Cajamarca

We took a short break from Piura (June 3- June 8)
On Wednesday night we got on a 7pm bus and got to Cajamarca around 4:30 am. 

We were able to tour the city and to see the culture which is much different then Piura. 
The people were so friendly, humble, and kind. 

It is located in the northern highlands of Peru at approximately 2,750 m (8,900 ft) above sea level.

Ely took us down to teach us how to make stoves and to show us a different side of Peru. 

I believe we all in fell in love with Cajamarca. 

Not only was it beautiful with it's tall mountains, 

It was also cold and dry here.

(We were a bit unprepared for how cold it turned out to be)

We had to take things slow at first because of the elevation. 

That was rough and then half the team was sick. 

We ended up making 2 stoves for families.

This is a valuable resource because of the high cost of propane.

~Linz

A stove that is almost completed.

A Completed Stove- PC: Sarah Tonks

A new way

I want to do the next blogs in Peru a little differently. 

More about things I am learning and observing. 

A series type of blogs. 

I think this will be better than a daily log of what I did and
it might help you understand more about the life here. 

So if there is anything you want to learn or know more about

Comment or message me. 

I have learned so much in the month I have been here. 

It is so intriguing how our cultures are so different. 

Yet, finding those similarities is exciting. 

Enjoy!

~Linz

Week 3 in Peru

I apologize for the lateness of the post.

 It's a bit tricky to write blogs without a computer and constant wifi. 

Some Quick updates:

Getting sick is inevitable. 

The whole house is pretty comfortable with each other and their bathroom issues. 

The weather in Piura is constantly hot and humid. 

The fan is literally my best friend. 

We have a bakery down the street for us.

The mosquitos are what we have termed "Hangry" They are vicious and huge. 

There are dogs everywhere.

Ok now to projects:

We went to a rural school called Santa Sara.  

This is where the whole corruption and politics really bothered me. 

We began painting the inside of the wood frame add on to the school room.

We have gone back a few more times to fix it up and to teach the kids about recycling. 

Their entire playground is covered in trash. 

Ana headed up the project, we taught them a song, did an activity, and then had them go out and pick up trash and put them in the appropriate bin. 

They are so smart!

Next we toured a few orphanages to see if they needed any help. 

My favorite project that we have started is teaching English classes at another rural school.
Our class is very intelligent and it's so fun to hear them learn and pronounce words.
They love to ask us questions.
We showed them a $1 and they were so fascinated by it.
They love to ask if we are married or single.
And one boy learned the words Kiss me from a book.
He loves to use that on us ;)

Our english class

Teaching the kids about Recycling

~Linz

The work begins

Monday:

Today we had a meeting and met the mayor and we took lots of pictures. Meetings and pictures that seems to be the thing here. I was sick most of the day due to not eating when I should have. Later we took moto taxis to another meeting they fed us alfajores and chifles!

Tuesday:

Not a whole lot happened today. Sadie and I ventured out by ourselves and got bread from the bakery all by ourselves! I was pretty proud. Later we went and played volleyball with the local YSA. I played soccer with some kids.

Wednesday:

We did a lot today. We woke up extra early to catch a 7 am bus ride to Tambogrande which is about an hour away. We went to a lot of different schools and the kids would just swarm us. Poverty was a whole new level here where people lived in small stick huts. We made juice and cookie bags to take to the schools tomorrow. We met sister Meg a catholic nun who has been in peru since 1987. She runs a small physical therapy clinic for the kids. She gave us some word of advice: 1. Find God in the journey, He is there even in the bad. 2. Don't eat the street food, we only have a short time here and we don't want to waste it with Matasuma's Revenge.
Thursday:
Oh yes. Today was the day of our Jungle Safari Adventure.  We split into two trucks.  Some of us were outside in the bed of the truck.  We went to the mountains and then on a dirt road for over an hour.  Our driver thought he was the operator of the Indian Jones ride/ fast and furious.  I thought I was going to die or puke a few times.  We got lost and he kept asking people for directions and they would swing their arms like they were directing music.  He got frustrated because they would never point and tell him exactly. After crossing a fair sized river in the truck and Bo asking if we were in Africa, because she expected a lion to jump out. We FINALLY made it! We ate with the kids and danced with them and passed out treats.  They have a one room school house and an outhouse for bathrooms.
Friday:
After our work we got on a 11:30pm bus and rode to Trujillo about 7 hours away.  We stayed at a house and slept til noon and then toured the Chan Chan Ruins.  They were pretty interesting.  Trujillo is a much cleaner city than Piura.
Saturday:
We got up early and went to the Trujillo Temple Open house.  It was so beautiful! Also eveyone was taking pictures of us. Still trying to get use to that. The artwork and decor in the temple was stunning.  We went to another part of the ruins and then headed back to Piura.