I´m in the groove this week- feeling strong, healthy and with purpose. The healthy and strong part I have been working on for at least the last week or so- and it is a blessing to be strong and able. It is not easy to come from sutch a sterile enviornment like the US- into Peru, and not have your body respond to the change. That being said- I have finally found 2 or 3 resturaunts that I trust (I found pizza..thank god!! ...you can´t screw up pizza!). I have joined a gym, I have a goal for my time spent with the kids, and I am salivating as I spend my free time scheeming my great walkabout through Peru and beyond. Things are looking up.
The gym is an expierence all in itself. I can´t belive they actually have one..but its the real deal. Free weights, areobic machines, tredmill, spinning class, complete with sauna and steam room. And the grand finale?....HOT showers!! Yeeeehhhh haaaw. OK- they are usually just lukwarm....but still its much better than freezing cold! The place is decked out with sweet body building posters, your standard local meatheads, and a touch of high society Ayacucho. I didn´t really know that there was one, but it turns out there is. There are absolutly no ´business´jobs in Ayacucho, unless you work at one of the two banks, which makes me assume that most of these people are aquiring their welath through other means.
On the volunteering front, my relationships with the kids is growing. Especially since I am the only one there, I think they respect the fact that I am hanging out with them for the holidays. Of course this is a double edged sword, yes- it is sort of the goal and inevitable by spending time with them that our relationships grow stronger, but it makes the reality of the situation much harder to deal with on a pesonal level. All they need for god sake are parents, or at least one! It is dificult, because you know that you can´t be that person for them. However, the stronger relationships make the time spent there more fun for me, and I find myself playing more games with them, than spending time on my mural project. Hopefully I can accomplish both with my time here.
And so I sign out, dreaming of my soon trips hiking in the Andes and visiting the rain forest. As always, I will keep you posted.
Until then-
Chao!
¡Y Feliz Navidad!
The gym is an expierence all in itself. I can´t belive they actually have one..but its the real deal. Free weights, areobic machines, tredmill, spinning class, complete with sauna and steam room. And the grand finale?....HOT showers!! Yeeeehhhh haaaw. OK- they are usually just lukwarm....but still its much better than freezing cold! The place is decked out with sweet body building posters, your standard local meatheads, and a touch of high society Ayacucho. I didn´t really know that there was one, but it turns out there is. There are absolutly no ´business´jobs in Ayacucho, unless you work at one of the two banks, which makes me assume that most of these people are aquiring their welath through other means.
On the volunteering front, my relationships with the kids is growing. Especially since I am the only one there, I think they respect the fact that I am hanging out with them for the holidays. Of course this is a double edged sword, yes- it is sort of the goal and inevitable by spending time with them that our relationships grow stronger, but it makes the reality of the situation much harder to deal with on a pesonal level. All they need for god sake are parents, or at least one! It is dificult, because you know that you can´t be that person for them. However, the stronger relationships make the time spent there more fun for me, and I find myself playing more games with them, than spending time on my mural project. Hopefully I can accomplish both with my time here.
And so I sign out, dreaming of my soon trips hiking in the Andes and visiting the rain forest. As always, I will keep you posted.
Until then-
Chao!
¡Y Feliz Navidad!
No comments:
Post a Comment