How many days does it take you to get to site?

So I know that it has been an extremely long time since I have blogged and I do apologize for that. These last few weeks have literally been crazy, and I have had no time to really do anything on the computer. I am going to have to start with site visits.

Site Visits were a crazy experience, we got our sites and then are literally shipped off two days later to see the town you will be living in for the next two years. You stay with your family that you will be living with too, so you can get a feel for if your living situation will work out too.

After arriving in Cajamarca after a bus ride from hell-o, I then left with my socios to go to my site. Socios are people that want to work with you in the community, they will be the people (if you are lucky) that want to work with you, and want to help you get integrated into the community and start projects. When I first met my socios I was surprised at how enthusiastic they were because it seems like I have only heard horror stories of all the socios of other volunteers. My socios, chris and one of his socios, and myself all took a night time bus to Chota which is further up north and is where I will be having all my department meetings, because I am too far away from Cajamarca City to travel all the way down there. We arrived in Chota at 3AM and Chris and I traveled to the hostal where we stayed, and we made plans for our socios to meet us there at 7:30 to go to breakfast and then head off to our sites.

6:30 my phone rings. I wake up in a haze, and answer it without looking, immediately sit up because Spanish is being spoken on the other side and extremely fast Spanish at that. I immediately explain I was not listening to that and to repeat, just so happens my socios are in the hotel lobby and want to go get breakfast. I explained that we were still sleeping, and they proceeded to come up to our room, where they sat down as I was still in my bed and so was Chris. We then discussed that we would get up and get ready, and we all went to get breakfast. I would just like to explain it is extremely rare to find Peruvians that are on time let alone early, but my socios are, and I am finding more and more that in Cutervo my new home many people are on time for things, which is great news!

After breakfast we proceeded to travel to our sites, the pictures below are of the drive to Chris’s site and to my site. The drive is through the mountains on a one way road, that most often has two way traffic, it is not at all safe, but I am going to be using this passage all the time ha oh how terrifying! Finally we get to Chris’s site, and after we dropped him off we started the ascent up to my site, which is still further up the mountain. My socios started giving me alcohol in the car, said it would warm me up, I gladly accepted, and the ride up the mountain became a little less terrifying J

I finally reached my site an hour and half later! I have a great family. I live with my mom, dad, and two siblings, Niyah who is 10 and Pedro who is 12. Pedro has down syndrome and he goes to the CEBE (special ed school) that I will be working with. When a site is created, people have to request a volunteer. Teachers at the CEBE requested that I come to Cutervo, so I will primarily be working in this school. My mom is crazy, she doesn’t seem very Peruvian more like someone from Spain, which is where some of her family lives. My brother is very loud and loves to give hugs and tickles, it is definitely a crazy house. My little sister Niyah, actually takes care of Pedro a lot, she seems to look after him all the time, she doesn’t act like she is 10 because I think she has had to grow up rather quickly, I can tell she is really happy to have me living with her, another person to help and to hang out with.

My first night at sight visit was kind of crazy because I was left alone with Pedro in the streets of Cutervo, he was running around infront of moto taxis and I was trying to get him to come sit with me while we waited for his mom, who was in a religious meeting thing. Finally we were able to go home and I went to get some much needed rest.

I woke up the next morning fresh and ready to start the day, I accompanied my mom and brother to the CEBE and I met the two other students that were there that morning (there are 16 alumnos that attend in total) and I got to sit down with the teachers and talk about why I am here and clear up some misconceptions about my work. I did learn that the CEBE is extremely excited to have me working with them, and they are pumped about getting some stuff going. It is kind of weird though because they seem to have it together other CEBE’s I went to in Piura were so different than this, I feel lucky but at the same time overwhelmed because I don’t know what I am going to do. However it was only the first day so I have time (2 years) to figure it out J

Later that afternoon the town was having a bienvenida for me, I didn’t know exactly what to expect but a little after three I walked into a room full of people and full of kids from the CEBE. I was sat behind a head table in the front of the room with my mom, the ALCALDE and the Director of the UGEL. There were many speeches and I was presented with a shoulder messenger bag that says Cutervo. I was then asked to give a speech which I did, and I think it went very well, my mom said that she understood everything and that I did a great job. I was then presented with a huge bouquet of flowers by one of the students from the CEBE, and they were so beautiful, I was so shocked and happy. They had people dance for me and after the ceremony ended we took pictures with everyone. Later that night my mom invited me to go to a ceremony for a saint in the streets with her, and so I accepted the invitation which I will be doing for the next three months so I can learn more about the culture and meet more people. However this ceremony was in the freezing cold cutervo weather, I had leggings, jeans and two north faces on, and I was still not warm not to mention I got my first sick wave since I have been in Peru, I could feel my stomach starting to hurt and I knew it wasn’t going to be a fun night. After the service ended I helped my mom serve sandwiches and coffee to all the people in the streets, and then I helped clean up, and I thought I was finally going to be able to return to the house and go to bathroom, get in bed, and get warm. I was wrong, there was going to be a small group staying and listening to and signing music to a guitar. We sat outside for another 3 hours until 1 in the morning. During this time I fell asleep and I asked several times to leave, and was always told one more song, finally when we did get home I had to dominate the bathroom, and I couldn’t get warm.

The next morning I woke up still sick, and started my journey back to the capital city with Chris because site visits were coming to an end. I left my house feeling sick and week and not looking forward to the bus rides that were to come. I was a little overwhelmed and just needed a bed, we finally made it back to Cajamarca the next day and were on the bus home to Lima.

The final week in Lima was crazy, all the days consisted of wrap up sessions. Matt, Kyle, and myself cooked blue cheese stuffed hamburgers to my family, and mashed potatoes with cheese, both of which were delicious. We also had a jam session in Matt’s living room, everyone was singing and just hanging out, it was perfect for the last week. We also went and ate Tacos at our favorite Taco/Pizza place in Chosica, and it was sad to know we won’t be getting those for a very very very long time…Thursday was the day for our host families, we had a party and everyone cooked. I made bacon and macaroni and cheese and cheesy potatoes, it was so much work but so worth it. The party was such a success and we had a enough food which I was extremely worried about. That night we went and hung out at Richard’s house for his moms birthday and all had a great time, it was just another night of hardly any sleep, right before swearing in. I showed up at the training center in shorts and a t-shirt and everyone was rushing to get themselves ready because we had pictures and some last sessions for swearing in. I can’t believe I actually pulled myself together, but I made it and after a ceviche lunch we had our swearing in ceremony. It was short and sweet and all 51 of us were sworn in as volunteers. It is the first time since 2004 that everyone from staging has made it to be a sworn in volunteer J

Matt and Me at the St. Eulalia Training Center

Sabrina and Me before swearing in :)

 Kyle and myself after a few tears :)

Goofy. Nick.

Friday night I ate dinner with Matt’s family and then we went and met up with all the other volunteers in Chosica where we all celebrated our last night together. Just imagine a Peruvian dance club with the sweat and the smoke and the craziness of dancing and super loud music, then imagine 20 gringos crying in the middle…and that pretty much sums up the end of the night. I had to say goodbye to some really great friends on Friday night, because we all had to go our separate ways the next day. Saturday morning I was frantically packing what was left in my room, and Sabrina and I made our way up the hill to Matt’s where we all said goodbye. It was my least favorite part of my time in Peru, but it had to happen and the longest trip ever to site began.

I got on the bus at 4:45pm and immediately fell asleep only to wake up the next morning at 7:30 in Cajamarca city, what a great way to spend a bus ride, passed out from not having slept and being emotionally drained..i felt so much better when I woke up. We spent Sunday in Cajamarca city we ate and went around and bought our last few things that we were going to need, and on Monday morning I was able to eat a fruit salad and get my things ready to go to my site. Our regional director was taking Chris, Josh, and myself to Chota, because we had so much stuff and it was half way to Chris and my sites. We dropped off Josh at his new host family in Bambamarca and then Chris and I had to stay in Chota because it was already too late to catch a collectivo. We made our way the next morning with Jose to find a taxi for us to take, only to find out that they didn’t go until late in the day because the road was closed for construction. Jose then decided he would take Chris and I to Chris’s site, and I could wait for the road to open and take a taxi, so we made that ride to Chris’s where we walked around his town, sat in the middle of a river on rocks and I read my kindle. Then we ate lunch, where I had fish (with the bones) for the first time, it was actually really good. After lunch we went and waited for a cab for me to take to my site, and we actually ended up finding a combi ( a little van thing) and I was off, by myself like I will be for the next two years! After an extremely terrifying ride I made it to my host family where I was greeted with open arms. I immediately left though to meet up with my site mate, Chris Huey, who is amazing. He had to leave to go meet his girlfriend Katie who is moving to our site for the next year, and so he gave me a quick tour and told me where I could find some great food and other things, and it was so helpful. After my tour I returned to my family and we talked I gave them the things I had bought in Lima for their kitchen (knives, pan, etc.) and I started unpacking some of my stuff. I taught my little sister go fish and then finally called it a night.

Today my sister gave me a tour of the town and I have unpacked my bags and would say I am 90% done with organizing my room, it sure is a process.

Tomorrow I plan on going to the CEBE and doing non-formal interviews with the teachers and hanging out there all morning. I want to find somewhere to work out in the afternoon and I want to study some Spanish, and talk with my family. These next three months are more free to explore, and learn about the culture, because we have to do a community diagnostic, which we will then present in November with all of the other youth volunteers.

I am excited to be here, but I do miss my friends, but I am going to be making new friends here everyday, and I can’t wait to get started.