his donkey, and finally, in the midst of hundreds of people waving palms and singing, a life-sized Jesus mannequin precariously perched on a donkey passed our way. 

The third procession

What a long, exciting, catholic tradition-filled day... We were all ready for bed, as I imagine was the rest of Ayacucho. 

Zoo Outing with the Prison Kids

We finally got to take the prison children out to the zoo today! Actually getting the children out of the prison was a bit trying; lots of paperwork and waiting around, but in the end it was very much worth it. The truth is that unless we make the effort to take them out (which is supposed to happen every Friday) these kids never see anything but the inside of the prison. For some of them, today was their first time outside in a long time. Sária, my “buddy” for the day, had not been out in a while, so she pointed out every car, dog, and “Mamita” on the way to and from the zoo; it was so adorable how fascinated she was by everything!

Sária and I watching the Andean Condors

The zoo from above

A Tamarind

Literally the most beautiful eyes ever found on a living thing. (This is a Vicuña, the official animal of Peru, and my new favorite; apparently it's wool is softer even than Alpaca)

Wilmer and Sária. We told Sária to show us her teeth (trying to get her to smile), and this is what she did. Ha.

Most of the kids, and some of the volunteers. (Left to Right: Vikki, Nicolas, Ruth, Miriam, Me and Sária, Wilmer, Alexandria, and Davis)

Health Workshops and Other Adventures

Seeing as it’s unlikely the strike will end before any of my group leaves Ayacucho (it’s been 7 weeks thus far, and still going strong), we decided to organize healthcare workshops for two local elementary schools. Our first task was to teach 13 classes from grades one to six about the importance of hand washing/how to do it correctly. We made posters, organized a skit (of which I was the narrator), and just went for it. We were a little shaky at first, but by classroom #4, we were pros; “¿Porque necesitamos lavar las manos? ¡Para que no se pongan enfermos!”

Our germ, Pattie, did a great job.

Explaining the steps of hand-washing

The other half of our workshop was dedicated to teaching a group of 25 elementary school teachers the Heimlich maneuver, CPR, and what to do if a child suffers a concussion. We were a bit nervous about this part of the plan, seeing as none of us are truly certified to teach any of these things, but in a city as poor as Ayachucho, we figured that something is better than nothing—especially when it comes to basic first aid. In the end, our first aid class turned out to be the most rewarding aspect of our workshops. The teachers were all very interested in learning these techniques, and had a ton of questions to ask afterwards. It was astounding the amount of false information they had—mostly old wife’s tales about how to treat certain injuries—so it was great that we were there to “myth bust” (if you will).

Our audience for the First-Aid class

Explaining CPR

Also, a few days before we did the workshops, I was able to go to the Prison Tópico (a small emergency clinic) with one of our other volunteers, Karen, who is an RN. The first day I went, I just observed, but the following day Karen taught me how to give both IM and IV shots! It was surprisingly similar to administering shot on animals, so I picked it up pretty quickly, and by the end of the morning had done about 10 IM and 4 IV shots. Finally, some hands-on learning!!

When the weekend arrived, most of our group went to the coast (Ica, Paracas, and Pisco), but those of us that stayed (myself included) decided to go for a hike. It started out with some treacherously steep stairs, but soon more or less leveled out into a dirt road. At the very top of the hill was a little “recreo” which around here means “a restaurant with an outdoorsy theme”, so we bought some peach juice (found everywhere in Ayacucho), and enjoyed the view for a while.

Hiking!

The little hut is where we drank our juice, and the view below is all of Ayacucho

A few other exciting things have happened this week, as well. First of all, we had a (minor) earthquake here, which Laura and I decided was both scary and fun. We also went to some new places this week, namely a medicinal plant/herb garden at the University of Ayacucho, as well as a “model community.” The garden belonged to one of the University’s nursing staff, who specializes in teaching traditional medicine. Although teaching traditional medicine to nursing students may seem a little odd, the truth is that in Ayacucho, it would be ignorant not to. So many of the people here (especially those from rural areas) still rely on/believe in traditional medicine that it is necessary for healthcare professionals to know and understand these beliefs because in many cases, doctors and nurses must modify treatments in order to gain consent from their “traditionally minded” patients. As for the “model community”, this is a rural community outside of Ayacucho that has worked hard to establish quality schools, a clean and accessible health clinic, trash-free roads, and promote general cleanliness and health within households, all of which was visibly noticeable. The only depressing fact about this town was that the small clinic we visited (see picture below) was the only clinic serving 11 communities, or what are around 3,000 people. What’s more, they don’t even have a doctor, simply because the Ministry of Health claims they cannot afford it.

The only Puesto de Salud (Health Clinic) for 11 towns

Peru has "universal healthcare", and thus it only costs one Nuevo Sol or so to get various treatments.

The center of town

On a different note, I’ve decided to try (keyword: try) to go to Machu Picchu. I have bought my plane ticket to Cuzco and back, but there is a large chance I will not be able to get a train ticket to Machu Picchu itself. The train tracks have been repaired enough to allow access to the ruins, but last time I checked, the train was completely booked until May; probably due to the fact that everyone knew something I didn’t, and booked their train ticket months ago for when Machu Picchu finally re-opened. Oh well. Cuzco is supposed to be gorgeous, and there are plenty of Incan ruins to see in the Sacred Valley. (Plus, not seeing Machu Picchu this trip is just another reason to come back to Peru in the future—or at least this is how I’m justifying it to myself.)

So much has happened this week!

WOW. What a week it’s been.

For the third installment of International Women’s Week on Thursday, we organized a soccer game for the women. I’m not sure how, but Kaitlan and I were roped into being the referees of the game; apparently necessary because none of the women within the prison were unbiased enough. We only ended up calling out-of-bounds and goals, but it was fun to be involved in the whole thing!

Las Árbitros, ie. Referees

Team picture!

On Friday, I joined Laura and Mike to Huanta, the “emerald of the Andes”. Apparently there was a waterfall and a lookout that we didn’t get to visit, but it was still cool to see another city in the area.

Beautiful view from the Pikimachay Cave, where they have found mammoth bones, as well as the first evidence of Maize in South America

And then the fun really began. Regardless of the fact that I somehow got sick with an impossibly sore throat over the course of Friday night, we got up at 6:30 am on Saturday and headed out on our “Llama Trek”. If there is one word to describe this experience it would be breathtaking, but if I could use a few more words they would be amazing, authentic, and eye-opening, to name a few. We began with a two-hour drive, but it hardly seemed long at all because of—here is the word—the BREATHTAKING view. It’s hard to liken it to any landscape I’ve seen before, and unfortunately the pictures don’t really do it justice, but suffice it to say that you’ve not experienced Peru until you’ve seen the Andean countryside.

The Andean countryside... So beautiful.

We weren't the only ones using the road.

Before the actual Llama Trek portion of the trip, we stopped at two pueblitos (little towns) to meet the locals; and my, how local they were. No more than six people came to greet us at the first pueblo, but their dress and demeanor were so traditional that it almost seemed staged. The women—regardless of age—were wearing the skirt, hat, and manta (shawl) so typical of the Andes, and the men had their traditional hats and manta’s as well. I ended up buying a hat from this town; handmade from Alpaca wool they spun themselves.

At the Santa Fe pueblo, where I got my hat

Couldn't resist posting this picture; Andean puppy in a sweater. 

Does it get any cuter??

Between the first pueblo and the next we took a quick hike to a waterfall. Again—BREATHTAKING. At this point we were at about 15,000 feet, so our guide, Alejo, gave us all some Mate de Coca, (Coca Tea) which among many other properties happens to relieve altitude sickness. With Mate de Coca in hand, we headed to the waterfall.

My roommates and I drinking our Mate de Coca

"The hiiills are aliiiive with the sound of muuuusiiiicccc!!!"

Llamas!!

The second pueblo was warned of our arrival, and it seemed to me that the whole town showed up to meet us. In preparation the day before, we bought LOADS of bread, sweets, and a few school supplies to give to the villagers in exchange for the use of their Llamas and Alpacas during the trek. Handing out these gifts was totally hectic, as each Mamá has at least five children, but regardless, they were so excited it was hard to be anything but happy.

Niños at the second pueblo, who's Llamas we borrowed.

Due to the fact that my lungs were already weak because of my sickness, and that I would be spending the proceeding night in the Ayacucho hospital observing an OB/GYN (more on that in a second), I didn’t actually do the trekking part of our trip; I instead went with Alejo in the van to the top of the hill where we were going to meet the rest of the group. Not a bad deal, actually. On the way we stopped at a lone hut, where a middle-aged Peruvian woman sat spinning wool in her yard. Although from a distance her hut in seemed so “cute” and “quaint”, the reality of her living situation is anything but. She essentially lives alone, as her daughter (one of five; she would have had more children, she told us, if her husband hadn’t died) spends the daylight hours working with the Llamas and Alpacas. The hut itself was tiny, without electricity, water, mattresses, or heating of any kind (it gets quite cold at 15,000ft, even in Peru), and so isolated she probably never sees anyone but her daughter. We gave her some bread and sweets, and she said “thank you” about 20 times for visiting. 

When we reached the top of the hill, I slept in the car for a while, knowing that any sleep was good sleep in light of my evening plans, and a while later I perched on a rock overlooking the valley and listened to some music. Not bad at all.

We were back at the CCS house around six, which gave me just enough time to eat, rest for a second, call Preston, and get ready for a long night before heading to the hospital. Basically, Marisol knows an OB/GYN who allows us to join him for his night shifts every once in a while. We were only observing, but what an observation experience it was! Natalie and I arrived at 8pm, and by 11pm we were in the operating room watching our first C-Section. Seeing as I had never before seen a (human) surgery, it was a bit dizzying at first, but I quickly got over it and watched the second C-Section of the night in it’s entirety. WOW. It was incredible to see the first few minutes of not one, but two baby’s lives in one night.

So although we haven’t been quite so lucky with the whole “healthcare volunteering thing” because of the strike, last night really did make up for it. 

Lima Trip and International Women's Day

After surviving the infamous 10 hour night bus from Ayacucho on Thursday night, we finally made it to Lima! What an awesome city. We stayed at a hostel called Kokopelli, and it was the perfect place to be. The hostel was in Miraflores, a great neighborhood that not only is near the beach, but has a park, a grocery store, and a Starbucks(!)—a bit different from Ayacucho, to say the least. Our first day there (Friday), Laura, Natalie and I went to the Lima CCS house to ask about the possibility of transferring to Lima if the strike in Ayacucho continued. Their house was beautiful, and we apparently hit it just right because there was home-made Thai food served for lunch, as well as pear pie and ice cream to celebrate one of the Cooks’ birthday. So delicious! They were very receptive to the idea of us transferring there, but the CCS HQ in New York wasn't so keen on the idea... It was worth a try, though!

After lunch we headed to the beach. It turned out to be a great surf spot, and although I didn’t surf myself, it was fun to watch.

What a view.

In the "Parque de los Amantes" (Lover's Park)

Parque de los Amantes

At the beach!

Saturday was a day of shopping—as if we haven’t bought enough in Ayacucho—but it’s hard to resist in Lima. In the park near our hostel, there is a street lined with artists and their work, with all sorts of beautiful watercolors and oil paintings being sold for a mere 20 soles (about $7). As it was Amelia’s last day, we basically spent the rest of the day on the roof of our hostel, playing cards and enjoying the sun. It was sad to see Amelia go…

Sunday we headed to the historic center of Lima—the Plaza de las Armas—and spent a couple of hours walking around. The buildings are all huge, colonial, and gorgeous.

Plaza de las Armas

For our last night in Lima, we treated ourselves to dinner at a restaurant called Mangos in the Lorcomar mall. Since Lima essentially sits on a gigantic cliff with the ocean below, the mall was built into the side of the cliff, allowing all the restaurants an amazing view of the ocean. I ate my risotto, sipped a Pisco sour, and watched the sunset. So even though we had to say goodbye to both Lindsay and Amelia, overall it was a great weekend.

Dinner at Mangos

(Left to Right: Heather, Lindsay, Natalie, Mike, Laura, Kaitlan)

A night on the town.

(Left to Right: Heather, Me, Natalie, Laura)

Although exhausted from the night bus back to Ayacucho, we did go to placement on Monday. It was International Women’s Day (which we are turning into International Women's Week), and all of us went to the Prison to celebrate with the ladies. Marisol and the prison management have organized a different activity for every day this week, starting with a "women's empowerment seminar" of sorts on Monday, and a talent show on tuesday. The prison ladies LOVED it. It is great for them not only to have fun, but also to feel important--in even the smallest of ways--as their life in prison is very monotonous and depressing.

At the women's empowerment seminar

The first dancing act of the talent show. 

Half of the women dressed up as men for the dance, it was hilarious!

Another dancing act

Oshin, one of our favorites, did a solo dance with some really fancy footwork!

This lady's whole act consisted of dressing up in a silly costume and grabbing the only "gringito" in the prison to dance with... Poor Mike! Laura was very proud.

Niños dressed up to dance with their mothers, so adorable!!

On a very different note, three exciting things have happened in the past few days: 1) We got six new volunteers, 2) I got my MCAT scores back, and I’m very satisfied with them, and 3) Preston was accepted into UW Law School!!!!! I’m so happy for him! CONGRATS, PRES!!!

Although I told some of you that the strike was finally over, no surprise, it actually isn't. Since it's looking like we won't EVER get to work in clinics, we are starting a "hygiene project" in which we're planning on going to schools, wawa wasis (daycares), and the prison to give basic health lessons. It should be fun!