Home, Sweet Home

I made it!

After a day in DC, all 57 of us Peru 20 Trainees flooded into the airport and found our way onto a plane to Peru.  We arrived late, gathered our things, and walked out into the Peruvian night with eyes wide.  We had made it.  We were piled onto buses and carted to a retreat center outside of Lima where we spent 2 nights.  During these days I have met and gotten to talk to so many like-minded people and it is wonderful being in such a welcoming and interesting group of individuals.  I was, however, anxious to meet my host family and settle in. 

Waking up to beautiful mountains at the retreat center

Exploring!

Finally, my prayers were answered, and I met Rita.  My new family consists of Rita, her husband Jorge, her 29 year old son Richard and his wife Pilar, and Rita’s daughter Lily who is my age. We came back to Yanacoto, one of the many small communities outside of Lima, and she showed me my new home.  My room is large, with its own door and there is a small sink and toilet right outside in the hall (privacy added with a curtain).  On this floor there is also a large sitting room and Pilar and Richard’s room.  Lily has a room upstairs.  Also upstairs is the kitchen which is attached to the small store that Rita and her husband, Jorge, run.  Through the store is Rita and Jorge’s room, along with a bathroom that has the shower.  Up another level is a patio with long clothes lines, a bird cage with three small yellow birds, and a small enclosure with a very young chicken.

Rita and I ate lunch, and then I unpacked.  Then, enormously relieved, I went upstairs where Rita was beginning to prepare dinner.  It took a bit of convincing, but eventually she let me help cook and we made soup with squash and potatoes and chicken.  While the soup was simmering, Rita showed me her garden.  She has papaya, banana, fig, and lime trees, and countless other plants.  She brought me through all of them, letting me smell leaves, and explaining the medicinal or culinary value of everything.  While some smells I recognized (chive, parsley, oregano), others were foreign and the translations were completely lost on me.  Rita’s garden is complete with 6 guinea pigs (which she is very excited to eat) and 2 chickens.  Apparently there used to be more chickens, but she also used to have a dog who killed them all.  Despite the loss of her chickens, she seemed very sad that her dog had recently died.  Rita then grabbed some long leaves from a plant and we went inside where she used them made tea that tasted slightly of lemongrass. 

My room!

Rita's garden

Our excursion for the night was to a large grocery store where we bought my Tupper so that Rita could pack me lunch.  We chose two: one for lunch and another for fruit.  After a delicious dinner with Jorge, we relaxed for a bit, and then went to bed. 

It has been a hectic few days, but it is very relieving to have a home.  Rita is very motherly, holding my hand when we cross streets and patiently helping me with my Spanish.  She has promised to teach me to sew, cook Peruvian food, and speak Quechua.  The rest of the family is equally welcoming I am feeling very good about living here for the next 10 weeks.