Al’s Peru Weekly Blog Questions

Week 4:

• What were the best and worst meals you’ve had so far on the trip? Describe the location, menu, ambiance, fellow diners, etc. The best meal has been Pescado de Mero…bbq fish with rice and hot sauce. They show you the raw filet before it is cooked and it’s about 12” long. Very fresh and tasty!! All of the meals have been very good, to be honest we have only had one medium meal. It was mainly because we were mislead…we ordered tacos and nachos (the first and only place to offer them) and got cheesy wantons and mushy carne. Just mislead a tad.

• What have been your biggest challenges during your time in Peru and how have you overcome them? Our biggest challenge was the miscommunication of physical endurance. For example, we went on a hike to the Gocta Falls. We were told it was a mellow stroll to the water. However, we found out that this was an up hill trek, up hill both ways for three hours. It was rainy and sunny and windy and hot and cold and up hill!!!

• What sweet Peruvian dance moves have you learned? (i.e. the lawn mower, the Macarena, etc.) Please describe and demonstrate these dance moves for us. Note: If you haven’t learned any sweet Peruvian dance moves by this point, you must learn some new moves within the next five to seven days and report your findings in the next blog. We will report new moves in the next week.

• How can we be praying for you? Pray we learn some sweet dance moves! Just Kidding! Just keep us in your prayers for a successful print test (we go to print all the calendars and leaflets and need a translator!) tomorrow.

Al’s Peru Weekly Blog Questions

Week 3:

• What is the funniest thing that has happened this week? Jubilee lost her shoe on one of our treks.. we have explained this in full with pictures in the previous blog.

• Who do the students like more, Jubilee or Will? Do your students have special names for you? If so, what are they? Basically we are just known as the photographers, but we both have our own fan clubs…. (the little ones love us)

• Are most Peruvians religious? What role, if any, does religion play in Peruvian culture? Not necessarily but masses on Sundays have been a different experience, they have all been extremely child oriented.

• Has Jubilee purchased a Peruvian shoe rack? If so, what does it look like, and how many pairs of shoes does it hold? NO, she has only been able to buy one pair of shoes on our trip. We don’t have room in our bags and William told Jubilee she has to carry whatever she buys. Jubilee will be sticking to Amazon.com

• How have you felt God’s presence or seen God working during your trip? When we where in the mountains the uninhabited wilderness was extraordinarily beautiful

• How can we be praying for you? You can pray that we will continue to learn from this different way of life.

Jubilee Loses Her Shoe

Throughout our tour of the Kuelap ruins our guide spoke only in Spanish (even though we were promised a little explanation in English). Basically, we were on our own and took our own little mini tours throughout the ruins. We came up with much more interesting stories. Even though we made up our own stories the ones we are about to tell you are 100% true (see images that document the events)

We came to the highest part of the city ruins that overlooked the entire valley and beyond. While our guide was yakking, William made a wisecrack that this was the spot where the Incan king made his sacrifices for the entire tribe to witness. About two minutes later we found out this was in fact a true statement from one of the fellow tour people who spoke very little English. He then went on to tell us that the Incan King would make a sacrifice and the blood would drain through a small square hole at our feet towards the crowd below. This was to show them more proof of the sacrifice being made. Jubilee wanted a realistic re-enactment of this event and since William was the only one who could understand her he was the prop.

At another point in our tour we came up to the tribal housing. Once again the guide was yakking away in Spanish so we continued to entertain ourselves with our own stories. This time we did not even come close. It turns out that the large holes we found in every house were actually the place where the female would be put after she died. Now William wanted to re-enact this one and Jubilee was the prop. However, Jubilee refused to go down the 6ft. hole. So William said one leg would be fine. And Jubilee compromised with putting one leg over the hole.

After William got this shot there was a small complication. Jubilee lost her shoe down the grave hole.




Now because we were on our own mini tour we had to go find our guide and a creative way to explain how the shoe ended up in the grave hole. As we tried to explain what happened, our guide just jumped right in and rescued the shoe.








Jubilee got her shoe back and was excited that she did not have to trek back down the mountain with one shoe!

Ducks off a Cliff!

At one of our many bus stops we found a cute little flock of baby ducks and two random chicks. Jubilee thought they where so cute and wanted to hold one. We decided to corner them in order for her to catch one. Unfortunately we realized too late that we cornered them to the side of a cliff. They obviously don’t have much experience with cliffs as five of them fell over the edge. Luckily three got tangled in the overgrowth and did not fall to the bottom. William rescued the three ducks and Jubilee got to finally hold one. They did not want to have anything to do with us…


The two that fell to the bottom did live but where forever separated from the flock!

Al’s Peru Weekly Blog Questions

Week 2:

• Describe Peruvian hospitality. Are people friendly and inviting, cold and standoff-ish, or somewhere in between? We have noticed that people in the Northern mountain cities are a little less friendly. This is in comparison to the extremely laid back and mellow culture of the beach town, Huanchaco, where we have been living.

• Have you experienced Peruvian public transportation? What is this like? See our earlier blog for the taxi ride of a lifetime. We have also been using the public bus system. There are two different kinds of public buses, the big buses that seat 20 to 30 people and small vans that have been converted into bus like vehicles. The small vans will get you there twice as fast as the big bus but are extremely crowded. Overall we have been trying to use the busses because they only cost $0.50 as opposed to the $5 cab ride.

• Has the Spanish/ English language barrier been an issue so far? If so, how? How have you overcome this barrier? We have not had any major issues with the language barrier and have been picking it up very quickly. We can order from restaurants, give directions to the cab drivers, haggle prices (we do this frequently), and simple conversations. We have had the most difficulty dealing with the young children at SKIP. Disciplining kindergarten age children does not work if they do not understand the language.

• What aspects of American culture were you most surprised to find in Peru? (music, food, fashion, etc.) Pizza, 80’s pop music (in English), giant mall’s(we have only seen one so far), and all billboard advertisements are blond hair and fair skinned people.

• How can we be praying for you? Pray that we stay safe on our long distance bus rides and continue to have good health.

Gocta Falls

Full Phase is back!

On Tues. September 15th we hopped on a bus at 3pm from Trujillo and made our way to Chachapoyas. This began our Northern Peru Excursion...

We rode the bus all night and arrived at our destination at 5am the next morning (a total of 14 hours on the bus). We had to find a hostel to drop off all of our bags and equipment. Without even a moment of rest we found a driver to take us another hour and thirty minutes to the city below the falls (at a 9,000 foot elevation).



We got a guide and began our trek towards the falls (Gocta Falls is the 3rd largest waterfall in the world). Along the way we saw and learned a lot about how the mountain people live and work. These people live very simple lives with donkeys for transportation and run down structures to process sugar cane (sugar cane is a very lucrative crop for these people). We also learned about Incan civilization as there where many interesting ruins along the way.



Along the trail there where many breath taking views as well as many exotic creatures.







The base of the falls gave us a greater sense of their magnitude. William was brave enough to attempt to swim. However the guide restricted William from going any deeper than his knees for safety reasons.







As we rested at the falls the guide began to get nervous because it was getting late and the falls began to flow harder and faster. We could not stay long because the guide told us that nightfall would make our hike back treacherous.

We began the trek back and made it into the small town where we began just in time to see the sun set!

We finally have internet again!

Hello All,

So for the past 4 days we have been trekking through Northern Peru! We have made our way through the towns and sites of Chachapoyas, Gocta Falls, Kuelap, Cajamarca, and today we have arrived at The Baños del Inca (The Inca's Hot Baths). We have not posted the last few days as we have had no access to internet. Check back tomorrow for more photos from our adventures and enjoy this video showing a little bit of the mountainous scenery from our 14 hour bus ride!

As warned this bus ride was not for the faint of heart. There where many time when you looked out the window and could not see the edge of the dirt road.

Around Town

Some More Photos!!!

SKIP

Hanging out at SKIP!

Taxi Loco!!

Hello Everyone!

Please take a look at the picture to the left. Ok, now we would like to tell you a story. . . we were in this taxi today. Let's start at the beginning. We left the SKIP center today after we were done working and started the search for a taxi. Remember that the SKIP center is located in El Porvenir which is a very poor district. The taxis can be hard to find and most of the time at very high prices (especially because we are white). When we are outside of the SKIP center we are not allowed to go explore on our own or take off our lovely blue SKIP vests. These vests identify us as SKIP volunteers and most of the residents in El Porvenir respect SKIP and will not mug us (but we were warned that if we went too far off the trail the vests would not protect us).

Now back to the taxi. After work we, surprisingly, found a cab rather quickly. We got ready for the expected haggling for a 15 soles cab ride. However, this cabbie offered to take us all the way back to Huanchaco (25-30 min. ride to our house) for 12 soles! We didn't argue and got in. It wasn't the most comfortable cab, but we were not about to complain for that price! Our cabbie pulled out and turned right, when every other cab we have been in has turned left to get back to our house. Not really panicking yet, but we made sure he knew where we were going. He told us not to worry but that he knew a shortcut. So we are driving along and all the brick houses disappear and turn into these sketch straw huts. We have no idea where we are. We have left the trail and no longer anywhere near it.

Next our cabbie hits a speed bump (on a dirt road at full speed) and our heads hit the ceiling (no seat belts) and the back trunk opens and shuts because it was held shut by a bungee. As we rolled up to the next speed bump (he saw it this time) he slowed down a little and began to make a left hand turn. At this point we hear this loud scrapping and crunching sound. We look at each for a moment, concerned, then we look out the window and we see the front tire rolling past us. The cabbie kept driving, as if he hoped it didn't really happen. When he stopped we all got out and saw the tire completely off and the hub cap scrunched (see picture on right). As we are all standing there looking at the damage the cabbie just walks off without a word to us. Now we almost panic because we were in a very sketchy part of this town and neither of us had any idea where we were.

All your prayers for us to travel safe were all used at this very moment. Another taxi randomly pulled up and asked if we needed a ride. He tried to over charge us of course and we haggled a little but got in as soon as we could (remember we are carrying all our camera equipment).

Needless to say we got home safe and sound and decided we deserved some banana splits (see below).

Al’s Peru Weekly Blog Questions

Week 1:

1. How many photos do you think you will take during the trip? About 4 to 6 thousand combined.

2. How many pairs of shoes did Jubilee bring? William only let her bring two pairs and two pairs of sandals. But she bought a pair the first day we arrived!

3. Did you forget to pack anything? If so, what? No! So far we have not forgotten anything.

4. What is your first impression of Peru? Peru is peaceful and laid back the weather is much colder then what we expected…

5. Describe a typical residence in Trujillo as well as the plumbing and bathroom situation. A typical residence is made of brick with bright colors and limited furniture most residences also have a normal bathroom. But the main difference is you cannot flush any paper. (a little hard to get used to)

6. What do you most wish you would have packed? Ketchup and sweatshirts. It is freezing and everyone serves French fries with MAYO!!! The only Ketchup you can find tastes like sweet and sour sauce!

7. How can we be praying for you? You can pray for us to continue to travel safe everyday (some of the cab rides are a bit dangerous) and to be grateful for what we have.

This is the first live broadcast by Full Phase Photography, Thursday September, 10 2009 at 6pm pst. (California Time)

We hope this works!

Webcam chat at Ustream

La Bamba: PART 3

Hello La Bamba Fans!

Do we have a story for you...
Adventures with La Bamba conintued for us when we had to go into town to meet with Liz (SKIP Director) one afternoon. La Bamba, of course, wanted to come with us. Peter assured us that this was no problem because if he got out of the yard he would return in an hour or two as always. Well, our friend followed us all the way into town (15 min. walk) She did not leave our sides and chased away anything that came too close to us. We stopped to have a lunch meeting with Liz (outside so Bamba could sit with us). Our personal guard dog faithfully circled our table and even chase away the mariachis. La Bamba continued to follow us all afternoon.

We had to go to Liz's house to get some work done. La Bamba could not come in so we figured he would just go home. Much later that night (about 5 hours later) when we got home Peter came out and asked us if we had seen Bamba. We told we thought he came home because we did not see him after we left Liz's house.

At this point Peter looked very nervous. We told him we were going to get dinner back in town and would look for Bamba then. Peter asked if he could walk with us and look too. It turns out he had been looking for Bamba all afternoon with his wife and 1 year old daughter! We felt so bad!

After about 10 minutes of searching random allies and calling his name (and sifting through all the other stray dogs) we found La Bamba chilling with some tourists outside of a hostel. Peter and Bamba were reunited! And we felt much better about losing Peter's dog.

Every time we leave now we have to make sure Bamba does not escape. Peter no longer trusts his dog to return home.

The Church in Trujillo

Another beautiful church we found in Trujillo.

SKIP's New Biblioteca

Have you ever been to a library that only consisted of two book shelves? It is hard to imagine that, but SKIP has just that. This is considered a big library for this area. Liz, the coordinator, told us a story that happened in the library today. She just bought two new floor rugs for the new library. When the children came in that day they did not understand that the rugs were for them to sit on. Instead they sat around them and petted them to feel how soft they were. Liz had to explain that they were for them to sit on and read.

Futbol at SKIP

Hello

Futbol is a very popular sport over here. Even the very young children we have met are very good! When we went to SKIP one afternoon to work William started a one on one game with one of the little boys. Before we knew it there was a group of us playing. The one on one game that started off in the hallway grew to a big group. We had to move out to the field area because we were making too much noise for the kids still studying. It was a lot of fun!

A Day in Trujillo

Hi!

Just a day around Trujillo!

Church on the Hill

Hello All!

Sunday was a great day for us! We did not have to go into SKIP so we decided to spend the day in Trujillo. After Trujillo we went to the church that overlooks Huanchaco. The church was beautiful! We found out later that this is the second oldest church in Peru.

This is Huanchaco. Our view from the church. What a great view!

Dance Lessons at SKIP

Jubilee showing off her dancing skills and helping to get all the kids involved! Just think it was all for the kids...

ENJOY

La Bamba: PART 2

We decided to take breakfast out on the peaceful patio this morning. There was a wonderful view of the courtyard and the gardens. As we quietly ate our meal, with Bamba at our feet of course, we heard a loud speaker announcing some sort of gibberish (Spanish gibberish at 7am...random). Bamba was not having any of this and took matters into his own paws. The competition for who was the loudest began...we present the documentation for this event.

Gracias

The Professors!

Professoro William and Professora Jubilee at work with some of our students. (They call us Professores!!!)

SKIP Hosts A Beach Day

Hello Again,

Mothers of the children from SKIP are able to make various products for SKIP to sell in order to raise funds for the SKIP center. To say thank you to these women SKIP put together an appreciation luncheon and day in Huanchaco. While at the luncheon SKIP was able to show the women were and how their products are being sold.

This is a new experience for many of these women, as they have never traveled out of their small village. The expressions on some of their faces were priceless!

SKIP's Medical Examination Day

Hi!

Well, today has been another very busy day for Full Phase Photography! SKIP is hosting a "Doctor Day" for the next three days that provides the local families with a free medical examination for their children.

Great news is that a lot of families attended today. These are just a few (out of several hundred) pictures we shot.

Talk to you soon!

First Day at SKIP

Hey Everyone!

Today was our first day of work at SKIP. It seems they are short on Nursery volunteers so all the staff takes turns. Today was our turn . . . have a look at our exciting day!

Huanchaco Photography

Bueno:

Check out some of our pictures from around Huanchaco. We had a great time exploring and getting to know our surroundings. We saw a lot of interesting people and places. Futbol (soccer) is very popular here. We have seen about 6 different random cement futbol fields. We actually stopped to watch one of the games. It was energetic.





We found a hidden market right on the beach (and on the trail) that was about a twenty minute walk from the center of town. It had various trinkets for our browsing pleasure.



These are just some more pictures we took around town.