#volunteerlife #buses

What is life like as a volunteer in Peru? It’s crazy. Loco! I’ll tell you about my past week. My alarm goes off at 7:30am and I eat breakfast with the volunteers. My daily breakfast is bread with jelly, cornflakes with yogurt, and a piece of fruit. One of the things I love the most about living in a volunteer house is eating meals with everyone. I wake up every morning excited to see my friends and we always have the most random conversations. Also, due to the fact that a few of us have had parasites…our topics often include the progress of our bowel movements.  What can I say? When you live, work, and play together you tend to get very close, very fast.

After breakfast I catch a bus to wherever I’m working. The buses are so fun, loud, and at first scary. I’ll do my best to describe what it’s like. While standing on the curb you’ll see buses fly by while a man hangs out the side of the bus screaming where it’s going. It feels like they are demanding that you get onto their bus. Most of the buses are just crappy white vans—sometimes there are holes in the floor. Once you’re on the bus you hope to find a seat but most of the time you’ll end up standing. When there is an empty window seat next to a person they do not slide in. They remain sitting on the outside seat. I think it’s because it’s easier to get off if you stay in this seat because you don’t have to crawl over people. The seat in front of the bus is reserved for pregnant women, old people, and people with kids.

The first time I got on one of these buses I could barely breathe it was so crowded. It has the same feel as standing in the front row of a general admission concert…when you feel like you could get lifted up by those around you because you’re so close. The majority of the buses cost 1 sole which is about $0.30. Often they will try to overcharge us because we’re gringos but we just give them what it’s supposed to be. On the van type buses there is always the driver and the man that hangs out the window calling where the bus is going. The man that hangs out the window also collects the money (I’m not sure what he’s actually called). Even though so many people are getting on and off the man somehow NEVER misses a person. You hand him your sole and then say where you are going and he gives you a ticket. Sometimes a person gets on the bus and checks all the tickets to make sure they are real. When you’re ready to get off you yell “Baja!” which means down.

These are the times you want to watch your pockets!

There is one other type of bus which is much bigger than the vans. They look public buses in the U.S. These are interesting because you have to pay as soon as you step on which means you need to have your money ready. The bus driver operates the bus, takes your money and gives you your ticket. I am always incredibly impressed by their multitasking skills.

The nice type of bus!

You have to be careful on the buses because it’s easy to get pick-pocketed. A few of my friends have had their things stolen. I would never bring large amounts of money or credit cards on a bus in Lima. I’ve been in one bus accident so far and that was pretty scary. Luckily I was sitting towards the front of the bus but a few of my friends were sitting in the back when we got rear-ended. The traffic here is so crazy and the drivers are nuts. Our accident ended up including four buses…ours was in the front. My friends in the back got hit pretty hard and saw the glass shatter. I just felt us get hit. However, everyone was okay besides a few bloody noses. They had everyone get off once we were hit and they gave us our money back. Considering how absolutely nuts the driving is here I would expect to see car accidents everywhere. However, mine is the only accident I’ve seen yet. I always wonder what their insurance policy is…or if insurance exists around here.

Gotta love Lima traffic! A bit different than NH....

Type of buses we take every am 

Okay, three more things about the buses and then I’ll talk about volunteering…I promise! First: the music. Peru feels like it’s stuck in the 90’s. The Backstreet Boys are always playing on the buses. Also, sometimes there is amazing live music. The artists hop on for about 5 minutes and rock out. Sometimes there is even a trio. Because they stay on the bus for such a short amount of time they do not have to pay. They do a little sample of their music and then walk down the aisle (if it’s a bus with an aisle) and collect money. My favorite so far has been a guy playing a flute, guitar, and singing all at the same time. I also really liked a trio of men that were singing and playing the drums. These musicians are incredible…I would buy their music off iTunes if it was available.

 Second: I’ve had a gun pointed at me on a bus for twenty minutes. One day when we were coming back from teaching a man got onto the bus and there was a lot of commotion. He stumbled into the seat across from me and I noticed he had a gun in his hand. He had it directly pointed at me and at random times would raise it and do a fake shooting motion. I started profusely sweating and was frozen. However, the Peruvians told us that it was a fake gun and that the man just had mental problems.

Third: they sell food on the buses. Since its spring now, they’ve started selling ice cream on the bus. Similar to the musicians, the vendor gets onto the bus, walks down the aisle and collects money and hands out ice cream. People also sell candies and gum. Also while you’re stopped in traffic people walk in between cars and sell sweets. People also do acrobatic tricks like back hand springs and juggling in front of cars to get money. It’s a crazy place. I would NEVER drive here.

Okay, that was a total diversion. Sorry! I just absolutely love the buses.  I’m going to miss it so much when I’m driving alone in my car on the empty streets to work. On Mondays and Fridays I work at a special needs orphanage for younger children.  My mornings start by playing with the children and then we do physical therapy with them. PT always starts with taking off the children’s shoes, pants, and socks and massaging their legs with lotion. Some really like massages while others squirm around like crazy. Most of their legs are really skinny and freezing. We also massage their backs and stomachs. When massaging their stomachs we make x and heart shapes with our hands. After the massages we stretch their legs and do a bicycle type movement with them. Some of the children have feeding tubes, severe deformities, or cannot stay still which makes PT difficult. Today I had a little boy whose head is cone shaped. We introduce different textures, play in a plastic ball pool, do different exercises and moments, show them different taste, make music, and take them through different obstacle courses. The physical therapist is an incredible lady. She has so much patience and treats ever child as if it were her own.  

Dana! My favorite :x

My lovely roommate

 After we have finished PT with all the children we usually play more with them until lunch. Today it was just me working with the therapist so it took us longer and we didn't get any extra playing time. I honestly dislike feeding time at all the orphanages. It usually results in having to force feed the kids because a.) they hate the food b.) the portions are way too big c.) they’re too young to be eating that type of food d.) it hurts them to eat. Also, it’s super messy. The always throw it up, spit it out at you, cry, and try to knock the bowl out of your hand.  The only thing that really bothers me still is having food spit back out at me and it landing on my face. However, since I stared changing the diapers of 14 yr old girls I quickly got over being grossed out at things. You just have to completely step out of your comfort zone and try to displace your discomforts for the sake of others. It’s a lot easier said than done though! Today I sat with a boy for an hour feeding him mash. Almost every bite came back up and I had to put it back into his mouth. It shows how good of an appetite I have…right after I went and ate food myself after seeing it spit up for an hour. He was so sweet and I learned some message techniques to help him swallow! Also, the Beatles started playing and he smiled because he likes the music…made my day.

Most ticklish boy in the world...also loves the Beatles

On Monday afternoon I also went to the women’s shelter. We did an English lesson on manners and acted out a skit to demonstrated saying thank you, please, excuse me, etc. Afterwards we made bracelets and ate popcorn. I love the girls at the shelter. On Tuesday I went to work at another orphanage. Right as I grabbed my favorite baby a lady came in and asked me to accompany her to the hospital.

This was my second time going to the hospital. It is the craziest place I’ve ever seen…well it’s probably the same as that awful Juliaca town. First we get all the kids together to go to the hospital. On Monday it was two other ladies, me, and four children. Two had downs, one had Autism, and one had leg deformities.  We load everyone up into a van. The kids sit on our laps without seat belts of course. The trips to and from the hospital are always when I’m the most scared because I do not want to get hit with kids in the car! The hospital is so crowded and it’s hard to get through the halls. It’s dirty and unorganized. I’ve seen a lot of weird deformities and very sick looking children there. I’ve seen a woman break down crying when she’s gotten some type of news and one lady the other day started freaking out and banging a door and screaming. I also had to wait outside a dentist’s office and listen to kids get their teeth pulled out. It was a horrible noise.  

The first time I went to the hospital I helped the children get xrays. I had to hold them up and/or down while they screamed. One of the times I didn’t get to wear a protective coat. Also, that day people kept thinking I was a nurse so I ended up helping a girl with severe scoliosis get x-rayed.  On Wednesday I was asked to go to the hospital again. This time I was in charge of two children. One had downs and the other has Autism I believe. At one point they both ran off in different directions and I found the girl in a room where they were pulling out teeth. I ended up having to wrap my legs around them to keep them from running off. It’s really easy to lose people in the hospital!

One of the highlights of my week was getting to go to speech therapy with one of the children. I told the therapist that I’m going to school for SP and he let me do half of the therapy. He explained everything to me as he did it. That day we took different textures and rubbed them on the boys’ skin and told him what they’re called. The therapist told me that before the boy would cry and run off every time he did it but now he’s improving and is fine with it! I was so happy to get to see Peruvian speech therapy! I also had Spanish lessons on Wednesday.

On Thursday I went back to the orphanage again but actually got to stay there. I work with children 2 months to 1 ½ years old. I give them their bottles, take them outside, feed them lunch and help clean. Each day there are different “mamas” in the room and some of them are really nice and some don’t let you do anything with the children. If you know me, you know I love babies. The baby room is probably my favorite place on earth. It’s exactly what I wanted to be doing when I signed up for volunteering. On Wednesdays I had mamas I really like and was wicked busy all morning. Btw…everyone makes fun of me for saying wicked!
So, that was my week so far! I’ve stopped teaching English at the school because since the high school is too dangerous for me to go to there’s no need for me at the primary school. However, I still get to help teach at the women’s shelter so I feel fine about it!  I also started running again so hopefully I can get back into shape before I go home! All this rice is killing me…but it tastes so good. Thanks again for taking the time to read this! It’s time to watch from Netflix and take a nap J It’s been a long (but great) week. 

Notes:
-the pictures of the buses/traffic above were taken from google because I do not bring my camera out
-I do not have pictures from the baby orphanage because we are not supposed to take pictures of the children...aka I haven't snuck any good ones yet 

The adventure of a lifetime...Peru-Cusco-Bolivia

On October 16th, I boarded a plane with three friends headed to Cusco. I had managed to score round trip tickets from Lima to Cusco for $130. My other choice was a 22 hour bus ride through winding roads for about $20 less...I chose the high road. From the moment we landed my stomach started disagreeing with the altitude. Cusco is about 3,400m and is the historical capital of the Inca empire. Within an hour of being there I had fallen in love with the cobble stone streets, blue sky's, traditionally dressed women, and the overall feel of history in the air.

While in Cusco we stayed in a hostal called Loki. Loki is a total party hostel equipped with warm showers and delicious food. I completely recommend it! However I must warn, between the hammocks, sweet staff, and good food, it has some sort of power that makes you never want to leave! My first night in Cusco I was very very sick. I had chills, a terrible headache, tingles in my hands and feet, and violent nausea. It was the second most sick I've ever felt (close behind one really bad migraine). The next day we explored the town and visited some cute shops. For the first time in two months I was able to find my way around. In Lima, I never know where I am because everything looks the same.
On the 18th, we began a jungle trek to Machu Picchu. We began by driving up 4200 meters above sea level to bike down for 3 1/2 hrs. It was some of the most beautiful scenery I have ever seen. There were wild horses, farms, alpacas, and old ruins. People were living in stone houses and it appeared to be almost completely uncontacted by the outside world. The air held a perfect mist and I almost felt like I was in Hawaii. Compared to Lima, it was day and night. All went well beside my friend falling off her bike! It was horrific to watch but she survived with minor bumps and bruises!

That night we visited some natural hot springs, tried alpaca, and went to bed early in our hostel! Our tour guide gave us all Tequila shots (which I declined because I hate Tequila) and he named us the "Sexy Llamas" and referred to us as family. Also, the Tequila was called "Inca Tequila" which he gracefully poured from a plastic water bottle (dodgy) . At dinner that night I finally met another person from New Hampshire! She was from Nashua and surprisingly once I found out she is from NH I couldn't think of anything to say....I guess I could have tried "How 'bout those Red Sox?". The next day I found common ground with her when we discussed how disgusting Hampton Beach is. 

We stayed in a very cool town surrounded by mountains called Santa Teresa. There was one plaza in the middle, a disco, and a few restaurants. The scenery in the morning was breath taking--completely encircled with mountains. It reminded me a lot of Colorado.

The next day after finishing breakfast and listening to some pump up music (gotta love the randomness in Peru....Rihanna remixes playing at 7am) we took a bus to zip lining. We went on five different courses and each one increased in speed and scariness! I got attacked by bugs that day and almost a month later I still have the bites! The jungle man...it has a lot of bugs! We also went on a suspension bridge which was much scarier than I thought it was going to be! 

After the suspension bridge we were driven to an area to eat lunch. One thing that stuck out about this place was the cage full of guinea pigs sitting in the eating area (I wouldn’t go as far to call it a restaurant). Guinea pigs are a delicacy here—one I have yet to try. It was odd to look at these creatures that I view as a pet and know that they are soon to be eaten. After lunch we walked along train tracks in the Scared Valley for four hours until we reached Machu Picchu Town. Throughout our walk we could look up at Machu Picchu mountain and it was the perfect weather, not too hot and not to cold. I absolutely loved it. In Lima I never get to go on long walks so it was lovely to get to stretch my legs and be completely immersed in nature again. Machu Picchu is a tiny town that is the definition of a touristy area. It however is so beautiful. There is a train track and river that run through it (the train runs from almost Cusco up to Machu Picchu). My friend and I wondered the town singing and buying chocolate. It was nice to be in area that was tiny, lovely and safe. There were lots of beautiful hotels and restaurants. The prices were ridiculous compared to what we’re used to in Lima and luckily our tour included dinner as well. Going to bed that night was such a surreal feeling because I knew I was sleeping under Machu Picchu and I was going to get to see it the next day.

The next day we woke up at 3:45am. One of my friends decided to take the train up because she was feeling very sick…we found out later she was suffering from a parasite the whole trip! We started trekking up to Machu Picchu which was over a 1000 steps. It was very tiring! It was also raining and dark out. After about an hour and a half we reached the top and it was so rewarding! When we first entered Machu Picchu it was cloudy and you couldn't see very much. We had a quick tour and explanation and then were free to roam about for the rest of the day. I can proudly say I was on Machu Picchu for 12 hours! A couple of hours in it turned into a bright sunny day. Machu Picchu is truly breath taking. There are trails all around to walk on and different mountains surrounding it that you can climb. On the day I was there, it was open and free to all Peruvians. It was empty in the morning, extremely crowded in the afternoon and then empty again in the late afternoon. Everyone there was pleasant and there was an overall happiness in the air. I felt so lucky to be admiring one of the greatest treasures of the world. The actual man-made structure of Machu Picchu is impressive but what I liked the most was the mountains surrounding it. I couldn’t imagine being the first person to discover it. It has this majestic special feel to it. You can feel nothing but blessed and happy to be there. We spent the day exploring, taking pictures, eating, tanning, and listening in on other tours ;). It was an awesome awesome day. I really hope to return there someday with my parents and children. 

At the end of that day we returned to Cusco at 1am. We had to catch a train and bus back. Also, get this….our three day, two night tour of biking, zip lining, suspension bridge, food, hostels, Machu Picchu, buses, trains, and equipment…was a total of about $190…some even got it cheaper! So, Monday morning at 1am we checked back into our beloved Loki hostel and relaxed for a very long time. Due to some complications and sickness we spent two more days in Cusco which was nice too! We got massages, shopped, ate, slept, and applied a lot of anti-itch cream to our bug bites!

On Tuesday night we ate our last meal in Peru at a recommended restaurant called Fuegos. We had been told that it had the best burgers and on our second try we finally found the place. Needless to say, it was well worth the search. My friend claimed it was the best burger she’s ever eaten but my favorite burger probably remains in Miraflores, Lima or Newmarket NH. 

Afterwards we boarded a 10pm public bus headed to Bolivia. After an almost sleepless night, our bus stopped at 5am (way before it should have!) and we heard yelling and some screaming. There were a few other gringos on the bus and we all look around at each other in confusion. After a while we were told that we had the choice to say on the bus or walk 30 minutes to Puno where we could catch transportation to Copacabana, Bolivia. Puno was actually about 8 or more hours away walking. I got off the bus, looked around and saw burning dogs, glass, rocks everywhere in the street (blocking buses from going further), other things on fire and large groups of people. We were in the midst of a Peruvian strike in a horrible town called Juliaca. Some said the strike had to do with taxes while others said it had to a Canadian mining company. Also someone said that the town’s anniversary was coming up and the strikers wanted to do all they could to ransack it before the celebration took place. I am still not clear on what they were actually striking against. There were no cars running and nothing was open. I found out later that at the beginning of the strike they killed two people in the airport and it was shut down. We started walking and got to see a beautiful sunrise—something we also never see in Lima. We had teamed up with a guy from Brazil that we had met a few nights before at Loki and he helped us carry our things. We were very thankful to have him walking with us! A little ways along I spotted an old lady carrying multiple bags and decided to help her carry them. Five hours later I regretted that decision very much because the lady was very rude. She ate our food, insulted us when we sat down and rested and wasn’t very grateful. During our long stroll we saw that the strikers had turned the signs around marking where to go and some Peruvians came up to us and apologized that we have to see their country like this. One man that spoke English came running up to us and asked us to take pictures to document everything that was going on. He apologized for his town, told us it was very dangerous and reminded us that we were in a third world country. 

Five hours in we found someone with a wagon. We asked him if he would drive us out of the town and he said he would charge us 5 soles. This is less than $2. I was ready at that point to spend at least $100 to get out of that town. We all piled into his wagon and went through the town. We were going through parts that said “delinquents will be punished with the death penalty” and we kept having to clear rocks way and then put them back to get through. I am so thankful to the man that drove us. He was disobeying the strike by driving. I’m not sure if he did it because he saw how desperate we looked or if he thought he was making a lot of money off us. Little did he know he could have gotten a lot more out of us. At one point we got to an area where we had to stop. The locals in the wagon told us that we couldn’t go any further because the strikers will attack us and throw glass at us. I had no idea we had any other options at this point so my adrenalin was pumping and I was ready to run through. However the women in the wagon convinced the man to turn around and he took us a whole different way around the dangerous area. Some Australians in front of us were not warned and they did get glass thrown at them and they were attacked. They ended up running and jumped onto the back of a motorcycle. Finally we got out of that awful town and found a bus to take us to Puno.

Us very happy in the wagon! Notice the lady with the hat..no me gusta

Puno is where the touristy side of Lake Titicaca is, the town itself is very ugly. We at that point were completely exhausted and decided to post up for the night. We found a cute hostel and immediately contacted our family and friends. We were so happy to be safe and out of Juliaca. We grabbed some lunch, relaxed, and then went on to take a 3 hour tour of Lake Titicaca. It was beautiful but too touristy for my taste. I much preferred the Bolivian side of the lake. That night we cooked spaghetti, drank beer and ate chocolate. It was a crazy, crazy day.

This was the cutest little girl!

I call this our survivor pic!

Our lovely dinner!

The next day we hesitantly boarded another bus headed to our final destination of La Paz, Bolivia. The boarder was very easy to cross into Bolivia and they didn’t check my bags at all. It would be so easy to be a smuggler! I unfortunately had to pay $135 to get into the country though because I am a US citizen. The drive to La Paz was stunning. We saw the Andes, large fields, alpacas, the whole coast of Lake Titicaca and beautiful stone houses set off in the fields. I loved this part of Bolivia

.


 It was rustic and untouched. We switched buses in Copacabana which is a town on the Bolivian side of Lake Titicaca. One of my biggest regrets is not buying some jewelry there! They had the most beautiful jewelry for so cheap!

Bolivia is even cheaper than Peru. In Peru the currency is in soles and pretty much to figure out the US conversion you just divide everything by three. In Bolivia it is Bolivianos and you divide everything by 7. After a quick 10 minutes in Copacabana we got back onto the bus and at one point got a ferry across the lake. It was very weird to see a huge tour bus on a wooden ferry. Thankfully we got to go on a separate ferry. Finally we arrived to La Paz and I hate to say it but I was very disappointed. I’m not quite sure why I was so eager to get there. I think a lot of it was because I wanted to fit another country into this trip and I knew Bolivia was so close to Lake Titicaca which I was already going to.

La Paz is a funny city. It’s not as advanced as Lima. There are many more women dressed in traditional clothing and so many more beggars. I have seen only one homeless person in Lima.  It’s a very hilly city, it’s dirty, hard to navigate, and it has crazy weather! In the time I was there it lightened, was sunny, freezing, raining, thundered….I was there less than a week. It felt a bit like NH. Because of the riots and my friend being sick I didn’t get to do the two things I set out to do in Bolivia: the salt flats and the jungle. My first night in Bolivia I got altitude sickness again and we profusely vomiting. La Paz is even higher than Cusco. I quickly learned that Bolivia does not have good food. In Peru, you can find food every three feet. Good food. In Bolivia you have to search so hard and we found ourselves sick and disappointed at the end of every meal. However, I hate to be saying so many negative things about Bolivia. Some people absolutely love La Paz. I was just expecting there to be better night life, food, and things to do. One of my friends at this point was very very sick so she booked a flight back to Lima. Also our other friend had gone back to Austrailia. This left me and one other girl.

Loki hostel in La Paz

We decided that since we couldn't do the salt flats or the jungle that we needed to do all day trips (we had a return flight on the 31^st and didn’t have enough time to do much). We booked trips for horseback riding, Tiwanaku ruins, and canyoning.   The horseback riding was probably scarier than the strike for me. First off my feet did not fit into my saddle. Also, the horses were completely malnourished. You could see all of their ribs, they didn’t give them any water or clean them off when we were finished. My horse kept running at random times and I thought I was going to fly off. Thankfully I was fine! Also…there were so many rabid dogs. Let me remind you, I did not get the rabies vaccination. The dogs were all along the trail we were riding on and were in groups up to 10. They  would come inches from my leg and then my horse would run off. It was quite the experience.

Third attempt to get the horses together

View while riding!

Our ride back from the barn was very late so it was obviously selfie time! 

 The Titiwanaku ruins were okay..it was a cold day, we had been up all night the night before and nothing is impressive after Machu Picchu.

The canyoning turned out to not be canyoining. It was actually a really fun day though! We were picked up in a van with a couple from NH and taken on the old part of death road which was quite invigorating! We went into the rain forest and did another suspension bridge, rock climbing, zip lining, and at the end of the trip we jumped off death road on a rope swing. That was the scariest thing I’ve ever done. Google death road. It’s pretty high up. It was about 10 seconds of free fall. I unfortunately don't have any pictures from that day because it was too rainy and dangerous to bring my camera out.

A glimpse of La Paz

Witches Market 

 Bolivia for sure had fun parts such as all the great people in our hostel room. We were like a little family. However, if I were to do it again I would not go unless I knew for sure I could do the jungle or the salt flats. Someday I hope to return to do both of those things! It really is true when they say when traveling to “pack it and half it, time it and double it”. Almost nothing went as planned on our trip but it was still an amazing adventure that I got to share with some incredible people. Regardless of the fights, riots, and parasites…it was the greatest adventure I’ve been on yet. How many people get to travel from Peru to Bolivia by themselves at 18? I’m feeling pretty lucky! Thanks for taking the time to read this and I hope you enjoyed reading it as much I did writing it! 

What can I say? I LOVE Peru!