project changes. and, more importantly, día de la policía!

6 de diciembre.

i havent had internet in my town for over a month now. im here in courtneys town for the day - and guess what? santa cruz has internet!

foreign countries are so cool. cool, crazy, different. there are those random moments that come by every so often where i stop and say to myself, “wow, im in peru.” its crazy how often that slips your mind.

and as for my business projects, things have changed….

last month, the other volunteers from Cajamarca and i went to Camp Valor. Camp Valor is a camp that local peace corps volunteers put on, and it takes place every year in the Baños del Inca outside of Cajamarca City. (these baños are natural hot springs that the Incans used to bath in - and today, people come from all around peru to sit in the natural hot water.) for the camp, each volunteer brings 2 boys from their site, ages 12-18 (usually the 2 top kids in their schools and/or a member of their host family). the new volunteers, including myself, aren’t allowed to bring anyone until next year, but we went to help and to see what it was all about.

and, let me tell you, it was soooo amazing!!! there were about 30 kids or so - all who had hardly left their villages in the campo. the more tenured volunteers arranged everything… and we did so much! we took them on a tour of the university in Cajamarca. one afternoon, we had a panel of doctors, lawyers, music composers, and workers from the mine come to talk to them and answer questions. there were workshops around health, self-esteem, and future planning. we took them all to a movie and bought them popcorn. (NONE of them had ever been to the movies before!) we played fútbol (soccer), dodgeball, uno, and team-building games. some time was arranged for them in the hot springs. and on the last night, we even had a bonfire where we taught the kids how to make s’mores!

just to help you to understand the greatness of this experience: these kids are not given this opportunity in the world they live in. statistically, most of the children in the campo dont go to university or even THINK about or plan their lives after Secundaria (high school) - and most children don’t even make it to high school. a staggering 37% of the children in Catache between the ages of 6 to 24 don’t even go to school! so, you can see what a great impact Camp Valor had on these kids.

there was one activity where the kids laid on the ground and closed their eyes, while a fellow volunteer played some relaxing music and told them to picture their home, their family, and then imagine their FUTURE... one boy actually cried towards the end of the exercise! it was so moving - it was like i was living through their smiles, tears, and laughter!!! of course, being the sentimental sap that i am, i even had some tears in my eyes too!

Camp Alma (which is the same thing, but for the girls) is next june or july, and the new volunteers are allowed to bring kids. I CAN NOT WAIT to do it again! and this time, with children from my own community!

so after all of that excitement, i decided to meet with the Secundaria of my own town and see how i could work with the kids in Catache. and ive been working with them every since. i work with the english professor a few days a week now. along with helping him and the students with their pronunciation, we do a cultural exchange - and the students have the opportunity to learn, first-hand, about the north american cultural. i am also working with the Director (Principal) of the school to teach business classes.

the school year ends right before the rainy season begins - i am planning to start a business program with the students during the break. and of course im still doing my wednesday english classes in the nearby caserio.

im super excited about my project change and working with the schools, especially after my experience with camp valor last month - children actually listen and are interested in what you have to say.. bright-eyed, eager, and minds wide open - they are our freaking future, dude.

and on a side note:

today, my freinds...

today is my day.

and you may ask, "why is that, ashley?"

well, its because today is.....

día de la policía!!!