Friday night we went to Oscar's house (Oscar is the head of technology in the Department of Education) for dinner. We all took a bus there and it was supposed to take about 45 minutes but it took about 2 and a half hours. Our bus driver had no idea where he was going, made about 8 u-turns, and asked many people on the street for directions.
We got there eventually and it was definitely worth the wait. There was lots of great food waiting for us and the food and drinks did not stop coming. After that we went out in Miraflores to dance and then returned to the hotel. Saturday was a day full of shopping for last minute necessities. I bought an extra duffel bag for the extra things I needed, two more soccer balls (I brought one from home as well), a water bottle, and a power strip. That night there was a giant Formula 1 party sponsored by Red Bull in our hotel. Everyone in the hotel told us that there was a guest list but that we could get in since we were staying at the hotel. It turned out we could not get in but we saw lights coming from the building next to ours on the 8th floor. We decided to try and get in. They let us walk right in and didn't charge a cover fee or anything. There were a lot of interesting people there so we did not stick out as badly being American. Unfortunately the Red Bull party was playing music until 6am and it was shaking my room.
I woke up Sunday morning at 9:00 after only about 4 hours of sleep. I got my laundry back from the hotel and finished the last minute packing. We left for the bus station at 11:30 and our bus left shortly after 12. The bus was a double decker with the nicer seats on the bottom and the coach seats on the second level. We sat in the second level but it was still really nice. The seats reclined a lot and there was a nice footrest. The scenery was beautiful as we drove through the mountains and climbed altitude. We stopped at a town for lunch that was at approximately 3,000 meters above sea level. We then arrived at a small town at about 7 and hopped into two taxis. The taxi ride was two hours on a dirt/rock/non-existent road. We went up for the first hour and then down for the second hour crossing over the peak. Paucartambo was better than anyone had imagined. The town square was beautiful and the people were friendly and very interested in us. We ate and drove to where we are staying which is about 25 minutes outside of Paucartambo in a small village named Haullamayo. Our home for the next six weeks is a engineering camp that is guarded by armed military personal and large fences with barbed wire. There is a dining room with meals included (and the meals have all been great so far) and in that same building there is a ping pong, pool, and two foosball (sp?) tables. We then went to our rooms and we are all in the same building right next to the main hall. Everyone got their own room with a comfy bed and our own bathroom! The shower has hot water and I forgot to mention someone comes and cleans the room every day, makes the bed, and does any laundry that we have!!! And it keeps getting better... There is a soccer field, a wall to kick against, and a basketball court in the complex. There is also a building that has a sauna and a small gym so I can do my workouts. Sunday was a late night and Monday was a fun but long day.
Monday morning we went to the Municipality building and met the mayor and a lot of teachers from the area. We walked into a room full of people and had to sit in chairs in front of the room. That was long and awkward but we ate lunch after that and then had a great afternoon. For lunch we went to a trucha farm (trout) where the raise trout and kill them in front of you and then serve ceviche and grilled trout. It was very good. After lunch we drove up the side of the mountain for an awesome panoramic view of the town and mountains. We then drove down a little bit and hiked up a trail. The hike was really fun but we could definitely tell we were at more than 7000 feet above sea level. On our way back down we stopped at some Incan ruins and walked around there for a while. We then went to every place that the Municipality owns (oh yea they run the trout farm too). We went to the stables where they were raising cows for milk and giving baby cows to families so they could produce their own milk. The next stop was a tour of a brand new water production factory and juice/jam factory. We got some nice samples there and then went to a nearby store/factory that sold the products from the water plant and also made milk products. They made different fruit flavored yogurt in clear bags and then froze it and sold them as popsicles. I had a frozen strawberry one and it was amazing. We finally returned to the compound, ate dinner, played some ping-pong, and went to bed.
Tuesday was an early morning and our first day in our first school. For the next two weeks, Sonia, William, and I are in a big school very close to the main plaza. The director or principal of the school is very nice and excited about using the laptops and improving his school. The school has primero y segundario which is basically k-12. There are 18 teachers in the school and many students. We spend one day in a classroom and observe the teacher, fix broken laptops, and help try to incorporate the laptop into lesson plans and academic activities. School starts at 8 and ends at 1. We then get until 3 for lunch and work with the teachers from 3-6. The first day, all three of us were with the primer grado (first grade). I was with primer grado B. I was introduced as professora Rebecca and from then on I had little kids saying "Professora, professora" and "Rebecca, Rebecca, ven aquiÌ". It was hard at times understanding the spanish that the kids spoke because they mumbled or used slang and it was also hard conveying my ideas but the day went more smoothly than I had expected. During recess I started playing fuÌtbol with the boys and was juggling and they were all very impressed. I juggled with my head and one kid was taking a picture of me juggling. I then ran around dribbling the ball and had some 25 or 30 kids chasing me. It was really fun but not very long because I got out to recess late. After those 10 minutes of soccer I was kind of a celebrity with the 3rd through 6th grade boys. In the evening we worked with the teachers and each taught a small group of teachers how to use the mesh network (network between XO laptops) to use activities together. I had my whole group using the chat program and one of the guys said he wished that I would stay in Paucartambo forever. It is nice being appreciated and knowing that we are helping the community. After dinner at the compound/camp/hotel where we are staying I hit the gym and then did abs in the sauna. It was a great first day but very long and tiring.
Today (finally) was fun as well. Today the three of us in my school were all in different second grade classrooms. My teacher was very good and she tried to use the laptops. If she knew how to use the programs better and planned the programs more in advance she would have been amazing. I helped her as much as I could with the programs and that is what we are doing with the teachers in the afternoons. For recess today I walked out of the classroom and was asked by lots of people if I wanted to jugar fuÌtbol. We had a decent game going on and lots of people were watching. After I played for a few minutes 4 girls came up to me and asked if they could play. Of course I said they could and they were actually really good. They said they played together on a team. Here in Peru it is not normal for girls to play soccer. If a girl wants to play a sport they play volleyball. Girl's soccer here is just starting to grow. They did not play at all until I started playing. We then moved from the asphalt field to a grassy area and continued playing. I took a break after that and played a little basketball and then got attacked by little girls screaming "cargarme" (carry me). I made the mistake of picking up one little girl and then had to pick up every little girl. By the end it was definitely an arm workout. We worked with the teachers in the afternoon and helped fix their computers and teach them how to fix common problems that occur with the XO's. We found out that every night at 7 there is indoor soccer in the town's coliseum so Gabriel and I are going to go play tomorrow. Since my school is so close to the main part of the city, when we were walking around as a group in the afternoon random kids would yell from down the street, "Rebecca, hola Rebecca". It was fun to have kids saying hi to me just around the town. There are so many of them that it is hard to remember their names but I am trying.
Becca
ReplyDeleteyou must get some video of your lunchtime soccer games!!