Peru and Beyond- finding my way around South America

The weeks are flying past me again, and it feels as though every day could contain an entire post or blog itself. Anyway here is a rough recap of what has happened since leaving the north and settling back into Calca, yet then finding myself moving on 4 days later to Cusco to begin work in the hospital….

The last few days in Calca were a bit of a whirlwind, getting to know a whole new group of volunteers only to find that I had to leave them again. Seriously hate saying goodbye!! My last week in the kindy was lots of fun. We made paper boats and then floated (or sank depending on launching techniques) them down the little river near by. The kids had so much fun, at first rolling  their pants up and very shyly putting their feet in the freeeeeezing water, then after a few minutes all running around naked, swimming, chasing the boats and of course so much splashing. No permission notes no need for bathers from head to toe, such a different experience of an excursion to the procedures we all have back home.  For my last day I invited all the kids down the hill to the Plaza in Calca for an icecream. I told them to all dress up nicely, and the next day they all arrived with combed hair, little shirts and trousers and dresses and all such special things. We walked/basically ran down the hill and shared a messy icecream or two. Needless to say the clean clothes were quite the oposite by the end. The teacher gave me a goodbye present of a beanie and scarf she had knitted for me and off the kids all went after one last sticky, smelly hug. I paid for them to get a lift back up the hill in a mini truck and it really hit me that something was ending as they all waved and yelled gracias as they disappeared up the hill.

Much to my dismay, I was told I had to move to my new placement that friday night, which I was really upset about as I had planned to have the weekend to thank my family together with my housemate and also bring something to more of a close with a place that had so become my home. But no, not possible, so very sulkingly I packed my bags and headed up over the mountains to Cusco city. I shouldnt have worried, because my family here is wonderful, the house has a computer and free internet (hence my ability to catch up on all this)  and I have a great housemate. It just happened to be Ollenka, my little sister´s, 10th birthday, so we celebrated by roasting marshmellows on a little fire and eating Pizza. Oh how peruvian!! I felt right at home, the house was full of family and laughter and just lots of fun!

I finished off the weekend by returning to Calca to bake a cake I had promised for them long ago. Afte spending many an hour trying to find fresh cream for my lemon pie, I resorted to cream in a can (I didnt know that was even possible). They also didnt have a cake tin so I used a frying pan and I also quickly discovered that baking at a high altitude is very different in terms of temperatures and how the cake will turn out. Oops. I thought the cake was vile, but my family loved it and even had it for breakfast the next day. I hope for their sake they really did like it and weren´t just being polite.  I said goodbye to my family, promising to return and visit during the last month that I´m here. Marcio, my host dad gave me a lovely speech, and it felt so good to actually be able to understand most of it. Oh how far things have come! After many a group shot and having my last piece of THE chocolate cake at the Plaza with my dear volleys I took the bus back to Cusco and was ready to start work the next day at the health clinic.

My first week of work was really really fun. I am now working in a public health clinic about 30 minutes walk away. The clinic covers just about everything from emergency to dentistry to gynacology. Serious cases of course go straight to the main hospital, but we still get to see our fair share of fun (?) things. I spent the first week assisting a doctor in Ecografia, basically just doing ultrasounds. I got to prep the patients while the doctor did the paper work. As I got more confident I began to set the machine up, typing in their details and then beginning the ultrasound. Usually they are preganant women coming in for check ups, so I had many a magical moment showing the mother her baby´s heart beat for the first time, its face, its little fingers and so forth…. Of course also a few awkward moments such as when I falsy identified a babys rear end as its head. Oops.

The magic of seeing babies at all different stages of development also brings with it sadness. There are many who simply did not look pleased at all when we told them they were pregnant. I mean who would be at the age of 17. I asked the doctor about abortions in Peru, finding out that they are illigal here like in many catholic countries, but of course with the knowledge that they are performed illigally all over the country. The doctor tells me just how many times he has seen horribly damaged women who would do anything to not bring another child in the world they could not support. The peruvian culture is very twisted in that sense. It is expected that the girls all remain “pure” until married, yet the male culture is quite the opposite. The more women they have slept with the better for their ego and reputation. How can something like that be logical? The end result is that the girls marry young, or if they do get pregnant they are forced to marry the father. This becomes shocking when you hear just how frequent rape is here, and how often the girls are even forced to marry those that raped them, just to keep their reputation of purity. Its not all grim and horrible though. I gave an ultrasound to a beautiful young couple, aged 18 and 19. The father was overjoyed when he looked at his baby, he was almost crying. He hugged and kissed his partners stomach and spoke to the child with such love. It was gorgeous!!! By the end of the week the doctor had much more trust in me and allowed to me do “transvaginal ultrasounds and examinations”. Yes, that is very much what it sounds like. However, with my white coat and feeling very doctor like, I had a completely different relationship with these people, as I suppose they did with me, so it really wasnt as confronting as I thought it was at the beginning. I did have this thought at one point, as I was sticking an interesting shaped instrument covered in a pink, and supposedly strawberry flavoured condom (the patients have to provide their own) up an old quechuan ladies skirts, of how the hell did I end up in a clinic in Peru doing something like this??? A year ago  I would never have pictured it, but here I am. This week (my second) has been much less eventful. I swapped with Laura, the girl I am living and working with, so now I am stuck in Triaje. Basically just weighing, measuring and taking blood pressure of everyone who comes into the clinic before they are sent to different areas. Booooooooring. But I suppose if I am to carry out these ideas of becoming and doctor back home I will have many hours of such work. You have to start at the bottom at some point!

In the afternoons three times a week Laura and I also organised to work in a home for severly mentally and physically disabled children. We spoon feed them dinner and then clean them up ready for bed. It is a very well equipped place, but even then it is very sad. These children do usually have parents somewhere, but often they are from the highlands and simply cannot support them. They look up at you with the most beautiful dark brown black eyes, the only real connection you can have as their twisted and frozen bodies offer none, and it is just so hard to not fall in love with all of them. I picked up one little baby and cuddled him for a while, yet once I tried to put him back he would not let go, clawing onto me, pulling my hair and screaming. They crave physical attention other than what they are given when cared for by the nurses. I carried little Nickolas around for quite some time!

Last weekend was mainly a family affair apart from a Halloween social with the other volunteers in Urubamba in the Sacred Valley.  Saturday Laura and I were too tired to do a whole lot and the thought of halloween really wasnt that enticing. The city was packed with locals and tourists alike, all dressed up and trick or treating. Instead of saying trick or treat though the kids just say HALOWEEN and shove their bag in front of them wanting candy. We decided to be lame and give it a miss, instead watching many an episode of Greys Anatomy in bed. (YES, even in peru!!) Sunday we went for a drive through the country with the whole family and grandma in tow, to a town famous for its pigs. This weekend was a special “Fiesta de Lechon” so we were greated with a Plaza full of stands proudly displaying whole roast pigs. The old peruvian ladies didn´t stop bringing them in, literally by the wheelbarrow. We shopped around for quite some time, Grandma obviously had the perfect piece in mind. We ended up with a good half a pig and plenty of tamales (delicious mixture of maize and either something sweet or savoury), beer and of course to go peruvian style, coca-cola to mix with it. (gross). while listening to live peruvian music we ate and ate and ate. No plates no knives, just literally pigging out. So much fun! We also walked around the town for a little while and visited a nice church, but really all we had in mind was a nice afternoon nap to digest it all. My dear danish friends returned from their travels so that night we all went out. I think most of the afternoon´s binge session of eating was worked off that night with all the dancing that we did, and trust me, its hard work at high altitude!! Monday was a public holiday as it was the day of the dead. True to peruvian style this includes much food, music, laughter and of course beer. Where better to celebrate this than where your loved ones lie. Hence, party at the cemetery. Such a different vibe to the cemeteries I have ever been to. Brilliant!

Off to the south of Peru for the weekend, visiting Puno and Lake Titicaca, the lake which spans across both Peru and Bolivia. Its conveniently Puno week, so muchas fiesta to be had. Looking forward to it very much!

So to round up yet another update which ended up a lot longer than planned, I´m loving my time here, exploring a different area of work and of course a different way of life- life in the big city. Looking forward to many new adventures and experiences and I´ll do my best to keep you all updated.

Love to you all wherever you may be…. xxxxxxxxxxxG

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