Entry # 11 Daily Life in Peru!

So I don't know if I've written about this before, if I have, well sorry. Recently I've been waking up around 6:30, sometimes earlier, to hop into a FREEZING shower. I can count on one hand how many times we've had warmish showers. No wonder everyone wears 17 layers of clothing a day here, because their showers are always freezing! But then we come downstairs to breakfast, including a roll (awesome because I was trying to be gluten free), butter, strawberry jam and a freshly made smoothie, usually mango, pineapple, banana, strawberry and some kind of mixture. Only this week have we been getting eggs on some days! Then we leave for placement. Since everyone's at different placements and we only have one van, the Prison folk aka me and Amelia are last to leave because our drive is close to 25-30 mins! We jam out to Zeta Pop and Rock (the only station that plays english music) with Alejo, our driver, and count the number of stray dogs roaming the streets! The other day we counted mas or menos 140 stray dogs!!! And there are so many more!

We enter the prison by three different check points - each equipped with a stamp, so by the time we're finally inside we're tattooed up on our forearms! They search our bags, smell our water bottles and give us a pat down while passing check point 2! Today ALL the volunteers from the insight program came today and one asked when the stamps come off, and I simply said 'they don't' I have a faint ink mark from Monday at the prison! ha but the stamps change daily and we have our favorites! Amelia and I prepare an activity of the day before we go to placement, some including making valentines day cards, origami, learning english, coloring with the kiddies and of course dancing! These little activities provide the women with breaks during the monotonous days of weaving, knitting and embroidering. Although they do make wonderful things, which I hate to take them away from, but they are more than wiling to participate! By the time we get in it's around 9:15 and we have to leave by 11:30 when the guard comes back to let us out, so our day is the shortest out of all the placements. Alejo comes back to get Amelia and I around 11:45 and we're FAMISHED by the time we get back because in higher altitudes you burn more calories! We're just over 9,000 ft in altitude, so we're pretty high! We get back to the house around 12:15 ish and this meal bell rings signifying that lunch is ready!! Everyone RUSHES to get food because everyone is hungry! The food is good, larger meals at lunch and smaller ones for dinner, which I'm not used to! But after 4 weeks I've gotten used to. Yesterday we had guinea pig!! BLAHHH No gracias!! The new volunteers ate some while I passed, I had tried it earlier and really didn't enjoy! Then we have a speaker, spanish lessons, field trip, or free time. Yesterday we went to a Shining Path Museum which was really awesome - not because of what happened but it was really informative. Before coming to Peru I knew of the Shining Path but to no extent as to the damage they caused! It was a pretty scary and terrible movement. What we found out yesterday was that in Ayacucho - not only where it began- but about 70% of the population in the 80s went missing or killed! Just in this provence alone. So here in Ayacucho there are many streets named after significant events that occurred during the Shining Path Movement. I have to pack my things because I leave tomorrow, SERIOUSLY TOO SAD!! I can't believe it went by this quickly! Well until next time!
xo
Lola