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After a frantic and fabulous send off by our very much loved friends, we arrived safely in Lima on Thursday and this morning in Mancora. We've had a few adventures, such as Shelly's broken foot nearly exploding on the plane because it was so swollen, my bag getting lost for 2 days but arriving at our hotel in Lima in time to take the 16 hour bus ride to Mancora with us, blowing up a "transformador" which we used to try to convert the electricity to 220 for our laptop and then later found out we didn't need. It's been very interesting so far!
We had a couple of meals at this great little trattoria behind our hotel. It was very cozy and quaint...we loved it! We also met some musicians and some local artisans and farmers at the little market in the park near our hotel on Saturday. Cecilia, the original director of Para el Mundo in Mancora, now lives in Lima and she and her cousin, Mayram (My) took us to a folkloric show that didn't start until 10:00 and was still going strong when we left at 3 a.m.! These Pervians sure know how to party! There were amazing dancers and fun music and dancing all night and we learned how to drink Pisco Sours (which is the national drink and tastes much like a very strong and tasty lime margarita).
After an extremely long 16 hour bus ride, we arrived in Mancora this morning. I must admit that I am experiencing a bit of culture shock. I knew it would be basic, but knowing it and living it are two very different things. We took a little moto taxi (the local transportation here...a little motorcycle pulling a covered wagon) to our accommodation, which is basically in the middle of the town between where the tourist area ends and the rest of the town begins. In our room we have only a bed with sheets and an airline blanket too small to cover the whole bed, two sets of hooks to hang our clothes and a two makeshift shelves for our stuff. We will make it home, although it is seeming a slight bit stark at the moment. We have the best and nicest house in the whole town though, so we are grateful. Most people have dirt floors and many don't have electricity or running water. Had a nice refreshing (aka cold!) shower tonight.
Signing off for now and will let Shelly share some of her impressions with you. Miss you all (and my bed a bit!)
Stacy
Hello Everyone
Thanks for all your well wishes to us, and hopes that we arrived safely...we did!! The day before we were to leave I dropped a door on my foot and broke a bone in it. That is what I get for trying to do too many things last minute.
For those of you who knew nothing about our trip, we are in Mancora, Peru for a year. We both took a leave of absence from our jobs and rented out our house to pay for the mortgage. We rented it to a fantastic Australian couple who are on a work visa and possibly moving to Canada for a few years. We met them a few times before we left on August 9, and they also came down a few days early to stay with us and meet some of our crazy friends. Needless to say they were the hit of the parties and the neighborhood!!
So here we are in Mancora. It is a small town of about 5000-7000 people. One end caters more to the tourists and the north end is what they call the real town. We live on the second floor of a house that is like two houses in one with 4 rooms and a bathroom and kitchen on one side, and 4 bedrooms and a bathroom on the other. The side we are on is at the back end of the house and affords a bit more privacy. It also has a bathroom right next to our room so it is good. They call this end of the house the blue side.
There is a storage of water so we only flush the toilet when we do a number 2! Also, we don't flush the paper down the toilet. Makes already appreciate the comforts of home. We had a great day of sleeping in after the bus ride and a long walk through town, didn't even get lost. Then Josh, one of the Canadian organizers made us a tasty supper.
We are glad to have our laptop and wireless internet so we can type to you from our room. I gave the room a good scrub down tonight and it already feels more like our place. Tomorrow we meet with Gabby, the Peruvian woman who works with the volunteers. She will help us find things to do for the year. We will probably start in the schools. There has been already been contact with teaching English, so we may start there. Our First aid will also come in handy, as others have taught some first aid classes. So much awaits us!!!
The best thing so far for me has been a woman named Cecilia. She and her husband Frank started this organization years ago. She has such a great and open heart. She said she didn't want to be 40 and not have done anything with her life....I can relate to that. The care and passion that drives her is inspiring to me. Even if she doesn't understand all the ins and outs of how something should work, it doesn't stop her from trying to do something. Her search for self awareness and understanding of the world is evident in all that she does.
She would probably be here in Mancora if a family loss didn't keep her in Lima. Her oldest daughter died last September and left behind 2 children, 2 and 5 years old. So she is raising them for now. She has definitely been given the drive for changing the world. I really loved her.
Anyways, we will write more later and update you. If you want us to take you off our mailing list for this site, just email us at [email protected].
Okay bye for now
Shelly
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