My Peruvian Experience
I recently travelled to Peru in South America for three months, travelling on the 15th October and returning on the 22nd December. I embarked on this journey with Platform 2, which is a global volunteering scheme for 18-25 year olds who wouldn’t otherwise be able to visit a developing country and get involved with global issues of justice and poverty. It is funded by UKaid from the Department for International Development and run by Christian Aid and BUNAC.
On first arriving there, after a 15 hour long haul flight with 15 other young people from across the UK, we travelled through the capital Lima where we were to stay for the next three days in order to get our bearings and settle into this new country which was to be our new home for the next three month.Here, we ate the local cuisine, learnt a few Spanish words and got our itinerary for the next three months. It was here we met out awesome Project Supervisor; Zully and other Intej workers who were our in country workers.
That Sunday we travelled to our familias casa (families house), where we would be living for the rest of our stay. Here we met our families and had lunch with them with my little Spanish and their limited English, it was an incredible experience.
The following day we went to a place called Pachacutec which was around 30 minutes away from our homes in Las Flores, it was here that we were going to be building the nursery as the existing one was severely run down and was falling apart. Here we met Mamani, the building expert and got familiar with the tools and what we were to do.
We were to work from Monday to Friday building the nursery from 8:30am – 1:00pm.Monday afternoons after lunch we had team meetings. Tuesdays we taught arts and crafts and then English to children and young people. Wednesdays we learnt Spanish and then taught adults English. Thursdays were cooking lessons where we would cook a dish from English cuisine and the mothers in the community would prepare a typical Peruvian dish and after we taught English to children and young people. On Friday afternoons we had another Spanish lesson and would then watch a movie and discuss issues such as poverty, discrimination, conflicts, sanitation, water issues and many more. After five weeks of Spanish on a Wednesday we did dance lessons where we learned a traditional Peruvian dance which we were to perform to our families and community at the leaving party.
I really enjoyed the 'cebiche' – a traditional Peruvian dish, like sushi, which was fish marinated with lemon with seaweed and onions with lemon (cellbolla con lumon) and banana chips (piatano)!
These lessons were fun, throwing the kids Halloween and Christmas parties, teaching them Christmas Carols, playing exciting quiz games when trying to teach the adults English, People Bingo, it was just fantastic!
Saturdays could be a trip that was arranged for us, we went to the Fountains in Lima, the Terrorism Museum, Archaeological Museum, Catacombs, amongst many other incredible trips out. A mere bus journey was a real experience as you could see you in the poorest of areas, where there was no water supply, dry, unfertile land, yet ten minutes on you would be in lush green lands, where the area was so developed with running water, maintained roads, restaurants etc...
Also we took part in three community days where in Las Flores (where we were living). We helped them with their development and on one occasion we painted the local communal, another time we were planting vegetation, and cleaning/clearing the roads and walkways which involved us watering dust away!
We had a weekend away whilst there where some of us went to Machu Picchu, though I decided to go to a beautiful, breath taking, and out of this world place called Cerro Azul. We went white water rafting, had surfing lessons and had campfires on the beach, so there was time to chill out and have a laugh as well as working hard and making a change in the community.
Living in this community was life changing, everyone there was so kind and loving, they all helped each other out in crisis, we had water cuts at 7pm each night with no more water till the following day, no hot running water at all times, power cuts, eating the same food day in, day out for lunch and dinner, which always consisted of a base of some meat, potatoes and rice. Yet these people were happy and always greeted you with a smile, love, care, and affection. They strove to develop yet were still happy with what they had, never fighting for more regardless of what they had gone through via governmental corruption.
This was one of the most amazing experiences of my life, difficult at times, as physical labour, such as mixing cement in the blazing heat. Trying to communicate with little Spanish and getting understood, but I learnt so much, about the development taking place the issues facing third world countries, and global warming, I lived where the effects of global warming were taking place, where the hole created in the ozone layer was!
It was hard work building the school, especially with it being so hot and with no experience of making wooden doors, fixing a roof, and teaching when, at times, no one understood what was being said. Seeing young children begging for money on the street, running to us as we were foreigners to them (gringas) and they thought we had money. Seeing people building houses (well shacks) so they were no longer homeless and then getting told they didn’t have permission to build on that ground so had to take their houses down! Also witnessing conflicts with gangs in Pachacutec and I met a man who left his jungle life for a life in the city as he got told it would be better, but he was worse off, with no food, no family, nothing!
The journey I went on was awesome and very worthwhile. I met some amazing people who I will never forget and cherish in my heart and mind forever. I will remember the old man –Santos, who came to us looking a job as he had no food, or money or anything, so we bought him some basics and on the day we left he showed us his new business, rather than having that food for himself he made a Peruvian dish and was selling it in order to sustain himself! I will also remember Alex, a 16 year old who is aspiring to be a Cardiologist and Valery, a seven year old girl with the potential to do whatever she wants who speaks English so well. Moreover, the looks on the kids and teachers face when we presented the school to them.
During the final few days we performed the Peruvian dance to everyone. It was an overwhelming feeling being excepted into someone’s house and them being a mother, father, brother and sister to you, and then the rest of the community showing you so much care towards you. My ‘Peruvian’ mother, who wouldn’t let me do anything around the house as she said that she should be cleaning and cooking and washing my clothes for me as I was off out to work. Everyone was just so grateful for the small, yet valuable contribution we made to their lives. I have made friends for life and acquired a new family.
Altogether I have to say I had one of the most amazing experiences ever and would recommend this to everyone! What do I want to do next? Well honestly I am not sure. I know that overall I want to make a difference and help make change and the way to do that is to be the change that you want to see. This trip has made me realise that I can achieve anything I want to with the right attitude, so who knows what’s next for me, all I know is that the world is my oyster, and I am the only one that can decide what can happen.
Mariam Ahmed
