First weekend getaway: Churín

Hello again!

I hope you all had a great weekend, enjoying the last of September 2011! Ever since I met Itxel, we have been talking about travelling and experiencing the different sights that Peru has to offer during out time here in Huacho. Our first stop: a weekend trip to the mountain town of Churín, roughly 2.5 hours away by bus (only 61km past Sayán, but this part of the journey takes 1.5 hours as it is on an unpaved road = A LOT of dust to inhale!).

Churín is a quaint little town of 2,000 inhabitants, with an elevation of 2,080 metres. We lucked out because we happened to travel there during the same weekend as their biggest festival, celebrating their patron saint. Itxel and I arrived in the early afternoon to a bright blue sunny sky and warm springtime temperatures. There was a parade going on with marching bands, and tons of people in the streets. A nice couple that we met on the bus (the bus was actually a minivan) helped us find the hotel that my guide book recommended - turns out it was a new hotel, and the best one in the city! We checked in (for only $12 USD/night each) and then set off to explore the town.

Our hotel in Churín: Las Amazonas

Friday update!

Until today I did not feel like I had accomplished much since I have mostly been sitting around and waiting for paperwork to get processed, but since yesterday I am now officially a member of the 'proyectos y obras' (projects and works) department and today is my first day with them. I was FINALLY given work (yay for working with an organized engineer! - Juan Candia).

This morning first thing we went to a slum, essentially it's a place just south of the city where there is currently urban expansion, it has no running water/sewage, and it is built pretty much on a big sand dune (but tough enough to be mountain-like). Good thing there isn't a lot of rain, because I think that it would all erode. Not sure how long these houses will last. Anyways, the engineers needed to analyse the site because they're putting in water and sanitation services. Unfortunately I didn't know before going that we were going there so I was in my business shoes, but that's okay. There were TONS of mosquitoes (but they don't look like the ones at home) - they would fly in the wind and then cling to your clothes. We had to de-mosquito ourselves before leaving because it was ridiculous. Kind of happy I didn't have to stay there too long (or at least next time I go I will dress differently). But I had a great morning. After coming back to the office, I read through the  federal standards for all water sanitation procedures. I also read through an environmental assessment for a project and was providing feedback (I read the entire 24-page document and submitted quite a bit of feedback/things to improve this morning). This afternoon I will keep going over my environmental assessment recommendations with the engineer. We'll see how much I actually accomplish and what gets put into practice, but I am learning. And reading and speaking lots of Spanish :) I barely have to think anymore (even though I still make word/verb errors). But it's getting much more fluid I think (biased opinion perhaps?).

I'll try to post more later, but until then, I'm wishing you a wonderful Friday afternoon and a great weekend!
Sheila

A day in the field: Trip to various locations around Huacho

Tuesday, September 20th, 2011, Itxel and I got the privilege to go on another field trip with the sanitation engineer Juan Candia Cuno. This time, we got to visit different regions of Huacho (the city where we are living) - but not the touristy version.

Our first stop was the port. This is a pretty busy area (and not very safe), as there are many commercial and local fishers. Since we were there in the afternoon, we got to see some of the local fisherman pulling their boats out of the water.

Typical afternoon at the port in Huacho

Somos 100% Peruanas

How I became initiated to Peruvian culture this weekend:

1) I ate the national dish - cuy (aka guinea pig) - for the first time.

Cuy dish

To tell you the truth, it wasn't bad (I had actually been mentally preparing myself for this for quite a few months). The meat was okay, but kind of chewy and rubbery. Peruvians eat the skin of the guinea pig, but I found it much too elasticy (it was impossible to chew through!). So I can proudly say I survived my first time of eating this national dish. Will I eat it again? Most probably, since I will be living here for 8 months. Every day? Most definitely not.

A day in the field: Trip to Sayán and Végueta

Friday, September 16th, 2011, Itxel and I headed to visit two other districts in the Huaura province, Sáyan and Végueta. They both receive water treatment services from EMAPA Huacho. Sayán is roughly a 45-minute drive inland and into the mountains, while Végueta is right on the coast, about 20 minutes north of Huacho. We spent the day visiting the two sites with an engineer from EMAPA Huacho, Juan Candia. He wanted to show us the potential locations for new waste water treatment plants in both of these locations.

From everything that I have learned so far in Huacho, this is how their water system works:
1) Pump water from the ground.
2) Inject water with chlorine gas to help clean it.
3) Pump water up to a water tower on a hill/elevated area, to insure water pressure throughout the town.
4) Water drains down into subscriber's homes/businesses using the flow of gravity (only Sayán has continuous service 24 hours/day).
5) Waste water drains by means of gravity to a central location.
6) Untreated waste water gets dumped into river (in the case of Sayán) or ocean (in the case of Végueta and Huacho).

Waste water from Sayán going straight into the River Huaura

MISTURA: The Power of Food

So I realize I didn't blog much about what I did last weekend in Lima, but this video pretty much sums up my afternoon with Justina and Peter: MISTURA

Enjoy!

My address in Huacho!

In case you would like to send me any mail (I would only recommend letters and postcards though, since I don't think they have a mailbox so I think everything just sits outside the front door until we come home to get it):

Sheila Ball
Urbanización Las Flores
Manzana C - Lote 1
Huacho
PERU

cell phone: 51 993 824 378 (you also need to dial 011 before it to call internationally - and 51 is the country code for Peru)

I can receive calls and texts for free so I would love to hear from you!

Sheila

First official day of work in Huacho (and everything that's happened up until now)

Well hello again!

I hope you are all having a great first (or second) week of classes for those of you who are in school, and that everyone in the northern hemisphere is enjoying the arrival of fall. I for one cannot wait for spring to come - only 6 more days! - because that will mean sun and the arrival of warmth here in Huacho! I can't complain though, it is around 15-20 degrees every day, but it gets chilly at night, and as it is humid and there is no heating, there is no escaping the cold! Let me fill you in on what has happened since the last time that I wrote to you! (It feels like an eternity has passed, even though it's only been 3 days!)

Alright well Tuesday was a day full of ups and downs - I think that until now I had told myself to be strong and to carry on and not to worry too much, but Tuesday morning I woke up feeling a bit lonely and isolated. As you may have read, Monday was such a busy day and I met so many people, but I was starting to feel that I could not let my personality shine through fully and that I was much quieter than my normal self.

My first day in Huacho

*Note: I wrote this last night but did not have access to internet, hence why I am posting it now.

My first day in Huacho – oh my goodness, I am so tired, all I want to do it to go to bed. But so much has happened today that I want to try to document as much as I can to share it with you all. As soon as I am done, I am calling it a night (and I will post this in my blog tomorrow or the day after that when I have internet access).

Well, let’s start with this morning. I was in Lima. Feels so far away now. I had originally been told I was going to be picked up sometime after 8am to go to the bus station to come to Huacho. So I set my alarm for 7am, thinking that would be enough time for breakfast and such (I packed the night before). Well, at 6:35am there is a BANG BANG BANG on my door. The owner of the hotel wakes me up and tells me that someone from WUSC called, and that I will be picked up at 7:30am instead. I should get up quickly! Well, I decide to lie in bed for another 10 minutes (obviously unable to fall asleep after such a brutal awakening) and then get up. Get ready, eat breakfast (same as usual: fruit smoothie, bread, jam, and tea), brush my teeth, take one last look around the room to make sure that I haven’t forgotten anything, and then I’m out the door. 7:35am. 7:45. 8:00. 8:10. Finally around 8:15, Isabel (a WUSC employee) shows up. Good morning Sheila! How are you? Good – but I have been awake and sitting in the hotel reception area for a while! She doesn’t understand who called the hotel or why , it was not her nor the driver (Julio). Must have been Michel (the WUSC director). Oh well. Early start.

First impressions....

• Public transit is confusing! Best to be very assertive.
• Everything is pretty clean (but there is quite a lot of pollution, mostly due to cars).
• Ads on TV look like ads on Canadian TV, with different people and language, but you always know what they're selling.
• Food is good and FRESH. Not too different and not too pricey.
• Spanish is easy enough to understand, but I need to work on mine (mostly verb conjugation and vocabulary).
• All WUSC Peru staff are super helpful and friendly (I can even speak to some of them in French!).

WUSC Lima staff with INDEV volunteers at lunch on September 9th, 2011. From left to right: Julio, Peter, Juany, Sheila, Justina, Michel's wife, Deua, Michel, Andrea, Michel's wife's co-worker (partially hidden), and Isabel.

Day 1 in Peru

Hello everyone!

Well, here I am, safely arrived in Peru. After a 30 minute plane delay in Ottawa, and then a 1.5 hour plane delay in Toronto (we were waiting for a part that our plane had to take to a plane in Peru - in the meanwhile our A/C failed and the entertainment system wasn't working, but at least they gave us each a glass of water), we arrived safely in Lima, Peru. I actually lucked out on the flight - there was barely anyone on it, so I took up a row of three benches in the middle of the plane and managed to get a solid 4 hours of sleep last night. Solid.

We finally pulled into Lima around 2:30 am local time (aka 3:30 am in Ottawa/Waterloo) and we were greeted by Julio (the driver from WUSC), Isabella (a WUSC staff member) and another driver from the hotel where I am staying these first few nights. Checked-in at our hotel around 3:15 am and finally got to bed at 4.

My room in Lima (the middle bed is mine). I also have a private bathroom.

woo hooooo! Free internet in Toronto :)

A quick hello from Toronto Pearson International Airport! Arrived here safely (although my flight in from Ottawa was 15 minutes late and we had turbulence almost the entire trip). Started watching Pirates of the Caribbean 4 in the plane (I'll finish the rest of the movie on my way to Lima in a bit).

So FINALLY when we arrived at the airport in Ottawa I started to get really excited for my trip! FINALLY. Took long enough, eh? But it was nice, didn't have to wait too too long before boarding the flight either. Said goodbye to family and friends, and for once didn't cry. It's such a nice feeling, leaving with a big smile on my face, knowing that I'll see them all again before I know it, and leaving full of hope for a wonderful stay in Peru.

Thanks to everyone who has been so supportive throughout this entire process. I love you all and I will see you all again soon. I'm coming home with my bachelor's degree!

Have a wonderful 8 months while I'm gone!
Sheila

My bags are packed, I'm ready to go...

Well, here we are! The night before my departure. Quite honestly... it hasn't hit me yet that I'm leaving. I've had such a busy summer (mostly living out of a suitcase) that it just feels like I'm packing to go on another trip, or to go back to Waterloo. Not that I'm travelling to South America for my first time. Here's a quick run-down of the busy summer I've had:

-From May until July 25th I was in Waterloo, Ontario, completing my last semester of courses before leaving for my field placement.
-From July 25th until August 9th I was at home in Ottawa (this included trips to the cottage and a week-long visit from family who lives in Switzerland).
-From August 9th until September 4th I was away: first in Montreal, then in Europe for 3.5 weeks, then in eastern Quebec for a family reunion.
-From September 4th (at night) until September 7th (midday): at home, in Ottawa.

And then... I will be in Peru. Luckily I got most of my packing done before leaving for Europe so I just had to come home, empty my backpack, fill it back up with stuff for Peru, and get a few last-minute details sorted out (like print the email explaining who is picking us up at the airport in Lima).