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Thursday was our very last day in Urubamba.We had the opportunity to visit two different members of the local agroturism group; we could either visit a chocolate maker/cuy farmer or a ceramics studio.I chose the latter since I'd seen a cuy farm the previous visit and I will probably be working on something in the arts for my ISP.It was really interesting.I don't really have time to explain everything, so here are the highlights:
·The couple worked together to create the ceramic pieces.The wife prepped the clay, the husband continued preparations and made the pots or plates or what have you, and the wife finished up by incising decorations on each piece and then painting them.
·The wheel that the husband used to create each piece was spun by his feet.There was the small metal wheel above the table on which he placed the clay to work on, which was connected to a larger wooden wheel underneath the table that he moved with his feet.It was amazing.More time and human energy consuming than an electric wheel, but easier to control.
·There was such a relaxing atmosphere about the place while they were working.The wife commented a few times on how she would hate to have to work in any other job and how you can't have any problems in your life or you won't be able to create quality pieces.It wasn't just a job for them but a life and a personal mentality.
After this we returned to the hostel, Huerto Paraiso, for lunch- a special event called Pachamanca which is pretty much the coolest way to cook food I've seen in a while…For this they dug a pit, lit a huge fire and placed rocks above it to heat.Later they removed the rocks, stopped the flames and began putting food in the pit in layers.First potatoes, then rocks, then highly seasoned meat wrapped in some sort of waxy paper, more rocks, veggies, a layer or green wheat, some giant green bean pods and a final layer of green wheat.Then they covered the entire mound with more rocks and covered all of this in dirt so that no smoke could escape.I tell you what, this was some of the most amazing food I've had in my whole life—no joke—and cooked in dirt no less.
Unfortunately after this we had to pack and take off for Cusco.We had to be back in the city by 4:30 pm to meet our homestay families.I will definitely miss Urubamba and the extremely relaxed atmosphere, but it was time for a new stage of the semester.We arrived in Cusco and met up with our new homestay families at CBC, Centro de Bartolome de las Casas, the school where we'll be meeting for classes.There was a welcome reception with delicious foods and then off to our new homes.My homestay family includes Lula, mi mama peruana, and her daughter Carmen.They are both very sweet and I definitely think I got a great deal as far as homestays go.No little kids, great food (speaking of which, Mom and Gramma will be very happy to know that I even enjoyed my lunch that consisted mostly of onions and tomatoes).The night was uneventful.I unpacked, soaked my feet in order to relieve my calf pain from Machu Picchu by order of my homestay mother, and crashed about 9 pm.
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