It was sooooo hard to get up this morning!! I was with Katia and Alison the whole day, first in a class with another teacher who got the kids to discuss nationality. Everyone was surprised to learn I have four nationalities, and we did a lot of comparing cultures - I talked about the American school system and Thanksgiving.
Next we went with Katia to the kindergarten for some English lessons. The kids were learning body parts so we tried to teach the song "Heads-shoulders-knees and toes" but the kids didn't quite have the attention span needed to learn it. We taught three classes and by the third one I barely had the energy left to bend over and touch my toes. Something about the extremely high level of energy the young kids have drains your own energy! We taught mainly 5 year olds, but there were also 3 and 4 year old kids in the classes.
At lunch with Uziel we showed him some photos of Boulder and he showed us where he grew up. It was so cool to kind-of--see where he grew up. We have all decided we are definitely going to return next year and see the great Amazon rivers. I really hope that actually happens!
In the afternoon we went to INABIF and it was a pretty heart-wrenching day. One of the kids I've grown closest to, Roberto (Max's cousin), came in with hands so dry they had cracked open into huge sores that were an inch wide and spewing blood and pus. We were all horrified and couldn't imagine how painful it must be. We talked to one of the coordinators who said that although Max lives with his single mother, Roberto lives in an orphanage and doesn't go to school. He can't read or write even though he's eight years old! It's just unbelievable that he might never learn to read or write. What a hard start in life. Not only that but the other kids here pick on him and I can't imagine he gets much love at the orphanage either so he must just go unloved. How is that possible when he's the greatest kid ever??
Later I learned that there is a school he could go to but it has strict rules and for many street kids it's hard to give up their freedom so they don't go, or don't stay. His smile is heartbreaking, so loving and trusting, and he says we are his family which is too much for me to process.
When we got home we were all kind of in a state of shock. Uziel said there are a lot of kids like that, who grow up on the street without education and only other street kids to rely on. It used to be a lot worse with hundreds of gangs controlling the streets and more drugs and violence. Things are changing now but Peru does not have enough money to support it's growing population and everyone has to work harder for less money.
Uziel is actually up for a prize, awarded to people who are working to changer Peru for the better and support its economy. Uziel is a theatre producer and a teacher at a local school but he also volunteers a lot with outreach theatre programs. How cool is that!
We had a delicious dinner of rice with carrots, peas, and sausage, and afterwards Uziel told us a harrowing story of when he was 19 and went up to the roof of his family's house to fix a leaking spigot. The wall he was leaning on collapsed and he fell two stories, went through a skylight, and fell another story before landing on the ground. He was miraculously perfectly fine until a brick from the wall landed on his hand! What a crazy story! He was also caught in a landslide while mountain climbing and just saved himself. He has more lives than a cat!
Next we went with Katia to the kindergarten for some English lessons. The kids were learning body parts so we tried to teach the song "Heads-shoulders-knees and toes" but the kids didn't quite have the attention span needed to learn it. We taught three classes and by the third one I barely had the energy left to bend over and touch my toes. Something about the extremely high level of energy the young kids have drains your own energy! We taught mainly 5 year olds, but there were also 3 and 4 year old kids in the classes.
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| The view from the kindergarten |
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| The kindergarten |
At lunch with Uziel we showed him some photos of Boulder and he showed us where he grew up. It was so cool to kind-of--see where he grew up. We have all decided we are definitely going to return next year and see the great Amazon rivers. I really hope that actually happens!
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| Lunch with Katia, Alison, Joyce, and me |
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| Roberto's hand |
Later I learned that there is a school he could go to but it has strict rules and for many street kids it's hard to give up their freedom so they don't go, or don't stay. His smile is heartbreaking, so loving and trusting, and he says we are his family which is too much for me to process.
When we got home we were all kind of in a state of shock. Uziel said there are a lot of kids like that, who grow up on the street without education and only other street kids to rely on. It used to be a lot worse with hundreds of gangs controlling the streets and more drugs and violence. Things are changing now but Peru does not have enough money to support it's growing population and everyone has to work harder for less money.
Uziel is actually up for a prize, awarded to people who are working to changer Peru for the better and support its economy. Uziel is a theatre producer and a teacher at a local school but he also volunteers a lot with outreach theatre programs. How cool is that!
We had a delicious dinner of rice with carrots, peas, and sausage, and afterwards Uziel told us a harrowing story of when he was 19 and went up to the roof of his family's house to fix a leaking spigot. The wall he was leaning on collapsed and he fell two stories, went through a skylight, and fell another story before landing on the ground. He was miraculously perfectly fine until a brick from the wall landed on his hand! What a crazy story! He was also caught in a landslide while mountain climbing and just saved himself. He has more lives than a cat!
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| Our house is the door just to the left of the black car, our room is just to the right |
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| Front door to our house/car wash we've been joking Alison could wear a bikini and be like the blond on the poster |
