"Hello Miss!"

I’m not sure that I really have that much to update on since my last post.  I’ve been teaching my English classes, and the kids really seem to enjoy them.  I think they like it so much because we play games, sing, and dance, which is a nice change from their regular classes in which they basically just copy verbatim what the teacher writes on the board.  The activities definitely help to stimulate their brains and it helps them retain more information.  I love walking down the street and hearing, “Hello Miss Kelsey!”  I told my students that if they said, “Hola Senorita Kelsey” I wouldn’t respond so that they have to practice their English.  Now I can’t go anywhere without hearing at least 5 youngens screaming English at me.  They also love to run up to me, give me a hug, and start singing the various songs I’ve taught them with English vocab.  It definitely brightens my day every time it happens J

Speaking of English, I finally met the English teacher at the secundaria school.  We met last Monday and things started off a little shakey.  I was under the impression that I would just be there to help her with pronunciation and stuff like that, but she thought I was basically going to be doing her job for her.  She handed me some worksheets and said, “This is what we’re doing in each class- here ya go!”  After I realized that she expected me to do the teaching so she could have a couple free hours I immediately confronted her about it.  We got into a bit of a tiff because she insisted that I teach the classes because I am an “expert” in English.  Well, I might be an expert in English but I’m sure no expert in Spanish, or teaching for that matter.  So after about 10 minutes of disagreement she finally agreed to do the teaching and allow me to help her or the class when necessary.  After that she was great though.  She wanted to hear all about the US and she told me all about her family and we got along quite well.  She lives in a bigger city about an hour away and insisted that the next time I’m there I need to call her so we can have dinner and I can meet her family and see her house and all that jazz.  She ended up being a lot nicer than I was expecting and things turned out well.  I basically just go with her to all her English classes and answer any and all questions the students have.  Sometimes it’s kind of boring, but at least I’m getting my face out there in the school and meeting the students and other teachers.

Since I don’t have a whole lot of exciting stuff to write about I’m just going to throw in a few quotes or anecdotes from the past few weeks:

·         One week I had no running water and I didn’t take a shower from Sunday morning until that weekend when I headed to the capital city for our regional meeting. Gross.

·         The next week our water was back, but this time it had sand in it.  So I could shower, but I left feeling dirtier than I did before.  When I brushed my teeth sand got stuck between them and I had to floss about 5 times a day.  And lastly, I was eating crunchy rice.  I thought it was pepper the first time- boy was I wrong!

·         Peruvians are known for their weird beliefs in terms of health.  For example, my host sister told me I was going to die because I hadn’t eaten all day because of my stomach.  Her exact words were, “Kelsey, you haven’t eaten since lunch yesterday- you could die.  Go to the Health Post.”

·         Another weird health belief-  My host niece and I had this conversation the other day: “Kelsey, you showered right after you got done running.” – Selene
“Yes, I did.  Why?” – Me
“That’s bad.  You’re going to get sick.” – Selene
“Oh really?  How do you figure?” – Me
“It’s bad for you.” – Selene
“And why do you think that?” – Me
“It just is.” – Selene
Needless to say, I didn’t get sick and I still shower immediately after coming home from a run. 

·         Because I have no cell service anywhere I have had to search high and low for a spot with decent coverage, and I’m pretty sure I’ve found my place.  The only bad thing is that random people will walk by and start talking to me while I’m on the phone.  Last week a man talked to me for 5 minutes then proceeded to sit and stare at me for another 30 minutes.  And yesterday a drunk man stumbled up to me and started mumbling words that I couldn’t understand for about 5 minutes.  It sure is annoying to be interrupted, but I guess it just keeps things interesting.

·         Despite my best efforts I am developing a love for Reggueton music.

·         I am breaking down and doing a very un-Peace Corps-like thing: I’m getting an internet USB for my laptop.  I definitely wasn’t expecting to have internet when I signed up for this, but I’ve decided that my mental health depends on it! ;)

·         My host family thinks that Cindy is Keiko Fujimori because she is Asian.  Keiko ran for president of Peru in the most recent election and lost to Ollanta.  I’ve tried to tell my family that I don’t actually know Keiko, but they’re not convinced. 

·         All of my teenage girls are in love with Joel because of the pictures that they’ve seen.  So Joel, if you come visit, be careful.

·         Since I have been in Peru I have played 439 games of Solitaire on my computer.  I’ve only won 55.

·         Last week my host sister asked me to be her daughter’s Godmother.  Selene’s  Quincenera is in March and that’s when it would become official.  She was a little tipsy when she asked me so it’s very likely that she doesn’t remember.  Guess we’ll find out.

·         I don’t have fleas anymore (Thank the Lord), but I do have to combat mosquitoes everywhere I go- including the shower.

Well that seems like enough for now.  Missing each one of you every single day, and thinking about you always.