Puzzle Pieces of Life: Are you from the Jungle?

So, the title of this blogs leads me into a story from this past week involving 90 six and seven year-olds. Amparo is pursuing her master's degree in Environmental Education and runs a small business with 9 other women which provides hands-on learning experiences for grade-school children. The women don their matching outdoor vests and hats and look ready to lead these chicos on a wild adventure through the back-country of Peru. However, considering that we are located in a city with 11 million people, our teaching locations are a little less primeval. On this day we met the children at El Parque de los Anillos (Park of the Rings) where there were various exhibits with alpaca, peacocks, free-ranging Peruvian chickens, and raucous Macaws. The guides (of all ages and backgrounds) would lead the children through the park telling them about the animals and encouraging them to ask questions. Most of the time I observed, took pictures, and helped "herd" the little ones in the right direction.

Obviously when I talked with the children, I didn't quite sound like a Peruvian. In fact, I think my origins were a greater point of curiosity for them than the animals most of the time. It was always fun for me to answer the question: "where are you from?" with a "where do you think?" Occasionally a child would venture to guess the United States but often the answers were more amusing. My favorites include England, Spain, France, Cusco (a Peruvian city in the mountains) and yes, the jungle. So there you have it, I may not be a native but, I am still a little exotic.

There is no real routine to my days here but it keeps each day interesting. Some days I will go with Amparo to help the women teach children about the environment. Some days I will be visiting the lomas with Jose Luis from A Rocha and figuring out my independent research project. Some days I will be visiting with the neighbors and learning how to make Peruvian dishes. Cooking has become one of the best ways to connect with Esteban, my new 11-year old friend. This weekend both of his parents were gone for various reasons and it was just the two of us at home. Of course we made all of his favorite foods including taquenas which are chunks of cheese wrapped up in Wonton wrappers, fried, and eaten with guacamole. In my family we call these delicious and unhealthy treats "lumpias". He also made what he referred to as a "super ensalada" with bananas, yogurt, cornflakes, and algarrobina (kind of like honey). Not quite a "salad" but it was still pretty tasty.

Today at church the pastor introduced me to the congregation and had me stand-up and give everyone a wave. After the service I received muchos saludos from everyone which meant lots of kisses on the cheek. The pastor told me to consider the church as my home and family for the next four months. On Saturday, I attended a service for the youth and met quite a few people my age. I exchanged telephone numbers with some of the girls and will probably see them more this week. The service went for nearly four hours and since it ended at 11:30pm, I had to be escorted home even though the church was only a couple of blocks away. Safety on the streets seems to be a real concern for many of the women here and it takes some adjusting for me, Ms. Independent. I am learning to consider my constant escort as traveling companions and to patiently await the day when I may be able to explore some of the city myself (of course always in the daylight).

One final comment on Peruvian life; there are fiestas for everything. Every day I can hear some band playing on the street corner and many nights there are firecrackers. Usually I enjoy watching all the commotion and observing the Catholic rituals celebrating sainthood. It just so happens that one of our neighbors is having quite the party right now and it is expect to last for three days straight. The traditional music of Peru is pretty catchy but I think my earplugs are going to come in handy tonight.