Alissa's Peruvian Adventure

A foot in Two worlds

2010-07-07T09:02:00.000-07:00

Well friends my time in Peru is coming to a close. I have less than a month here in Peru and 1 week in my placement. It is strange to be in this place, kind of half way in and halfway out. I think it is kind of like the summer before my Yav year started, except there was more to prepare for, I knew less of what I was getting myself into, and I was definitely going into the unknown. Now it almost feels like I had put pause on my “old life” and I am going back to it. I know better than to expect that things haven’t changed. Even if everything there had stayed the same(which it hasn’t ) I have changed and thus can not go back to the life I used to have. I am not saying that the change in me is that drastic, but whenever you spend a year away from something or someplace your perspective changes. It is also a strange phenomenon to be straddling two lives. I know that I have written about this before and thus will not fall into redundancy, but just know that the phenomenon of knowing that you are about to return to completely enter into a different life is a strange one.

Advice for someone traveling to Peru:

1. There is a list of things you should always carry with you: Bottle of water, toilet paper(you don’t want to get stuck without it), a jacket(in may be REALLY hot when you head out but you never know how long you will be out and it could get cold. Plus a jacket is good emergency mosquito or sun protection), copy of your passport(just good to have), and cash(in Peru in denominations 5 or less cause no one wants big bills or has change)

2. Never say you are hungry until you know what is being served(chicken foot soup any one?)

3. If you are going out to visit a small rural settlement in the mountains bring pepto and expect to be unavailable the next day

4. On that previous note expect to get stomach aches hard core

5. If you go to a wedding expect it to start at least an hour late. For other meetings and occasions, at least half an hour late.

6. Make sure you greet and say good bye to every one in the room individually (usually with a kiss on the cheek)

7. Expect to be called gringo or gringa and don’t be offended. It can be used as a term of endearment.

I am sure there is much more and I will let you know when I think of it. Thank you again for all of your support and help. God Bless and I will try to post at least one more time before I head back to the States

La Oroya survey

2010-06-14T16:44:00.000-07:00

The following is an email I received from one of my fellow yavs. Please fill out the survey and pass it on. God Bless!

Alissa King

Hey

we need your help. We are trying to promote a survey about the current situation in La Oroya and I NEED you guys to help out. The following is a letter from the Red that we need emailed/blogged/shared in whatever way you can and then a link to a survey that we need as many people on as possible. PLEASE PLEASE pass this on to your contacts and promote it. It needs to be done by friday and every person makes a difference thanks. So here is the text and the link to the survey is http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/LFVSTH9 :

Dear friends,

This is a critical time for the people of La Oroya, Peru, and we need to hear YOUR VOICE in order to help them.

Here is a 5 QUESTION (YES/NO) SURVEY regarding demands being made to the government of Peru by the company Doe Run Peru that will negatively affect the people and environment of La Oroya. Please take 3 minutes to fill it out. For an introduction to the issue, please read below:

La Oroya is one of the ten most contaminated cities in the world (according to Blacksmith Institute). The population finds itself gravely effected by the contamination produced by the Metallurgical Complex operated by the mining company Doe Run Peru. This company belongs to the North American billionaire, Ira Rennert. Thirteen years ago the company committed itself to investing in the modernization of the metallurgical complex through the state mandated Environmental Clean-Up Program (known in Peru as the PAMA). To date, the company has not finished its commitment despite the fact that the mandated time frame has expired and despite that various extensions have been provided.

In the United States, the holding company, Renco Group, for Doe Run Peru has invested in new technologies at its smelter in Herculaneum, Missouri in order to meet the regulations of the Environmental Protection Agency in the United States (www.doerun.com).

After many years of economic profit (the net gains of Doe Run Peru by the end of 2008 were $508 million – La Republica 28/03/2009), the mining company inexplicably declared itself in a state of economic and financial crisis. In June of 2009, it then halted the operations of the Metallurgical Complex in La Oroya, ceasing to fulfill its contracted obligations with its workers and creditors. In the face of this situation, the Peruvian State has tried to help the company through various opportunities to escape this crisis. Nonetheless, the company has taken advantage of the State in order to escape its responsibilities. And today, the start up of the plant comes with conditions placed by Doe Run Peru, which has placed new demands before the State.

IF the Peruvian State consulted with you about these demands by Doe Run Peru, what would you say?

Please take 3 minutes to fill out THIS SURVEY.

THANK YOU!

Get physical

2010-06-04T10:04:00.000-07:00

Not sure if anyone is reading this anymore, but I am going to keep updating anyways. J So I just got back from hiking the Inca trail! That’s right folks all the way to Manchu Picchu.

3 and a half days of hiking up and down mountains and exploring ancient ruins. It was a pretty amazing experience. This was the second time in my life to go camping and the first time to hike complete days. I guess the Inca trail was a good place to start. Walking through the ruins was really cool. I mean I am not even an enthusiast when it comes to seeing ancient ruins. I enjoy hearing about the culture, but after a while looking at a pile of rocks seems a little ridiculous. The Manchu Picchu ruins are amazing because you can really see the city. You can walk through rooms and try to imagine the people living there. I wonder what they would think about the tourist attraction it is now? Would they be proud to know their hard work is still being appreciated, or incensed to see that people are taking pictures of their alters and leaving pretzels as offerings? I just cant imagine that they would be too pleased. Did you know that the mountain is actually sinking at a faster rate than normal most likely due to how many people visit Manchu Picchu?
Okay so also for me the view of the mountains was most impressive. The mountains are amazing. While we were hiking, looking out over those mountains was an incredible sight. I think often we spend so much time admiring human creations (at least in this situation) that we forget the wonder of Gods creation. I see the beauty in both, the ingenuity of the Inca structures and the sheer awe of the mountains. Let us not forget that the Incans built in a way not to destroy the mountains. They worshiped the mountains and held them sacred. I can't imagine their reaction to people coming from all over to look at their buildings and hardly noticing the mountains where they are located. All of that to say I liked the view.

Oh and another thing I was amazed by, I am amazed by my body’s resistance. I mean don’t get me wrong I was tired. That second day where you are climbing and climbing and you finally see the top where you are headed and the people are the size of fleas. Your breath escaped you and your telling yourself just a little further, but really you know there are still 3 hours of climbing. Yeah that was hard, but I did it and was only sore for a couple days afterwards. It is kind of amazing what our bodies can do.
I think that we just need to give them a chance to shine more often. We need to push our limits physically and mentally. After all that is how we grow. Do you really want the closest thing you do to pushing your physical limits to be watching an action movie? I am not saying start by climbing a mountain, but take a walk. Be a part of this world in a physical way. Sprint across the parking lot instead of strolling. Do a little dance. In the end you will be glad you did. So that’s my pep talk. Keep in mind this is coming from someone who really can be the queen of inactive. I would say that has changed this year. I have found the joy and pride that comes from physical accomplishments. Why don’t you join me?!

Pink crowns, flowers, and Jesus

2010-04-27T08:55:00.000-07:00

Semana Santa(Holy week) was great. The YAVs came to visit at the end and it just happened to be my bday. My host family had a party. There were games, a piñata, snacks, and a pink head band with antenna for me. I really enjoyed it. I have to say that the type of games we played are generally shunned by adult communities. Requiring people to sing, dance around, and do silly things is generally frowned on. Quite frankly I love it. Let me clarify I love it when every one participates. Isn’t true that the only difference between a game that is really fun is whether or not people are willing to get into it. I have never felt that too cool for school attitude(or too cool for stupid games for that matter) I know that some people feel self conscious or stupid but quite honestly as long as you really go for it you are going to have fun and so are the people around you. What are you afraid of? Do you think people are really looking to judge you on your dance skills when it is part of the game to dance around? The only people judging are those that feel too self conscious to participate themselves. Why do you want to cave to the superior attitude the give you? Okay stepping off my box now. Just saying it was fun to have a bday party where everyone participated in the songs and games(no matter their age). It was like being a little kid again.

These carpets are made in the streets with colored sawdust and flowers. Businesses sponsor them and as the processional with Jesus etc pass buy they bless each business that has one of these.

I believe I mentioned the headband. Here it is :)

Radio Amauta gace me flowers for my bday

While the YAVs were here I was kind of like ambassador between my 2 groups of people in Peru. That is always somewhat of a weird place to be, but I enjoyed having everyone together. I think being able to put different aspects of your life in the same place every once in a while is very important. It is like getting you work/school friends together with your church friends. It can be a little weird, but how much better is it latter to be able to mention the name of someone without 10 min of back story? It was a similar feeling when my family came and I am lucky to be able to experience it again. We went to several places that I had not yet been to and I just generally got to share my everyday Peru life and family with my fellow Peru Yavs.

I know that I am not giving you tons of info on what exactly we did but check out some of the other Peru Yavs’ blogs. They have expressed it quite well. The links are on the side of this blog.

Oh yeah and when I got back the night the YAVs left. I ended up being in a play that night. I am in the pink sheet with the orange scarf over my head on the left. My job was to leaf little kids around that at the last minute decided that they too wanted to be in the play.

Well that is it for now. God bless. If you want to see more pictures you can go to

my facebook page.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2031523&id=35702103&l=e740a6bdc7

How’s your faith doing?

2010-04-22T09:54:00.000-07:00

The following is a random reflection. I challenge you to really reflect upon your life and faith as you read it. I offer no answers or earth shattering revelations. Only questions that I have been considering. I hope that you find them thought provoking or at the very least, that they let you know what has been running through my head. I preface this by saying that I am happy and doing well. In no way does the following essay represent a faith crisis or a sadness in my spirit. I feel I am growing stronger in my faith and it is partly do to the questions that are brought up by being placed in an environment very different than that which I have been in in the past. I watched a movie in the young adult group at the church called Faith like Potatoes. The language used and the fervor of the video led me to come up with the following:

Doubting faith at times is perfectly normal, but here is the thing. In order to doubt faith you have to be actively thinking about it. Actively participating in your search for faith. How many of us actually think about our faith daily? Is faith something you can put on when most convenient? When you are in a church crowd you slip it on. You use the language you would never use in daily life. You talk about Jesus and grace, but leave it at that and carefully slip the language from your tongue back into the recesses of your brain to await the next time some one else wants to slip their faith tongue on and share with you. Are you really comfortable living your life as a testament to Jesus Christ? Does that statement right there kind of make you cringe and squirm? Does it make you think about the “uber Christian” you don’t want to be. I think that we have gotten so worried about being pc, about not being the pushy uber Christian, that we have lost an important part of the expression of our faith. When did we become so jaded and cynical that talk of a possible miracle or someone devoting their life to God’s work is taboo? A topic only to be brought up in the most closed of groups, or rather only to be analyzed from a historical or intellectual point of view? When did feeling faith in God become so bad? I am not saying that we shouldn’t think about what we believe or that we should not look at the bible and our faith in an intellectual way. I am only saying that if we only do that, If we separate ourselves from our faith, compartmentalizing our church language into a small section of our being we loose a lot. I am living in a community that freely discusses and lives their faith everyday and let me tell you quite frankly it often makes me uncomfortable. Praying about problems as a first response and wholeheartedly believing it will make a difference, talking about God working in the lives of all of us, and believing that God has a plan even in the worst of things is commonplace. Again, not that this does not exist in my world in the States, but really. How many of us when faced with the unexpected death of a loved one have the automatic reaction to thank God for their life? I am talking first thing. How many of us would be able to thank God for the day we got the news that something horrible had happened to someone we loved? Is your faith a part of you? Does it define your being? Do you live every moment as a prayer? Do you find peace in discussions of God or an uncomfortable squirming as you hope to use the right language, to make sure you don’t offend, or to avoid the chance of being labeled one of “those people”(those Christians that speak so strangely as if with their whole heart). This is the challenge I am facing. How do I undo so many years of avoiding the topic of religion in public schools? How do I bring my faith back into every part of me? How do I make sure to breath it? To feel it? To live it? How do I focus when I pray on the feeling behind my words instead of the way they sound to others? Do you feel your faith as well as think it? Or are you afraid to even ask this question? Afraid of how the answer will call you to change the way you live. I know I am. The question of feeling faith scares me. What does it mean if I am not there? How do I risk separating myself from others by using language that makes so many uncomfortable? How do I balance being truthful and faithful to what God calls us to be with being approachable and identifying with those that find that language distasteful? How do I become the person I know I should be when becoming when that person may cause estrangement and loss or ridicule? Estrangement by those that have, just as I have, separated their minds into two types of Christians, the Christians of the past (miracle believing, faith feeling, Jesus living, sacrificing Christians), and the now (academic, find explanation for miracles, faith talking, convenient Christians)? How do we consolidate those two views into what our faith really is and really should be? Well, for now I will leave it at that. I am by no means trying to criticize your faith (here I go trying to temper my words and make them more acceptable again). Instead I reflect on my own concerns and questions and leave it to you to identify your faith and how/if it makes up your whole self. I leave you with the question…Do you feel your faith as well as think it?

next year and struggles

2010-04-09T10:36:00.000-07:00

I wanted to make sure that everyone heard that I am going to Louisville Presbyterian Theological seminary. I am really excited and wanted to share the news with all of you.

My dad reminded me that I should be sure to include my struggles in my blog so that people can know that things are not always perfect. I have not included every little problem I have had, but hopefully this will give you an opportunity read some of the struggles I am having.

Right now I am struggling right now with a combination of planning things for next year, while still being present here. It has been rather difficult. There are some things that I know I need to accomplish that I cannot do until I get home. Thinking about all these things and imagining next year makes me rather home sick. It is strange too. I know that I am not going back to the way things were. I will be in a different state and all my friends are in different places as well. My little sister is going to college, my oldest sister is having a baby, and my mom and dad are now beginning to look at what they are going to do when they grow up. Even still I sometimes long to be in next year already. It is some little things. I am looking forward to being able to pick up the phone and call my friends and family. I can talk to them now, but it is only if we are both online. Also, I am really looking forward to having a definite plan and list of things to do. It is weird what you miss. I often have been in the office without things to do. I know that the YAV year talks about being and not focusing so much on doing, but there have been many days when I have little to do and there really isn’t anyone else in the office. Either that or they are in the office, but are working on their programs etc and there isn’t much I can do to help. It is these times that I miss my to do list and goals. One other thing I am looking forward to, strangely enough, is independence. I thought by coming I would gain more of a sense of independence. That is definitely true. I travel by myself to Lima and with the other YAVs on vacation. Still along with that comes living with my host family. I am helping with chores at specific times of day. Don’t get me wrong I am fine helping with chores. It is something I definitely should do as a working member of the family. I am just used to doing chores on my own time schedule in college. It is hard to adjust to being told when, where, and how to do all the chores again. Besides that I don’t really have much of a social life with people my age. I mean I go to the young adult service and work on the young adult program, but really the socializing that takes place is volley ball(which I learned early on I am really not good at) and church activities. I think it is probable that some of the other young people do other things, but not having a key to the front door and not wanting to wake my family at night can make things difficult. Plus quite honestly with going to church 2 times Sunday, Tuesday, and Saturday, being in the office all day, a meeting Thursday, and a radio program Saturday morning, while not having tons to accomplish, actually do I am doing a lot. I am just looking forward to having my own schedule again.

All that being said I know that there are things from here that I will miss when I go back to the States. One of the previous yavs talked about how she was homesick while she was in her placement, and homesick for her placement when she went back to the States. I think that I can imagine what she was saying. Well I guess I will end this by asking you to keep me in your prayers. I will keep you in mine. Let me know what is going on in your life. God Bless!

Donde está Jesús

2010-04-06T16:23:00.000-07:00

This past week was holy week, as you all know. I spent holy week with my host family and with my fellow Peru Yavs. On Palm Sunday I was working in the nursery and was sad that I would miss the palms etc. Turns out that my church here in Huanta doesn’t do palms. I soon found out that there is a street processional. By the time we got the kids ready and left, it was already ending. As we are rushing down the street Esteban(the 4yr old) said, “?Donde está Jesús?”(where is Jesus?) I responded with well he is all around us, in our hearts, in the people we love. Now Esteban would have none of that he was like , “no like the man Jesús” When I didn’t know he quickly ran ahead to ask mom.
Now while Esteban clearly meant where is the man who is acting as Jesus is this processional it got me thinking. I recently have had several bible studies and read through a bible study for Rebecca. All of which talked about the second coming. The question of do we really live our lives like Jesus might come any minute. I am not talking about the sins we commit or how much time we waste. While that is a legitimate thing to look at I am more thinking about our thoughts. Do you really believe Jesus could come any day? Do you randomly think throughout the day hmm maybe Jesus will come again today? Do you ever wonder if you will encounter Jesus physically before you die? How do you think you would respond if someone said this guy/girl is the child of God come again? I know the events leading up to and following the second coming are scary to think about, but setting that aside, how would you feel if you met the physical Jesus?
There will be more to come about the rest of my Holy week, bday, and visit from the YAVs.

These are the Palms they use here in Peru. They are braided and twisted in to all sorts of patterns. Way cool huh?

coloring for the greater good and more

2010-03-10T15:01:00.000-08:00

Well,

It has been a really long time, again, since I have updated. I have been really busy and am now getting back into the regular swing of things.

The flooding in Huanta has kind of stopped. I think there are probably people still working on fixing their homes or rebuilding but it hasn’t been raining as often. I want to thank all of you again for your prayers. I think that it is amazing to have places connected in ways beyond just what you hear in the news.

February the Biblical Institute was going on. They held classes at my church Cristo Rey. Young adults from all over Peru came to participate. I didn’t take any classes personally but it was interesting to be in the midst of that.

Vacation Bible School was this past week. I didn’t get to help with the actual classes because I was out of town. I did, however, color tons of visual aids and cut a lot of name badges and letters. Hence the title of coloring for the greater good. I also typed up all the words to all the songs so that they could use them with the projector. It was a lot of work, but it was good to get to contribute towards that. I also felt very useful which is always a good thing. It was interesting to see the things that we take for granted when planning something like this. For instance, die cuts. Imagine cutting every picture and letter by hand. Maybe I was just spoiled by having a mom that is a teacher.

I have been going through the process of applying for seminary. It seems a much harder process when you can’t call to ask questions or set up interviews. Phone interviews when you are out of the country get pretty complicated. I have pretty much gotten all of that turned in and will let y’all know when I make my final decision.

Our YAV reunion this time was a weeklong retreat at the beach! It was pretty phenomenal. We all cooked different meals including fajitas, curry, pasta, and sushi. I learned how to body board and we swam in the ocean and pool a lot. We also had devotionals and reflection time. Each if us planned a devotional and it was fun to see the different ways people planned for us to worship or reflect together. We did affirmations and got to share why we love each other. It really is a great group. No offense to the other YAV places but my very biased opinion is that the Peru group is the best. I can’t believe I am more than half way through this YAV year. I leave at the end of July and it is just really strange to think that that is less than 5 months away. I know that 5 months seems like a long time but lets look at it. This month is already in the second week. We have a reunion for 3 days at the end of March (My fellow YAVs will be here for my bday on the 31st) and then vacation at the end of May. Then all of June we are in placement and July until the 15^th. After that we have our closing reunion, a week of travel and then we are headed back to the US. Weird huh. The halfway point seemed so far away at the beginning of the year and now we have passed it rapidly. If any one has any special requests from Peru you should let me know now. (No, I can’t bring back cuy (guinea pig) sorry guys) I am hoping I can work in seeing everyone when I get back. Unfortunately I will have about 3 weeks between when I get back and seminary and one of those weeks my family is taking me to Italy. Not that I am complaining about Italy but it should be interesting getting everything done. I am pretty sure I need to have my wisdom teeth out at some point too. That should be tons of fun. So we need to work out when I am going to see everyone. Let me know when you are going to be in the Dallas area.

If any of you are looking for more opportunities to give to the YAV program, my fund raising is finished but there are several that are not. I believe you can contact the yav program on the PC (USA) website (http://www.pcusa.org/yav/support.htm) and ask if specific YAVs have finished their fundraising. I know that there are several in Peru that have not and that it is rather stressful to try to fundraise especially when already in Peru.

I had some questions about cultural differences and thought I would touch on that. I guess one thing that has been hard for me to adjust to is that when you enter a room here, even if people are in the midst of conversation you are suppose to go and greet them. I guess that interrupting is rude lesson that I learned growing up is hard to over right. With that even if you just said hello you are suppose to go around to each person and kiss him or her on the cheek to say goodbye. This applies even when you just ran into someone in the street and said hi for a second. I know that is something my family noticed while they were here as well. It isn’t a big deal and I am pretty much used to it know but I have moments where I forget and that runs the risk of coming across as rude. There are also more defined gender roles. People were surprised when I picked up and started helping move benches. It is interesting though because I have also been in villages where the women helped carry dirt etc. That was only when they weren’t preparing the meal but still. Don’t get me wrong I have no problem dividing the work up that way, if everyone has a job. I think the only time it is a problem is when one gender is not helping the other because their job is done. I haven’t really seen that part as much as I thought I would, but I know it exists. Still there is much less worry about putting people in gender roles and stereotypes. Volunteering to help cut fire wood or haul something got some funny reactions. My host family sometimes jokes that my last name is actually King Kong because I am so strong for a girl. Oh another thing. Movies. When someone tells you about a movie here they always tell the whole story including the ending. I can’t bring myself to do that and it drives me crazy when people tell me the end. It always has. I know there are people that do that in the States, but it is definitely not widely accepted. I think I probably drive people crazy here when I don’t tell the end or enough details about a movie I have seen. That is one difference I have not embraced. There is also a lot more of an attitude of what’s yours is mine. If you bring a food item to work you are expected to share. People will ask you to invite them to a piece of your gum, candy, or whatever else you have. This to has taken some getting used to. I don’t like to ask someone to give me some of what they have. To me it is kind of the job of the person who has it to offer to the person who doesn’t. I have to remind myself that it is just a difference culturally. I want to share but I don’t want it to always be expected or feel taken advantage of. I know this really is a personal battle. I need to get over that feeling and be gracious about it. I mean not that I have ever said no or been huffy about it but harboring annoyance doesn’t do anyone any good. Lets see, what else? Oh yeah work. There is a much more relaxed attitude about work. Often my host family and I have gone to a birthday lunch during the workweek and it doesn’t end until late. Or there is some meeting at the church or something else and no one seems to mind that it is in the middle of the workday. This has been a struggle for me. I don’t want to just miss work all the time, but if I have nothing to do at work and others from the office are going is that okay? I don’t wan to miss out on the relation ship part of why I am here and birthday lunches in the middle of the day seem to be a part of that. All of these differences are just that differences. I am not saying that my way is better or that my family and friends here in Huanta are wrong. I am learning more about myself and encountering new ways of doing things leads to reflection of why things are the way they are. For instance why are work schedules so tight? Isn't it just as important to maintain connections with people?

Let me know your thoughts. What cultural differences have you experienced? What about yourself has been changed by those experiences?

I think that is it for now. I will post more pictures soon and keep y'all up to date on seminary decisions. If you have any knowledge or advice about that I would be glad to hear it. As always thank you so much for all your support! I hope to add more as I think of it and will continue trying to keep everyone informed.

God Bless,

Alissa King

Update on the rains

2010-02-03T13:50:00.001-08:00

Hello all!

Things are somewhat better here in Huanta. It hasn't rained very hard in a couple days and we have had some sun. There still continue to be houses that are falling and flooding in outer parts near Huanta. Here at the radio we are getting together things to take to those affected. I know that is not much of an update, but I thought I would let you know. Please continue to keep us in your prayers. Thank you guys for reading and praying for me and those around me. As always, God Bless!

Alissa

Flooding in Huanta

2010-02-01T13:23:00.000-08:00

The following blog was written last week. I have been trying to post ever since.

I should update you about what is going on in Huanta. I too have been out of contact. We had no internet yesterday and no electricity for most of today. We have been without water all day as well. There was a big land slide about 5 blocks up or so. It really involved large rocks falling and blocking the gutters. Then the river and mud filled most of the houses up to at least half way of the 1st floor and a lot of time more. Most of the houses are as i said before are adobe and so when the floods came walls collapsed. Many have lost houses and all of there things. The city and other non profits have set up tents and given out raw food stuff but without places to cook and no clean water people are still hungry. Some families are sharing what they can. This has affected at least one complete city block, various other houses, and tons of houses in the mountains. Lots of crops have been killed along with animals. So far their are some dead and some missing people, but mostly in el campo. I havent heard any updates on numbers but i think yesterday it was 4 dead and 4 missing.

Today I went with the church to deliver breakfast and lunch. I am not officially there with the radio, but Samuel doesnt mind(he and Orlando were there too for most of it) and so I will continue to do what I can until Samuel asks me to do something else. I figure reading the history of Ayacucho can wait. Anyways, We took lunch at 2. We figured that people would have already eaten but that they could save it for dinner if they had. When we got to the tents, most had not eaten. We filled what pots and pans people had. Some cried and talked to the pastor about what they had lost. I almost cried when a mom and two kids had nothing to put their soup in because they literally had lost everything. A little girl their getting soup for herself heard them say they had no bowls and said that her family did. She went into her tent and got 2 Styrofoam bowls and gave them to this family. It was literally her sharing all her family had. By giving away those bowls she possibly gave away the only way for her family to have clean dishes.

Other than that flooding continues to be a concern. It hasnt rained for 2 days but this is just the very beginning of rainy season. I went with Samuel and World vision to check the levels of two of 5 lakes that are about an hour up the mountain. They are pretty full and they are looking for a way to keep them from over flowing and flooding more houses.

Radio Amauta has some damage but not much. We dont have water right now but hopefully that is temporary. It usually doesn't last more than a day. There are lots of roof leaks and I think they have someone looking to fix at least some of that. When it rains really hard we all go out to keep rooms from flooding by blocking off doors and keeping the water flowing to the back of the radio. That has only happened once so far. I feel that I am safe and more useful than I have been. I only hope that we can continue to do little things that help. One sad thing is that when I am out with the church a lot of people assume i am in charge cause i am the gringa. Or they use my coming as a definite sign that we are there to help. I guess we are there to help but it is not because of me. I wish I could do more.

I luv yall and I only ask that you keep Huanta in your prayers. Surprisingly there are a lot of people in good spirits and praising good for the little help they are receiving. I dont know about you but while i see the beauty of God and people in the helping hands and good spirits I think it would be hard for me not to question why God allowed my house to flood in the first place. It is easy for me to see God in the good when i am not personally experiencing the bad but I dont know how i would feel if I was. I have found myself many times humming the prayers of the people song. I feel like the people of Huanta are living that song. They really are pulling together and being one in this crisis. All of the construction workers from all the sites in the city went to help yesterday and today. I just hope people dont forget and stop helping in a couple days. There is going to be more to come and there are still people living in tents.

Since what I wrote above things have dried out some but there have also been more houses destroyed. The rains will continue to come. Please keep Huanta in your prayers. God Bless.

This is not suppose to be a river. It is a street. The rocks are also not suppose to be there. They were brought by the water.

Christmas break

2010-01-29T14:58:00.000-08:00

First off thank you again to all of my supporters. Y’all are fantastic! I am so blessed to have some many supporting me with funds, time, and of course prayers. I hope that I am in your thoughts and prayers as you are in mine. I just finished my Christmas vacation and got to see more of Peru with family and friends. Most of my family came to visit. I played translator but it was fun to have my family meet my host family. I got to show them around Huanta and share little aspects of my life. We were kind of like a parade going down the street with people staring a little and kids following us. I think my family enjoyed spending two days in the life of Alissa the YAV.

After that my family and I did some traveling. We went to Cusco, Manchu Pichu, Ariquipa, Colca canyon…I think that was it. It was all very fantast

ic! I did shed some tears as 10 days didn’t seem like nearly enough time with them. I still have 7 more months and I knew that was it for family visits. I know that I will be fine and will get to see them again sooner than it feels like right now, but it is still hard. There is nothing to make you appreciate your friends and family like not getting to spend time with them like you used to. It is weird not to be able to pick up the phone whenever and call. I am so greatful for internet and skype that keeps me connected in a way that wouldn’t be possible before.

Okay well back to the trip, It was a little like st

epping into a different Peru. A Peru were my family was there, there was always hot water, and we weren’t stared at for being gringos(well at least after we left Huanta). We were in Touristy areas. Areas where spending over 10 soles for a meal is normal.(that’s about $3.60) Usually I don’t eat out and when I am with the YAVs and we eat out, we are looking for the 6 soles or less Menú.(Menú is kind of like the special. There are usually a couple of options and it includes an apatizer of sorts like soup or salad, a main dish, and a drink) I know it sounds cheap but it is all relative. If you look at it I can get a 10hour first class bus ticket for 50 soles

which is about 18 dollars. The hostels I stayed in with the YAVs were about 15-30 soles per

night(5-11 dollars) Compared to that a 10-20 soles meal is really expensive. Anyways it was interesting to see my Peru world in a different way.

Well after my family left I met up with some of the other YAVs to continue our travels. I went to Trujillo in the north of Peru. We got to see some really cool ruins. Chan Chan is a pretty big city of mud. I heard that right after we were there some kids on a graduation trip went in and destroyed some of it. I don’t really understand what possesses people to make them so destructive. I mean here these ruins have survived earth quakes, storms, and time and these kids make a mess of things. I think they needed to be taught a little more respect for history. Well speaking of respect for history we also saw Huaca de la Luna and it is incredible.They have uncovered murals with the colors still in tack. It was really cool to see. They are still excavating and you can see the process. There is another right near by called Huaca del sol.Apparently they lack funding to continue excavation but it is said to also be incredible so far. I think to see Huaca de la Luna it was worth going to Trujillo.

Also there is a beach near by that is really nice. We were there on off-season so it wasn’t really crowded. We stayed in a really nice hostel right across the street from the beach. It was nice to get to relax and play cards with my fellow YAVs and talk about what is going on in our world.

After that we went to Harez to meet up with a friend of Sarah Alta’s that is in the Peace core there. We got to see an amazing place in the mountains with a glacier and a lake that was just gorgeous. We also went to this place where they were playing US pop song as background music. I think the other YAVs were stunned to see how many of the songs I knew. I told them songs just stick in my head really easily but Anna proceeded told me that I may have a talent as a human jut box. Well I guess if seminary doesn’t work out I have another option.

Podcast

2009-12-11T09:56:00.000-08:00

Hey guys i forgot to put this on here. This is a Podcast put together by Joe(another YAV) for Red Uniendo Manos. I am on here talking about my experience in Ojoyo and some of the things people said they were thankful for. It can give you some sense of what's going on and keep you up to date on some of the issues here in Peru. It also will give you more info about some of the YAVs. Don't worry it is translated into English.

http://kuzka.podbean.com

Oh yeah and like Joe says at the end of this, if any one wants to hear more about what I am doing, have their youth group ask questions, or anything else I am more than willing to give more info. We can video chat through skype or email back and forth. Just let me know and we can set something up.

Thanks guys and again I miss you all!

MERRY CHRISTMAS

2009-12-10T15:05:00.000-08:00

This is in Spanish, English, and Quechua/Kechwa. :) Cool huh!

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Visits, Thanksgiving, and Madrina, oh my!

2009-12-10T13:51:00.000-08:00

Okay so it has been a while since I wrote and I feel like I have been really busy. Lets put it this way, the last 3 weeks I have not been here for the weekend. I have traveled to 2 communities and had Thanksgiving in Lima. I have started teaching English classes (although for a while we haven’t had them due to people at the office being busy or gone), I have translated another document, preached 2 sermons and I became Madrina (Godmother) of a church in Moya, Tambo.

Some explanation. Lets start with my work in general at the radio. I still have times when there is not much to do, but I feel that is changing. The English classes give me lessons to prepare and though we haven’t had them at the radio in two weeks, I have been going to the church once a week to have a conversation class with the pastor and his family that is going really well.

Also, Samuel (my boss) asked me to begin preparing sermons so that he can just ask me to preach whatever time he wants. So, with that I have been filling a lot of my time. Then of course I still manage to have time to sit and chat with people that come in or sometimes Samuel bounces ideas off of me. My schedule is pretty flexible and so that still gives me time to do things like go and hear Valerie (my little host sibling) sing in a Christmas program. (I will be posting video).

Ok so now my second visit to a village outside of the city. So we went to Huayra pampa. It was really beautiful. We went to help with a roof raising (literally) but when we got there it turned out they didn’t have the supplies. They couldn’t call to let us know cause no one has a phone. So they fed us breakfast and I took pictures, Samuel helped them cut and carry tree trunks up to the church and I took pictures, they fed us lunch and I took pictures, and we had a prayer service and I took pictures. If you hadn’t guessed my job was to take pictures. Besides taking pictures I did one other thing. I got sick. I mean stomach-twisting sprint to the bathroom sick. The bathroom happened to be a porter potty that consisted of a hole in the ground but I didn’t really care at that point. I continued to feel awful the whole 5hrs we were there and then threw up on the way home. Needless to say I wasn’t exactly very animated or interactive. I really worried Samuel who even escorted me into the radio to tell my host mom I was sick. I think mainly he was worried because when I threw up I vaulted out of the car at a place we had stopped to take a picture. Everyone kept saying don’t get out and I was like I'm going. Turns out it is because it wasn’t exactly the safest place to get out of the car. They were worried I would fall off the edge of the mountain. Needless to say I didn’t, but I did continue to feel sick the rest of the night and the next day, and there went my weekend. Still it wasn’t a complete loss. It is a good story and I have some cool pictures. Plus now when we go on a trip if I don’t throw up it is considered a success. You can see the pictures at

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2028227&id=35702103&l=bc63c3a821

Thanks giving: I spent Thanksgiving in Lima with the rest of the YAVS at Debbie’s house (our site coordinator) We actually went to Alexandra’s house thanksgiving day. She works at Red Uniendos Manos with Debbie. http://www.manosperu.org We all cooked something and I made my families stuffing recipe. It was my first time to make it and I was a little worried. Partly because I had to add spices to the sausage to make it right and make the bread part (we usually do that out of a bag) it turned out really well. Lots of people said that it was really good. The texture was a little different due to the difference in bread, but I think I may try to talk my family into trying to make the bread next year too. We all got together and ate. I think it was probably one of the most significant thanksgivings I have had. There were some Peruvians there that were celebrating thanksgiving for the first time. As such we each explained our dish and talked about the traditions that go along with thanksgiving. Alexandra read a document written by a Native American (I cant remember who it was, sorry) that talked about sharing the earth and being a part of it. She then read a document written by a Peruvian that was along the same lines. It was cool to really experience the sharing of customs. I think for me one of the best parts was reflecting on all that I have learned about Peru and Peruvian customs and sharing a little in return. We also shared what we were thankful for. One of the YAVs commented that this was their first thanksgiving away from their family and it was mine too. She then talked about how while that was true that being together with the YAVs and the people from the Red, the Presbytery, etc, made it so that we were creating a new family of sorts. Almost every single person in the room was from somewhere else. Whether that be the states (a wide range of states by the way), or somewhere else in Peru. For all of us to come together is quite amazing. It really felt like each of us was put there for a reason. Each person was there because they were doing something in Gods plan. There was a lot of joy passed around and while there are plenty of times I miss my family, it was amazing to find that on Thanksgiving Day I wasn’t especially homesick. I am thankful for my family in the states and my Peruvian family here, and my YAV family that we have created. After all what is thanksgiving about if not having your heart filled with thanks for those around you and those that cant be there? So to everyone out there who has been in my life in anyway, thank you. I know that the people I have come in contact with have made me who I am today and will continue to shape me in the future. I thank God for all of you.

Moya, Tambo. I visited a place called Moya in Tambo, which is in Ayacucho, which is in Peru. I hope that gives you an idea of where it is but if not, it is in the mountains. It was a small village; although not as small as Huayra pampa it is still pretty small. They too were putting a roof on a Presbyterian church. First off I didn’t get sick

Helped carry dirt out of the church to level the ground,

Helped teach some kids a couple songs,

And took like a hundred pictures of kids that wanted to see there pictures on my camera.

Halfway through the day my boss’s wife asked me if I had my things to sleep there. I laughed thinking she was joking. I found out latter she wasn’t. No one told me there was a possibility we would sleep there, but we did. We stayed late to have a church service with everyone. I was a little irritated that we were spending the night and I hadn’t really been told. Turns out one of the reasons we stayed is because the church members wanted to make me the Madrina (Godmother) of there church. I felt horrible for being frustrated earlier and quickly changed my attitude. It is funny how God works huh? They had me cut the ribbon to enter the church,

, I preached, and then took tons of pictures with everyone. When we went to go to sleep I swear everyone in town gave me a blanket t

o use. They even tucked me in.

The next day breakfast was cuy (guinea pig) to celebrate. We also had potatoes, cheese, and soup. I didn’t finish and packed most of it up (besides the soup) to take back with me. We prayed to leave and took tons of pictures again

They gave me a whole lot of onions as a parting gift

We walked down to Tambo (which was a pretty good hike by the way)

And spent the rest of the way finding cars to take us back and ridding back. I was exhausted but all in all it was a really good trip. If you want to see the rest of the pictures you can head to http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2028604&id=35702103&l=d39e691e2a

All and all it has been a busy month so far and will probably continue to be. My family is coming to visit for Christmas so if you want to send a letter or anything for me and or the other yavs, without paying postage now is the time. For any families of other yavs that aren’t coming, my family will be more than happy to bring Christmas presents. Just shoot me an email at Alissadking@gmail.com and I can get you their address. J

I am excited to see my family and show them around Huanta. I got a box in the mail from them with all sorts of fun stuff that is sure to make me gain weight (chocolate, supplies to make chocolate chip cookies, blueberry syrup, etc). J I have been sharing my box with those around me which has been especially fun. I have some new movies that came in my box and a lot of them have both Spanish and English. I have already lent some out and have had fun talking about the movies. They also sent English vocab cards that have been fun here with my host family. I may lend them out to people in my English class as well. So again thanks family for the box! I really appreciate it. For all those who are wondering it took about 3 and ½ weeks to get here.

Well I miss you all. Happy late thanksgiving and I hope everything is well. It may be cliché but let me know what you are thankful for and whom you spent thanksgiving with. I love you all!

Alissa

What's up?

2009-11-18T13:30:00.000-08:00

Okay so I want to know how your lives are doing. What's up with all of you? What are your plans for thanksgiving? What's the weirdest thing you have eaten lately? What are your future plans? Just wondering. Let me know.

Alissa

Pictures my host family and me

2009-11-12T08:21:00.000-08:00

This is my host family and me, all in the backseat of a VW bug. It lives here at the radio too and they call it the frog. :) There were 3 more people in the front. That makes 9 people in all. Thats nothing once we fit 15 in a taxi.
This is a pic of my host family and I playing in the part. There are TONS more(jumping photos, spinning photos, pics of the kids, etc) so let me know if you want to see them and I can try to post more.
This is my host family; Luz(the mom), Orlando(the dad), Esteban(4), Valarie(7), and Pricilla(1 1/2)

videos

2009-11-12T06:12:00.000-08:00

This is a video of my little host sister playing with a cat. I just thought it was cute. I hope it makes you smile.

This is a video of some of the listeners of the radio singing in Quechua on the radio for the anniversary celebration. 49 years this year!

Have you ever kicked a chicken?

2009-11-04T15:32:00.000-08:00

No, this is not a philosophical question. I really mean have you ever kicked a chicken. I have. Now before you get irritated about the rights of said chicken I have to say in my defense that she bit me first. I am pretty sure she thought my toe looked like a tasty morsel. I guess that will teach me for wearing sandals out to give the leftovers to the chickens. I have noticed ever since that chicken seems bolder and I must repeatedly act like I am going to kick this said chicken again to keep it from trying to grab another sample of my feet. I know you think I would have learned not to wear my flip flops but it seems silly to change shoes to wash dishes. (The sink to wash dishes is where the chickens are) Plus I am determined not to let this chicken get the best of me. I know this seems a silly topic for a blog entry but it really struck me and I thought it was a funny story to share. So have you? Have you ever kicked a chicken?

P.s. as far as I know the chicken was not harmed in this exchange. Oh ya and neither was I.

Livin Life

2009-11-02T08:18:00.000-08:00

It has been a while since I updated so let me think what I need to add. To begin with I am having fun and living life. I hope you are all doing the same! :)

Rebecca, one of my best friends, is getting married in about a week and obviously since I am in Peru I won’t be there. I am not going to lie this is really hard. I keep thinking of all the memories she is making that I wont be there to see. I really want to be there to support her and tell her she looks beautiful, but I guess it can’t be. I think it is times like these when I think about the things I am missing at home that I get homesick. Don’t get me wrong I am experiencing tons of things here and am happy to be here, but to miss things like Rebecca’s wedding is really difficult. Long story short, I want to say congrats to Rebecca and send her a huge hug. Rebecca you look beautiful and will on your wedding day too.

Ok so what have I been up to? Well I have been translating the same document for a while but I am so close to done it isn’t even funny. I also recently went to the anniversary celebration of a church here. They were holding services for 2 days, and I am not talking short services. I went to the first part. It was 3 ½ hours and included 3 sermons. It was also in Quechua, which made it hard for me to understand since I don’t speak Quechua. Al the same I was really impressed by the members dedication. After they served a meal and some of the kids found it really interesting that I was there. I cant even tell you how many pictures I had taken of me. They asked me if I speak English and had me tell them some words. Luz, my host mom, told them that I bathe in milk and eat sunscreen. I am pretty sure they believed her until I told them that she was joking. It was pretty interesting because that is probably the strongest reaction I have gotten so far for being different. Well lets see what else?

Oh yeah we had our first YAV retreat. It went really well and it was great to see every one again and get a chance to speak English. We talked a lot about the highs and lows of our time so far, how we are doing, and our experiences thus far. We visited Paz y Esperanza (Peace and Hope), which is a group that helps abused children, particularly sexually abused children. They also work towards prevention by visiting schools and talking about stranger danger etc. They have coloring books and everything that talk about what is appropriate and what is not. The farm we stayed at also acts as a shelter for some kids as well. They also help with therapy, including art therapy where the kids make crafts that they sell to support the center. It was good to see where one of the other YAV’s (Sarah Baja) works. We also went on a hike/climb in the upper jungle(it is in the mountains). We climbed 12 waterfalls. It was really fun. Basically it consisted of using a rope to pull yourself up by your arms and using your feet against the waterfall rock. I learned that often the path that looks the hardest is easiest and vice versa. They told us that walking where the water is flowing is best because the moss doesnt grow there. For those who haven’t experienced it, moss is very slippery. J I only feel a couple of times and made it through with only very minor scrapes and bruises. I was a lot more comfortable on this climb than the last one. The water kept us cool and it was absolutely beautiful. Hopefully our guide will send us the pictures soon so that I can post them.

I am looking forward to our next retreat (Thanksgiving) so that we can all eat all the foods we have missed and catch up with one another once again. Oh yeah, I attached links to the blogs of the other YAVs. I am pretty sure some of them are better at posting pictures if you want to check their sites out. Plus it might be good to read some other experiences.

Well lets see what else? I wanted to ask all of you some questions. How do you feel about what I have talked about so far? How are your lives going? If there were one issue that you could put on the radio for the people here in Peru, what would it be? Think about it and get back to me.

I think that is basically it. I was going to go on a trip with the young adults of the church this weekend but it didn’t end up working out. It is probably good that I was here anyways. My family went to this big open field/park area to eat lunch. We played tag, took tons of pictures, and did silly tricks like cartwheels and such. It was really fun and relaxing. We stayed pretty much the rest of the day and then headed back. We didn’t celebrate Halloween. Actually from what I can tell most Christians here are pretty against it. My host family was probably shocked to hear that my church and Presbyterian college at home actually hold Halloween carnivals. I tried to explain that the basis of Halloween isn’t a celebration of the devil but I don’t think it got across. I also realized that I only know a little about the history of Halloween. Really not enough to truly explain my thoughts and feelings about it. I think it is just one of those things that will remain different. What do you feel about it? What do you know about the history of Halloween? I would be interested to hear your thoughts.

Well I am doing well. I cant believe it is already November. I am looking forward to my parents visit in December. I also finally gave them my address. Some of the other YAV’s got packages and said that the mail took about 10 days to 2 weeks. So that is not that bad. I think letters take even less time, but I am not sure. I hope you are all doing well and think of everyone often. God Bless!

Alissa

Ps. A cool random fact about Plano Tx that I just found in Encyclopedia Britannica, “The community was granted a post office in 1851; several names were proposed, and ultimately Plano—which a leading citizen understood to be the Spanish word meaning “plain,” an apt description of the terrain—was selected.” I was looking up populations because someone at worked asked me about my city. We all joke that it is Plain-o Texas who would have thought how close we were to right. J Thanks to my awesome friends for the gift of my Encyclepedia for a computer. I have used it quite a bit. It has Austin College listed in it which is Awesome and it turns out is also has a Spanish English dictionary!

Reference:

Plano. (2009). Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica 2009 Deluxe Edition. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica.

Pictures

2009-10-09T20:49:00.000-07:00

This a picture of me with Alpacas on my trip to a small town to visit with some radio listeners. This is the home of the listeners we visited, some of the listeners(traditional hats), and these are the people I work with(baseball caps)
This is me in front of the city of Ayacucho...talk about mountain top
This is a picture of me in a poncho with traditional hat and scarf(it has a different name but I dont remember) with two little girls from the family we visited. The hat was too small for me so I look a little funny but thats okay.
This is another picture from the hike in Lima from week one. Yes we continued to climb up that. This was the easiest part.

some more pics

2009-10-09T20:13:00.000-07:00

a traditional dance at a dance competition in Huanta

My host mom Lus and my host little sis Prici
The YAVs on our mountain hike in Lima in week 1
My host little sis Valerie and Liz (she works in the office) at a car race that came through the streets of Huanta
Me singing a solo at church. Yikes!

Some more info

2009-10-09T09:37:00.000-07:00

Hello all!

I hope that you all are well and that you are feeling refreshed and happy as you read this. I have had some questions about the radio and what my room and more about what it is like in Huanta.

Huanta

To begin with Huanta is a pretty small city outside of Ayacucho. I haven’t done whole lot of exploring but people sell everything from fresh fruits and veggies to meat and clothing in the street. The city just put up a building to move some of the vendors in there and have more sanitary conditions.

The years of violence

This area was hit very hard during the years of violence. A lot of what went on with shinning path started in Ayacucho. My family has told me that the reason that women far out number the men is because of all of the deaths. They also told me that the majority of older women are widows and that you would be hard pressed to find someone who hasn’t been affected. If you want to know more about the history of violence I am sure you can find information online. The shinning path was one of the main groups and it was started in a university by a philosophy professor. In short the government was fighting these groups and all concerned were of the mentality that if you are not with us you are against us. People did not know whom to trust. In some cases whole villages were slaughtered. Tons of people disappeared and to this day there are a lot of people that do not know what happened to their loved ones. There is a lot of work now being done for justice, but it has been and will continue to be a struggle. This is the context for which the radio is working to move forward. It was around and broadcasting during those years as well. The people that I have met have very strong faith and it seems to me that the community has begun to come together and trust each other once again. It has been about 20 years. My host mom told me that whenever my host dad hears helicopters it makes him uneasy because it makes him think of those days. The resilience that I am witnessing is amazing but this is something that no one should have had to go through.

The weather

Well I guess more about my general physical environment is in order. The weather is pretty nice. It is chilly in the mornings and hot in the afternoons although not as hot as Texas. It has hailed twice which was a little strange. It is not strange because it hailed but because it falls just like rain when it isn’t even that cold outside. Last time it hailed I was in a t-shirt. It is the beginning of rainy season now, so I am told that I should expect a lot of water and a little bit of coldness.

My living environment

My room here is basically like any other room. It is bigger than I expected and I still need to do some decorating. My walls are still pretty blank.

My family and I live in the radio building. The offices are in the front and our rooms and the kitchen are in the back. It is open in the middle with grass and a sidewalk in a rectangle. The kitchen is at the end of this rectangle and outside this rectangle in the back is the group of chickens and guinea pigs as well as the sink. There is no refrigerator that took some getting used to, but it does mean that all our food is bought fresh everyday.

The Radio

The radio itself is a Christian radio that has a lot of programs in Quechua (the native language for a lot of people in Peru) as well as Spanish. The radio broadcasts to most of Peru and areas in Chile, Bolivia, and Brazil. A lot of what the radio does is to provide accompaniment and educational information about living your life in a Christ like way. The people who work here do a lot of visits to people who write letters and talk with a lot of people who come to visit the radio. It seems to be the case that a lot of people that are not in the cities think of the radio as their church family. I am told that there is a big lack of church leadership and many look to the radio for guidance. At least three of the people I work with are pastors. Many of the people that come into visit, or that the radio goes to visit give gifts such as part of their crops or other food.

I went on my first visit two days ago to a small place in the mountains. It turns out that they don’t feel that their church is really supporting them. Also, due to the canal that is taking water from the river into the city their land has become more and more dry. Many of their animals are starving or freezing to death. We couldn’t really do much except be their in community with them. They served us soup and potatoes for breakfast when we got there and told us their story. Then we prayed, sang, and read bible passages with them. There were a lot of tears as they told their story. In the end the families thanked us for coming and told us that they felt like Radio Amauta was really the only church group they had. They gave us a huge bag of potatoes and a donation to the radio. I felt rather helpless. All of this was in Quechua and so the people I work with were translating into Spanish for me. They did have me try on a poncho and traditional hat that brought smiles and laughter. I took a picture with two little girls in traditional dress. I think that made them happy. I guess that is all I could do and I hope that the smiles and laughter helped a little. I am learning so much from the people that I meet and I am grateful for that opportunity. It is difficult for me to get out of that “I have got to fix the problem” mentality. Sometimes people just need to share their stories and have a hug.

Sad Stomach

Probably as a result of eating food in the small village and on the way back, I just had my first experience with a really bad upset stomach. I thought that I had had an upset stomach before but oh how I was wrong. I spent all day not eating much, with my stomach rolling. I wont get too much into the details of it, but it wasn’t fun. My stomach is still not completely right and I am debating about whether or not I should take the cypro that I brought with me. I guess I will see how today goes. My host mom has been great about it though. She made me chicken soup and this corn drink that is suppose to help stomachs. The texture of the drink is somewhat like runny jello, but it tastes like cinnamon so it wasn’t too bad. She also went out and got me what can only be described as pedialite for adults. I spent the day in my room watching some of the movies I brought on my computer and sleeping. Luckily it was a holiday so I didn’t even miss work. It wasn’t exactly the way I intended to spend my day off, but what can you do. I guess next time I will listen to my host dad and eat the banana we brought instead of the soup. I just didn’t want to seem ungrateful. I guess my desire not to stick out more that I already do, got in the way of my concern for my stomach. I just don’t like asking for exceptions. I keep thinking that if the people here can eat it I should be able to. Well my stomach isn’t used to the same things and I paid the price for not wanting to stand out.

Other than that I am fine. I have moments of homesickness but that is to be expected. It helps to hear from people back home and to share what is going on here. I am so grateful for the technology that allows me to share so easily and talk with and see video of my family for free over Skype. If you have a Skype name let me know what it is so that if you are on we can chat. My Skype name is adking7.

I hope that all is well and that you all have amazing things happening in your lives. Let me know if you have any questions or things you want to hear about. As always greetings from Peru and I miss you all! I hope to post pictures soon so keep checking the blog for them.

~Alissa

2009-09-19T18:59:00.000-07:00

Hello all!
I am in Huanta at Radio Amauta and all is well. My host family is fantastic and everyone at the radio is really nice. They set up a room for me and everyone wants to make sure that I have everything I need. Right now I am working with two other ladies to plan out a program for teenagers for the radio. Work is some times slow. I dont really know what to do yet and I am not busy all the time. That is probably a good thing though. I am learning the lesson they told us in the YAV program that we would learn about being instead of doing. I am trying my best to be in partnership and get accoustomed to all that is going on.
My host family is as I said very helpful and inclusive. They have really made me feel welcome and happy to be here.
There is the mom Luz who actually went to seminary but couldn’t be ordained because they don’t ordain women here. When she heard that they do in PCUSA she was really happy. She is great and actually took a semester of culinary classes so she makes great food. She really does a great job at expaining what things are and pointing out new things to me.
Orlando is the dad and he too is great. He is funny with the kids and spends a lot of time with them because we live at the radio where he works. He gives me advice and makes me feel welcome as well.
Then there is Valerie. She is 7. She always tries to explain the rules of games to me, which without fail I tend to not understand. She also sat and read with me. She read a story and then I read one while she corrected me when I messed up. It is probably a good lesson in humility and makes me smile when she reads along with me.
Esteban is 6 and has a way of speaking that makes it pretty much impossible for me to understand him. Lately he has taken to asking what different things are in English. Without fail I have to have his mom clarify and he is very patient with me.
Pricilla or Prici as we call her is 1yr and 4 months. She is supper cute and babbles with the best of them. She has an adorable smile and puts everything in her mouth so far I have taken out a battery, a marker, and stickers and that doesn’t include the tons of things her parents have removed. I guess that is normal for this age. She also likes to climb on things which means that she can get to even more things that if she was just crawling or walking.
I cant really spend a ton of time on the internet but I will post when I can. Thank you all again for you support!

Huanta

2009-09-11T22:31:00.000-07:00

I am heading to Huanta tomorrow. Debbie, our coordinator here in Peru has assured me that the violence going on is hours away from where I will be. Thank you all for your support and prayers. Also, I have not had an update on donations recently so if I have not sent you a note from me about your donation that is why. Thank you all and hopefully we will be updated soon so that I can get letters sent. Here are some pictures that I did not share earlier.

Week 1

2009-09-03T16:00:00.000-07:00

Hello All! All is well. I am learning a lot and working on my spanish with every conversation. I feel like it is getting much better. We talked about fair trade and what all that includes. The office here has a section that with fair trade artesian groups. We saw some of their products and discussed the concept of being in partnership. We have talked a lot about that and the other groups that make up the Red(the group we are working with).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1SHYdK

a1UB0

This is a video about the Bridge of hope and the day of the artisans.

We have gone to different museums and spoken with a lot of the people that work in the Red Joining hands network office. We have eaten a lot of Peruvian food that is really good. I will give you all more descriptions later.

So far we have visited 2 sights of ruins Huanca Pucllana and

Pachumaca. It is really interesting to think about other cultures from so long ago. I also wonder what we got wrong or have misunderstood about what has been found. If those people were around today what would they say and what would they refute? I dont know it seems like a really interesting question though.

Today we climbed a mountain. In fact really it was several small mountains. I mean literally.

I would define them as mountains. That dot in that picture above is a person. All of these pictures are where we had already climbed. Although I am from the flat lands of Texas. I found out that I dont really have the same definition for a "walk up a hill." We hike/climbed about 8miles from 8am until probably about 4. I knew that it was going to be 8 miles but I didnt really realize that we would be basicalle climbing most of the way. It was tough and I probably would have declined if I had really understood what I am getting myself into. I am kind of glad I didn't because it felt like quite an accomplishment. We discussed the fact that the parts that looked the hardest were the easiest and the parts that looked the easiest were the hardest. I am sure I will be very sore tomorrow.

It was good to be able to see all that we saw though. We walked through a town and then across the mountains and through another town. These are some of the very poor areas that started out with people squatting the

re. The government later legalized their claim to the land probably at least in part because of the sheer number of people living there. It cant be easy to live there. It is kind of a climb every day and there are a whole lot of people in a very small area. As we were walking through we were definitely a spectacle. If you want to lo

ok up were we were on google maps we sta

rted in Comas in Lima, Peru.

There is some violence going on in Huanta were I am suppose to be going in one week. So if I could have you prayers for the people of Huanta I would appreciate it. I don't know what will happen with my placement. I will keep y'all updated as I know.

Everything else is going well. We are going to church tomorrow and then hopefully will have some time to rest. Thanks for reading and God Bless!

The Beginning

2009-08-29T13:06:00.001-07:00

Hey guys! I am at YAV training and have finally begun my blog. I guess I should begin with some explanation. I am Alissa and I am spending the next 11 months in Peru with the Young Adult Volunteer program along with 5 other YAVs. The Young adult volunteer program is with the Presbyterian church USA and includes many young adults spreading out all over the US and the world for a year of partnership and service.
Here is a taste of what my service includes:For the first 10 days we will all be in Lima for orientation but after that we all separate to our various locations. I will be in Huanta, Peru working in partnership with a community radio broadcasting group. I will be living with a host family and getting together for meetings with my fellow Peru going yavs every 6 weeks or so.

Right now I am in New York for training, which has been pretty great so far. I have meet the other 5 yavs that are going to Peru and we all get along swimmingly. I am excited and nervous about our departure but I know that it will be a fantastic experience.
I want to thank you for your support and for keeping up with what is going on with me. I will try to post as often as possible, but I do not know what my Internet access will look like yet.
Let me know if you have any questions or comments. I would be glad to hear from y'all!