The Monday before we left (we left Urubamba Tuesday night, and Lima Wednesday night), we had our despedida (going away party). It was nice to see the people we worked with (Ameriko, Jaime), and all of our host families in one place. Since it was our last night, at dinner Chris and I gave our host mom two framed pictures of our host brother as our goodbye gift. She kissed one of the pictures, so I think we did good.
Our final day in Urubamba, Tuesday, we finished at 711 by giving all the classes new soccer and volley pelotas, and played some games with them. After that, we were told to stick around for a bit. 6B gave us a cute speech on how much they appreciate what we've for them, how we'll be in their hearts, and how they're giving us gifts so we can remember them. Each of the classes gave us a gift - 6A gave us each a money holder/satchel bag (handmade!), 6B gave us one too, and 6C gave us a beautiful ceramic bowl made in Urubamba. It was really, really touching. Also, 6B gave us a song on the environment, and on colors too! See below. (videos are a little large, maybe I'll youtube it).
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| Figure 1: Confetti |
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| Figure 2: handmade satchel |
Even though they gave us gifts, and showered us with confetti (I swear I'm still finding it in my things), you gotta wonder - did we really do that much to help them? I would like to think that yes, Emily and I made a significant change in their lives, they'll become more responsible with the environment, and they'll be role models in that aspect. But you know what? I sort of doubt it - Urubamba's just not really a friendly place to be environmentally friendly. I guess with a project like this, it's hard to really measure the progress you've made. With stoves, you can count the number of stoves you've made, and say, "wow, I did a good job by making 'X' stoves." With education, you just gotta give them a push and hope for the best. Yes, a goodbye party is nice, and it is nice to know that we mean a lot to them, but really (and I'm being blunt here), did they like us because we taught them environmental science and English (and they liked it?), or did they like us because we represented a time away from their normal teachers? I know that this past paragraph was really cynical, and that we probably did make a significant change to some degree, but as community service goes, you have to question your actual impact sometimes.
That Tuesday afternoon, we said goodbye to our host family (our mom gave us hats!), and we took pictures/exchanged emails.
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| Left to Right: Augusto, Ana, and Andre |
Onto happier things: re-entry into the states. Here's a list of changes from Peru-life to USA-life that I've noticed.
- The US is so clean. Modern sanitation (and the ability to flush TP down the toilet) is amazing.
- We can drink tap water. Makes life so much easier
- I miss speaking Spanish to store-owners and people in general
- The US (summer) is so green.
- Supermarkets just rock.
- The skies in Urubamba are just way bluer. No comparison to US skies.
- Dogs have leashes!
- Roads are wide and paved/Drivers are nicer
- Wifi is unbelievably fast
- Having internet 24/7 is a luxury that we don't really realize we have
- I miss mountains
Finally, for all the dukies, or travelers, planning to go to Peru in the future and have stumbled across this blog, I'll leave you with an unofficial packing list of what to bring, but you should check out the rest of this blog to know what to expect.
Bring:
- Warm clothes + layers. Dress for maximum high of 70 F, minimum of 40 F
- Really warm clothes (if you're going hiking, prep for 20-25 degree F)
- Internal Frame Backpack if you plan on hiking
- Rain jacket/pants (just in case)
- warm hat/socks/gloves
- pack light, because you can always buy alpaca sweaters for cheap
- dSLR if you've got one - Peru's just way pretty.
- clothes to get dirty
- all toiletries (more expensive in Peru)
- quick dry towel
- for guys - ex-officios
- Medicine: Immodium, lots of pepto bismol, 2-3 rounds of Ciprofloxacin (literally a life saver), hand sanitizer, sunblock, aloe vera, band-aids, blister band-aids/moleskin/duct tape.
- Water treatment: a water filter (like MSR Miniworks EX), or treatment tablets would've been great. Parasites suck.
- A good sleeping bag.
- Headlamp
- Leatherman
- ziploc freezer bags
- 3 prong - 2 prong adaptor
- Education: scotch tape, markers, english-spanish teaching book (with pronunciations)
I'll add more if it comes to me, but that's mostly what you should bring if you go to Peru (in the cusco region at least).
#Thanksforreading #blogtastic
