Socosbamba

Ancash Crew

So I have a lot of catching up to do on this thing. I have had an amazing couple of weeks of training and visiting my new site. I am going to be spending the next two years in the department of Ancash. I will be living in the clouds in the Andes!

A Little Irony

So around the second week I found out my name is a color here in Peru. Celeste emphasis on the last E means sky blue in Spanish…and guess what? Ancash means in Quechua?…Sky! J

Campo training

Campo in Spanish means country or the boonies however you want to put it. On Nov. 1^st I found out I was going to be living in Ancash for the next two years. I could not have been happier. I really wanted to live in the mountains and I got it. There are 4 from my training group going. We all seemed pretty pumped. Hence the super happy expression on my face in this picture.

The next day we headed back to Ancash for a few more days of training. We got to stop by Incan ruins and even more exciting I got to see a bunch of llamas. I don’t know why but I have this weird obsession with llamas. Everytime I see one here I get super excited…yelling, “Oh my gosh! A LLAMA!” Whose got the llama? I’ve got the llama!  I also got to meet most of the volunteers already placed in Ancash. They are crazy, fun, and laid back.  After training I headed to my new site for a short visit to meet my new host family and the community I will be working in the next couple of years.

View from the top!

Region

I still can’t believe it. I’m super pumped I got the mountains! I am also with some pretty cool people. I have about 7 hours away from the regional capital and more or less 17 from Lima, which is kind of far but nothing compared to what people in Northern Peru have. I will be speaking both Quechua and Spanish. So I may be semi-trilingual when I leave here. Ok not really Quechua is kind of hard.  My community has about 1000 people.  I’m going to be living the boonies…here the volunteers call it the “dark side of the mountain” because it is so far. From Lima I have to take an 8 hour bus to Huaraz the department capital. Then from Huaraz I have to take another not so comfortable bus over the Cordilleras Blanc on a road that had more switchbacks than I could count.  The trip does have an amazing view….probably the most beautiful drive I’ve ever taken.  The road to Pomabamba is also one of the most dangerous roads in the world.

One of the most dangerous roads in the world!

It is pretty though!

Socosbamba

7 and a half hours later I arrive at my new home for the next two years: Socosbamba. In the town there is a elementary, a high school, and a health post….that’s pretty much it. It’s really rural, spread out, and hilly. The town is about an hour walk from Piscobamba where there is a market and internet. So if you guys really love me you will have to call me because I will probably only get to the internet once a month.  My town has a few tiendas, which are like convenient stores but they usually aren’t open because the families are out working in the fields.

Where I'll be living:    http://maps.google.com.pe/maps?hl=es&tab=wl

I really like my new host family. I have 2 sisters, a brother, 2 cousins and my host parents. So there are 8 of us living in the house. It doesn’t get boring. My little host sister, Lizeth is 11 and so sweet. She loves to play volleyball so I’m excited that they love that sport here. My family has a lot of cuyes…guinea pigs. I actually go to eat one. I thought it was pretty good…not a whole lot of meat there but quite savory.  My host mom talks a lot, which will help me with my Spanish. She even said she would translate for me when I work with people who speak Quechua! Good I’m going to need all the help I can get. We have fruits tree in my backyard. Lime, lemon, orange, apple, avocado…and blackberry bushes.  I also don’t have a shower and we have a latrine for the bathroom. There will definitely be a lot of things to get used to but I am ready for the challenge and excited!

My new host sister and cousin

My new host mom cooking

I don’t want to make this too long and I have 2 years to continue to tell you guys more about Peru and my life here.

The view from my backyard

Sunset from my backyard

Today I read some encouragement fro the Message: Work heartily, as Christ’s servants doing what God wants you to do. And work with a  smile on your face, always keeping in mind that no matter who happens to be giving you orders, you’re really serving God. Ephesians 6:7