So it’s been almost six months in site (the 22nd) and truly time has flown by. It’s really hard to put down anything solidly accomplished for the last six months; no bathrooms built, no major projects completed and only 18 months to go. Factor in that all major projects are supposed to be done by month 21 and that leaves 15 months to go for large scale stuff and we still haven’t started the planning phases. So there’s a bit of stress not only on my end, but I think many of the 14ers are in the same way. But to be fair I’ve also accomplished a lot:
+Completed reservoir cleaning and tube disinfection (another scheduled for June)
+Solid working relationships with the municipality and the health post
+Participated in two sessions with Builders Beyond Borders
+3-4 hours a week teaching English and getting known by the youth
+International Women's Day Charla in the schools
+Strong community integration - about 90% of the town knows I live/work there, 35-40% knows kind of why
+Usually hear the shouts of 'Mateo!' 'Gringo!' and others from the community while walking around
+Actually like being at site and feeling at home.
+Will be presenting my work plan to local authorities in the coming days.
So maybe when I think about it, I'm pretty well planted.
Part of why I´m surviving Peru
So when I think about it, I’m passing close to six months at site and over eight months in Perú. And like it has been said before, the days are long but the weeks and months are short. Sometimes days crawl by forever; no-shows at appointments, meetings that drag on, and at times there’s simply nothing constructive to do. But usually reflecting on the week, or month, I find myself trying to remember what all seemed to happen so quickly.
This is also a bit of a milestone as I’m not really used to staying in one location for too long. Especially during college, I was living on campus for 3 months, back at home for a few weeks, back at school, a few weeks at home for the summer, and a few weeks in Wheeling and then repeat (or mix in a semester in Oman). So living in the same place isn’t something I am too used to, let alone living with the same set of people. But I’m somehow making it work here. I think a big part of this is due to the family I live with.
I was asked by a future trainee whether or not I was used to the cultural differences of living with a host family. In a better perspective, I feel they probably put up with a lot more ‘acustumbrar-ing’ (accustoming?) with having me around than vice-versa. I do take a lot of short trips here and there, and I don’t really have a set schedule. So sometimes I’ll be at home a lot, other times I’ll be out, or even out of the department for a while. I’ll make trips to Ica (I’ve gone to the south end of the country three times in the last four months). But they’re still really loving, supportive, and welcoming to me. They include me in every little family event or dinner, but were also cool that I asked to stick around instead of going to Trujillo for a family party (I wanted to stay partly for some Mateo time and also to hang out with my Peruvian friends and watch the local soccer matches).
For me, my family here is people I trust to ask questions about things I don’t understand or maybe have them explain some cultural stuff to me. Like why isn’t so and so well liked, or how this person got that job and all the inner-workings of the community. They’re well connected and well respected by most of the town, so when I say I live with them I think that respect carries over a little bit. Everyone in my town always says they’re a very kind and generous family, and I for one can definitely vouch for this.
This is also a bit of a milestone as I’m not really used to staying in one location for too long. Especially during college, I was living on campus for 3 months, back at home for a few weeks, back at school, a few weeks at home for the summer, and a few weeks in Wheeling and then repeat (or mix in a semester in Oman). So living in the same place isn’t something I am too used to, let alone living with the same set of people. But I’m somehow making it work here. I think a big part of this is due to the family I live with.
I was asked by a future trainee whether or not I was used to the cultural differences of living with a host family. In a better perspective, I feel they probably put up with a lot more ‘acustumbrar-ing’ (accustoming?) with having me around than vice-versa. I do take a lot of short trips here and there, and I don’t really have a set schedule. So sometimes I’ll be at home a lot, other times I’ll be out, or even out of the department for a while. I’ll make trips to Ica (I’ve gone to the south end of the country three times in the last four months). But they’re still really loving, supportive, and welcoming to me. They include me in every little family event or dinner, but were also cool that I asked to stick around instead of going to Trujillo for a family party (I wanted to stay partly for some Mateo time and also to hang out with my Peruvian friends and watch the local soccer matches).
For me, my family here is people I trust to ask questions about things I don’t understand or maybe have them explain some cultural stuff to me. Like why isn’t so and so well liked, or how this person got that job and all the inner-workings of the community. They’re well connected and well respected by most of the town, so when I say I live with them I think that respect carries over a little bit. Everyone in my town always says they’re a very kind and generous family, and I for one can definitely vouch for this.
Starbucks Pt 2
So a while back, I wrote a quick blurb about being at Starbucks in Trujillo and how it really seemed ‘American’ and how I was a bit in shock at how it was the same type of ‘Starbucks culture’ here in Peru as in the states, and also the difference/disparity of wealth from where I was that evening (Starbucks) and during the day (my town).
I didn’t mean to vilify Starbucks or the people there, or even really imply that there’s anything wrong with Starbucks. Hell, I purposely went there that night and another time after that for a few hours and bought a drink and used the wireless internet). It can be a good symbol of the disparity, especially between rural and urban: for the same cost as a large frappachino drink, I can buy lunch for a week at a restaurant in my town, clearly the calorie cost is different.
But at the same time, Starbucks can be a good sign. With the prices the way they are (For the same price, I can either buy a cup of coffee at Starbucks or two weeks worth of fresh ground coffee in the grocery store), obviously there needs to be some level of clientele to support the business. And indeed there is. It shows, in a very unscientific way, a growing semi-professional youth culture working/networking and having disposable income. Quite possibly the patrons you might see at this Starbucks are going to be part of the ‘Perú advanza’ model, which won’t be cocinas mejoradas, but larger scale domestic businesses and innovations.
What could be said, for example, if there was the Starbucks and it was filled with ex-patriot workers or European/American tourists? Truly more of a divide or even cultural imperialism, maybe. Or is it cultural imperialism to see Peruvians do something ‘American’? I think not as they seem to gravitate to it on there own…there’s no mass media campaigns I can tell to get people into Starbucks.
I didn’t mean to vilify Starbucks or the people there, or even really imply that there’s anything wrong with Starbucks. Hell, I purposely went there that night and another time after that for a few hours and bought a drink and used the wireless internet). It can be a good symbol of the disparity, especially between rural and urban: for the same cost as a large frappachino drink, I can buy lunch for a week at a restaurant in my town, clearly the calorie cost is different.
But at the same time, Starbucks can be a good sign. With the prices the way they are (For the same price, I can either buy a cup of coffee at Starbucks or two weeks worth of fresh ground coffee in the grocery store), obviously there needs to be some level of clientele to support the business. And indeed there is. It shows, in a very unscientific way, a growing semi-professional youth culture working/networking and having disposable income. Quite possibly the patrons you might see at this Starbucks are going to be part of the ‘Perú advanza’ model, which won’t be cocinas mejoradas, but larger scale domestic businesses and innovations.
What could be said, for example, if there was the Starbucks and it was filled with ex-patriot workers or European/American tourists? Truly more of a divide or even cultural imperialism, maybe. Or is it cultural imperialism to see Peruvians do something ‘American’? I think not as they seem to gravitate to it on there own…there’s no mass media campaigns I can tell to get people into Starbucks.
Being A Mercenary Volunteer
So I’ve been fortunate in that during my first four months of service, I wasn’t chained to my site (not that you ever really are, but still). In February and March, I was invited to journey down to the south of Peru for a week and work with a group called Builders Beyond Borders (B3). In short, they’re a non-profit group that brings between 20-40 high schoolers from the Connecticut area down to a developing country to do a bunch of manual labor. They fund raise around $2,500 to cover for travel, meals, supplies, etc. and take a week out of school or their Spring Break to attend this project. And through the glories of networking and past experiences with Peace Corps, B3 hooked up with some of our Water and Sanitation 12’ers (the group before me) to assist on their bathroom and water system projects. And they were kind enough to invite other volunteers down (like me!) and feed/lodge us, plus let us go with the kids to local activities such as sandboarding and white water rafting (Peace Corps is hard!!!).
In February, I worked with a group in the province of Canyette, which is already ripe with Peace Corps volunteers due to the effects of the 2007 earthquake. This particular group’s mission was dig a ridiculous amount of trenches in various parts of this remote agricultural town and install main water lines, which would later be connected to houses. This was really the thankless part of the project because the kids wouldn’t really get to see anything ‘completed’; just pipes laid and if all went well, no leaks. My job in this instance was to be a point person for technical advice (or talk with the town plumber), translate, and be a ‘role model’. After a week, I was really impressed with the kids and their work ethic. Most of them kept on going strong until quitting time, and even past that. Digging ditches in the hot Peruvian sun is not really a fun way to spend your winter break, especially when $2,500 could be used for so much sweeter stuff (like 2/3 of a Peace Corps volunteer’s living allowance!) but the kids never really complained and really liked the experience of manual labor and getting dirty (probably two things they never really get to do up in Connecticut).
In March, it was more or less the same routine except I was working on a bathroom project in the south of Ica, where the earthquake really took it’s toll. Most of the communities were rebuilt with thatch housing and people were just starting to rebuild with adobe. I worked with two different teams of kids during the week, with two trained maestros (campo handymen/masons/carpenters/etc) to build pour flush bathrooms. This project was a little different because the teams would finish a bathroom in about two days, and therefore just restart from scratch. But they persevered throughout the week and hit the number of bathrooms they aimed for. They all got on really well, and what was interesting is that the maestros really liked the kids, even if they couldn’t fully communicate with them. The kids wound up leaving on Saturday morning, while the PC volunteers and the maestros worked during the morning to finish up some loose ends, and some of the maestros were generally sad that the kids were gone. I was talking with one of them and asked why he looked a little sleepy (it was Saturday morning), and he said he wasn’t sleepy but sad that the kids were gone.
And I think that’s part of what B3 aims for, especially with organizations who just jump in, do a quick project, and leave. B3 really aims for the cultural and emotional experience for their kids, who largely grew up in privilege or at the very least with most of their needs met. These trips allow the kids to see a different way of living, and poverty, and reflect on that as an individual however they want to interpret it. To be honest, I was a little skeptical of these trips…’volunteer tourism’, where you jump in for a week, get to slum it, and then go back to your comfortable living condition. But what I personally hope for with these trips is that the kids hold this experience with them and use it as a bit of a spark to either serve abroad or at home in the United States to help and work people achieve better means and levels of living. And I also benefitted from the trips as well by working with the maestros and seeing what the more experienced volunteers were doing and how their work went from the first couple months like where I’m at, to over a year in and actually doing projects.
In February, I worked with a group in the province of Canyette, which is already ripe with Peace Corps volunteers due to the effects of the 2007 earthquake. This particular group’s mission was dig a ridiculous amount of trenches in various parts of this remote agricultural town and install main water lines, which would later be connected to houses. This was really the thankless part of the project because the kids wouldn’t really get to see anything ‘completed’; just pipes laid and if all went well, no leaks. My job in this instance was to be a point person for technical advice (or talk with the town plumber), translate, and be a ‘role model’. After a week, I was really impressed with the kids and their work ethic. Most of them kept on going strong until quitting time, and even past that. Digging ditches in the hot Peruvian sun is not really a fun way to spend your winter break, especially when $2,500 could be used for so much sweeter stuff (like 2/3 of a Peace Corps volunteer’s living allowance!) but the kids never really complained and really liked the experience of manual labor and getting dirty (probably two things they never really get to do up in Connecticut).
In March, it was more or less the same routine except I was working on a bathroom project in the south of Ica, where the earthquake really took it’s toll. Most of the communities were rebuilt with thatch housing and people were just starting to rebuild with adobe. I worked with two different teams of kids during the week, with two trained maestros (campo handymen/masons/carpenters/etc) to build pour flush bathrooms. This project was a little different because the teams would finish a bathroom in about two days, and therefore just restart from scratch. But they persevered throughout the week and hit the number of bathrooms they aimed for. They all got on really well, and what was interesting is that the maestros really liked the kids, even if they couldn’t fully communicate with them. The kids wound up leaving on Saturday morning, while the PC volunteers and the maestros worked during the morning to finish up some loose ends, and some of the maestros were generally sad that the kids were gone. I was talking with one of them and asked why he looked a little sleepy (it was Saturday morning), and he said he wasn’t sleepy but sad that the kids were gone.
And I think that’s part of what B3 aims for, especially with organizations who just jump in, do a quick project, and leave. B3 really aims for the cultural and emotional experience for their kids, who largely grew up in privilege or at the very least with most of their needs met. These trips allow the kids to see a different way of living, and poverty, and reflect on that as an individual however they want to interpret it. To be honest, I was a little skeptical of these trips…’volunteer tourism’, where you jump in for a week, get to slum it, and then go back to your comfortable living condition. But what I personally hope for with these trips is that the kids hold this experience with them and use it as a bit of a spark to either serve abroad or at home in the United States to help and work people achieve better means and levels of living. And I also benefitted from the trips as well by working with the maestros and seeing what the more experienced volunteers were doing and how their work went from the first couple months like where I’m at, to over a year in and actually doing projects.
Starbucks
So I'm at the Starbucks in Trujillo. 9PM on a Thursday night. It is crowded. A few teenagers meeting, some people reading. Groups of 20-somethings dressed nicely and conversing over coffee, young professionals hunched over laptops. Weird. And to think earlier this afternoon (and a 90 minute bus ride) I was talking with families who didn't have light, running water and lived with dirt floors and an elementary school education....
Microwaves and Dishwashers...
So I live in a Posh Corps house; electricity, TV with cable, running water, furnished bathroom (complete with urinal even though I live with all women…), microwave and washing machine. It’s a pretty sweet life, and really I make no apologies for it. I’d rather live here, than in a cave in the mountains like some of the other volunteers (NOTE: nobody actually lives in caves). But the funny thing is, while all of this does seem natural to me, some of the luxuries aren’t utilized by my family.
For example, the microwave. Virginia just doesn’t use it. The fifteen year old has a limited concept of how and why to use the microwave (that it’s better to heat up food than cook it through) but still hasn’t quite mastered it and calls me for help. Same thing with the washing machine, which was a recent addition. Virginia still washes her clothes by hand, even though I tell her we can use the machine. The fifteen year old uses it every now and then, but still mostly by hand. I, of course, use the thing to my full advantage. But why don’t they adapt?
Partly because the technology (washing machine and microwave) is just so new and unknown to them, that they don’t know how to take advantage and are slightly intimidated to use it. The other is that since they were getting by alright using the stove and washing by hand, that using the machines aren’t part of day to day life for them whereas it is for me. And especially regards to the washing machine, they’re also just used to washing a little bit here and a little bit there, whereas I’m used to stockpiling laundry until the last possible minute (hence why I’ve worn swim trunks on laundry day back in college).
And maybe I’m overanalyzing, and maybe I just have a little too much free time but I think this does say something. First, just having something doesn’t mean it will be used. The washing machine sits right next to the sink, and they still go for the sink. Second, cultural and social practices will always hold strong. When you grew up cooking with firewood, and then recently used gas, so a microwave is just unheard of (and unnecessary?). Third, maybe these devices weren’t necessary (for them, for me necessary for sure) and the resources could have been better used for something else (new TV, paint for the house). I’m pretty sure that Virginia or the fifteen year old never actually asked for the microwave or the washing machine, the other family members just bought it and brought it over. And while they could definitely help in day-to-day life here, without adaptation they just take up space. Hmmm…this seemingly sounds like behavior change model and ‘white elephant projects’….
For example, the microwave. Virginia just doesn’t use it. The fifteen year old has a limited concept of how and why to use the microwave (that it’s better to heat up food than cook it through) but still hasn’t quite mastered it and calls me for help. Same thing with the washing machine, which was a recent addition. Virginia still washes her clothes by hand, even though I tell her we can use the machine. The fifteen year old uses it every now and then, but still mostly by hand. I, of course, use the thing to my full advantage. But why don’t they adapt?
Partly because the technology (washing machine and microwave) is just so new and unknown to them, that they don’t know how to take advantage and are slightly intimidated to use it. The other is that since they were getting by alright using the stove and washing by hand, that using the machines aren’t part of day to day life for them whereas it is for me. And especially regards to the washing machine, they’re also just used to washing a little bit here and a little bit there, whereas I’m used to stockpiling laundry until the last possible minute (hence why I’ve worn swim trunks on laundry day back in college).
And maybe I’m overanalyzing, and maybe I just have a little too much free time but I think this does say something. First, just having something doesn’t mean it will be used. The washing machine sits right next to the sink, and they still go for the sink. Second, cultural and social practices will always hold strong. When you grew up cooking with firewood, and then recently used gas, so a microwave is just unheard of (and unnecessary?). Third, maybe these devices weren’t necessary (for them, for me necessary for sure) and the resources could have been better used for something else (new TV, paint for the house). I’m pretty sure that Virginia or the fifteen year old never actually asked for the microwave or the washing machine, the other family members just bought it and brought it over. And while they could definitely help in day-to-day life here, without adaptation they just take up space. Hmmm…this seemingly sounds like behavior change model and ‘white elephant projects’….
White Elephant in Development
One of the things plaguing development, especially local development is the proliferation of ‘white elephant projects’. ‘White elephant projects’ are ones that are constructed with the best intentions and for the simplest reasons (bathrooms or wells for instance), but are not utilized by the community after the project is completed. Obviously, this is a waste of resources for human capital, financial capital, and time.
Largely, white elephant projects come about when not enough research is done in the community beforehand. Research and conversations and the community needs, customs, behaviors, and beliefs. I am often reminded of a story passed onto me from a Wooster grad about a white elephant project in Africa. An NGO saw that women in the community had to walk an hour to the river to get water, and then carry it back. Therefore, it only made sense to build a well close by as to cut down on the transportation time. Well, the NGO successfully built the well but it was never used. The women continued their hour walk down to the river with their buckets and ignored the well. When asking why the women did not use the well and continued with what seemed a slightly absurd practice, the women commented that collecting water was a social event. The time spent collecting water was time spent outside the house and time with their neighbors and friends. While collecting water, the women would chat, pass gossip and news, and just socialize. By using the well, an important part of the women’s social life was being reduced. Perhaps if the NGO took this into account, they may have planned differently or included a project or initiative to make up for the lost social gains of water collecting.
One of the things that Peace Corps in Peru presses is a behavioral evaluation model, which seeks to examine why people do certain practices (not use condoms, use campo abierto) and then to examine how these practices can be changed. This is part of the reason why the first three months at site, we actually don’t do any projects. Instead, we do community diagnostic work such as interviews, community mapping, FREESOP, and seasonal calendars to better understand how the community works. These create conversations between the volunteer and the community to exchange information about the community but also about the volunteer and allow both to get comfortable with each other. The idea is, with community information and community input, the volunteer and the community can formulate plans and projects that the community sees as necessary and wants.
Largely, white elephant projects come about when not enough research is done in the community beforehand. Research and conversations and the community needs, customs, behaviors, and beliefs. I am often reminded of a story passed onto me from a Wooster grad about a white elephant project in Africa. An NGO saw that women in the community had to walk an hour to the river to get water, and then carry it back. Therefore, it only made sense to build a well close by as to cut down on the transportation time. Well, the NGO successfully built the well but it was never used. The women continued their hour walk down to the river with their buckets and ignored the well. When asking why the women did not use the well and continued with what seemed a slightly absurd practice, the women commented that collecting water was a social event. The time spent collecting water was time spent outside the house and time with their neighbors and friends. While collecting water, the women would chat, pass gossip and news, and just socialize. By using the well, an important part of the women’s social life was being reduced. Perhaps if the NGO took this into account, they may have planned differently or included a project or initiative to make up for the lost social gains of water collecting.
One of the things that Peace Corps in Peru presses is a behavioral evaluation model, which seeks to examine why people do certain practices (not use condoms, use campo abierto) and then to examine how these practices can be changed. This is part of the reason why the first three months at site, we actually don’t do any projects. Instead, we do community diagnostic work such as interviews, community mapping, FREESOP, and seasonal calendars to better understand how the community works. These create conversations between the volunteer and the community to exchange information about the community but also about the volunteer and allow both to get comfortable with each other. The idea is, with community information and community input, the volunteer and the community can formulate plans and projects that the community sees as necessary and wants.
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