June 26: Inti Raymi and More!

With Patricia,
the pediatrician

This weekend was a very fun and exciting weekend for most in Cusco. Saturday was the famous Inti Raymi celebration, also known as the Festival of the Sun. On Friday, I had the privilege of joining in the festivities by parading down the main street and through the main plaza. We wore traditional attire and paraded with our clinic volunteers and employees along with all the healthcare workers in the Northern Cusco Region. It was a lot of fun, and a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to join in the festivities rather than simply observe them. And it was quite funny too, given that several tourists and locals stopped us to take our picture!

On Saturday, the city was packed with tourists and locals. The formal Inti Raymi celebration takes place in three stages, each representing a portion of the traditional Incan ritual for celebrating the sun. The first stage takes place at Qorikancha, where the Inca and his entourage is first seen. This part lasts about 30-45 minutes and consists of the entrance of all the actors and actresses playing the Incan citizens along with dances.

The second stage takes place about an hour later, a few blocks down the road, in the Plaza de Armas. There, the Inca and his entourage parade around the square along with music and dances. This was my favorite part because we had the opportunity to see everyone up close. Their costumes and dances were beautiful!

The third stage begins at 1:30, about two hours after the parade finished. In these two hours, everyone moves from the Plaza de Armas to Sacsayhuaman, a pretty significant climb. While many tourists take buses that take them to their reserved stadium seats, Lexi and I went with the locals and other tourists who did not want to pay for these luxuries to two mountains from which you can view the show. It took us a little over an hour to walk from the Plaza de Armas to where we ended up sitting. At 1:30, the show began with loud narration and dramatic entrances of the same entourage, followed by the Inca. There was also narration and drama, but it was in Quechua, so it was difficult to understand what was happening. Though we had the translated (in Spanish) script, it was still hard to pinpoint exactly what matched with what actions. The gist of it was that they were going through the Incan rituals to praise Inti, the god of the sun. 

During and after the third stage, which lasts about one and a half hours, the majority of the locals are cooking, partying, playing, and picnicking close to Sacsayhuaman. It was crazy how many people there were, and many people were cooking and selling full lunches--potatoes, fried eggs, rice, salads, chicharrones, fried chicken, hautia (earth oven)-baked potatoes, guinea pig, and more! There was also lots of ice cream and snacks, drinks, and toys for sale. It was like a carnival or fair, with rides and trampolines for the kids, soccer and volleyball games, etc. This was my favorite part of the celebrations. 

The valley we ziplined over

Moray with our ATV group

On Sunday, Lexi and I went off on another adventure, a more structured one than last Sunday. We went ziplining and four-wheeling in Sacred Valley. It was amazing! The ziplining portion consisted of four ziplines across the most beautiful valley. On one of them, we were able to go "superman" style which literally felt like I was flying. The company who did the ziplines was Cusco Zipline. If you're ever in Cusco, I highly recommend it. Four-wheeling was also very fun. We went with ATV Cusco, and it was about 2.5 hours of riding with stops at Maras, the salt mines, and Moray, the ruins of the Incan agricultural terraces. It was a beautiful day and a fun, dusty ride. The guides were awesome and made sure we were comfortable on the vehicles and provided great info at Maras and Moray. Shout out to Deep House Cusco Tour Operators who have been super nice and have provided us with very reasonable pricing. 

Maras salt mines

Among other great things this weekend, we have a new puppy and two new students at our house. We found the puppy on the street and are caring for it until we find a loving owner. Her name is Negrita (literally means Little Black Girl) and she probably weighs about two pounds and can fit in a large mug. The two new students, Henrietta and Sam are taking classes here for four weeks to learn how to teach English as a foreign language. 

Unfortunately, not everyone was celebrating this weekend. Much of Cusco, especially those in the medical and international community, is in shock and sadness due to the death of a 24-year-old medical volunteer (here with a different program than I) from South Carolina who died in a hiking accident over the weekend. Of course, this touches close to home for me, also a medical volunteer from the US, and I can't imagine the pain his family must be going through right now. Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers. If you want to read the whole story, you can click here.

Thanks for following along with me on this journey! Lots more to come!

June 22: Mi Día Típico

I have been in Cusco now for almost 3 weeks. It's crazy to me that that much time has gone by! Given that it has been three weeks, and apparently I frightened some people with my previous post, I thought I would share what a relatively normal weekday is like.

Monday through Friday, I wake up around 5:45 to shower and get dressed. Around 6:30, I head downstairs for a delicious breakfast, which usually consists of some type of hot drink (coffee, hot chocolate, tea), un jugo (smoothie), a bowl of cereal doused in yogurt, and bread with jam, avocado, or egg. And sometimes, we have cake. And while I am eating, the kitchen is bustling with people making cakes, putting together catering orders, etc.

Around 7:00, Lexi and I leave for work. We walk. We could take the bus, but it takes about the same amount of time given the traffic, and the weather is beautiful! It is about 2.5 miles away, so it takes 45-50 minutes to get there.

Once we arrive to the clinic, we wait for our respective doctors to arrive and get settled. There are four of us interns helping at the clinic, and we each have a doctor we usually work with. I usually work with Patricia, one of the pediatric specialists. This week, I have been starting my day by helping with patient admissions by taking the weights and blood pressures of the patients coming to see the doctor. After this, I work with Patricia, where I mostly observe and do paperwork. Like I've mentioned before, there is a lot of paperwork to be done, so I spend a lot of my time doing that. Sometimes, I leave the clinic with a doctor or nurse to do something in the community. I've been to the local elementary schools to take heights and weights of the students as well as to give them a preventative anti-parasitic medication. I've also run errands with a nurse, tracking down a missing patient, delivering medication, picking up vaccines, etc. I generally work until about 1:00 in the afternoon.

At that point, I am hungry, so I walk into the main part of the city, about 20 minutes away, with my eyes peeled for a good menú. In Cusco, many restaurants have a limited menu, called a menú for lunch. This consists of a few options for a soup or appetizer, entree, and sometimes a drink or dessert. The 2-3 course meal costs somewhere between $2-5 and is A LOT of food. I have a few restaurants that I check daily to see what they are offering, and I am constantly finding new ones.

Following lunch, I walk around the city, watch the random parades and festivals that may be occurring, go shopping, get a piece of cake or ice cream, and head to Máximo Nivel to relax in the cafe and go to my Spanish class. My class is from 4-5 and is basically a one-on-one tutoring session with my teacher, Rosa. Generally, I spend most of the class reading aloud about prominent topics--marriage, religion, terrorism, etc. and discussing these while also learning new vocabulary. I really enjoy my class and learn a lot too!

After class, I meet up with Lexi again, and we generally do something before heading home. On Tuesdays, there are salsa lessons at Máximo Nivel, so we sometimes go there. Otherwise, we walk around the city, enjoy the sunset from the plaza or up on a mountain, grab some ice cream (if we haven't already), etc. Usually, we get home around 7, at which time someone in the family is home and ready to cook or reheat something for our dinner.

So we enjoy our dinner at the kitchen table, while they are usually still working on some cake or food order for the next day, while having some good-quality family time. Usually, this involves some type of mini dance lesson/critique, a new song, a mini English or Spanish lesson, stories from the day or past, and always lots of laughter. Around 8:30 or 9, I say my goodnights and head upstairs to sleep and get ready for the next day.

Weekends, of course, vary a lot, but that is the typical routine for a weekday.

As for highlights from the past couple of days and expectations for this weekend:

Good things:

• I got to watch an "operation" on a child's infected finger due to a cut from glass. 
• I have been able to do more things in the clinic, like taking blood pressure and interacting with patients. 
• This adorable dog followed us about a mile to work, and even into work. His name is Alfonso, and this is now the second time I've come across him.
• I will be in the parade tomorrow in the main plaza, dressed in "traditional attire" with the rest of the employees at the clinic. 

Bad things:

• Kris (on the left) is leaving today to go back home to the US, and Camden (not pictured) is leaving on Sunday. 

June 19: Made It to 19...and Almost Stopped There

This past weekend was great! On Saturday, I celebrated my 19th birthday internationally. Though I've begun my 20th year of life, this birthday was a day of many firsts.

It was my first birthday:

1. In South America
2. Without anyone I'd known for more than 2 weeks
3. With birthday cake for breakfast
4. During winter
5. With mountain climbing 
6. With fireworks
7. Without broccoli JUST KIDDING! I found broccoli! 
8. That involved almost-dying at least 3 times...

So I made it to 19, but 19 and a few days began to appear unlikely. 

Ok. Not really. Mom, Dad, family, and friends, fear not. I'm just being a bit dramatic. 

This weekend was full of adventures! On Saturday, Lexi and I climbed a mountain. We just found it and decided to go up, and it was beautiful--definitely worth the oxygen struggle to get up there. Along the way, we ventured through some less populated neighborhoods with dogs who are a little more defensive than we are used to. Fortunately, they are not aggressive, but let's just say that there were a few times when we had enough adrenaline to go a bit quicker up the mountain. 

In the evening, after resting our legs, we ventured to the Plaza de Armas with Kristen and Sonia to attend the "Lights and Sounds" event. This event consisted of musical performances by several well-known bands as well as a highly anticipated fireworks show. You've all probably seen a fireworks show for the 4th of July, New Year's Eve, or perhaps at the end of a sports game, and this was similar, except for a few things.

1. There was a very dramatic (and a bit creepy) countdown. 
2. The crowd was ooo-ing and ahh-ing at the particularly spectacular blasts. Other than these sounds, there was very little sound from the audience. You could feel the way the fireworks had captivated everyone's attention. 
3. The fireworks launched from different locations, such that we were constantly turning around and looking back and forth. I believe I saw fireworks from at least 4 different locations. 
4. They have "cataratas" (waterfalls of fire) in addition to colorful explosions in the air. 
5. We were joined by ALL the youth and even young families of Cusco. No one skipped this. There were A LOT of people, and Cuscaneans don't have the same understanding of "personal space" as Americans. Therefore, the fireworks show ended with a stampede. 

When I say stampede, I am not exaggerating. Earlier in the day, if I'd described my interactions with the dogs as "I almost got attacked by a pack of aggressive dogs," that would be exaggerating. Now, as I say "I nearly suffered from a very serious injury due to stampede," I am not exaggerating. I have never been in a crowd that was so tightly packed and pushing so hard. And all things considered, I had it easy: I didn't have a backpack or a baby, I was tall enough to see over the crowd and coordinated enough not to trip over my own feet, I didn't have a little kid I was trying to protect, and I was only trying to stay with three other people. That being said, I stepped into the trench between the sidewalk and grass (which is highly protected and therefore, treated like an invisible fence), and nearly fell on top of the people around me, and I was pressed so tight, I could've lifted up my feet and continued moving. It was insane! If this had happened in Atlanta, I'm pretty sure it would hit the national headlines. Nevertheless, we survived and made it to a nearby pizza restaurant for some good-ole' Cuscanean pizza. 

Pizza here is very tasty, especially if you don't like red sauce because there isn't more than a tablespoon on the whole pizza. Nevertheless, it was fresh, crispy, and a great late-night snack. 

Sunday morning, Lexi and I found the parade of Bellas Artes, presented by the local art university. It appeared that each of the floats presented some abstract work representing a controversial topic or political issue. Here, you can see the float, entitled the 3 Horsemen of Apocalypse, hosting the heads of Trump, Putin, and Pong-Ju (we think) on a missile. There were many other shocking displays.  

Sunday afternoon, we enjoyed another adventure, guided by Sonia, who took Lexi and me to a nearby lake. It was beautiful, especially as the sun was setting behind the mountains. This lake was about an hour out of Cusco by bus, near the town of Lucre and Huacarpay. I would describe this lake more as a marsh, because much of it is filled with tall grass, but nevertheless, it was beautiful and it's the most water I've seen in one place since getting here. 

To get home from said lake, we tried to take a bus, but were told that because it was Sunday (few buses), we'd arrived just 30 minutes after the last bus. Therefore, taxi was our only option. Unfortunately, taxi was everyone's only option, and there was more demand than supply. Because of this, the three of us crammed into a taxi along with a family of 7, totaling 11 people in a car meant for 4-5. We traveled in this taxi for about 45 minutes until we'd just crossed into Cusco. During these 45 minutes, we spent at least 35 20kph or more above the speed limit, at least 5 on the wrong side of the road, attempting to pass the stop and go traffic also going our direction, and at least 5 more on super bumpy, unpaved, and poorly marked backroads. Perhaps I should've taken the skull-shaped gear shift as a warning sign... Nevertheless, we made it home in one piece. 

Adventurous? I'd say so. But don't worry, the expression in our household, both here and in the US is "Siempre ten cuidado." (And I am, Mom and Dad) Just having a little bit of fun along the way. :-)

Thanks again for reading. I hope all the dads out there had a great Fathers' Day! Yesterday was also Fathers' Day in Peru, and it was not overlooked; in fact, it was celebrated in the schools on Friday and there were many family get-togethers yesterday as well. Next weekend, however, hosts the biggest celebration--Inti Raymi, the Festival of the Sun, with proceeding festivities all this week, starting tonight with more fireworks! I'm excited to experience first-hand this grand festival! 

June 16: Corpus Cristi y Más!

Yesterday was a big holiday here in Cusco because of its Catholic heritage. It was the day of celebration for Corpus Cristi, when they remember the unity of all the saints and all people in Christ. We had the day off of school and work, so we were able to attend all the festivities.

Beforehand, I really had no clue what the day would be like. All I could make out of conversations was that there were going to be a lot of people in the Plaza, that it would be easy for me to get pick-pocketed, that there would be music and some kind of parade. That description pretty much applies to every day of June.

On Wednesday, throughout the day, there were parades of the saints with their followers carrying their statues to the plaza. They processed with a large number of people carrying the idol as well as

playing in the band and walking with the assemble. It was neat to see all the different idols as well as all the dedicated followers.

On Thursday, we--Lexi and I--went to the Plaza around 9am to get seats, as this is what our host family told us to do. We found really great seats on the temporary bleachers that have been set up in the Plaza for the various festivities happening this month. At 10am, the event started. It was like a giant mass (I later found out that it is appropriately titled la Misa de Fiesta, or celebration mass), with all the citizens of Cusco gathered together. That alone was powerful. There was a nice little choir leading the hymns, and many important persona adorning the stage and speaking. The service was partially in Spanish, and partially in Quechua, the native Incan language that almost all Cuscaneans speak. I really enjoyed singing and speaking familiar prayers and hymns in Spanish alongside the natives.

The formal service ended around 11:30, when the procession of Corpus began. This starts with La Carroza followed by all the Saints and Virgins, and later numerous bands, dances, and hours later, the Saints exit the Plaza via the parade. The crowds only grew as the afternoon drew on, so Lexi and I escaped to the Chocolate Museum for a tour and tasting.

That is Barney. 

Meanwhile, the crowds were also invading another plaza, where the traditional Corpus Cristi dish was being served. This dish, entitled Chiriuchu, consists of 10 elements that represent different regions. These elements are served together, but not mixed or cooked together, to show how differences united together form something greater than each separate. The separate elements are: roasted guinea pig, dried lamb, roasted chicken, flour-based patty, toasted corn, seaweed, cheese, fish eggs, sausage, pepper. Sounds delicious, right? Though I have tried most of these things, we did not eat this food yesterday due to the craziness of the crowds as well as the risk for food-borne illness. We, instead, headed over to the local Indian buffet, for a delicious meal, great view, and we also happened to run into Kristen (another one of my house mates).

Following lunch, we escaped the crowds again by climbing the mountain up to Cristo Blanco. Kristen was our guide, taking us on some real steep climbs, through barbed wire fences, and through the "wild". We made it to Jesus right at sunset--beautiful. And after a climb like that, there is nothing better than choclo con queso and another visit to the chocolate museum. Yes, that's right...we went to the chocolate museum twice in one day. It was a holiday, remember?

Tonight, they're back to work, with a bunch of cake and catering orders for tomorrow. Here are just a few of the cakes for tomorrow. So beautiful! Feel free to follow their bakery, 3 sabores, on Facebook.

June 13: Guinea Pig Time!

Yesterday, I had two types of guinea pig experiences: one metaphorical, one literal. And to be clear, the metaphorical one refers to one of the American uses of guinea pigs--for scientific testing--not to the Peruvian use, as a main entree. No one tried to eat me. 

I'll start with the metaphorical experience. I now have three other girls from Maximo Nivel working with me at the clinic, one of whom, Lexi, also now lives with me. This is good! I have company at the clinic and traveling to and from, which is great! Also, there are more "guinea pigs" at the clinic, so there are beginning to be a greater variety of things for me to do. For instance, today, we had the chance to help with admittance of patients by finding their records and taking their weights and blood pressures, and I had the opportunity to further get to know one of the nurses.

To be honest, yesterday was a bit of a bad day: I was in the office doing paperwork for over five hours straight and I had a sore throat. It was hard to be optimistic about the internship and the six more weeks I'll spend working there. One of the nurses has been hard to work with, partially because of the language barrier, but mostly because her mind moves a million kilometers per hour, so it is hard to receive clear directions. Thus, at the end of the day, I think we were all a bit frustrated.

But that same nurse was the one I had the chance to get to know better today. Maybe she was in a better mood, or relieved that the end of the paperwork was in sight (I know I was!), but she really is a caring, smart, energetic woman. So much so, it was almost fun finishing up the papers.

And now onto the literal guinea pig experience.

To complete my sort-of bad day yesterday, I arrived home and was reminded that we were having a Cuscanean specialty for dinner. Having seen them preparing the guinea pigs (cuy) the previous day, I knew what was in store. Sure enough, on the kitchen table was a bowl of guinea pig parts--heads, ribs, legs, everything. Fortunately, after being home for a little while, I heard the doorbell ring, followed by the delicious smell of roasted chicken and the call that dinner was ready. To my delightful surprise, I was served a plate of gorgeous chicken a la brasa, fried potatoes, and vegetables--also a traditional Cuscanean dish. Along with that, I was served mere samples of cuy along with fish eggs and several other ingredients that go into the traditional dish for Corpus Cristi (which is this Thursday). The chicken was great! The potatoes were good. The vegetables were great! The cuy was...salty, chewy...like really tough beef jerky. And the fish eggs were very crunchy and fishy.

And thus, those are my guinea pig experiences. The end. Thank you for reading!

June 11: ¿Puedes ayudar a tender el horno? (Can you help set up the oven?)

This afternoon: 

Martha - ¿Puedes ayudar a tender el horno?

Yo - Perdón, no estoy segura si yo entiendo. 

Martha - Necesitamos tu ayuda para construir el horno. 

Yo - Oh...ok. Sí, les ayudaré.

Martha - Pónte ropa mala y tu sombrero. 

Yo - Uh, ok. 

Over the next half an hour, we worked to assemble an oven made of rocks that we would later (after heating it with a wood fire for about 2 hours) collapse on top of a bunch of potatoes and oca (type of root vegetable) to cook them for lunch. This form of oven is called pachamanca and is traditional to the Incan communities. Just like an American cookout, where we sit near the grill and hang out as lunch cooks, we sat and danced near the pachamanca while our potatoes cooked. 

Once the potatoes were cooked and all the family had arrived, we dug them out of the pile of hot rocks, and took them inside to the table which also had some sauce, cheese, pork, and stuffed peppers to accompany the potatoes. We all stood around the table, eating with our hands for the most part. The way you eat the potatoes is by brushing the dirt off a little with a napkin, breaking it in half, spooning some sauce on it, and topping that with a chunk of cheese before stuffing it in your mouth, all while trying not to burn your tongue or fingers off. Sounds fun, right?! It was!

This weekend has been amazing--filled with good surprises and surely God-worked "coincidences." I was blessed by a visit from dear church friends, as they passed through Cusco on their way home from a mission trip. We enjoyed walking through the city, catching up, shopping, taking pictures, etc. Friday night, I was blessed by some great conversations with Cuscaneans and my American friends. Though we talked about problems in this world and even our own lives, there is so much hope in simply uniting with others, and I had the privilege of experiencing that.
 Still, Cusco does not fail to go above and beyond my expectations. I cannot wait for all the adventures to come! 

June 9: TORTA=DESAYUNO! (Cake for breakfast!)

I am sure you have seen some article, advertisement, or cartoon about serving chocolate cake for breakfast because it is "healthy." Let me just say, I am living evidence that cake for breakfast is a GREAT way to start the day. Yesterday my breakfast consisted of torta, palta, pan, yogur, cereal, y café (cake, avocado, bread, yogurt, cereal, and coffee). Yesterday was a great day.

Front of the elementary school

Inside the elementary school

To my pleasant surprise, 8 nursing students joined me yesterday (and today) to assist the pediatrician at the clinic. We went to the school to take more weight and height measurements (we are only able to do 2 classes per day because we can only do it during their PE period). Between the first class and the second, we took a bus to a local barrio (neighborhood). The bus got us very close to the neighborhood, that is, horizontally close. We had to climb up some steep paths and stairs to get to the top (about 24 stories), where the neighborhood is.

With this neighborhood, the nursing students will be doing a project to educate the families on good health for their children and themselves. Both yesterday and today, we have been discussing the crisis that is malnutrition of kids and poor health of pregnant women. It was sad to hear about women who don´t realize they are pregnant until the 4th month of pregnancy and others who try to hide it by compressing their abdomens with tight clothing (potentially harming the baby). The doctor explained the lack of information mothers experience when it comes to raising kids, particularly in terms of feeding them adequately. Many kids don´t like to eat, or can´t eat enough in the time they´re given. Thus, her advice to a lot of the mothers is explaining what nutrients the kid needs to eat, and how they can eat several small portions during the day rather than a couple of large meals. To me, a lot of this seems common sense, but some of these mothers have never had the opportunity to learn these things. It is crazy how quick the city changes from middle-class families to those with very little.

The other thing that changes as you go from tourist-heavy, middle-class areas to impoverished areas is the dogs. There are stray dogs everywhere in all parts of Cusco. For the most part, these dogs are friendly and dirty, but not sick or mean. In the main part of the city, the dogs are used to people and generally mind their own business. Many of the dogs have "owners" who give them food and attention. Some people have dogs that live in their houses. Away from the main city, however, there are many dogs who are not taken care of and not used to people. These dogs can be dangerous because they can be more aggressive and may carry dangerous illnesses. Very few people here recognize that unhealthy dogs can be just as dangerous, if not more, than unhealthy people, and there are no regulations in terms of maintaining the population of dogs.

This post is becoming a real downer! That is not what I meant for it to be. Yesterday really was a great day because I saw the hope for these neighborhoods. There will always be problems, but there are capable people willing and working to help. In addition to working, yesterday, I also met with a tandem partner. A tandem partner is a local who is working to learn English at Maximo Nivel. I met with a guy, Kevin, who is 21 and just finished college, and is now working as a tour guide. It was really interesting to be able to compare our backgrounds and cultures.




Among other news, I found this sign in a bus. This is what the protest was for on Tuesday--basically it was a campaign for all drivers to turn off their car for 10 minutes to save the environment. Apparently, Tuesday was like their Earth Day.

And of course, I have included more pictures of food. I found a really great lunch place today! It was cute, clean, cheap, and muy rico!

Palta a la vinegre

Limonada (delcious, super smooth lemonade)

Pollo Dorado (golden chicken) with
papas fritas, ensalada, y arroz of course