love from Peru on this Sunday Morning: September 6

Dearest kids, family and friends.

it is Sunday morning and the morning has just peaked over the mountains in soft mauves which remind me of the pink of the mornings on lake mindemoya. it is quiet and peaceful here. only the barking of a few dogs and an occasional car break the silence. i like it. there is no hurry or reason to get up so i remain here all snuggled up in your sleeping bag , meg, and it is warm. i am missing the company of tugs who would be snoring at my feet, but i know that he is most likely doing just that between patricia and norm. thanks guys. this makes it better. i imagine grace and tilley are loving the company of you katie and tony, i hope these kitties make you as happy as you thought they would. grace can be a bother in the morning,,actually all through the nite if you let her sleep with you.i;m sure you have figured it out or will.

the sun is up and the houses that spatter up the mountains catch the day. i wonder who live up there. there is a big deep square cutout in the hill so i will have to explore the city and see what that is. the tree in front of the window, which looks like those florida windows with small tilting pieces of glass that wind out,blocks other buildings which surround the small courtyard below. this space is nowhere you would wander into and have a coffee (which i would love right now) it isn't kept or tidy and so far i haven't caught a glimpse of neighbours. but that is ok. i have filled any time here at the house eating meals with the other volunteers, sarah& sabrina, sisters from california. (sarah is studying engineering and sabrina is a hairdresser both early20's) and chris who is from new york late 20's but like a boy. they are great and showed me the ropes and told me tips that i am glad to know so i can handle things alone and be safe.
One of the first conversations i had with them at dinner , which is always set for 6;30, was about what you need to know right now. this was eye opening..
for example, you will find this interesting or something.... in the house only one toilet has a seat and it is not in my room,and you never flush your toilet paper down the toilet you put it in the trashcan. okay.... this is about the worst thing here.. i am going to buy a seat for this room as soon as i can figure out where to get one .also,the water stays cold a long time in the shower but if you are patient, i have learned, it will get hot and then you can get really clean. if i close my eyes and smell the shampoo i go home. thanks meg.

Friday, Nadia the house mother, took me for a walk to see the neighbourhood and get my bearings. Our street in on a hill, so up we walked to a small road, like a street in say the west end, where you can get a taxi or a bus, just by putting up your arm. She walked me about 4 blocks east to the local grocery store speaking spanish 98% of the time. i have been repeating everything but certainly not remembering yet.. then we walked back and she made me find her house.. good thing i can remember landmarks because i don't have the street names down yet. we are in santa monica neighbourhood and the street is san jose... not sure. she made sure i got the technique of the fussy key down and it was all cheerful and funny and we laughed with each other attempting to figure out our words. cant wait for spanish lessons... monday.

that afternoon i took a cab to Maximo Nuvel, headquarters on the main street, avenue del sol, and that is the main place everybody goes most days for everything from money exchange, orientation, exploration trips, computers, salsa classes, coco tea and for any assistance you might ever need. the computers have spanish keyboards so excuse sp errors from there.
with the warning of taking it easy the first few days because of the high altitude i did, not sleeping or wasting time napping, but casually strolling the main streets and hopping into shops and seeing their wares.
most memorable is the little old lady , see the picture, who was settled on a step on the sidewalk weaving a belt. she was worn and baked from the strong sun here and she smiled and beckoned me to visit and see. so i did. she was beautiful. anyway i found this blue, red and white woven belt with llamas, and wonderful patterns and i told her i liked this one. how much? 40 sol. so divide by 3 about 13 dollars us. apparently you are supposed to barter here. well i am terrible at that. we always just pay what people ask. but i decided to try. 30 sols i say. her eyes sparkle and we are both grinning ear to ear happiness dancing between us.. her at the thought of a sale, and me at the connection with this woman.. anyway she says no and pulls out of her bag this ..i will call it a needle..like a darning needle..and starts to write on her hand and pushing the letters of 40 ..well, no way, i put my hand over her hand to rub it better and she laughs at me ,. i shake my head no ..don't do that i am thinking .. ouch.. we play at this game a little longer and then we settle for 33sol. she ties the belt around me and i thank her. that was the best part of the afternoon on avenue del sol

i catch a taxi home.. apparently if you don't ask the rate. it is 2.5sol or 3 at themost.. so i have decided to pay them three sol . this cab driver takes me on a completely different route, old run down shops and lots of things for sale outside on the streets like avenue road, but wayyyyy from a different world.. anyway he gets me to my home and demands 4sol.. nadia said you never ever pay 4 sol except after 10pm so i say , no i said 3 sol and although he was disgruntled with me accepted 3 which was fair. i am a gringo and easy to take advantage of with prices. when i learn some spanish i will feel more comfortable.. but i've had some good training over the years and i stood my ground and i wasn't getting out of that taxi til he bent.

dinner time.. visit time. nadia always asks if i am doing ok.. nodding her head and questioning me with her eyes. i am. i am fine. getting my sea legs.

for dinner we had chicken, baked with a dark brown sauce, white rice in a formed rounded shape and sliced cucumbers and tomatoe heavy with salt. there was a limey greenish pepper hot sauce for the rice which i passed on.. oh yes, a salty tasting soup was served first that reminded me of chicken noodle soup with no noodles. so the food is fine.. i am not fussy. it is certainly not the yogurt, piece of raison pita with peanut butter and fruit that i have lived on over the years.. but i am feeling it out, giving chris the 27year old boy from new york my any portions that i would waste.. there was no apple pie for dessert. thank you everyone for the ongoing feasts we had over the last few weeks at home. yuummmy memories..

by 9 i was finished that night. freezing and dead tired. sitting at the table was hardly bearable and i just wanted to crank the heat to 22degrees. no . noheat here. although there is a nonworking fireplace in the corner. on the hearth layers of pictures of the Virgin Mary have been placed.
layered with two pairs of especially hot socks, two layers of long underware and tops i crawled into the sleeping bag and covered myself with the hood and ski hat. wow it is cold.
amazingly enough i slept like a log.

woke to freezing. oh my goodness. but breakfast was warming .. it is instant coffee in this house as tea is the thing. the plan for yesterday with the girls was to go to 'jacks' a more canadian/american place (would love a salad) and then to the Festival of Tourists which is taking place over the next two more days. anxious to teach me the ropes, sarah, (the more mothering of the two sisters) decided we would take the bus. these buses are small, like volkswagen vans maybe a little bigger and would in canada seat 10 or so. well not here. seat 15,16,.. small, strong women, man the sliding door calling out each street and yelling to the people on the sidewalk .. to get attention. the cost is, 60,pesos? which you give her when you are at your street and ready to get off. on the first ride i sat facing the back of the bus and was captured by the faces around me. a little child was beside me, glowing and happy. i offered her a maple leaf candy. she smiled and beamed at me. gracias seniorita! i told her it was from a tree in canada ..she talked back and forth to her mother who encouraged her to speak english.. she knew some words and looked at the ceiling to try to find them...then i dug into my bag for a pair of magnifying glasses for her to give her mom. we were all happy.

at the market square the girls and i took in the crowd. areas were being blocked for looks like grand events with floats and people everywhere. the pictures that you see of peru are here. the wonderful little people in heavy, embroidered wool skirts and costumes. most striking are the beautiful faces of every age , deeply browned by the sun with rosy cheeks that seem to beam good health. their hair is black and straight , often braided and they have beautiful sharp noses and hazel eyes. their hands seem small and most seem fit..except the older ladies from the hills who are wide with time and covered in layers of colour. i am captivated.
as we walk two girls, rosemarie and her friend, both holding baby alpaca wrapped in blankets, like they do babies, stand beckoning us to take a picture. their faces are irristable and sarah takes our picture together for maple leaf candies and money. they are so beautiful and so grateful and polite. it makes me anxious for monday and the weeks ahead. when you look at the picture of them see how they hold their skirts out and glow,

i marvel at the freedom of the children here. carefree they run around ,up and down the sidewalks near the stations their mommies have claimed on stairsteps in doorways or inside tiny stores where they sell their treasures..they are nursed freely on buses and streetside and the babies seem to never fuss in those colourful wraps which tie them to their mothers souls. it is wonderful here.
everyone is layered in clothing, mostly like we us and even though it is quite hot by 1pm people still stay in long pants and long sleeves. people blend into the stone walls and cobbled roads which are so beautifully made you would think charlie gibson was their boss.

i cannot take everything in...

sarah and i spent the day together as she wanted to shop and i just wanted to wander around and discover.. we met a venor playing a small guitar/uke like instrument and wowowo he played beautifully and i just wanted to stay and listen.. this was in a small meandering street away from the area of the parades..i told him i wanted to buy a guitara.. delighted he had some in his shop and he beckoned me away up this same street and in through a doorway where you would question your presence.. anyway, not afraid of him i follow, up steps (which they liken to the steps you take on the second day hike to Macho Picho (sp?) that are about a foot high and create beautiful spaces and ledges in no particular order or size, and all open to the sky with little casas and shops around its edges, and to his shop. inside, which is very dark, there are all kinds of musical instruments. two guitars which i try, with very thick necks, too big for my hand, but amazingly beautiful sound.. of course he plays and i just breathe... wow. then i ask about another instrument, shaped like a mandolin but bigger with four sets of strings , of four strings.. so 16 strings. still small enough to play like you would a guitar and with the same chords.. cool. he plays. i tape him. i fiddle around on it. neat. he says 800sols so about 250us and free lessons ..many lessons.. well this is tempting. the guitar is 300 sol. so 100dollars. in my budget.. i wait. sarah appears and tells him i have more looking to do.

i am excited for there isn't a song that i couldn't fake my way through for those little ones on either instrument. funnnn..

we shop more and by this time the salad that i have eaten is playing havik with my insides. peptobismal doesn't cut it here. tmo ha! tm

the evening brings plans for a show in one of the main squares so sarah and i layer up and get a bus to for 7:30. on the bus there is an old gaffer with a Canadian cap who i would love to talk to but resist. he is centuries old. there are lovers in the back and a slicked up dude ready for a saturday nite out. no little kids here but once we arrive, and it is dark, there are still children everywhere. the streets are still full of people and we race up the cobbled one way street to the theatre.
it was solid entertainment... with audience participation in skits, men doing acrobatics on stilts and fire juggling and brilliant costumes and dancing. this was a treat and i am thrilled to accompany sarah, who is anxious to get everything in before she leaves in a week.

there is something about the air up here..they warn you of its thinness and people have stories of being sick for a week but touch wood so far, i've had no trouble with the altitude other than a slight headache..walking the boardwalk has prepared me for the streets which follow the earth and i am happy for this and the little boy who told me "it's hard when you're old".

well this has been a long letter and i hope it finds you all happy and well. thank you for the letters i have received. gracias amegos! i will always write you back.
que hay de neuvo? what's new? keep me up on life. i hear we have some family news!!i am so thrilled for you j 2. secret code. also so thrilled with tugs blog..so very heartwarming. i want your stories too.. they will make my life full.

today we head for the festival. two new volunteers have just arrived. laura?? haven't met and Jacqueline. expecting a full house of 10. Jacqueline who is here for 3ms in the childrens program. she is lovely. from minnesota , 22 and has picked the bed beside the window in the room i am in. she joined us for breakfast of yogurt, fruit, tang? coffee and flat bread. we missed church this morning because mass is from 6am to9am and i although i was up early and sarah and i intended to go, we decided to make Jacqueline comfortable and go to a day mass in one of the grand churchesanother day.
so at 11:30 we head out.

i know there is tour of Cusco today and i may take it in. better now than later i think, unless the festival offers celebrations that i cannot get away from. it is feeling good here and what i have seen so far is not sad. other than the language challenges and wishing you were really in my pockets, it is pretty perfect. today is the last free day till work begins and i am excited to know what i will be doing.

i love you and i miss you. have happy days.put me in your pockets.

,molove mom alias me,deb/debbie/debra