A Crazy Couple of Weeks..

Wow I haven't written in a few weeks! A lot has happened in the past month. I am getting more settled here in town with work, life and friends and was able to travel a bit the past few weeks. I ended up taking off for the jungle for the weekend and went to some hot springs in Santa Teresa at night and stayed at this cool treehouse like Eco Lodge  place in town. The next day went ziplining through the mountains. There were 6 different lines- I've never been before and I can't imagine a more perfect place to go for the first time. It was incredible. We hiked a ways up to the top of a mountain and then worked our way down the lines. After ziplining, took a cab about half an hour away maybe and had lunch at this little backpackers spot before starting a simple 5 mile trek along the train tracks into Aguas Calientes (the town at the base of Machu Picchu). It was the most beautiful walk through the mountains and following a river. Definitely the best way to get to MP in my opinion. It was so incredible to be able to slowly walk up to the impressive mountains that host the famous ruins. As we got into AG, we found a butterfly house and ended up stopping in for a quick but excellent tour. (I have a slight obsession with butterflies) The guide spoke only Spanish but was very informative and so patient with us. You could tell he loved what he did. As we got ready to leave he told us to wait and gave me a Tupperware with a live butterfly in it and told me I could set it free. This may have been one of my favorite moments. I know it's silly but I love the idea of setting things free and to be able to do it at the base of Machu Picchu was pretty awesome :) We finally got back on the road and got to explore AG for the evening. Had dinner at this great quirky pirate themed place called Indio Feliz. The food was the best I've had in Peru! This turned out to be quite disappointing when I woke up at 3 am and saw it all over again. I haven't had the flu in literally like 4 years so naturally I would get sick the night before going to MP. Typical me. Needless to say I wasn't up for going the next day and ended up sleeping the whole day instead. A pretty great guy decided to stay and go with me a second time the next day. I was still pretty exhausted but got to see all the ruins and most everything I wanted to apart from a few hikes that just weren't going to happen for me having zero energy. It was so incredible! It's like you are in the clouds. The weather changes pretty rapidly so we got both fog, intense sun and a little rain right as we were leaving. I still can't believe that I've been to one of the 7 wonders of the modern world! It's obviously fairly touristy now as it's getting to be high season but it was still so mind boggling to see the immensity of the structures. The terraces, roads and ruins are insane! There's so much detail everywhere.. and Llamas.. walking wherever they like throughout the ruins :) For not feeling 100% I had the most incredible day. We explored Aguas Calientes a bit more that night and took the 8:30 am train back to Ollanta the next morning. I worked a bit Wednesday and Thursday and then left for Cusco for the weekend. Cusco is a pretty cool city. It's on a hill like most places here. There are so many little streets and cool old doors, churches and plazas all over town. We asked our cab driver if he knew of a good place to stay and he immediately whipped out his phone and called a friend and we ended up staying at this super awesome incredibly hippy hotel/hostel place. It was wonderful haha! So colorful and welcoming- I felt very at home :) We spent the weekend wandering around the streets getting somewhat lost and exploring all the little shops. We made it with a little effort to the San Pedro Market. It's like the markets in Urubamba and other towns only on steroids. It's absolutely massive! There are tons of people selling fruits and vegetables and bread and cheese. There are also food and juice stations in the front of the market. Then beyond the safe food section as I call it is the meat section. This is not for the faint of heart. There were pig and llama heads that still looked like animals and just tons of meat and animal parts hanging all over the place. We looked a little bit but I'm not one for raw meat so we didn't linger long. Then there's a huge section of knick knacks for sale and other tourist crap that you find in every city. The amount of stores selling the same things was incredible. We did find a few nicely made alpaca things. There are just so many stores and restaurants catering to tourists in Cusco. It's a bit overwhelming. It made me appreciate my somewhat sleepy little cobblestone fortress of a town. I came back to Ollanta on Easter Sunday and had a shift in the store and spent the afternoon in a cafe with my cool British friend Sarah.

I've been busy with work and Spanish classes this week which is good since I was basically gone for most of last week. I have lots of projects I'm helping with at the moment to help boost store sales. So I should have a lot to keep me occupied this week! Hopefully I'll be a little better about attempting to blog haha

Eco Lodge

Aguas Calientes

Cusco

Looks appetizing!!

Dogs of Ollantaytambo

April 2, 2014 Day 9

(Please do not read if you are hoping for an entertaining, happy post, continue if you would like to know of real issues happening here in Ollanta and can handle hearing about animal abuse)

Today started out like most other days. I went to the office to check my email, took 2 hours of Spanish classes with my sweet teacher Abi, went to the store, met up with some friends in town and went home for lunch with my homestay family. As I was walking to check out the inventory at the store for a project I am working on, Machu one of our office dogs found me, licked my hand, jumped on me and walked with me across the plaza and right into the store. I didn't think much of it cause this is typical of him to come say hi and then be on his way, spending his day walking around town and checking in with us at the store or office throughout the day for snacks. We have a few "office" dogs that hangout and and basically live at the office while a few of the girls on staff here have dogs of their own that go home with them every night. I was in a design team meeting back at the office this afternoon when one of the guys on staff ran in yelling that Machu had been poisoned. (There are many stray dogs in town and people put out poisoned meat to control the population) He carried the poor panting dog in and one of the girls held him still while another ran for an antidote that was known to cure one of the two kinds of poison used in town. They tried getting him to throw up while waiting for the medicine to arrive and when it did, they gave him two shots in his hind leg, praying that he ate the better of the poisons. He started seizing and the girl holding him couldn't take it anymore because thats how she lost her own dog a few years ago. I offered to hold him as still as I could and keep him calm. He seemed to be doing a little better until he seized really hard, went completely stiff and fell out of my arms onto the floor where he laid paralyzed for what seemed like an eternity. I thought he had just died in my arms and was trying really hard to keep it together. He started moving again a little bit and by now we had a car ready to take him to the vet which was 30 minutes away. I held him as they wrapped him in a blanket and carried him away, unsure if he would even make it to the vet as seizures are indicative of the poison that cannot be treated. I was told later that he made it to the Urubamba and was on an IV drip which was good news but the night will tell if he survives or not. We found out later that there was a pile of a dead dogs in front of the market early this morning that had eaten the poisoned meat the night before. I saw one of my favorite street dogs this evening but am waiting to see if the others made it.

A few of us went out to a grassy place facing the ruins to say a prayer for Machu and participate in a form of Pago a la Tierra (payment to the earth) which is an ancient Andean custom of sending good intentions towards a Sacred Place and is completed by burning Coca leaves in sets of threes along with something jolly or festive (we used heart shaped post-it notes cut up into confetti). The leaves and confetti were folded up into a piece of paper and then burned, with everyone pouring a drop of wine over the ashes. This is my incredibly basic version of how Pago a la Tierra is performed and its significance. I am not one for making sacrifices to the earth but being here it seemed like the appropriate thing to do and was important to several of those involved. I said a prayer of my own as I put my 3 carefully selected leaves into the paper and waited for them to burn. We left the grassy area with positive thoughts for little Machu's life.

There are so many stray dogs here in Ollantaytambo. People do not have the resources here to spay/neuter their animals and as a result there are dogs running free all over town. They run around with matted fur and missing legs, eating trash and diapers on the side of the road staring at you with these sad, sad eyes. It is hard to walk around and not feel helpless to give all of these dogs a place to call home. It is common here for "people" (there are different theories on who is responsible, the main one being with a capital G) to put out and hand feed these dogs poisoned meat. There are two different types of poison used, one with an antidote, that if given soon enough can be effective and the other that has no cure. Several people I've met in town have lost their own dogs to the worse of the two poisons and another precious Husky dog "Jack" was poisoned a few years ago and made it through the night and is still living at the office today.

There are cases of similar problems happening all over the world, most recently seen in Sochi, Russia during the Olympics. There are so many other social and justice issues happening here in Peru on a human level that consisent care for these animals and any real solutions to this problem have not been made available. Non-profits here are struggling as it is to provide care and resources to indigenous locals. There simply isn't the money to do it all on their own.

It was an incredibly difficult day to say the least. It's easy to feel helpless to make a difference when I've seen first-hand things happening here and elsewhere. We can feed and give shelter to many dogs in town but not all. And then in contrast to last weekend where there were children walking around in the freezing cold with no shoes and permanent burn marks on their cheeks from the cold, crying because they are wet and hungry. To across the world a year ago, with a mom lying unconscious in the streets of Bangkok leaving her children to hassle tourists for money; a young woman a few blocks down dancing in a window with a number on her chest waiting for some guy out with his buddies to select her and allow her to feed her own children tomorrow. Elephants being drugged and malnourished because a tourist is still willing to pay to "have an experience of a lifetime" which lets the mahout survive another day of his own. It's endless; we all know the stories and have maybe even seen these things ourselves. I know that I am still haunted by things I've seen and hope I don't ever forget those images. I'm in no way trying to effectively communicate the depth of all of these different issues, I'm merely thinking out loud through a few of the instances that I myself have seen and am wondering how in the world do we help an entire world full of hurting people and innocent animals. It's a question that could easily overwhelm anyone working towards a greater cause but I hope it encourages each one of us to be better neighbors and human beings in general. I challenge anyone reading this to think of even one way this week in which you can help someone in real need. It's often times out of our comfort zone but even a smile can make such a difference in someone's life.

***UPDATE***
I wrote this last night and found out this morning that Machu didn't make it. We are all very sad here at the office today and know he is not the only one that suffered a painful death. A few other people in town have come by today saying their dogs were also killed and asked if we would talk to the municipality with them. They are killing family pets as well as strays. The dogs in town were crazy last night- barking and howling all through the night. I don't think it's a coincidence. 

Weaving Weekend in Patacancha

March 29-31 Day 5-7
I left on Friday morning with a group of 7 other ladies for a 3 day workshop in the mountains in the town of Patacancha. The hour-long drive up the mountain is breathtaking and a little nerve-racking at times as it is a small twisty road. I was told if the road was really bad in spots because of the rain that our driver would have us get out of the "combi" (van-like taxi) so I tried not to be anxious but I've never been a big fan of heights. We made it up to Patacancha without any difficulty and were given a tour of the small town and impressive health clinic that was built by an NGO a few years ago. They had a small very basic operating room and also a few clinic rooms for shots and basic healthcare. We split up into two's and were introduced to the local families we would be living with for the next few days. I roomed with a girl named Megan that is taking a gap year before college. Our family was very outgoing. The dad spoke Spanish as well as the children while the mom only spoke Quechua which is normal for Patacancha. They asked if I spoke Quechua to which I laughed and said I hardly speak Spanish! Quechua is a very difficult language. Just saying hello is a task! Anyways, after a lunch of soup we started our first 3 hour weaving lesson. My teacher, Rudecinda, was very patient with me and liked to smile and laugh, which was great because thats about the only form of communication we had in common besides the words arriba (up) and abajo (down) when she told me which threads to pick up and drop for my weaving pattern. I started with a simple bracelet that only took me about an hour to make and then a headband that was also not a complicated pattern. The second day I wanted to try to make a pallay which is the icongraphic pattern that is woven into the vertical or warp threads of Andean textiles. Pallay means to pick up in Quechua. It is a VERY difficult and slow process. The women all wear a shawl or blanket over their shoulders showing off their pallay skills. Most of these textiles take about 5 months to complete! The designs represent the surrounding landscapes and colors tell of hardships and prosperity. Much of Quechua history has been passed down through textiles instead of literature and remains a very important part of their culture. Most of the men in Patacancha have to leave the small town and find work elswhere leaving the women to take care of the many children and everything else at home. This has unfortunately not left much time for them to continue weaving and an ancient craft and form of history is being lost. Awamaki recognizes the importance of Quechua weaving and has created a center for women to teach classes and sell their textiles providing them an income of their own and a reason to keep weaving.
Patacancha is quite poverty stricken, although I am sure that there are many places in the mountains that are even worse off. It is EXTREMELY COLD here in the night and the house do not have any source of heat. They do however have "Peruvian" blankets, which if you have never experienced one before are the most incredibly heavy blankets I have ever felt. I had a roommate in college who told me she had a fear of blankets and I thought she was insane but now I may have some idea what she was talking about. I slept in 4 layers of long sleeved shirts and 2pairs of socks and about 5 of these blankets and it was still chilly! Once under the covers you better be in a comfortable position because good luck try to move under all that weight. I unfortunately move around a lot in my sleep and once I kicked the blankets off the bed I was too tired and they were too heavy to pull up again in my sleep. So needless to say I think that 2 nights there was plenty. I am in awe of the people that live there everyday. The women wear skirts only (often up to 5 at a time to keep warm and share their fertility status) and sandals. Hygiene is not a priority, I didnt see a single shower there. Women wash their hair in dirty water in a bucket and live in houses with dirt floors. Children run around in very little clothing and barefeet in the cold with cheels that are red and burned from the intense weather. It is an immensly hard life these people live each day and yet they seem to be very happy to have what the do. The dad I was staying with said he was very happy to work in the fields and often works all over the Sacred Valley whenever he can find work.
I spent my next 2 lessons, a total of 6, hours working on my pallay and was happy to finish it before leaving. I made a fairly simple pallay in relation to the crazy details the women have in their own textiles. I definitely appreciate the art of hand-weaving much more now. Most things you find in the store are done on a machine because people to not want to pay the high price of a textile that took months to create. I purchased a scarf that took a month to make and even though the price was high in Soles, it seemed like a ton of work for the price in dollars. The woman was happy to sell it and I will remember this weekend everytime I look at it.
In addition to weaving, a few of us decided to go on a hike early Saturday morning. Since it was still my first week in Peru and only second day in that high of an altitude i figured I'd go and see how far I made it. The altitude got the best of me about an hour and a half in and I decided it was best to turn around and head back to town. I went back down the mountain and crossed over the "white river" where I sat for awhile and enjoyed the scenery. A few locals passed by and stopped to chat, many of them asking if I wanted to walk with them. One was named Victor who had a boombox playing Spanish music. he was very interested in knowing where I was from and just when I thought I may have to sit and listen to his radio for the next hour he got up said "chow" and was on his way again. Another group came by on their way up to a small town with a mom carrying a baby in the blanket on her back, a few kids, and two puppies chasing eagerly behind. When the got to the river crossing the mom picked up both puppies by their front legs and hauled them across where she just dropped them to their feet and they continued climbing up the steep hill. I sat for a while longer before heading back to town and taking a long and much needed nap before class.
On our final day in Patacancha they made us a "Pachamanca" lunch which is cooked in a hole dug in the ground over hot rocks and kindle that is then covered by earth. We had chicken, sweet potatoes, fried plantines and green beans. It was a nice break from rice and potatoes and was really cool to see food being cooked undergound essentially. After lunch we loaded back into the combi and headed down the mountain. It rained a bit but the roads were good and the drive back to Ollanta was quick. We stopped for a few pictures at a church and small town on the way back, complete with people selling the biggest carrots I have ever seen in my life!
When I got home my homestay mom was back from Lima and I got to meet her for the first time. Her name is Ruth and she greeted me with a big kiss on the cheek and kindly let me excuse myself for a much needed shower. I talked with her for a bit afterwards and then went off to meet dome friends for coffee at La Esquina which is on the corner in the Plaza. It's been a busy first week and I'm excited to settle in this next week and explore the town and get started on my projects for Awamaki.

Learning to weave pallay from my teacher Rudecinda

Crazy amount of detail. This piece took 5 months to make!

Gorgeous hike in the mountains

Cutest kids ever. They walked around and held hands most of the day while their moms taught us how to weave. Don't worry I had their mom's permission to take a picture.

So Much Food!!

Day 3
March 26,2014

So someone asked me yesterday what I was most scared of being here and I didnt have a great answer, other than not speaking much Spanish. Well now I know what is going to be the hardest thing about being here. No it's not being away from home, or even living in a house with a family I can hardly communicate with at the moment. No my downfall here is certain to be the amount of food I am expected to consume! It is considered rude not to clear your plate in Peruvian culture, especially since I am living with a family that doesn't have much. Their main diet consists of rice and potatoes-often eaten together in one meal! Thankfully breakfast is small- bread and tea. I can handle that! Lunch is the largest meal of the day and dinner isn't much smaller, at least not in my household. Tonight at dinner I said a silent prayer to help me finish as much food as I posiibly could cause I knew I wasn't gonna make it (this is no joke, I have NO idea how they can eat so much). Not two minutes later the little boy stole the rest of my fried banana off my plate!! I was elated! He on the other hand was scolded.I tried hard not to smile at him.
The people in town are very friendly. I went exploring on my own this afternoon. I walked through the center of town and browsed through the market and some touristy shops. I was thrilled when I came across what looked like an art gallery. I entered and was greeted in English by a young Peruvian lady named Alice with an 8 month old little girl asleep in a blanket on her back. We talked for a bit and I found out that she and her husband painted many of the pictures that were for sale. She is from Cusco and has been living in Ollantaytambo for five years now. I promised her I would return and say hi. She had a beautiful smile and a kind voice.I walked around a bit more and was greeted again by a young guy selling jewelry near where Awamaki's store is. He spoke a little English and told me he makes all the jewelry himself. I was able to communicate that I sold jewelry in Alaska in the summers which he found interesting. We chatted a bit more as best we could and I went on to look around the market and see some of the ruins up on the hill. A big tourist bus just got dropped off so I left in search of coffee and internet. I ended up along a road that follows the river and leads to the train station. There was a cute coffee shop with an outside sitting area that overlooked the river and the mountains. It reminded me of my favorite coffee shop in Seattle that is along the canal. I ordered a cappuccino that I swear was sent straight from heaven and sat down outside. Got caught up with a dear friend of mine and enjoyed the solitude.
Ollantaytambo is breathtaking. The city sits at the base of gorgeous mountains that often have fog covering the tops. The sun is bright, the air is thin and it's quite cold when the sun goes down. There are many hikes around town that lead to ruins that I hope to explore soon. All in all a very pleasant afternoon.

This is a typical Peruvian meal served with rice AND potatoes together! Crazy right?? Not to mention portion size.. I'm in deep deep trouble!!