Life in Peru begins...

We've been in Peru for only 5 days, but what a full five days! We've been staying in a small hotel, called the Casa Kolping.  Each day has looked something like this:
Wake at 6:45, shower and dress then go downstairs to have breakfast with some other volunteers.  Breakfast is crusty rolls, thinly sliced ham, a mild white cheese and local jams that are tasty but which I still cannot identify. The coffee is dark and so strong that it's almost syrupy, and I drink it black with a tiny bit of the coarse brown sugar that is provided.  It's different, but good, and gives a caffeine kick that is much needed to stay awake and focused on what we need to hear each day. 

Coffee, hot and strong.




We then walk the four or five blocks to the CUSO office and begin our training sessions, on safety, health, intercultural relationships, politics and history. Throughout the days we have enjoyed forging new friendships with the other volunteers and staff of CUSO.  I am so very impressed by their dedication and passion, and the variety of life experiences and training that they bring to the table.  I think these relationships will be one of the best things about our time in Peru.

All of our training is conducted in Spanish, which has been an enormous challenge to us, but a good one.  If we are ever to become functional in the language, immersion is the only way.  It's been a crash-course in learning to listen.  Listen to every word, every syllable, every letter.  When the traffic noise overwhelms the words of the speaker, and we appear to be confused, another volunteer or one of the staff steps in and translates the most essential parts.  It's been exhausting, humiliating and exhilarating all at the same time.  We certainly have more Spanish than the day we arrived, but much much less than we require to function well here.  We find ourselves exhausted at the end of each day but we are learning.  The ears are beginning to hear what they need to hear, and the next step is getting the mouth to say what the brain is thinking. 

We have a huge amount of admiration for people who learn another language.  I never thought about how difficult that process is before.  When you think and dream in a language, everything is intuitive, and you search only for the best way to express yourself.  When you are learning another language, you search for the words to say even the simplest thing.  It is a humbling experience to be a person who loves and manipulates words yet finds herself fumbling for the words to say anything at all.  However...I do feel as though I am on the brink of discovering the language, that somehow it's all going to start making sense.  I have many pieces of the puzzle, and now need to start putting them together. 

We have not had much time to discover Lima, with our full days of training.  We have walked a few miles though, and have been impressed with the little we have seen.  It is a city of incredible energy.  You get the sense that chaos is barely restrained.  People shout, laugh and talk loudly.  Horns honk constantly and obnoxiously. Rattling mini-buses stuffed to capacity roar by, belching exhaust fumes.  Money changers exchange currency on the street medians, and they will give you a better exchange rate there than anywhere else in the city, including banks.  So when there's a break in traffic you cross to the median, haul out your money and make the transaction. 

You take your life into your hands trying to cross a street. Yesterday a group of cars was approaching the four-way intersection in front of our hotel, and appeared to be slowing for the stop sign.  After a few days here, I realize that this is an illusion, but I thought I had plenty of time to cross the street.  I stepped out just as the first of the drivers gunned his engine and roared through the intersection.  I did a skip-hop across the road in record time while my wiser companions waited for another break in the traffic.  Speed bumps, traffic signs and stop lights are mere suggestions here, mostly ignored.  Everyone seems to know what to do though, and there is a constant cacophony of horn honking that apparently indicates who goes where and when.  A pedestrian has zero rights here, and if you are crossing you have to dodge the cars turning in front of you or behind you because they will not stop to allow you to pass.  Ever.  Surprisingly though, we have felt safe here, and the city's energy seeps into you rather than drains you.

Looking out the windows of the office, you see across the road a government building where gun licenses are issued. Each day there are long lineups, all day, of men waiting to be admitted to purchase a gun permit.  One of the good jobs here is as a security guard, and guards are ubiquitous, in grocery stores, on the streets, outside of restaurants, stores and banks. Many carry hand weapons, so a gun license is worth standing in line for, all day if necessary.

 

We have discovered some of the delicious foods here.  One of my favorites is a fresh avocado, peeled and halved, then stuffed with a flavorful mixture of chopped chicken, sweet peppers, tomato and cilantro, with a spicy sauce drizzled over it all.  Anticuchos de corazon are also tasty, but not necessarily for everyone.  They are pieces of beef heart, rubbed with a mixture of garlic, aji pepper and cumin.  They are grilled on a skewer, and served with or without a creamy, spicy sauce.  We enjoyed them very much and will certainly have them again.  Chicken is served everywhere, in all forms, as are many of the 4000 varieties of potatoes grown in Peru.  At a small café where we had lunch this week, chicken came in the form of chicken feet soup, apparently tasty and filling according to Murray, but not something I was ready to challenge myself with yet.  There is goat, beef, pork and llama too.  Nothing I have tried so far has been disappointing.  And, happily, (probably luckily) the digestive system has held up to this point.  We shall see if that continues to be the case. I think we will have some interesting culinary adventures here.

 

 

Culinary adventures abound in Lima

 

So, here's what we've learned in our first week here in Peru:

~Energy, noise and boldness characterize Lima. This city with so much history continues to recreate itself.

~We are a very small piece of the CUSO puzzle.  People from all walks of life are contributing to and learning from this type of experience.

~We are in dire need of language learning assistance.  Happily it sounds like a language teacher is being looked for to help us in Tarapoto.

~We are just beginning a great adventure, with many challenges ahead.

Please stay tuned for our next post, which will be coming soon from Tarapoto.  Thank you to everyone who has supported us financially in this and with their prayers and messages of encouragement.  We really couldn't do this without you.  Hasta luego amigos!