Week 2

Mission accomplished: a local told me I spoke Spanish well... but then quickly added "for a gringo," meaning a white English speaker. Well, I'll take whatever I can get!

This week has been really good at work since the kids are starting to become much more comfortable with us. Today we managed to keep them still long enough to go through their ABC's, colors, body parts, and animal noises! May sound trivial but it was a big step. However, I am noticing how far behind most of the children are in these types of activities. They can't differentiate between the colors and few can count past three. While this doesn't seem to bother anyone else, they will be starting kindergarten and I think they will be much further behind those children who have been enrolled in a regular preschool.

Yesterday after work we had a speaker come to the house and talk to us about the coca trade and the two sides of it, the "green" side and the "white" side. The green side is in reference to the positive aspects that regular coca leaves provide. They enhance one's energy and reduce hunger and thirst. This is good for the highland farmers, whose long hours are made possible by these traits. Since the area is so impoverished, many of the locals also rely on the plants since they cannot afford adequate food supplies. The white side is in connection with the cocaine trafficking, which is obviously a major problem here in Peru. The speaker told us that one kilo of cocaine will sell for $1000 in Lima and when transported to the US, one gram can be sold for as much as $150. In such a poverty stricken area, it's easy to see why there is such a pull towards the drug trade.

Today we visited a local women's center, where women who are survivors of various types of abuse can go to for legal and psychiatric help. There is a great need for these types of programs, as it was reported that one section of town has a 90% abuse rate and it is likely that these rates are similar throughout the region. Reasons for such a high prevalance rate include the terrible economic situation, the machovist views of this society, and the lack of opportunities for women, which makes them hesitant to leave abusive situations. In addition to these horrifyingly high numbers, we were also shocked to hear about the "punishments" dealt out for abusers. Like I mentioned earlier, being involved with drugs will receive a sentence of 20 to 25 years where as murder will receieve a sentence of five. Abuse is usually between five and 10 years, but the supervisor said that sentences are rarely served. Abusers usually walk free and it is difficult to ensure the woman's safety because there are rarely tabs kept on the abusers. The center seemed well run but was so small considering the high abuse rates and large region it supports. We may start volunteering there some afternoons with the children who are brought in along with their mothers.

Tonight we went out for dinner before some of us leave tomorrow for Machu Picchu! Our flight leaves at 6am and we will get into Lima around 7. From there we'll fly into Cusco where we will take a train into Agua Calientes. Saturday we will tour the ruins and Sunday we'll take a train back to Cusco for the morning and then fly to Lima for the night. Monday we'll leave at 6 and be back at work by 8! I'm sure there will be plenty of pictures to document the weekend!