Two Months of Catching Up

It’s been almost two months since my last post so I figure I better write something. The past two months have flown by really, so I’ll begin by going back to December.

Christmas Eve at around 10 PM I went with my family to Chosica to celebrate with the rest of the family. Unfortunately I was feeling terrible that night (sick to my stomach with a headache and a slight fever). I tried my best to appreciate the new traditions I was experiencing while having some really delicious food served to me. At about five minutes til midnight I was told that I would have to say a few words before the entire extended family after the clock struck twelve and it was officially Christmas. This is a tradition in which many family members participate. Naturally I was freaking out; trying to put something together quickly meanwhile a million fireworks were going off all around us. At midnight the entire town explodes in fireworks in celebration of Christ’s birth. It was an amazing sight, standing on the balcony behind the house and watching the entire mountainside light up. The short speech went well and we all toasted and drank a small glass of champagne before sitting down to a delicious spread. By this time it was closer to 2 AM and I was not feeling any better so I went to lie down until we left around 3:30.

The next day, 26th, I flew to Cusco to meet the other 5 YAVs so that we could spend the next couple of weeks visiting MachuPicchu, Lake Titicaca, and Arequipa. The short version: Cusco is very pretty like everyone says, the lake might be a bit overrated, and Arequipa a bit underrated. In Cusco and Puno I ate some delicious pizzas which, as weird as it might sound to those living in America right now, was a SERIOUS highlight of the trip for me. In fact, I ate almost no Criollo (Peruvian) style food during those two weeks which was excellent! In Arequipa we even found Mexican food that actually sort of resembled Mexican food! Of course we visited a lot of churches, museums, monasteries, etc. MachuPicchu itself is truly a wonder of the world.

After getting back to Lima, I had about one day before the arrival of one of my great friends, Sara Schoneberg! That week we spent hanging out and seeing some of the sights Lima has to offer. We spent a good deal of time together with my host brother Nelson and his cousin Marisa who is currently living and going to school in Norway. The four of us had a great time hanging out together and going to the beach.

The last week of January was the Young Environmentalist Congress hosted by the Joining Hands Network of Peru. The Congress was held in the provincial town of Huancavelica and included participants from Peru, Bolivia, and the United States. We spent the week together, living together, eating together, and sharing some incredible experiences with one another. During that time we all learned a great deal about the issues facing our three countries specifically and, more importantly, how these environmental issues impact the entire world community. We witnessed traditional prayers conducted by the native Quechua people as well as visited abandoned mines that were once used to extract mercury from the surrounding mountains. I made a number of friends that week (most of whom were delegates from the United States, it was indescribably awesome to be speaking with a group of gringos in English). Huancavelica is a beautiful place.
The last two weeks I have been back to work, travelling to Lomas with Nelson in order to plan events for the end of the summer (clean a park, beach day, etc.). I have also been busy translating a number of articles that Nelson has recently written for the www.eldiadelpueblo.org website as well as the Joining Hands website. That’s all for now, I had thought of a lot more to say but it will come to me and when it does I will try to post it immediately. I am also working on posting my recent pictures as well.