May 19, 2004
Received a call to let me know that my counterpart will assist in changing my home stay in Trujillo. Yeah! I know I still have a rough rode ahead of me.
May 18, 2004
After some intense soul searching, some intense studying of my Bible, and some intense conversations with God, I know he has a purpose for me here. After seeing and experiencing El Milagro, I have decided that I can work in the site, but would need to live outside it, in Trujillo.
I talked to the APCD and felt I was upfront with my needs. I told him of my dedication to serve as a volunteer, but in order to be the best volunteer I could be, I would need a certain living environment in which to escape. He was completely understanding and supportive. He said that he would call my counterpart and would discuss with her the options of another host family for me, outside of my site. He will let me know what he finds out tomorrow.
I definitely feel better about things, but I know this is going to be so hard. Possibly the hardest thing I have ever done in my life, in fact. With faith in God, I can do this. He is showing me that.
Like my APCD told me--if it was all rosy and great, then why would Peace Corps be in Peru?
May 17, 2004
I made it back to Santa Eulalia. What a beautiful home I have here. I called the PCMO to see what the APCD had said and she said that there are definitely some options for me. What a relief. She suggested that I talk with a trainer, to get her perspective on the situation since she had visited my site previously.
She helped me to realize that intense poverty is a reality in a 3rd world country and she validated my feelings of doubt and encouraged me to call the APCD. I pretty much just gave him my thoughts on my site. He asked that I come up with ideas on how I might be able to fix the problems that I have with the site. He said that El Milagro can be considered the most challenging site in the group, that it meets PC regulations for safety, and that housing is adequate. We scheduled a meeting for tomorrow at noon to talk face to face on a solution.
Since all the other trainees had gotten into town today too, we all met in Chosica for supper and time to exchange stories about sites. One thing that I realized is that many others had a miserable time too. And that I had some pretty great things going on in Trujillo. My counterpart is awesome, they have some great activities going on, they are progressive thinkers, educated, and resourceful. Plus they were just incredibly nice people. The beach is only a 15 minute drive away and Trujillo offers everything in the form of modern amenities. Some of my compadres didn’t fare so well either. One guy was sent 2 hours north of Cajamarca by milk truck to this extremely rural site, where he slept on the dirt floor, only ate potatoes, was unwelcomed by his reserved community, didn’t have a counterpart, had an outhouse (that you would just drather use the woods it was so bad), and was somewhat badgered by the town’s alcoholics because he was gringo. Other trainees, lived behind locked gates for the entire stay unable to leave, others didn’t like their counterparts or felt they didn’t have a role to fulfill in the community. In other words, maybe the grass isn’t greener on the other side.
May 16, 2004
Well I guess it is time for a recap on the previous 3 days of my experience in Trujillo. I really wasn’t able to write, to eat, nor to sleep. It was that bad.
Me and one other trainee arrived here on Wednesday in the afternoon. We were immediately shuttled from the bus station to our host family. Our host families were located in another site about 10 min. from my site, El Milagro. We started off with a big bang. We went to a mother’s club where we were introduced and expected to speak to the group. Then we headed over to a youth group meeting where the same thing happened. We talked, answered questions, and played a couple of games. My host family was marvelous. They had electricity, water, bucket flush toilet, and a shower. They had turkeys and guinea pigs in their patio. Their home was quite comfortable. It was a good first night. Reality set in the very next day.
The YMCA director and our counterpart, picked us both up early the next day to tour my site, El Milagro. I had no idea what to expect and there was no way I could have prepared myself for the reality of the site. El Milagro epitomizes the term ‘extreme poverty’. It is the last pueblo of the city of Trujillo before entering the desert, most famous for the city dump where many residents make a living ‘recycling’ trash and looking for anything of use. When I say city dump, it’s not to be confused with my experience of US’s landfills. This dump is as far as you can see out into the desert. Families live in little square black plastic shelters or in crude adobe housing. Over 40,000 people live in El Milagro. Most have no electricity, no water, and no bathroom. There are no regulations on trash disposal here, anyone may dump trash, and anyone may live in it or go through it. The community ‘recycles’ things found in the dump. They earn 10 cents a kilo for plastic, eat what food they find, and wear the clothes the recover. They take their pigs there to graze, not understanding the re-contamination they are producing. Also, El Milagro is also home to a state prison. The YMCA center, where I am to work, is located next to the prison. The center is a location where kids in El Milagro can hang out, do homework, and play. There are students from universities in Trujillo who volunteer to help with the kid’s with school work and 3 YMCA employees that organize activities for the youth and women’s club of the community. The center is open Monday – Saturday 9:00-6:00. Rocio took us for a driving tour of El Milagro and drove directly to where the children and adults were ‘working’ in the trash. After our tour, we drove into Trujillo to the YMCA office (in a very nice section of town), where I proceeded to break down. I had never experienced such inhumane conditions in my life and to think that I would be living there for 2 years was too much to bear. We took a walk and I just cried and cried. We returned to our home stays and I didn’t sleep. I finally was able to make myself calm down by praying for guidance, support, and a solution.
We returned to El Milagro the next day where we hung out in the center and played with the kids. What a loving group of kids. They had a ton of questions, big hugs, and smiling faces. I was able to visit my future home stay and boy was it a disappointment. The home was made of adobe, my room was supposed to be getting improvements but none by my eyes could be noted. There was no roof, no water, and an outhouse. In the afternoon, we returned to the other site. I attended a mass service at the Catholic Church with my host sister. She introduced me to the priest, who asked me if I was catholic. I told him no that I was Baptist. And he told me that was all that was important, that I was a Christian. How true, I find that to be. I immensely enjoyed the service and felt God’s presence and his calming hand. After chatting with the congregation after the service, I returned home to another restless night. I just remember experiencing this intense fear.
My last day in El Milagro was during a Health Campaign sponsored by the YMCA. There was a nutritionist, a dermatologist, an obstetrician, and general practitioner there to see the community members. I helped with the campaign and played outside with the kids. After another long day, I headed back to Angela’s site. I finally felt in control of my emotions enough to call the Peace Corps nurse, to tell her of my experience. I told her about my site and that I just couldn’t do it. I couldn’t live there in that site for 2 years, that I felt incredibly unsafe physically, emotionally, and mentally. She was absolutely great and told me that was the point of a site visit--to see if the site is the right match for you. She also said she would call Ken, the guy who does our placements, to give him a head’s up. What a relief to verbalize what I was feeling.
My last day in Trujillo was a good one. Before lunch, we helped the YMCA with a youth workshop and a women's group fundraiser in the other site. In the afternoon, we did the touristy things like visiting the Ruins of the Moon & Sun, touring down town, and visiting the beach.
May 13, 2004
Oh my goodness. My site is unlike anything I have ever seen. The worst situation I have ever witnessed, in fact.
May 12, 2004
The bus I was on to the ‘campo’ broke down, so I had to hail another one. I helped another volunteer with more presentations in the schools. I head to Trujillo tomorrow. Things that I have loved about Cajamarca are the traditional dress of the people. They wear such brightly colored clothing. The women have on big skirts and babies strapped to their backs. Big white hats are worn by all. Generally, the people are very nice and friendly.
May 10, 2004
I ventured to the ‘campo’ today. That’s Spanish for countryside. I met up with a health volunteer where I was able to help kids learn how to properly brush their teeth, to teach an English class to kindergarteners, and to do some team building activities with high schoolers. Interestingly, only boys attended the high school, it seems that the girls have dropped out of school at this point. After our work in the schools, we headed to the pasture to “water” the cows. The cows are staked to the ground by a lead rope and ever so often you move them to fresh grass and lead them to the creek to drink water. It was a fun experience. We ate lunch at another volunteers house: pasta with a vegetable tomato sauce. Her house is mostly dirt floors, has an outhouse, no refrigerator, and a wood burning stove for cooking. We headed back into Cajamarca to meet up with another volunteer, to visit the local artisan workshops. What a neat place, to watch them make such beautiful ceramics. Her home in the city is very modern. She has all modern conveniences including TV, refrig, and bathroom. I am experiencing some definite anxiety about what is awaiting me in Trujillo.
May 9, 2004
Today is Mother’s Day. I called Mom to wish her a good day. This morning we toured Cajamarca with the PCVs of the area and had lunch in on the plaza. I have the afternoon to myself and just climbed the hill to the church to overlook all of Cajamarca. I went to the market for breakfast goods.
