Last week was really full, so I'll give you a quick overview.
First of all, it was our last week with our brothers Yimi and Tono. The program here for medical professionals is pretty funky and I don't really understand it all that well. At any rate, Yimi was waiting for lottery results to find out where he would be working. He left on Tuesday to head to Lima, where they would announce the results on Thursday. As it turns out, not everyone gets a job from the lottery system. For obstericians there were 300 people, but only 180 positions (for nurses, there were 1000 people for 600 positions). So stressful. I'm not sure exactly how long the lottery meeting lasted, but it was at least 3 hours long and at the end of it all, Yimi's number was not drawn. I can't imagine how frustrating that is to wait and wait and wait and then nothing and there isn't anything you could have done to improve your odds or anything. I asked Tono why you would even want to go through that process. He said that if you do get a job from it you have the best job security, rather than working for a private medical clinic or something of the sort where you don't know how long they'll need or want you. Yimi had been hoping for a position in Iquitos, so when his number didn't get called, he decided to just go and find something when he got there. I hear he already has a job (so fast!), but I'm not sure what it is. Good for him making things happen.
Then, at the crack of dawn on Friday, Tono left. He is still working on the practice part of his degree, so he was certain to have a place to go. He has been finishing up training courses and whatnot in preparation for work. He left for Tingo Maria where he had to pick up some documents and finish up some other trainings. I think he leaves for his placement in Puerto Inca, which is still in Huanuco, but a good 6 or so hours by bus away from home. He says he has his own place, which will be a big adjustment as he has always lived with his immediate family and before that lived with some extended family. The downside is that he has no running water or light in his place and it sounds quite small. Also, the closest place with internet is about an hour away. Many things to adjust to and many things to learn in this new city with a new job all on his own. I tried to ask him about how he felt about going away from home and all that, and he just seemed ready to be moving on. Challenge accepted. {Update on the medical field in Peru - doctors have been on strike since last Tuesday and it sounds like work has been put on hold for Yimi and Tono.}
 |
| Tono and Yimi |
Good luck to Yimi and Tono on their new journeys!
Meanwhile, back at the homestead...life has gone on as usual. Carolina doesn't show much emotion, but if you ask her how she is, she's honest. Her oldest boys leaving home back to back and right before Mother's Day and Tono's birthday (may 9) does not for an easy time make. She is sad to not have them here. Fortunately, everyone still has cell phones and can be in communication, so that seems to keep her spirits up. :) I haven't heard from Orlando on how he is doing, but he's a business and usual kind of guy and is proud of his sons for following their dreams. Eynor seems to be doing fine now, but he didn't like the saying goodbye part (I don't blame him, I think that's the hardest part too).
As for us, it was sad to see them go as they have been such a major part of our time here. It's weird not to have them blasting music at 6am from the kitchen and yelling "apudate!" (hurry up!) all morning trying to get out of the house and get their mom to work. No more screeching from the shower (the theatrics of taking a cold shower were done up when we were in earshot). I miss their antics. Haha. We have been doing our best to help out where the boys used to. We got up at 4am on Friday morning to help peel potatoes and eggs and make the papa rellena (now I know, so I can make them when I get back to the States!). Today, Carolina let us sleep in and we got up at 7am to help with dishes, making sauces, filling bottles, and getting things loaded up in the moto. We are slow, clumsy, and not knowledgeable, but we'll catch on and hopefully they find it helpful.
So that's the part about the big departure!
Then, we had a big birthday celebration! Grandpa Antonio's birthday was on May 10, we think he turned 80...no one seemed very certain of exactly how old he is. Orlando and Victor, among assorted help from other brothers and sisters, made chicharron. It was the BEST! I could have had a few helpings of that. Yum! They had a live band come and play for 4+ hours. And of course where there is music, there is dancing, so we learned how to dance to whino (sp?) music - it is the music of the people from the mountains. It was so fun playing with the kids, chatting with the adults, dancing with everyone, and hanging out. Another great birthday party for the books.  |
| Melissa, Eynor, Fabrizio, and me getting our Mother's Day pic done. |
Finally, we make it to Mother's Day. We headed out to a recreation area/park near the Huanuco airport. The river split the area in 2 parts. We sat near the water and ate lunch. Afterwards, we went to the other side and walked around, attempted fishing (which meant the younger kids grabbing sticks and splashing them in the water because we didn't have line or bait), and played volleyball. We almost lost our volleyball in the river once, but somehow they saved it. It was a chill afternoon hanging out and enjoying the day. I guess our big gift to the moms that day was rest - of course they made the food and served it - but otherwise, they just got to sit and relax, which is not something they get to do often here. It was the first time I've seen Carolina hang out - no laundry to do, no house to clean, no papa rellena to prepare, no shopping. I hope she enjoyed the break. When we went to the mall, we saw they had a set up for getting pictures done, so we also took one and gave the moms a copy of their kids lovely faces. <3>
To start out this week and sort of round out last week, we headed up the nearby hill for a short trek. Argulio, one of Antonio's brothers who lives in Lima, came for the birthday celebration. He wanted to do a short trip to show his friend more of Huanuco and invited us along, before they head back. We piled into the car at 7am (a solid hour later than planned of course) and headed to El Union to visit La Corona del Inca (The Inca Crown). It's a neat place with rocks that form a huge crown at the top of a hill. Some parts look man-made, but the majority of it looks like that is just how the rocks landed there. So, we hiked up and wandered around to explore the Corona del Inca. It rained the night before and the morning started out drizzly, but we lucked out and the sun came out for us. It is so beautiful, the air is so fresh, and you can see for days when it is a nice clear day. The grass was still damp, which led to quite the fall on my part. When you fall here, they ask if you are harvesting squash. I'm not sure I understand that, but in our group, we were harvesting a good amount. Afterwards, we went and has some picante de cuy for lunch. It still had it's toenails, in case you were wondering. Not the greatest meal, but did the job. Finally, we stopped in Pampas to say hi to Argulio's sister, Sylveria. We make have to make another trip to go visit here again next weekend as we only stopped in for a few minutes. After a 2 hour car ride, we made it back to the hot and dusty city of Huanuco and while waiting for the bus to go home, I got peed on by a pigeon. At least we had a good day to make up for that awful moment.
 |
| Inca pointing to his crown. |
So now, we are down to 9 days left in Huanuco and we have to make every one of them count!
No comments:
Post a Comment