Sweet, sweet classroom memories

Ya know, classroom aren´t all that different around the world. Brian and I gave a class on self-esteem to some third graders in our barrio. They had never heard of it, so we first did a play about the issue and then modeled a ¨self portriat¨. In the drawing, the kids were supposed to draw a picture of themselves including all of the things that they feel they are good at/like to do. I´m not so sure I want to translate this kiddo´s drawing, but the same would always happen in my classroom in the states too. Except that we´d have to turn the drawing into the school counselor. Albeit, the sweetie was quite proud, and I´m sure that was good for his self-esteem!!

Sleep, guinea pigs, and organic coffee

Okay, first the photos (left to right, top to bottom):

Brian with our host brother in Chosica, a nursery in Sicchez (Piura) where a grower association is raising trees to reforest their fields, a typical view of where we will be living (green hills all around...pretty!!), playing volleyball in the rain in the town center of Sicchez (can you find the gringa?), the road leading up to our house in Sicchez (the smoke is from the fire for breakfast - they cook with firewood), a garden at the local school, a typical view of a road in Sicchez, our new home, school kids in Chosica (Brian and I gave a lesson on self esteem), our host sister and brother in their uncanny sleeping positions.

Our site visit to Sicchez was awesome, kind of like we walked into a Peace Corps dream village. A seven hour bus ride from Piura city takes you up into the hills that get greener and greener the higher you go. Our site is at about the same altitude as Denver. Every hill in site is completely covered by agriculture, the people there take advantage of every square inch of land. It´s a bit strange to the eyes at first, we´re so used to seeing mountains with intact forest. They mostly grow sugar cane, coffee, bananas, mangoes, avocados, chirimoya (deeeelicious), papaya, and other fruits in their fields. There is an intact forest just beyond our caserio (pueblo) that one can explore...we can´t wait to check it out!! There are other caserios nearby, and Sicchez is kind of like the ¨city¨that governs the other little pueblos. The closest caserio is about a 45 minute walk away. The climate is subtropical, with a 3-4 month rainy season between January and March/April.

Brian and I were treated with such respect and kindness during our visit. About an hour after meeting our new family, we went to a meeting with all of the community leaders. They had so many kind words for us and are very motivated to better their community. We all introduced ourselves, shared some sugar cane liquor and ate dinner (chicken with some vegetables). Over the next two days we were showed around the town and learned all about how things are organized. There is a strong association of organic coffee and sugar cane growers in Sicchez. They work with an NGO to export their product; these same growers are working the the NGO to reforest their farms. Sicchez is extremely proud of their organic products and the leaders of the community have a slowly developing sense of environmental consciousness. They also have a organic milk and yogurt project that some older students of the local school are working on and an organic garden in the secondary school. It seems like the community is very united and organized, but I think our work will lie in tying the vision held by the community leaders into everyday action taken by the people themselves. Even in a town with organic coffee and a garden in the school, there is a lot to do with bettering the projects they already have, waste management, viviendas saludables (healthy rural homes), nutrition, education, and helping them to develop these goals sustainably.

Our family is very cute and kind, the grandma of age 83 has infinite energy - she cooks, cleans and generally runs the home. Our room is a bit small but big enough for a bed, dresser, and gas burner for cooking. There are no vegetables in Sicchez, and only a tiny store with basic provisions. So we´ll have to travel 7 hours to Piura once a month to stock up on Angela-approved food.

Our visit also included a meeting with the town leaders of a nearby caserio who also want us to work with them, equipped with sugar cane liquor and beer to quench our thirst. I´ve never sat and drank in a municipality before, but as I said, it´s almost impossible to explain how very hospitable and kind the people of Peru are. The night before we left, the town of Sicchez had a party for us complete with dancing, drinking, and traditional food. As usual, Brian and I had huge plates of food while the others had tiny servings. And the biggest honor of all, guinea pig (¨cuy¨ in Spanish). It was only served to us, as it is considered a delicacy. Yes, the whole animal (head, feet, toenails, rib cage, innards) served up on a plate with potatoes. I had to eat it, as to refuse that kind of generosity would not look so good. We did our best to peel away all of the skin and take out the little meat that existed. Brian is a trooper, but I don´t think he was too crazy about it. The evening ended with beautiful words about how lucky they are to have us and how excited they are to work with us. They are also very excited to meet any and all of our family and friends intrepid enough to journey there. I have to say, it is WELL worth the 7 hour bus ride from Piura to see this beautiful and friendly town!!! We reeeeealy hope you come visit us here!!

In general, Brian and I are excited to just settle in and get our lives situated. These last two weeks of training are kind of gratuitous in my opinion, but we´ll definitely have some sad feelings upon leaving our family in Lima. The first three months in Sicchez we will be doing a baseline study of the community (a diagnostic) --- yes my fellow teachers, it´s data based pedagogy all over again!!! It´s a really good thing though, because that way we will have a more complete view of our community before we make decisions about how to approach different projects. It´s a good way to integrate into the community to since we´ll be mapping, making house visits, conducting interviews, following people during their day, etc. It´s actually exactly like teaching in that you collect lots of data, make decisions, follow through with them, and analyze whether or not you were effective. Peace Corps is not turning out to be a hippie-free-for-all, it´s a pretty legitimate and serious development organization (that sentence is for you, Smith!!) There will definately not be a lack of work.

Also, if you are now tantalized to visit our fair caserio, e-mail me and I can send some dates that the town has festivals and celebrations.

Miss you all!!!

Piura!!!

In three weeks Brian and I will be settling in...our new home, Sicchez, Piura. In fact, we´ll almost be Ecuadorians! About 1,500 inhabitants live in Sicchez, it´s tucked in the Andean foothills and is very green. They grow sugar cane, coffee, bananas, and do small animal husbandry for income. And very hot at 4 degrees south latitude (with a rainy season to boot). In theory, I´ll be working with the municipality on agroecology and reforestation. Brian will ensure the health of all inhabitants. Our tentative family consists of a couple living with their parents. We´ll have electricity, running water a few days a week, and a public phone. All info points to the fact that we´ll have a relatively large room with it´s own entrance with a space to cook (we´d have to buy the stove and stuff - which is generally cheap). If you´re interested in visiting us, be prepared - it´s a 7 hour bus ride from the capital city of Piura. Next week Brian and I will go to Sicchez for seven days to meet our community contacts and stay with our family.
We´re extremely excited and also incredibally overwhelmed right now. The training calendar leaves little room to feel human sometimes, the ¨you are a volunteer 24-7¨mentality. Lots, lots, lots of assignments and requirements.
Aunt Joyce, thanks a million for your letters!! Can you post a comment and tell me what days are good to call you at home during the evening?