Alma Micuy

November 1st this year was not just a candy-hangover day.  It was All Saint's Day.

All Saint's Day is the day that the souls of dead loved ones come back to visit their families.  In preparation, families cook all their favorite foods.

Friday morning, the house turned into a well oiled, food-making machine.

The butcher shop...

was next to the kitchen...

and out back is where I spent most of the day turning wheat into flour.

(remember when flour came in bags?)

For two days, we made various dishes in enormous quantities.  Every time one was finished, we all took a break to eat a little.

We cooked,

we ate,

Mazamorra de Calabaza

Arroz con Carne 

Duraznos (peaches)

we cooked some more,

and then some of us got tired and took a nap.

In the middle of the day on Saturday, we took a break to go to the cemetery.  All the graves were elaborately decorated with flowers, with family members huddled around, drinking and spending time with their loved ones.

By Saturday evening, the table was filled to the brim with a variety of food.

The sweet

The salty

The priest came and blessed the food,

And then we ate enough to make Thanksgiving jealous.

(but don't worry, Thanksgiving, it was just a warm-up).

Overall, it was a great way to spend some time with my host family, and wind down after a few weeks of work.

Speaking of work, the video-a-day idea was absolutely not mine, and I probably won't continue to do it, but I thought it was a nice way to document what a few weeks in site look like for me.  

September to Remember

September was a very full month. 

It started with the Fiesta Patronal here in Tantará.  My little town suddenly became filled to the brim with people, fireworks, and giant pots cooking over fires.  It was a week of family, food, and music.  There were soccer games, a band playing almost constantly, and even running with the bulls.

And then there was the parade (to which Captain America and Rambo made appearances). 

Right after the party, it was off to Iquitos. 

Iquitos is the largest city in the world that cannot be accessed by car.  The only way there is by air or by boat. 

We spent the first few days there visiting a butterfly sanctuary, a manatee rehabilitation center, and a seasonal animal care facility where we got to hold all sorts of jungle animals. 

Then the main event: the raft race. 

Thursday we went to Nauta where we were given materials to build a raft.  Of course, we knew nothing about building a raft, so we left that to the locals. 

Friday morning, we climbed onto our boat and started paddling. 

In 3 days, we paddled 112 miles down the Amazon, for a total of about 23 hours. 

The Amazon is the most astonishingly large river I have ever seen.  During the many times we had to cross, it seemed to go on forever and ever.  It is so large that our perspective was constantly playing tricks on us.  At times, the shore would seem close, but then we would notice the tiniest speck near the trees that was another boat.

Sun burnt and exhausted, we arrived in Iquitos on Sunday and stumbled onto shore.  After all that, we won 2^nd place in the all-women category, which came along with a very nice trophy and little extra cash for our pockets. 

We were more or less adopted by a Peruvian team who helped us fix our boat on the first day.  They also won 2^nd in their category. 

And in the end, they told us that this year, the race was accepted into the Guinness Book of World Records for the longest raft race in the world.    So that’s pretty cool. 

While maybe not the most restful vacation, it was a wonderful way to spend a week with friends in the jungle.  And if we can row a water-logged, half-sinking, balsawood raft 112 miles down the Amazon, we can do almost anything.

It was an exciting month, but I am back now, and gearing up to work hard for the next few months before my next vacation: the US of A!

Work Hard, Play Hard

Eight months in site have come and gone, and I’ve recently realized that I have yet to write anything about the work that I’m doing. 

I have two primary projects: working with moms, and working with teens. 

Moms:

I work with moms who have children under 3 years old and pregnant women in two different districts: Tantará, where I live, and Huamatambo, which is about a 2 hour walk.  The goal is to educate them on nutrition, early childhood stimulation, and prevention of diseases, while promoting healthy habits within the household.  The way to achieve this is through house visits, house visits, and more house visits.

A nutrition session in Huamatambo

First, with my Health Center, we elected and trained Health Promoters so that they can also visit moms to reinforce healthy practices.

My Health Promoters

I have just finished visiting houses with my Health Promoters to do a baseline survey.  This month, we’ll start teaching on an individual basis how they can have healthier, happier kids. 

Demonstrating proper hand-washing

Teens:

I have a group of 8 teens (between 12 and 16 years old) doing a program called Pasos Adelante (Steps Forward).  Pasos focuses on sexual and reproductive health, but also covers self-esteem, values, future plans, etc.  With the obstetrician in my Health Center, we meet about two times a month after school and talk about different themes.  The plan is that next year, they will act as leaders in their community and go into classrooms to teach their peers. 

Playing games

In addition to all that, I also find plenty of time to relax.  Here are some photos of other things that have been happening:

Denis' visit:

Ollantaytambo

Machu Picchu

Salineras

Town parade for Fiestas Patrias (Peruvian Independence Day) 

A trip over the mountains:

We found snow!

Obligatory landscape shot