Lee's Blog

Day 5 in Ecuador

We left Mancora, Peru Monday at noon and arrived in Cuenca at 10pm.  We made several stops around the border, which I heard was dangerous but didn´t seem so at all.  It was pretty dirty though. The bus driver assistant, which all the buses have, put little tags on our luggage like those at the airport, and without thinking twice threw the remains of the ticket on the ground. Makes me appreciate living in a place where littering isn´t cool. In the border town I noticed an old man with few teeth selling watermelon. He stood next to the bus and like a machine would say ¨sandia sandia sandia¨ every 30 seconds or so. He has probably been selling watermelon for 40 years. A little girl nearby did the same saying ¨papas rellenos¨. It pulls at my heart to see peole who have probably been selling the same thing for 40 years and to see the kids working so young. I have also noticed that a lot of the kids here seem happy, similar to the super poor but smiling kids from the villages we did clown shows for along the amazon a few years ago. 

The bus stopped everywhere to pick up and drop off people on the side of the road, and one stretch of the ride was like an intense mountain bike trail with steep cliffs on both sides. I was relieved to hit pavement again.  Cuenca is really nice.  Population is around 420,000, it´s clean, nice mountain views with a river running through the heart of the city, you can safely drink water from the tap, food and transportation are really cheap (partly because gas is ceaper), and the people are very nice.  Taxi drivers are talkative and often ask if we have tried cuy, the Ecuadorian delicasy of guinea pig. We were not brave enough to try it. Vendors don´t harass you or try to rip you off. Our hostel is cool and I climb a ladder to reach my little private loft. 

Our first full day there we walked around the city and observed the festivities for dia mundial del agua (world water day). There were tons of cholitas, the traditional Ecuadorian women who wear colorful skirts and white panama hats. They are so cute and peaceful looking.  That evening we pampered ourselves at a really nice spa with mudbaths, steam rooms and natural hot springs from the volcano. Funny photos of that to be posted on facebook when I get back. 

Day 2 we went to Cajas National Park, which charges a $2 entry fee. A park that beautiful in the US would charge more like $25. The first part of our 3 hour hike was amazing, with lakes everywhere and mini jungles, and incredible views of surrounding peaks. I was bummed when I stepped in a swamp and got my feet wet and muddy, but that didn´t matter because 10 minutes later it started raining and hailing and didn´t stop til we finished the hike. I was proud of Norma and Rosa for sticking it out. 

That night we went to the Spanish Insitute of Cuenca, which is connected to the Spanish Institute that Shawn started in Boulder. Dana, who is from Boulder and is working with an Ecuadorian woman to get the school started here, invited us to their weekly Wednesday night cooking event. A woman explained how she made the delicious tamales that we happily devoured.  The school is really nice and there was a nice diverse group of teachers and studetns there, including a funny old Israeli woman and an Arab guy who spoke no Spanish. I met a woman there who said that she was studying at the school because of me and that she has been wanting to meet me since she saw me receive the Pacesetter Award in 2005. She knew that the Spanish Institute had connections with Intercambio so she decided to go for it, and she has been having a wonderful experience.    

Yesterday we took a slow bus ride with stops every 3 minutes to Ingapirca, some interesting ruins along the Inca trail. At night we saw a choir perform at a beautiful church and drank some really crappy wine in our hostal room. Today we walked around town, did some shopping and chilled by the river. Tomorrow we head to Guayaquil and fly home tomorrow night. It is always good to return home. I miss my friends, my coworkers, my office, my house, my dance classes, my bed, my mountains, my soccer games, and my cruiser bike. It has also been nice to be oblivious to world news, to not watch any TV, to not think about work all the time (I still think about it some here, which is okay because I love my work), and to not use my cell phone at all. Lots of time to think and to appreciate the amazing life I have and also to soak in some sadness that is always there, usually in small doses and have to do with things out of my control. I feel blessed to have had the privilege to have another travel experience, and thanks for reading and experiencing it with me! 

I recently put some photos from Ecuador and Peru on my facebook page so check those out if you're interested.

Back east

I've been back in Maryland for the past 5 days and it's been a great mix of family, friends and work so far.  The first day I met with an inspiring woman named Wanjiru originally from Kenya who started and runs the African Immigrant and Refugee Foundation.  She discussed some of the challenges of the African communities in the DC area, and how many of the issues, such as participating in schools and fully understanding laws, are similar to the barriers in the Latino community.  She was very interested in using "What every Immigrant Needs to Know" with her participants, and she said she'd try to help get it translated into French and Amharic (the language of Ethiopians).   I'm hoping that within the next few months we'll have it available in those languages as well as in Somali, which may happen because of some cultural conflicts between Somalis and native born citizens in Fort Morgan, CO.  When I asked my friend Joe, who headed there to do some mediation, about what the issues are, he mentioned little things like people getting upset because the Somalis talk on their cell phones too loud in public.  Public cell phone use is one of those many little but important topics covered in the guide :)

The night I met up with Shaun McGrath, Boulder's former mayor, a great all around guy and a buddy of mine who is now working in the White House as the link between the nation's governors and the Obama administration.  He said that the upcoming energy debate is going to be just as fiery as the health care one.  It's also a really bleak situation for state budgets, and it's only going to get worse next year unfortunately.  Unemployment is rising, tax revenue down, and unemployment benefits going out going up.  Yup, that's recipe for worsening budgets.  I asked him how it is working with conservative governors, and he said that many of them have appreciated working with him and Obama more than with the Bush administration.  He said that many conservative governors and their staff are surprised when he and the Obama administration work with them and actually help.  That was refreshing to hear after seeing all the heated partisanship around health care. 

The next day I facilitated our "Living in the US" workshop at EnglishNow!, a private English school in Bethesda.  It was a small but very nice group with people from Kazakhstan, Germany, Japan and El Salvador.  Later that day I hung out with my buddy Josh Rothchild, who teaches yoga and does stress management consulting in Baltimore.  He was the reason I got involved with the work I did at the prisons in Michigan, and I continue to be inspired by the way he lives his life.  I asked him if he regrets going to music school after receiving his undergrad degree at Michigan, because now he is not pursuing music and he's still paying off debt.  He said no, because eventually he wants to work with kids, and in order to do that well he needs to be able to say that he has done everything he wants to do, and that was one of those things.  With his stress management clients, he has them pay whatever feels right for them.  The way he has mastered his art of stress management consulting is amazing, and he truly helps people get to the core of their issue and find peace with themselves. 

Yesterday I set up a meeting with the Herb Block Foundation, who we submitted a grant proposal to recently.  I met with the President, ED and Program Officer and it went well.  The President told me that he had a problem, because he was planning to reject our proposal until he talked with me and really was impressed with the immigrant guide and with Intercambio's programs.  I was really appreciative that they took the time to talk with me, and they really understood the work we do.  After that I went to Capitol Hill to meet with the Education and Immigration staff members of our Congressman Jared Polis, who I believe is doing an amazing job working his tail off and being present everywhere. 

Today I met with some folks from CASA de Maryland, an incredible nonprofit here that has 80 staff members and does a ton for the Latino community.  One thing they are lacking is a strong volunteer program and I'm hoping that we can work with them to share our volunteer program so that they can effectively involve the native born population in the work they're doing and provide even more services.  

It's also been great hanging with the family, and my mom is still riding high from having Obama visit her school recently (much in part for the work she's done to help the school overcome the achievement gap) and winning the Distinguished Service award for Montgomery County.  I'm very proud of you mom! 

Mexico

Writing from day #3 in Penjamo, Mexico where I´m staying with the family of Felipe (my roommate in Boulder).  I have one first cousin.  They have about 500.  The first night here I went out with Manuel, Felipe´s brother who was also an Intercambio student, and every other person we ran into was his cousin or aunt or uncle.  Their friend Miguel, a psychologist and University teacher, rode around with us for while and spoke funny exaggerated British English and told me how he learned by translating Iron Maiden songs.  Penjamo is a small, tranquil town where at night people drink beer in their cars, blast music and slowly drive around for hours.  Last night one of their cousins proudly took a swig of beer while driving by the police headquarters.  He has the coolest 73 VW bug with an incredible sound system and automatic windows. I also got driven around quite a bit by one of their 13 year old cousins. There is a little more freedom and a lot less organization in Mexico. 

This morning I got up early and went with Felipe´s other two brothers, Marco and Chito, to collect about 25 huge cartons of strawberries to deliver to different areas.  Only women pick the strawberries because of the size of their hands, and supposedly because their backs can tolerate it more, and the guys load them up and distribute them.  After 6 hours of that I went to Manuel´s torta (Mexican sandwich) stand in a cool little market, and walked around with Chito and picked up random items and collected money for strawberries. I also learned that the wealthy people in the area are often those who own the most pigs.  Not exactly the way it is in the US. Yesterday Manuel and his wife Nena took me to Guanajuato, which is a super cool, old, well preserved city but full of tourists. 

5 days ago I arrived to Mexico City and spent 2.5 days with Sienna (an ex-Intercambio employee and good friend) and her boyfriend Aldo, who is a great guy and an excellent guide.  We walked around a lot, drank yummy mezcal, ate tons of delicious tacos al pastor, and danced (here I am with Aldo and their hilarious friend Shine from Trinidad, and Ricardo the amazing taco man).     We talked a lot about differences between the US and Mexico, and the recurring topic was the workplace.  Sienna has experienced, and many others have confirmed, the lack of teamwork, mutual support, desire to improve, and customer service that exist in Mexico.  It´s a little strange though, because those who emigrate to the US are typically very hard workers.  In Mexico it seems like there´s a lot more apathy, and people say it´s because the pay is so low and incentives for good performance are nonexistent.  Nena and I talked a lot about schools, and she said that there are no special education opportunities for people after they complete elementary school.  And classes are huge here: her kids´ class size is 45-50.   

 Tonight I leave here with Felipe´s dad at 2am to arrive at the Mexico City airport in the morning.  A lot of their relatives and friends would love to come to the US to live or just visit, but many of them don't even try for the VISA because they've heard stories of people they know getting rejected, and many fear that sort of rejection.  It's sad how such wonderful people like them and millions of others don't have the freedom to visit when they want.   

I´ve learned a lot the past few weeks, met a few hundred people, ridden on the back of various motorcycles, drank much more than I usually drink, eaten mucho fresh fruit, spoken lots of Spanish, and had a ton fun. I'm super grateful to be able to have these experiences and I wish everyone had the same privileges.

Colonscopy expert Dr. Lee

Wow, what an amazing few last few days. I ended up switching up my role this week and spent the last 3 days at the clinic mostly translating for Dr. Bilir, a GI doctor who was teaching a GI doctor and group of nurses from Iquitos how to use a bunch of modern equipment he was able to bring here.  My first experience with them was on Wednesday when they did a colonoscopy and removed a polyp (a little bloody ball that can cause lots of problems) from an 8 year old boy.  This little kid had no fear and he and his mom left so grateful and happy.  I also translated for 15 endoscopies and can probably perform them myself at this point.  What was coolest about what Dr Bilir did is the sustainability of the education he is providing...teaching them to fish rather than giving them fish.  It was hard to watch though because people gag a lot and it´s no fun. 

I also translated a little in pre/post op room and in the operating room for hernia and gall bladder surgeries.  People are nervous before going under the knife, and I loved being able to comfort them (and their families in the waiting room) and make them laugh a little to distract them from the anxiousness.  They were such beautiful, gracious people, and some were inviting me to their home and taking pictures with us by the time they left.  I showed them my Shakira stomach roll and they liked that.  They call me Dr. Bruce Lee.  The head surgeon there is the cutest little man in the world, and he joked with the nurses who got endoscopies (through the mouth) about getting a colonscopy and then and an endoscopy without cleaning the tube.  My medical Spanish got a lot better this week.

Two hours ago I taught English on the street to my friend Braulio and 3 other super cool kids in their first year at the University.  Braulio is a true success story, basically growing up on the streets and getting into the U after working his butt off.  La Canoa, the nonprofit I help out with here, played a big role in his life and the focus on education.  These kids really want to learn, and they asked me some great questions about the US, my perceptions of Peru, things I see that need to happen here, racism and lots of other topics.  There are so many major problems here, among them being severe overpopulation and high unemployment as a result, and lack of potable water.  Food is here, but clean water is harder to come by. 

The group we went with was again amazing this year, from the surgeons to the kids who helped with the clown shows.  I still hate the heat here, but this place attracts some wonderful folks.  Lots more to write but that´s probably enough for most of you.  Thanks for reading!! 

Wow

Good god I have a lot to write about, and I´ll be happy if you take a few minutes to read and share a bit of this journey with me.  Also, it is really difficult to explain this experience, moreso than any of my past experiences.   For a brief background read the previous entry...it´s a short one. 

Yesterday was our last day visiting the villages along the Amazon.  Thursday and Friday I split my time between working with the clown group doing presentations for the kids about simple preventative health care like brushing teeth and washing hands (which are more important than you can imagine with the all the parasites and dental problems people have here) and the rest of my time with the mobile clinics.  They set up clinics in villages where no health care exists, and they send a group of US and Peruvian doctors along with a complete pharmacy and little gifts including toothbrushes and sandals.  For them getting these gifts is like getting a new car or computer for us.  They see about 250 patients in 5 hours.  Their hearts are in great condition and almost none have high blood pressure, but many have infections and parasites that require deworming antibiotics.  My job at the clinics was also to make the kids smile, which I did either by magically moving my ears or by chasing them around, which I could for about 15 minutes before being completely (no exaggeration) drenched in sweat. 

The clown group was super fun, making kids laugh and smile while providing simple, valuable education.  We sang songs, did magic, danced a little with them, and talked about the importance of good hygiene.  Shawn was the lead clown and did an incredible job at every school.  He and I got to talk with the teachers in almost every village and we really want to set up a system where we can send volunteers to some of the villages to teach English to the entire village while learning Spanish.  These villages have no running water and few options for food, but the people are incredible and the villages are beautiful.  You see monkeys a lot, including a 15-week old one that was in on of the little girl´s hair like a scrunchee. 

Yesterday we were talking with a group of 15 teachers and we asked them what the main need of the village is.  They said another fish farm, which would sustainably provide a lot of food for a long time and cost approximately $1000 to develop.  They also talked about the high cost and low availability of potable water, and obviously no medical care. 

What do people do for a living in the villages?  I asked a lot of them, and pretty much everyone works in fields harvesting vegetables and fruits or fishing.  Some of them work with companies selling wood.  A lot of time they sit around doing nothing.  They have no books or TVs or anything.  They have to be in their mosquito-netted homes before dark, around 6pm, or else they will get eaten by mosquitos, some of which carry malaria, which they have no way to prevent it there.   

I also did a little impromptu translating at the hopsital with the team of surgeons.  One of them needed me to help him explain to a woman that she had a cancerous tumor in her wrist and that he would have to amputate her arm just below the elbow.  He said he could do it for free the next day, which was good because the woman had no money and had traveled two days up river to get to the clinic, and she didn´t even know the medical mission doctors were there.  The woman was extremely calm and just kept saying ¨si doctor¨ ¨and ¨estoy de acuerdo doctor¨, meaning she was in agreement.   After that another US Oncologist came in and together they decided to instead send a biopsy to the states to determine whether an amputation was necessary and whether it would fix the problem.  If it had already spread she would have a few months to live.  Or maybe it is an infection that can be cured with antibiotics.  I worry that she will need an amputation but there will be nobody to perform it once the US doctors return.

Shawn and I also stopped by La Canoa, the NGO I volunteered with last December that helps street kids, and we sang some songs with them and had a blast.  I also went to Tomas´house two days ago.  Tomas is an amazing painter who teaches art at La Canoa, and the kids make some great paintings.  Tomas also had a baby 6 months ago and asked me to be the Padrino (Godfather).  Thursday night a group from La Canoa and a group from the Hopsital all went dancing.  It was cool to see the two groups together; children of doctors together with children of the same age who shine shoes, dancing and smiling together.  I thought a lot about what an amazing experience this was for the US kids in our group, between the ages of 13-17.   They all had a blast and definitely carry a new persepctive of life and what wealth is. 

The clinic we are at, Clinica Ana Stahl, is the finest and most expensive in the region, and if you saw it you would be shocked to know that.  The people there are amazing but the resources are not.  The relativity and distribution of wealth is something I think about a lot in general, but almost all the time here.  I think about how many toothbrushes, sandals, vitamins, antibiotics, aspirin, soap and warm clothes (lots of folks told me it gets super cold in the villages sometimes and they own no warm clothes) we can provide with a tiny fraction of our resources.  The lack of these necessities is reality for hundreds of millions of people, but we are often either not exposed to it or we deal with it in passive ways.  Nowadays everyone has their HD TVs and ipods and sweat wicking shirts and 300 kinds of cereal at the grocery store and the list goes on and on.  I own a lot of stuff too (and am wearing a sweat-wicking shirt right now), but it makes me think hard about what I consume and how else that money could be used.  A lot of people in the world have lots of money, but they are often no wealthier when it comes to happiness than the kids here who own nothing.  I just hope our world will see more sharing of resources and greater wealth in terms of happiness that will be brought about by this sharing.  I´m not trying to sound preachy at all, but I feel strongly about distribution of wealth and want to dedicate some of my life to doing something about it.  Locally in Boulder I see how much happier and aware the people who share their resources and time are than the people who don´t.  Giving is often the best gift one can receive. 

Please let me know if you are interested in talking with me more about this or if you might be interested in coming out here one day.  Like I said before, I wish everyone could have this experience or one similar.  Thank you for reading!!!

Chicken Heads and My Last Days in Peru

I´m in Paramonga, a small coastal town 4 hours north of Lima, staying with the family of friends I met in Iquitos and Lima.  We had breakfast and the mom explained how the only thing the cat eats is raw chicken heads, as she butchered up a raw chicken on the kitchen table as we ate.  Last night I ate delicious cow´s utters, cow heart, and flan.  I drink tons of fresh OJ, which costs about 30 cents.  We walked by almost the entire town, about 500 people, playing bingo at the town plaza.  Bingo is big here, and they play on the buses sometimes.  Random honking car and mototaxi horns is also very in style.  I´m definitely the only gringo around here and some folks look at me as if my spaceship just dropped me off.  This morning I walked in on the cat eating his chicken head. 

I have two days more in Peru, and I´m anxious to get home soon because lots of excitement is happening with the capital campaign (read earlier entry).  And because I like my bathroom at home a lot better where the toilet flushes instead of having to pour water into it.  I love it here but I miss home, family and friends as always.   

It was hard to leave the La Canoa in Iquitos a few days ago because the kids and the staff ask when I´m coming back and of course I don´t know, and pòssibly the answer like many places I love visiting is never.  But I´d love to see them again.  Whether or not I return, the people I have met will always be a part of my heart and vice versa.  One of the older kids achieved his dream of getting into college on Wednesday.  The staff and I went to dinner with him and then to karaoke, where I sang Walk of Life by the Dire Straits.  Karaoke structure is different here...you sing sitting at your table and after every few songs they play songs to dance to.  I hope to bring this unorthodox but effective style back to the US. 

I´ve shared the Hey Now music video we made in Boulder with everyone here, and the 8 and 9 year old kids were mimicking the moves.  On the 20th a group of 90 kids and 7 adults crammed into a single bus and went to the Lake, where everyone spoke about what they were thankful for, and most of them mentioned the family feeling the have at La Canoa...made me think of Intercambio and the same family community feeling there.  In the lake I had 20 or so kids hanging on me at any given time, and I didn´t have to worry about lifeguards yelling at me like they did when I worked at summer camps back in the day.  These working kids in Iquitos are tough.  They get physically banged around by each other, they´ll eat anything given to them (including all the foreign PB&J sandwiches I gave them), and they never cry or tell on each other. 

It´s good to not be sweaty after two weeks of nonstop sweating.  It´s also good to have had positive interactions with so many people here.  As always, I´ve met super kind people at supermarkets, in taxis, at the plazas, wherever.  I´ve improved my Spanish a little more and have had the opportunity to spend time with people in interesting positions and learn lots about social programs and the government here.  There is so much need for more and improved NGO´s here.  Now they are focused on children, which is a start, but so many other groups are neglected 100% (mental health for instance).  I hope one day I can do some international work, and this trip was a positive first step in possibly doing so.  Thanks for reading and have a feliz navidad, happy hanukkah and prospero año nuevo!

Dancing, Education and Reggaeton Concerts...Evangelical Style

Still enjoying hot, sweaty life in the jungle of Iquitos, where I just got back from seeing where the Amazon begins with my boys Julio and Chanchito.  Then the 3 of us demolished the best fish I ever ate.  I´ve started teaching English classes daily and have a few regulars who are learning lots.  They´re also learning lots of new dance moves and are frequently waving their magic wand hands at my feet (which I taught them) to make me shake it.  It´s been my main source of exercise.  Last night we went to 2 small birthday parties and an outdoor venue with a live cumbia band.   

Friday night me and twelve of the kids (8 who hopped the fence to get in) went to a DC Reto concert.  DC Reto is a very famous and very evangelical reggaeton duo.  Their music sounds like hard core rap but they are rapping about positive things and a lot about Jesus.  I´d venture to say I was the only Jew among the thousand or so people there.  In the middle of the concert they preached for a good 20 minutes, while I envisioned dousing myself with ice water. 

Yesterday at La Canoa we did a bunch of activities where kids developed presentations on HIV, child abuse, children´s rights and of course soccer.  They all looked at me and laughed when one group talked about what to do when the sketchy gringo rapist approaches you.  It´s so cool that these kids are learning because they have seen lots of horrible things, including girls age 12 and 13 having children and lots of health issues.  The little kids ages 8-10, who are fascinated by my body hair and my ability to move my ears without using my hands, stood on a chair one by one and talked about what they do for work.  Most of them help their moms at the markets or take care of younger siblings.  Some talked about the embarrassment they felt when presenting.  La Canoa drills into them the importance of education first and I love it. 

Tonight I´m hanging out with the art teacher at La Canoa, who´s wife is hopefully giving birth as I write this because she is in major pain.  Tomorrow I´m hopefully meeting with a woman who is the community relations person with a petrol company that supports La Canoa.  I continue meeting amazing people from all walks of life, and forming some incredible connections with these kids.  Thanks for reading!   

Iquitos and La Canoa

This is a longer entry, so don´t start unless you have 2 or so undistracted minutes.  I flew into the jungle town of Iquitos in NE Peru Dec 7th.  It´s one of the largest cities that can only be accessed by boat or plane.  For every one car there are about 30-40 mototaxis or motorcycles.  It´s bloody hot here, and for those who know about my sweating issues, well enough said. 

The mototaxi dropped me off at Noemi and Angel´s place, right off the river that nearby connects with the Amazon.  They are two of the founders of La Canoa, an incredible NGO that works with children workers on all kinds of educational issues and gives them a super positive social network.  Check out the link.  I found them through my friend Susannah, whose friend Heidi has done a ton for La Canoa and is revered like a god here.  Angel welcomed me and shared with me all about how and why they started.  La Canoa is 5 years old, so we have had very similar yet very different experiences.  My room there was simple and hot, and the mattress springs poked me occasionally, but yesterday I moved to a more comfortable room that their other guests were staying in. 

Noemi and Angel are incredible, smart, compassionate people.  The first night we walked around the blvd on the river and ran into a bunch of the kids from La Canoa.  Some of them shine shoes at night, others sell gum, others crafts they make.  These kids are magical but poorer than poor.  I just came from taking out 6 of them, ages 10-17, for bread and juice, taught them some English and chatted about school, soccer and life in Iquitos. 

Last night I hung out with a different group of ten of them, talking about our nicknames, exchanging dance moves with this hilarious little kid, playing barefoot (full-contact) soccer in the street and treating them to juanes, chicken and rice which costs about 30 cents per person.  They call me John Marco, who is a famous bald-headed singer who I don´t know but who everybody knows here.  They don´t ask me for stuff and are super appreciative when I do share. 

Last Saturday I went with Erica and Flora, Noemi´s friends who were visiting, to Lake Quistococha and the little zoo there.  The zoo was a zoo, but the lake was amazing after it stopped raining.  It was full of happy kids of all ages, some who I launched off my shoulders in the water.  For some they met their first American there.  The vibe was very cool. 

Erica and Flora were awesome too.  Erica is a super outgoing, intelligent powerful woman who represents the Evangelical church at international conferences, like the G8 and stuff with he UN.  She was very different from the Evangelicals I hung out with in Huanchaco though.  Flora is a sweet woman, a psychologist who analyzes the readiness of families who are hoping to adopt.  After the lake we ate lunch, which consisted of fresh fish and suri, freshly grilled gigantic worms.  It didn´t taste too bad, but seeing the live ones a few feet away was ugh.  That night we went to the bar across from Noemi´s, and they got a little taste of the Shainis dance moves there. 

We came back form the lake, took naps in the hammocks at Noemi´s and went to La Canoa, where I met a bunch of the kids and presented myself to about 40 of the kids.  I talked with a bunch of them, including Gabriel (17), who told me how 8 of his 20 original classmates dropped out because of pregnancies or substance abuse.  This city has an extreme poverty rate of about 60% and the 2nd highest rate of HIV in the country.  He also told me about why he loved chemistry and his studies.  Braulio, also 17, has been with La Canoa for 5 years and is taking his University entrance exam this Sunday.  Braulio and Julio, 15, hung around for a while and I listened to them play the guitar and Peruvian flute and sing.  They love playing music. 

Yesterday I went swimming and canoeing in the river with Julio and his super cute little brother Roy, 11 nicknamed El Chanchito (the little Pig) because he eats so much.  We also canoed around Belen, a beautiful but super impoverished floating town where canoe is the main form of transportation.  There were tons of little kids playing in the water and the markets there are huge and full of fish, fruit and everything. 

Now I´m headed back to La Canoa, where they´re doing a workshop on health (parasites) for the kids.  Thanks for reading and for sharing this experience with me!   

Sex Education in Pacasmayo

From Huanchaco I took a little colectivo with 5 others to a smaller beach town slightly farther north called Pacasmayo, where I hung out for 3 days mostly with an old local craft maker Max and two teenagers, Richard (age 13) and Carlos (16).  Richard and Carlos and I hung out on the boardwalk each day and chatted about all kinds of stuff, including relationships since they were both involved in one and beginning to explore new horizons.  As we watched amazing sunsets over the ocean we shared many questions and honest answers...at least I was honest.  I think they were too.  We talked about the importance of protection, and Carlos asked me if I had any, and if he could have one, so I left him with an atypical US souvenir that he would have more use for than me. I wish I brought other stuff to leave too, but I´ve already given away the few Intercambio shirts I brought.  Max wanted to barter for my 16 year-old goofy green hat but I explained the pricelessness of it. 

I learned all about routine life for teenagers and artisans in this small impoverished, tranquil town.   Most people there were super friendly, and I got to play some beach soccer, which I much prefer to the cement.  Next I am off to Iquitos, the primary destination of the trip. 

1st Adventures in Peru

Interesting things always happen traveling without an itinerary.  Who thought that an hour ago I´d have a roomful of spanish-speaking Evangelical Christians feeding me Peruvian tamales (which aren´t as good as Mexican tamales...sorry Peruvian friends), sharing hugs and bidding me farewell as I continue to head north.  Don´t worry family members, I´m still Jewish, but I did enjoy spending time with this kind group of folks and learning lots about their religion and their lives. 

I arrived in Lima on Nov 29th at 2am, and mi amiga Marta and her friend kindly picked me up at the airport.  The next day Marta and I had lunch with Lesly´s parents who are magnificent people and then went to an all day conference on HIV in Lima.  It was well attended and it´s great that education about issues like this, child abuse, domestic violence and other stuff are beginning to be talked about more including in 3rd world countries, and the beginning is an important step.  There´s still a long way to go and lots to be done.

The streets here are frickin crazy, and I breathe a sigh of relief every time I step out of an automobile.  The next day took a taxi to the hospital to get vaccinated for yellow fever in preparation for the jungle next week.  I walked around for a few hours, bought a pair of sandals for about 60 cents, fresh squeezed OJ for about 15 cents, and checked out the markets.  I dig the food here, and the Peruvains sure love to talk about food.  Today I had lunch with a family of 5 Peruvians and a bulk of the conversation was about food.  The food was damn good though :)  Of course I´ve had my usual stomach issues, but for those who know me understand this is nothing out of the ordinary.  The ceviche was good but probably didn´t help the stomach much. 

After 2 days in Lima I was ready for beach so I took an overnight bus to Trujillo, recommended by my friend David in Boulder.  I arrived in the AM and took a taxi up to Huanchaco, a beach town just north of there.  Found a simple hotel and talked for a while with Abraham, a short, kind, round, fast-talking guy who worked there.  He told me how he used to be messed up with alchohol and drugs and how his wife and daughter left him a year ago and he hasn´t seen his daughter since.  Since then he turned evangelical, changed jobs from taxista to managing the hotel, and as I write he is on his way to Lima to try to see daughter.   I hope he can see her...he´s a good person. 

The first night in Huanchaco I went to Trujillo with a group of 12 university students from Lima.  They were very nice and I talked a while with one guy, Mono, who had lived in Wisconsin for a few months.  I gotta admit I was pretty disappointed with the dancing there.  They dance salsa and merengue with no turns, and reggaeton in two lines facing each other.  I was hoping for something a little crazier...I don´t think they´re ready for the Shainis style yet. 

Yesterday I played soccer on the cement field in a pretty serious but fun game.  They play well here, and one opponent had a successful bicycle kick goal...on the cement.  I also spent a few hours with Señor Cholito, a local baker who also makes wine and all kinds of other crazy products.  He was very interested in nonprofit creation, and we discussed the possibilities of starting up some programs locally.  This is still a dream of mine, because there is potential for so many human service organizations to start here and all over the world given the leadership and the resources. 

Tomorrow I head to another little coastal town, where hopefully I´ll have more time to just chill and get some reading and writing done, but who knows.  So far the people have been extremely kind and giving here, and I´m learning a lot. Peace and love to all of you.