Service in Peru

Here it is, Thursday, and our trip is drawing to a close. The last day and a half have been relatively uneventful compared to the pinnacle that was Machu Picchu. Wednesday was a travel day; we came back to Lima from Cuzco. We were happy to be back at sea level, but descending into the cloud of smog (literally) was not very uplifting.

Today we spent most of our day at the orphanage-it was great to see all of the kids again. We made one more batch of soymilk and said our goodbyes. Before leaving we took some photos:

Me, Jasond, Maria, Vidya at Sagrada Familia.

Our team with two little shadows (they followed us everywhere while at Sagrada Familia).

Tonight at the hostel we’ll be packing up and hopefully sleeping a little before our 5:30am flight.

See you all soon!

Mike

August 21st, 2008 | Category: Lima | Comments (1)

I started writing this post at the airport–with a slightly swirling head–while waiting for my flight back to Lima. I was partially worn out because of the events of the day. I woke up early, showered, ate breakfast, and headed to La Plaza de Armas, searching for a painting to take back with me. I searched through several shops and even viewed water-color prints from the local street salesmen. After a preliminary round of surveying, I stopped into a market for lunch. While eating on a flight of steps in the plaza, I had my shoes shined and repaired (super-glued) by a local teenage boy. I asked him: “Cuanto cuesta?” and he replied, “Whatever you want.” When he was done, though, he demanded 10 soles for his worked. With mixed English and Spanish I tried to uncover his pricing scheme. He told me that the shoe shine was whatever I wanted to pay while the super-glue repair was 10 soles. Ah, a clever move. I didn’t want to pay him because I felt cheated, but didn’t wanted to argue because he clearly needed the money. I relented and gave 11 soles (S/10 for super-glue, S/11 for the shoe shine). Once paying the boy, a man selling pictures approached me. Normally I would have decline the invitation to look, but today I was set on buying a painting. Overall, he didn’t quite have what I was looking for, but I found a piece that I liked well-enough, “a typical street in Cuzco.” Because I didn’t love the picture, I decided to go back for a piece at one of my earlier visited shops. It was somewhat of a tough decision to buy the second painting since it was priced at more than I was willing to spend, but I decided to get it when the saleswoman knocked 30% off. So I had my two paintings and was happy, but I was late! The cab for the airport was coming at noon; it was 11:45am and I still needed to walk back (10 minutes) and pack my things. To make up time I walked briskly, which was a mistake. I was able to pack up in time for the cab, but the up-hill return trip at 11,000 feet left me feeling terrible. This was the first reason for my fatigue. The other reason was because of our trip to Machu Picchu the day before.

The trip from Cuzco to the ruins of Machu Picchu required a diverse set of transportation methods (what a nerdy sentence). We used a taxi to get from Cuzco to Ollantaytambo; a train from Ollantaytambo to Aguas Calientes; and finally, we hiked from Aguas Calientes to Machu Picchu.

We got up at 2:15am on Tuesday morning to catch the cab to Ollantaytambo. It was cold (probably about 40-45F outside) and quiet in the hostel, yet there was a lot of noise from dogs barking outside. (In Cuzco, as in Lima, there are many homeless dogs that roam the streets). As we drove towards the center of town, we passed a lot of obnoxious tourists in the streets, no doubt rambunctious from a night out in the ancient city. We also passed a pack of roving dogs on the city’s perimeter.

Driving away from Cuzco allowed us to see the beautiful countryside in this section of Peru. Immediately, bright stars were visible on a perfect black sky. The mountainous countryside was illuminated a dreamlike blue/gray color from the bright, full moon. In the valleys we saw expansive plots of cultivated land, sometimes covered-over by an opaque mist giving the appearance of a body of water. This entire scene was made even more unforgettable by the quiet, instrumental Peruvian music playing in the background. After about an hour, a small city appeared in a far-below valley. We weren’t there yet, though–this was the city of Urubamba. We’d have to drive the many switchbacks snaking down the mountain in order to pass through the city so that we could reach Ollantaytambo.

The taxi ride wasn’t much longer, as we reached the train station within the half-hour. The town of Ollantaytambo appeared similarly to Cuzco, but it was much smaller. It also had a gutter along the main roadway where a small mountain stream was flowing. Waiting for the train in the frigid morning air reminded me of a ski trip: it was cold, dark, and early while everyone stood around waiting to be taken to their destination.

Before we reached the top, so to speak, the train had to bring us to Aguas Calientes, a small town in close proximity to Machu Picchu. For me, the ride was filled with intermittent sleep. When I was awake, though, the views from the windows were amazing. We saw, among other things, farmlands being worked by their owners, all before a green, moss-like mountain background. Between leaving the train and heading up to the main attraction, we decided to have breakfast. I had alpaca again.

The train that would take us to Aguas Calientes

There were two options for continuing from Aguas Calientes: (1) take a bus up, (2) hike to the top. Although we were all tired, we decided on the latter. It took about 1.5 hours to reach the top. The route wasn’t too long, but it was very steep the entire way; the high altitude didn’t make things much easier. Going slow was OK though; we weren’t in a rush and our time spent resting was filled with awe, inspired by the incredible scenery around us. The only drawback to the hiking option was that, due to its duration, it put us at the ruins during the peak of tourist attendance.

A section of the path from Aguas Calientes to Machu Picchu

At first, I was put off by the large number of people there, but as I focused more on the ruins, the experience approached my expectations.  Our first glimpse was through the “overlooking view” which is essentially what is seen in the standard pictures of the place. Indeed, it did look like the pictures (I hope so!). There was a central, low-lying green area; to the right stood a dense collection of sporadically-placed structures; to the left, public-use structures which transitioning to a high platform where was located a sun dial. The surviving structures were all stone and were apparently 90% original. During the time of the Incas, they were covered with thatch. To the far right and left of this view was amazing retaining terracing, while below me, there was terracing built for agriculture.

The “overlooking view” of the ruins, and me

From the central ruins, we hiked towards the “Inca bridge.” The views from here were breathtaking and the hike was precarious: along the length of the trail, the right slope dropped away nearly vertically to the valley below. The bridge itself was not an immense or complex structure, but imaging its use, even from a distance, was terrifying. The structure connected two tapering paths with built-up stone from below. It appeared to be stuck to the side of a vertical mountainside.

The Inca bridge

After the Incan bridge I walked through the ruins while Maria and Vidya rested. From above, they were impressive, but at ground level, the structures were even more remarkable. True, the were made of stone, but each stone fit together perfectly, as though they were created for that purpose. In actuality, the Incas chiseled the stones so that they would fit together along extremely straight edges. Even more remarkable was that they built the city in challenging conditions (high altitude, intense sunlight, mountainous terrain), those which were troubling for me while simply walking around. As I moved through further, I was able to listen in on some of the guided tours; during places of solitude, I tried to absorb everything around me and to imagine the place during the time of the Incas. I especially did this with a cool breeze on my face, while standing near the sun dial at the central platform of the city.

While the afternoon progressed and the sun sank lower in the sky, we sat and took in the scene around us. Late afternoon was an especially good time to relax because the lack of large tour groups left it quiet. Sitting there, it was obvious why the Inca made their religious city here: the mountainous landscape was divine. Machu Picchu was intentionally positioned in the center of a ring of massive guardian mountains. Although the ruins themselves were impressive, their location was what made this place so impressive.

A section of the incredible surrounding mountain landscape

After five hours viewing Machu Picchu, we decided it was time to go. It was getting dark, and we were all tired, so we took a bus back down to Aguas Calientes. We ate dinner and then boarded our train for Ollantaytambo. This ride was made more enjoyable since we had first class tickets for the return trip. As was the case at the start of the day, the cab ride through the beautiful countryside back to Cuzco was the perfect transition after seeing Machu Picchu.

August 21st, 2008 | Category: Machu Picchu | Leave a comment

At 4:30am on Sunday morning, Jasond came to Wayruros to pick us up; we were off to Jorge Chavez airport, off to Cuzco. Shelly stayed behind to go to Sagrada Familia once more before her return to Boston on Sunday night. I was excited about crossing the Andes. I knew that Cuzco would be much cleaner and sunnier. I thought to myself that it was too bad we couldn’t take Jasond with us since he’s practically become a member of our group. He’s also a really great guy: before leaving the taxi, he insisted that Maria bring his coat since he knew we didn’t have the appropriate clothing for the cold nights in Cuzco. Later in the day, we also discovered what his name meant. It turns out that his middle name is Jasond, each letter corresponding to the first letter of each month from July to December (Julio, Agosto, Septiembre, Octubre, Noviembre, Deciembre); so that makes his first name Efmamj (Enero, Febrero, Marzo, Abril, Mayo, Junio).

The domestic departures airport experience went very smoothly so that we probably didn’t need to arrive three hours before our flight. Finding our gate was straightforward and passing through security was a breeze. Interestingly, we never once had our passports checked and they didn’t take large volumes of liquids out of our bags, which is usually done in U.S. airports. They did, however, have a large bin of confiscated items just beyond the security screening area. Some of the things people try to bring on planes are quite amusing.

Some things I saw in the bin: baseball bat, large adjustable wrench, multi-tool, countless scissors.

We flew LAN airlines, and the flight was excellent. The plane was new, with contemporary design features; they even gave us breakfast even though the flight was just over an hour. The views from the plane window were absolutely amazing as the Andes Mountains to the northeast were visible.

Picture of the Andes from the plane window.

The wonder and excitement after seeing the mountains during the flight continued after landing. I never realized until arriving in Cuzco that my time in Lima felt like work. Effectively, it was, because we were working on the soymilk system at Sagrada Familia with commuting on most days. Right out of the airport in Cuzco, though, I felt like I was on vacation. There was a warm sun shining through crisp, clean air, a sharp contrast to the polluted, dull, and chilly weather of Lima.

The taxi ride to our hostel was similar to those in Lima, but there was far less traffic and thus less pollution. The streets were also much narrower, only wide enough for a single small car. The roads were cobblestone and slippery so that the tires made squealing noises as they struggled for traction. Before long we were stopped before a short flight of stairs which felt much longer at 11,000 feet above sea level.

The hostel itself was very nice. We came in on a narrow, red-painted walkway that was slippery and overhanging a small drop-off. This led into a small living area with couches and a TV. Our room was off of the reception area which was centrally located in the main building. On the second floor there was a nice sitting area which led out to a deck. The view of the city from here was amazing.

View of Cuzco from the porch of the hostel.

After settling our things, we set out to walk the city; now we had a new perspective for viewing the unique roadways. As before, we noticed they were very narrow and cobblestone. Many were also fairly steep and had unique Incan names such as Atoqsayk’uchi (which means, where the fox got tired). Like the streets, the sidewalks were not wide enough for passing. You were constantly in and out of the street to avoid both pedestrians and vehicles. Several times we saw a forward moving car “chasing” one in reverse; I suppose this is the only option for a single lane street where turning the car 180 degrees was not possible.

As interesting as the driving practices were the people of the city. On our walk from the hostel to the downtown area, we passed many locals willing to do anything for tourist money. Women wearing traditional garments with alpacas requested payment in return for permission to photograph; massages were offered on almost every street; some tried to sell hand paintings; one young girl sold bracelets so that she could “buy her lunch”; some simply begged. After finding our way through the labyrinth of near identical streets, we made it to the Plaza de Armas. Coincidentally, there was some type of parade happening with Peruvian troops. Along the perimeter of the square were several impressive structures including the Templo de la Campania de Jesus, which was spectacular both inside and out.

Plaza de Armas during the parade.

Our main goal for the afternoon was finding an inexpensive place to eat. After much wandering, we finally found a mutually suitable place. I ordered alpaca with vegetable and rice; it was really delicious. It was similar to the saltado classico that I  got at Monte Cristo in Lima. (I think it’s funny that I continually bring up the things I ate, but a major part of travel is dining, and I have really enjoyed the Peruvian cuisine.) After lunch we walked up to a hilltop where we had an amazing view of the city. By that point we were all pretty worn out, so we decided to head back to the hostel. I certainly felt the effects of the high altitude, but I though it would be a lot worse. Mostly I felt really tired (in part due to the morning of travel) but I did have a slight headache. After a late-afternoon nap, I woke up feeling great. Maria and Vidya were not so lucky, however, as they experienced more intense altitude sickness (severe headache with nausea).

Because 2/3 of the group wasn’t up for heading back into the city, we stayed at the hostel in the evening. The night was interrupted by altitude sickness, though, as Maria was suffereing considerably; so much so that she ended up going to the hospital. They gave her oxygen and held her overnight. I think she should be OK and will return from the hospital sometime this afternoon.

Although we haven’t finalized the plan yet, I think we will head to Ollantaytambo tonight. This is where we have to catch our train to Machu Picchu in the morning. Hopefully I can make a post about today’s events, but I’m not sure about internet access. I’ll certainly be sure to take a lot of pictures of Machu Picchu for you all, though.

Mike

August 18th, 2008 | Tags: Plaza de Armas | Category: Cuzco | Leave a comment

Were in Cuzo and its amazing! Flying over the Andes was beautiful. Im going to make a full post tomorrow, but cant do it now because the hostel computer is terribly slow.

Mike

August 17th, 2008 | Category: Cuzco | Leave a comment

Today we left for Sagrada Familia at 8am, actually, 8:30am; Jasond had to finish his tamale. Even though it was Saturday, there was still a lot of traffic (Jasond: “Hay mucho trafico”). Today was different though since our group slit up. Maria and I drove back into the central market in downtown Lima while Shelly and Vidya stayed behind to make another batch of soymilk. We were in search of a larger grinder which would make the grinding process go faster. Going back to the market nearly doubled the amount of time we spent in the car today. Even though I was just sitting there, the traffic and pollution took a lot of energy out of me.

Although we never found a larger grinder, I’m glad I made it to the market. It was a bustling place with a lot of activity. People came in layers as we walked down the street: in the far back were the merchants peering out from their stores; next came those vendors without a home, so to speak–these people sold from carts; at the edges of the sidewalks were the “accosters” who tried to push their products on you; finally, all around you, were the buyers, navigating around the marketplace.

By the time we got back to Sagrada Familia, soccer was over. Maria and I helped out with the remaining steps in the soymilk-making process, after which we served the soymilk for lunch. As before, it was well received. Before leaving I met a 16-year-old named Anna who spoke pretty good English. She told us how she had two other siblings, but her parents didn’t make enough to support her too, so she was brought to Sagrada Familia. Even though she misses her family, she told us that she liked living at Sagrada Familia. She said that they teach the children how to “deal with the problems of the world around us. We are taught to work, to study, and how to act professionally; we are taught how to be professionals.” This was really moving, and I was happy to hear that Sagrada Familia was more than just a safe haven. It raises the children with virtues and prepares them for life after the orphanage. As Maria pointed out, it is ironic that the safest place for children in this area of the country was probably in an orphanage.

We (Maria, Vidya, and I; Shelly is going back to Boston) are off to Cuzco in the morning; we’re getting picked up at 4:30am. I’ll probably find an internet connection there but if I don’t post until Wednesday, you all know why. Take care, Mike.

August 16th, 2008 | Tags: Cuzco | Category: Lima | Leave a comment

Today we made our first successful batch of soymilk at the orphanage. The process went pretty smoothly and the kids seemed to really like it. One little boy said he had ten cups of it! As the days go, our group is really connecting with those at Sagrada Familia. All of us are becoming really attached to the kids and are very grateful for the assistance offered by the staff members.

Initially we had planned to make two batches, one to demonstrate for the older boys, one to demonstrate for the older girls. When we were ready to make the second batch, however, the girls were studying English, and thus weren’t able to watch. We decided that it was best to just show the girls tomorrow.

Making the first batch went well. The initial grinding step took some time, but we found an eager teenager to take care of the pedaling. The water/ground- bean mixture ended up being on the fire for about an hour, but the time was well worth it, as the milk was really good; the girls for whom we served it at lunch kept coming back for more. It was really exciting to see that the kids enjoyed the milk, especially since it’s so good for them. We were also able to feed the okara (the strained, ground soybeans) to the animals that they have (ducks, rabbits, guinea pigs).

Grinding the soaked soybeans with the bicycle/mill system.

Boiling the soybeans. Inner pot contains the ground beans so that they can be strained when the milk is done.

Two girls drinking the soymilk during lunch.

Today we were also able to buy tickets to Cuzco, which is the major center near Machu Picchu. We´ll be there from Sunday to Wednesday and will be staying in another hostel. The tickets were relatively inexpensive, but we´re discovering a bunch of other fees associated with the trip: we need to take a taxi, train, and then bus to get there from Cuzco, and we also must pay an entrance fee. These charges are frustrating and I feel as though I´m in the typical tourist situation: the inflated rates rob the tourist, but you´re willing to pay them because you want to see the site so bad. Then I´m left with the tourist conclusion: I guess I´ll just pay it because it will be such a wonderful, one-in-a-lifetime experience. Oh well, it should be good anyhow.

Tomorrow we are going back to Sagrada Familia to make another batch of soymilk and to play soccer with the kids. Apparently they are having a clinic; it should be fun.

August 16th, 2008 | Category: Lima | Leave a comment

The Pacific Ocean!

Today was a great day, weather-wise, and was, in fact, a miracle, as told by Miguel, the founder and director of Segrada Familia orphanage. We met him today after setting up the soymilk-making system; after touring the orphanage grounds; and after heading to the beach for some pictures.

We knew it was a good day for the beach because it was sunny for the first time since we’ve been here. And apparently, seeing the sun during the winter in Peru does not happen very often. Instead of running there, we walked to and along the beach, taking plenty of pictures along the way. Here are some of the better ones:

After the beach, it was back in the car with Jasond and off to Segrada Familia. It took about an hour and a half to get there since the traffic was so bad. As an aside, the traffic has been consistently bad in Lima. Making things worse is the incredible pollution from all of the vehicles. It would be a safe guess that Lima does not have any emissions laws. At most points during the trip, we had to cover our noses and mouths because the dirt/carbon monoxide/roadwork tar vapor was too overwhelming. The other thing I’ve noticed is that everything in the tissue after a nose-blow is black.

Despite the near misery of the ride, it was a fair trade for how spectacular the orphanage was. Although we had been there before, we had never ventured past the main entrance. From the minute we arrived today, I was impressed and moved by what I saw. As soon as we got there, two younger girls came running up to greet us. They seemed to really enjoy our company, as they stayed with us the entire day. All of the kids seemed at least somewhat excited to see us. As is custom in Peru, the girls kissed me on the cheek and the boys shook my hand. The view was also amazing. Segrada Familia is essentially surrounded by huge mountains of dirt, and even though the landscape doesn’t possess classic beauty, it is certainly breathtaking and is something to behold. Being there also filled me with a sense of security and community. I felt at ease and as part of the community when I was walking around. I thought: what an excellent safe haven for children in need; a place where they can learn, live, and play. Segrada Familia gives them a home and a family, and teaches them valuable life skills. The walls of the community hold in its values and rules while keeping out the negative influences of the surrounding area–most tangibly, they were a barrier against a pile of trash which attempted to corrupt the order and clean interior of the place. There were also llamas there! The other cool thing that I just remember was that they played music for us. I´m not sure whether it was Incan, contemporary, or what, but it was good. Maybe I´ll try to post the video of that tomorrow.

Llamas at Sagrada Familia.

View of surrounding area from inside Sagrada Familia.

Apart from exploring the grounds, we were able to completely assembly the soymilk-making system. This was fairly easy as we were well prepared. In fact, the design was fabricated in Boston before we left so all we had to do was assemble it there. Initially we wanted to try to build another one for them, but this plan was abandoned. It was decided that it was too difficult logistically to pull everything together to make this work. In any case, the system is together and the soybeans are soaking. Tomorrow, we are going back, and are going to make our first batch of soymilk. We’ll pull the beans out of the soaking pot, grind them, and finally boil them in a large pot of water. After straining out the particulates, the remaining liquid is soymilk. Tomorrow we will complete this process twice so that we can show both the older girls and the older boys how to make a batch (the two groups go to school at different times and we want them both to know). We also decided that we would go back on Saturday to make one final batch to make sure everything is in order. This is unrelated, but one disappointing thing that happened towards the middle of the day was that my camera battery died. I´ll get more Sagrada Familia shots tomorrow.

Before leaving, we met with the founder of Segrada Familia, Miguel. The story goes that Miguel was leaving the hospital after his son had just died. As he exited, he saw a little boy who looked sick. He asked him what was the matter and discovered that he needed medical attention, but didn’t have the money for it. Miguel offered up the insignificant amount so that the boy could receive treatment. From what was told to me, this treatment saved the boy´s life. After these events Miguel became attached to the boy and wanted to adopt him, since he was an orphan. The boy went with Miguel to his home but left during the night. He returned the following day, so Miguel was able to ask him why he had left. He told Miguel that he really appreciated his hospitality, but he felt as though he was abandoning his “family” with whom he lived on the streets. To continue looking after the boy while solving his dilemma, he offered that his friends also move in. Basically, Miguel wanted to provide a safe place for the boy and his friends. This concept grew, with Miguel taking in more and more kids, and this is how Segrada Familia was born.
As the story depicts him, Miguel seemed like a really great guy. He was collected and rational as any director, but showed flashes of humor and paternalism as he joked with our two new little group members. The meeting was very encouraging for us as he expressed his gratitude. He also said that they would certainly use the soymilk device to provide additional sustenance for the children. Further, we were able to develop a list of future projects that we will bring back to MIT as potential future service projects.

I’m looking forward to returning to the orphanage tomorrow. Hopefully it’s sunny again; hopefully we get another miracle!

August 15th, 2008 | Category: Lima | Leave a comment

We slept in today since we were all tired from the previous long day. Before getting breakfast, three of us went jogging along the coast; the views were incredible. The winding path was adjacent to a street for most of the way, but occasionally we would get the chance to run through small parks with statues and shops. The area we were in was also very well developed, with upscale apartment complexes and 5 star hotels. The ocean was in sight the whole time. We could see surfers far off the beach, and fishermen in small boats. The beach itself was very rocky and the sand looked volcanic. These details I´m not sure of, though, because we were so high above the beach, for we were running along the top of very high bluffs. They were uniquely shaped and covered with green vegetation. I´m going to walk to the coast again tomorrow, this time with my camera.

Before Jasond (our faithful taxi driver turned tour guide) picked us up, we ate lunch at a place called Monte Cristo. It seemed upscale, and the food was delicious. I had Lomo Saltado Clasico which was some type of meat with papas fritas (french fries) and vegetables. I actually took a picture of it:

Lomo saltado clasico from the Monte Cristo restuarant.

This Peruvian dish was very good, and because I didn´t get sick after eating it, I´m very excited about eating here.

After lunch we traveled to the San Miguel section of Lima to meet Rosario, who works for Lima Kids (the organization that works with Segrada Familia). She didn´t speak any English, but we were still able to discuss the project. Additionally, we spoke with Rosario´s boss. The two of them expressed that the orphanage didn´t know we were coming because they hadn´t told them. They knew we were coming sometime in August, but not exactly when. The skepticism shown by those at Segrada Familia was purely from confusion, and it turns out that they are really interested in us implementing the project. Thus, this meeting gave a great boost in morale after our initial and somewhat discouraging trip to the orphanage. We also arranged to travel to the orphanage tomorrow instead of the originally planed day of Friday.

The major tourist part of the day started after our meeting, as we headed to the Incan markets. Here, merchants sold handmade goods; mostly clothing, jewelry, and leather personal items (wallets, purses, hats, etc.). I bought a few things and learned to bargain for what I wanted. Prices were always inflated for us (so said Jasond), so I tied to purchase them item for less than the initial asking price. The experience was fun.

August 14th, 2008 | Tags: beach, Incan market | Category: Lima | Leave a comment

Today was a productive day for the project, but before I go into that, I´ll tell about Lima.

It´s winter here, so it´s quite chilly and has been completely overcast thus far. Lima is a large city of 8 million and is busy with taxis, buses, bikes, pedestrians, and autorickshaws (not sure about the spelling). The people we´ve come into contact with thus far are very nice and accommodating, and speak very little English.

One of these Peruvians is Julio who is the director of the hostel that we´re staying in.  The hostel is called Wayruros and is located in the suburb of Lima called Miraflores. The neighborhood is supposedly upper-middle class, so conveniences are good and we feel safe walking around.

Entrance to Wayruros, from the inside.

Our day tody began at about 9am with breakfast at the hostel. It was complimentary, but consisted only of bread and coffee. After breakfast, we went to the bank to exchange money, but decided to wait until tomorrow. We then returned to the hostel where we met Julio´s nephew, who would be our taxi driver for the day. He was a great guy, but a typical driver: crazy.

To start, we ventured into the vast marketplace of downtown Lima. Here, traffic was very congested and the air was filled with automobile exhaust fumes. Stores were tightly packed along the streets, and were very specialized. Instead of general stores grouped by categories, the stores would focus on selling one specific product. There were rope stores, chair stores, tire stores, and bike stores. We bought rope at the appropriate place and spent a considerable time in the ¨bike street¨. This section was a chaotic blend of activity: merchants were haggling us to make a sale, mechanics were repairing and assembling bikes, passerbys were staring at the four white students conspicuously out-of-place; all the while our faithful taxi driver was barganing with the merchants in selecting a bike for our project. We finally purchased a mountain bike for 140 soles (about $55) and strapped it to the roof of the taxi since the trunk was full of other supplies. Before we left downtown Lima, we purchased two broom stick handles that will be used to lift one of the pots.

The new bike fastened to the taxi.

With the car packed up with people and equipment, we drove out of Lima and towards a section called Ventanilla, toward the orphanage. The economic and landscape contrast was quickly apparent as the busy, reasonably developed Lima gave way to a more rural and desperate region. We saw small mountains as we drove, but these were of only dirt and were packed with poorly constructed lean-to houses. The region was also more industrial, with large fuel tanks on the hillsides.

Heading towards Ventanilla.

We progressed ignorantly, for we didn´t quite know where we were going. We´d drive along on the highway for about 2 miles then pull over to ask if we were close. Each time we asked, we got blank stares–no one knew where the orphanage was. So we drove on and continued to ask. In all, I think we stopped to ask about five times. At one point we searched for a local nun hoping that she might know, but were unable to find her. Our last resort was to stop into a local internet cafe to search for the place. It was strange to see an internet cafe in a place of such poverty.

We used the internet, searching Spanish, to find the more explicit location of the orphange: Zepallal. To get there, we drove for about another half hour and sought guidance from helpful pedestrians. We were releived once we finally arrived at Segrada Familia, but were greated with confusion, for no one knew who we were or why we were there.

It seemed that the contact that we were communicating with before our arrival was working for an umbrella organization for the orphanage. Effectively, she did not work on-site and had never relayed the message that we were coming.  This confusion only turned out to be a mild setback, because before long, the orphanage workers were on-board with what we were trying to do. Before we left, we unloaded our equipment, arranged for them to purchase 10kg of soybeans, and scheduled to be there on Friday.

After leaving the orphanage our only remaining goal was dinner since none of us had really eaten all day. The process of trying to find food, though, was utterly painful. Poor communication and indecisiveness made things worse, but the traffic was most responsible for the ridiculous time it took to get back to Lima and into a restaurant. Of the eight hours we spent with the taxi driver today, about 3.5 were used to go from Sagrada Familia to the restaurant!

After everything, I feel that today was a good day, both for the project and for me. Although the orphange didn´t expect us, we were able to find it, and get their support for our project. For me, the best part of the day was searching for supplies in the unique marketplace of Lima.

August 13th, 2008 | Category: Lima | Leave a comment