Hello!
BWB is getting ready to embark on our second trip to Peru. Our journey will begin December 27th and will last until January 14th and we will be volunteering and setting up connections for future years in Cuzco and Lima. We have teamed up with Peruvian Hearts, a non-profit with connections in Cuzco and Colorado. Our plans include volunteering at an orphanage and conservation biology in the rainforest.
I have been able to speak on the phone with Peruvian Hearts as well as the people we will be staying with. We have planned the trip and now get to enjoy our efforts.
Stay tuned for more information!
BWB would like to thank our advisors Jane Phillips and Sue Wick and all who support us.
Whitney Weber
President-Biology Without Borders
Have a safe and wonderful trip, BWB members!
Sue Wick
We are staying with a family connected with Peruvian Hearts, an organization based out of Denver and started by a girl adopted from Peru. Their website is www.peruvianhearts.org
The family opperates a hostel that is connected to their house. It is in the parte alta (upper part) of Cusco.We have been able to talk with them and learn about Peruvian hearts and peruvian culture.
Last night, New Years Eve, was a HUGE celebration here in Cusco. There were over 300 people shooting off fireworks in the sky. I have never seen so many at one time! Today, New Years Day, Rosa-the mom of the house-made us a traditional Peruvian dish with lentils. She had yellow flowers and confeti. Yellow is the color of good luck for New Years so people were wearing it and buying yellow decorations. Today a neighbor of Rosa´s put yellow confeti in our hair for good luck.
We have practiced and learned a lot of Spanish by speaking with the family. They are wonderful people.
Whitney Weber
On Wednesday, we were lucky enough to experience Machu Picchu. Getting there was an experience in its own! We took a minibus through the Andean Mountains and then a train further into the mountains and finally another bus to Machu Picchu. The views were spectacular-there were lots of species of trees we had never seen before, the river ran alongside our train, and the clouds seemed extremely close to us because of our high altitude.
Machu Picchu is an incredible example of the Incas and their work ethic. There were many stone ruins, each of which had its own historical significance. The organization of Machu Picchu was very advanced. Also, the placing of Machu Picchu was exceptional-it is hidden by mountains on either side and cannot be seen on the drive up the mountainside. It is clear that a great deal of effort and planning went into the building of Machu Picchu.
Through our connection with the nonprofit Peruvian Hearts, we visited a girls´ boarding school in Alta, a small city near Cusco. The girls ranged in age from seven to fifteen and in ambition from singer, policewoman, doctor, to tourist guide. The girls gave us a tour and taught us some playground games. They next took us to their extensive library, where Matt, Surbhi, Whitney, and I alternated reading aloud Spanish story books. The Sisters who run the school showed us their need for various school supplies and for a new paint job in the kitchen and cafeteria area. The lunchroom and lunch food are provided by Peruvian Hearts. We plan to return to help with painting and other jobs.
One interesting part of the day was when the Sisters asked us to explain what different donations of hygiene products were. For example, what we could easily recognize as lotion or insect repellent from across the room because of distinct packaging was often a mystery to them, due to the descriptions being in English. We learned from this that donating supplies overseas can be complicated by cultural or language barriers.
In addition to returning to this school, we plan to visit another school that is affiliated with Peruvian Hearts. The group is currently building a lunchroom there as well. Hopefully, we can continue building connections in Cusco.
-Tarini
The trip sounds wonderful so far -- I'm looking forward to your next entries.
Maybe next year if you bring hygiene products, we could label them in Spanish before you leave..?? What color are you painting the kitchen and cafeteria? Can the girls do murals to help? That would be so much fun if you could get the additional paint.
Stay safe and have fun! Our best to your host family. JaneP
Thanks for commenting Jane! The hygene supplies were donated by people from the U.S. but not us. I thought is was a good example of how projects abroad need to be well-thought and language and culture need to be taken into account. We could possibly bring them in the future and label them. We are painting the cafeteria a light yellow-the paint they have there is dirty or chipping extensively.
Today we went to another school Peruvian Hearts supports. To get there we had to cross the Andes mountains-a very curvy route! We met the directors of the schools and learned of their needs. In particular the director of the secondary school mentioned a food program (possilby a garden) to provide breakfast to students who travel from far away to school. If possible we may consider working towards this as a project.
Rosa showed us the gardens of another school as an example of what is possible. They had many kinds of vegitables and livestock. She also mentioned that they give vitamins to the kids each day with their lunch.
We also saw a cultural festival in Lamay, the town we visited.
Tomorrow we will return to the first school we visited to finish painting. We will then go to Edwin´s place in Urubamba. He mentioned ecological projects when we corresponded with thim.
It is beautiful today in Peru-about 65 degrees and sunny (with occasional rain).
Understanding Spanish has been a real plus this trip. I have seen many signs saying in Spanish ¨protect the environment¨ or ¨don´t throw trash in the river.¨ The people we have spoken with have highlighted trash removal as a major issue. There are trash piles throughout Cusco and the dogs flock towards them. I did find an organization in Lima online that advocates for trash removal for health and environmental reasons. It has been interesting to see the environmental relationships with this issue.
Also interesting to see is the variety of flora and fauna. There are many species here I have not seen. We have also noticed distribution patterns of plant life on the mountains (due to rain, wind, etc.)
Cusco is a great place full of culture and wonderful people. It has been great.
Whitney Weber
Quick update before we leave for our next destination, Urubamba.
We returned to the first school today to continue painting, and actually re-did a room that will end up being a dormitory. We hope that volunteering at this school will become an ongoing project for BWB.
Tomorrow, we will leave for Urubamba, where another contact of Peruvian Hearts´ will host us and set us up with some ecologica projects. I´m particularly excited to learn about some of the plants that are native to the mountains of Peru. We have less than a week left before traveling to Lima, and will definitely make the most of it!
We have arrived in Urubamba!
We have met Edwin and are staying at his hotel. He is great!
Today we went back to the school to paint some more. We have finished the painting project. We will go back on the 9th to spend time with the kids.
The bus was very full but we made it!
Tomorrow we plan to visit another school and learn about Edwin´s composting. We have taken many photos and are considering an exhibit or collection of photos surrounding biology (for example plants, clinic signs, environmental signs, composting, etc)
The madres at the school have been great to us and the girls at the school as well. Peru is wonderful.
Hello everyone!
Today, we had the wonderful opportunity to meet with an organization in Urubamba--they have many Civil Rights lawyers and have various social projects in the area. They also connect with many German students and are therefore used to volunteers, a wonderful plus for our organization. We visited a school today that has 70 students ranging in age from 3 to 17. They also have many gardens, do weavings, do carpentry, and raise guinea pigs. All around, they are excellent at being sustainable and teaching students both education and learned trades-they are truly a model school. We met with members of the organization and they were very enthusiastic about setting up projects for future BWB students.
Today, it rained quite a bit here. Along with the Andean Mountains, the climate and geography of Peru is absolutely beautiful!
Hey BWB,
Sounds like an amazing trip so far. I realize time and internet access are limited, but I'd love to hear more about what you guys have been learning. Are you planning on doing presentations when you're back on campus? If so, would you mind sending me a copy of whatever you present, since I'll still be out of the country? Here are a few things I for one would be interested in hearing more about, based on what you've written so far:
Is that organization in Urubamba involved in sustainable agriculture? Does Edwin's composting initiative seem to be catching on? What are the main crops they cultivate in the area, and how has their production been affected by the spread of modern agricultural techniques and the transition toward cash crops and an export economy? What are the issues the civil rights lawyers work on the most- land rights, water rights, etc.? What other social projects do they do? What are the biggest challenges to environmental conservation in the region? How has tourism affected all this?
I also had a quick comment, on the donation of hygiene supplies: it's awesome you were able to bring donations from people in the States, and I would never want to discourage that. One thing to keep in mind for the future, however: from my experience, you can often find such products for lower prices in Latin American countries themselves, provided that they were manufactured there and not imported (the same often goes for clothes, school supplies, medical supplies, et cetera). Asking for financial donations and then buying these goods in-country has several advantages: 1) you can make your donations go further 2) you free up space in your luggage, potentially to bring things that are more expensive or unavailable in-country 3) it completely avoids the language issue and 4) your purchase stimulates the Peruvian economy. Obviously I could be wrong, if you happen to find that the only available hygiene products are foreign-made and/or more consistently more expensive, but it might be something to investigate for future trips while you're there.
Sorry for taking up so much room here; you should probably concentrate on what you're doing and answer all this later.
Safe travels, and enjoy those beautiful Andes!
David Droullard
Quick clarification (and we'll answer the other questions later as well)-- we did not donate the hygiene supplies mentioned. We just helped explain their purpose, and don't know who donated them. I think everyone on this trip agrees about the advantages of buying domestic Peruvian goods for donations, and this may be something we consider for future trips.
We have arrived in Lima!
We arrived in Lima on Monday, a surprisingly very urban city in comparison to the other places we visited. We are staying in Mira Flores--one of the districts of Lima. I was very surprised by how large Lima is and the excess of fast-food chains that are also in the U.S. On Tuesday we started calling the NGOs we knew of in Lima and stumbled upon the Special Olympics. Also on Tuesday, we were invited to visit their office where we volunteered doing clerical duties. Yesterday, we visited a park where the members of Special Olympics practice and assisted them. There is one morning session and one afternoon session with arts and crafts activities in between. The training sessions involve running and playing various sports (we played basketball). Today we will be returning to this park and assisting some more. Unfortunately, we won´t be able to return tomorrow as we are leaving for the airport tonight. I believe that I can speak for all of us when I say that my Peru experience was truly wonderful.
I recently rejoined the group from my own personal adventure in the Amazon Rainforest. I spent one week living in the extremely muggy and insect infested jungle, but I had an amazing experience. I participated at the Wasai Expedition ecolodge, four hours upriver from the nearest town, Puerto Maldonado. The lodge was located in a pretty remote part of a national reserve. We stayed in bungalows that included a bathroom and mosquito net covered beds. However, not all the window screens were sealed and each night we usually got a variety of insects and geckos that scampered about the room. Each day, the volunteers were designated different tasks to assist in and usually spent four to six hours volunteering in and around the ecolodge. It really gave me a better perspective into how important ecotourism is to the local people and their economy. The Wasai Expeditions was one of nineteen ecolodges in the reserve. It was interesting and personally beneficial in many ways. I was helping the ecolodge make the stay of the tourists better, but also in an indirect way I was helping conserve the rainforest and the flora and fauna that thrive in it.
As a reward for volunteering, the staff gave me the same opportunities as the tourists. I was able to go zip-lining across the canopy as well as participate in a high-ropes course. Other activities included going on multiple night hikes, caiman spotting/catching, and sitting on a beach watching hundreds of macaws,parrots, and parakeets feed at a clay lick across the river. My experience was amazing and I would do it again in an instant. I got on the plane to return to Cusco and felt I had made a difference not only for Wasai Expeditions, but also the entire project of conservation as a whole.