This place is wow. That pretty much sums it up! hehe.
I have been here for ten days now, and we are in the mountains in a tiny little community that has a school a clinic and a shop. A very small shop... At the moment we are in the nearby town of Chota, which is probably the size of cygnet but much busier cos there are lots of peruvians here, and it is an hour from where we are staying. Mind you it is an hour in a car going 30km-h round a road that has more twists than the da vinci code and more rocks than a quarry after an earthquake...
We got up to Chota from Cajamarca last Sunday, my birthday!, on a bus that took around 7 hours, same deal with twists and bumps. Cajamarca is the size of new norfolk and is the closest airport. After a night here we went up to the blue poncho lodge, mind you we had to get permission from a police station and a clinic in another town before we could do that! The blue poncho lodge is on a mountian, like everyhting else here, and has great views of all the surrounding mountains and paddocks. there is no unkempt land here, it is all paddocks and papas (potato) fields. Cows and chickens EVERYWHERE. its actually quite like the amish communities you see on the tv, we feel like we have stepped back in time.
The lodge has a flushing toilet (which couldnt quite handle the western load we gave it) and a hot shower, which is absolute luxury. Occasionally you see a local running out of the shower and grinning at you as the guides we have here usher them through. There are bugs bugs bugs everwhere, and after you get your clothes of the line you have to bash them before you take them inside. hehe. last night we were in jess and henry´s room and there was suddenly a helicopter noise filling it. it was a giant flying beetle that had come in and was bashing into all the walls and windows. they aren´t very quick the big fellas so they are pretty easy to get rid of.
Our cook, Celia, is the cutest little woman in the world, i want to take her home! She makes us awesome food and last night we tried cuy for the first time! (Guinea pig!) she had made it for us because we kept talking about it, and made us other meals as well. she is awesome to us, breakfast each morning is porridge, fresh fruit and yoghurt and bread with jam or the vegemite we brought. (which celia likes!) and when we get home form the clinics she makes us popcorn and cuppas before dinner. awesome. she laughs at us a LOT, our spanish is hopeless and she thinks we are hilarious. which we probably are... we keep saying stupid things, like i said i had a wife instead of saying that that something was better, jess said she was going to pour hot water on henry´s sunburn instead of sayi9ng his sunburn would heat the water... the list goes on. and celia just laughs!
last night she couldnt stop laughing and we asked her if she´s been into the vino before dinner, and she said ´no, gunja!´ i almost wet myself laughing, brilliance... still not sure whether she was joking or not!!
the clinics are pretty basic and we aren´t really doing a whole lot. Bit starved for some real medicine right now, but learning more spanish each day so that is good. Looking forward to the hospital stuff, which apparently has been very full on and awesome.
The lodge is very basic and we have been sleeping a lot! I have read three books in a week and we are here for two more! I think clinics for three week s is a bit much, but we are learning a lot about the people and the culture. they are such hard workers, and all the kids are cute little playful things.
we keep getting ´gringoed´´ i know what bec meant about being a white giant now!! The kids run into the clinic and look at me, rabbiting on in spanish i dont understand. they love to have their picture taken, becuase they probably never have had that before! You have to say ´buenos dias-tardes-noches´to everyone you meet, and they often stop and ask the lovely gringas mor questions in muy rapido spanish that has a closed mouth mountain accent so we understancd nada. hehe- saying ´si´to everyhting seems to work ok. and if that fails, just randomly telling them i am a medical student from australia and i dont speak much spanish puts a bit grin on their face! I gave one couple a postcard of tassie and they thanked me about a thousand times.
there is no confidentiality here either, which is funny. the patients all just walk in on each others consults and start puttint their two bobs worth in. no one gets embarrassed baout anything though!
I´m misiing everyone and think baout home lots in the quiet night tiems, but am having a ball and learning so much about these amazing people. feel like i have been away a month i have seen so much! its only been ten days!
Love you all, more email in about a week
Love Jo
