Today was absolutely jam-packed with activities which seemed to be conducted mainly in Spanish. This is wonderful as one of my goals is to really see some improvement in my language skills. However, my brain is absolutely fried from the effort of straining to understand and then attempting to formulate responses that don´t make me look like the dull tool in the shed. It is an amazingly humbling experience to travel in a country where you are not fluent. I highly recommend it to everyone as a way to more realistically view one´s place in the universe. After such an journey, no one would ever think to ignore (foreign) tourists looking for directions again. Knowing a foreign language is just such an incredible gift and I curse (once again) the American school system that believes reading by the time you enter 1st grade is more important than eventually being bi- or even trilingual. When I very haltingly explained to the kindergarten teacher today that I did not know much Spanish, she looked deflated. I could only imagine that she was incredulous that this obviously rich (by their standards), educated woman could not speak Spanish while the 4 and 5 year olds in her class, many without even a pencil, could tell me the alphabet, colors, numbers, body parts, and animals all in English. Her disappointment may have largely been in my mind, but only in so much as it reflected my own disappointment at not being able to easily communicate.
Of course, that did not stop la profesora from asking me to teach the class about 15 minutes in. I used what little vocabulary I do know to explain that I would help them with their English and in return, they could help me with my Spanish. The kids were delighted with this arrangement and as my Spanish is on about the level of a kindergartner, things went fairly well. The school is one room divided by a partition with a "playground" in back smaller than my bedroom. The 16 children sit at three tables on tiny plastic lawn chairs. The only bathroom I saw was the buckets against the wall which the children would intermittently get up to use-not very accurately I might add. The playground consists of a decrepit swing set which I forbade Eddie and Wyatt to use as I was terrified they might inadvertently break the only item of play equipment available to the kids. There are no balls but several broken plastic toys and handily, an old toilet seat which some of the kids so creatively used as a hat. The boys tend to be extremely physical and adored hanging all over, playing with, and sometimes terrorizing Eddie and Wyatt. Since Peruvians tend to run small in stature anyway, and these children most likely were not suffering from over nutrition, I didn´t worry too much about my boys being overwhelmed by the students. I did teach them how to say "Don´t hit" and "No throwing chairs at people" just to give them a bit more of an edge tomorrow.
Our day at the kindergarten was exhausting, sobering, confusing, but also, a lot of fun. It has been awhile since I have spent time in a kindergarten classroom (4 years to be exact) and I forgot how the littlest things can make them so excited and happy. But I definitely want to have a bit more of a game plan when I go in tomorrow as colors and numbers will only carry me so far.
After our morning at the school, we came home to a fantastic lunch and I must give our ladies props for doing an excellent job with all of our particular dietary needs: vegetarian, vegan, lactose-free, gluten-free. I also learned that Peruvians say in Spanish that they "drink" their breakfast rather than eat it which is because it tends to be a very light affair with lots of coffee, tea, and juice....which explains the hard biscuits for breakfast again. Got to find a tienda with some cereal soon. We looked for a place again today but got a bit turned around (not exactly lost, thank you Wyatt) and ran out of time. On the way back we stopped in a little place to grab sodas but I forgot that in Latin America, you don´t leave an establishment with the glass bottle because the owner can get the deposit back for it. So we very lamely stood in this minuscule shop sucking down our sodas while the woman probably pondered whether all gringos are so obtuse.
Back at the house, we were given an incredibly informative lecture on the coca crops of Peru. 50% of the coca leaves grown in Peru are done so not far from the city we are in and the coca trade has greatly influenced the economy and structure of Ayacucho (Huamanga). El profesor explained the legal uses of the coca leaves, some of which we have already experienced, as coca tea is excellent for reducing the affects of altitude sickness. He then delineated the cocaine trade in South America and explained the intricacies that surround any attempts to drive the drug trade out of Peru. As residents in the U.S., we have a particular take on the issue of cocaine and this was a wonderful opportunity to see the same issue from another viewpoint. Things are just never as simplistic as they seem.
Overall, the day was taxing, but in that good way that lets you fall asleep the minute your head hits the pillow and not wake until morning, refreshed and ready to do it again. It´s a good feeling for sure. I look forward to the challenges that my little rambunctious Peruvian friends will have for me tomorrow....the freezing cold shower I will be taking in a few minutes, not so much.
Jenny
