A Little Bit of Everything...: Life on an ANIMAL Farm:

I grew up on a farm and the farmers grew tomatoes, beans, and hay behind our house. I was woken up by crop dusters and went to bed with the sounds of harvesters. It was very dusty and dirty, especially during harvest.

Now, I get to experience the other style of farm life, with animals. I wake up to the sounds of pigs oinking, roosters crowing, and dogs barking and go to bed in near complete silence (with the exception of some random things here and there).

The Rooster is stealing the mototaxi! Help!

We are now going to live in Huanuco for 2 months with the Herrera Family. Their names are Orlando (dad-mid 40s), Carolina (mom-mid 40s), Toño (son-25), Yimi (son-24), Eynor (son-11), and Fabricio (nephew/cousin-7).

Their house is located in Huancachupa on the hill called "Las Lomas De Vista Alegre" (aka, The Happy Views' Hills). It's the truth, the view from here is spectacular. It looks beautiful at night with the full moon lighting up the sky enough to see the outline of the hills enclosing the city. We have excellent roof top seating to enjoy said view. It is probably my favorite thing so far.

People refer to this location as the house behind the pig farm, because the house is located right behind the pig farm. There must be about 40 some odd pigs in there (it's hard to count the little ones). They also have roosters and hens and guinea pigs.

The other day, we went to the Higueras River to wash clothes. Fortunately, we have only been here a few days, so didn't have that much to wash, but it still took an hour! We will have to get used to washing clothes more often so we don't have to wash so much at a time. It is tiring...and we only had to rinse the clothes off...Carolina didn't seem to trust us with the washing part or maybe she just knows she could get that part done faster. It was kind of fun to stand in the cool water and get the assistance of the rushing river to rinse off our clothes. They seem quite fresh and clean. Though, I was a little jealous of the boys playing in the water..it looked fun! Another time.. The second time we did laundry, we stayed up at the house and just used the water here since it was working that day.

I am also learning the art of saving water and taking bucket showers. I am not sure what the deal is with the water here, but we don't have running water everyday. So, on days that we do have running water, we fill up a bunch of buckets in preparation. Also, the shower doesn't seem to work often, if at all, so we use the water from the buckets to bathe. FYI, I was very concerned about having to take cold showers everyday for 2 months. Well, now I have learned that if you set the bucket of water in the sun for a while before bathing, you don't have to suffer! A warm bucket shower is superior to any bathing involving icy cold water. It is a welcome adjustment.

So far, there has only been one sacrifice on the farm, that I am aware of. Last Sunday was Rolen's birthday (Orlando's brother), and they made pachamanca. It is a typical Huanceño dish - prepared by cooking everything with a special combination of herbs and spices in the ground. It was prepared with pork. I feel bad for the pig, but mmm, it was delicious. I look forward to seeing what other wonderful foods we will get to eat (especially now that the sickness has passed - hopefully, that means that I am good to go on the food front).

Welcome to Haunuco!

It's been a great first week in Huanuco! We are having a great time getting to know the family and their way of life. The rain finally arrived yesterday, but has just been a slow sprinkle. Feels good to cool down a bit. The weather is super nice here, but if you are standing in the sun, it is strong. I have a few burns to show for it. Ooops. There are lots and lots of mosquitos here! I have a few bites to show for that too. Sunscreen is the new lotion. Bug spray is the new perfume.

It's a welcome change of pace and scenery to be in Huanuco.

A few pics so far...