mariasmap

My Trip Was Good

mariasmap — Wed, 9 Dec 2015 11:30:00 GMT

I think we came to Q’eros because it provided a unique learning opportunity of indigenous communities. Seeing a completely different culture unaffected by western influence is rare and I think it can cause a big impact on someone’s life. I think it’s an experience that is almost more about the reflection than anything else. Someone could go through the same five days in Q’eros with a completely different mindset and get nothing out of an experience that for me was possibly one of my most influential. Not only would opening Q’eros to the public expose it to western influence, but this would also attract a new group of people who might not fully appreciate the power of the experience. I think it takes a certain type of person to learn from Q’eros, the type of people that I’ve been with for the past 2 months. We walked into our homestays with more on our backs than the family of six we were staying with owned. We participated in numerous ceremonies. We stayed with families in one room houses, sleeping between the designated kitchen area and the sheepskin laid out for the families to sleep on. We walked and ate potatoes every meal for five days straight. I watched two sheep sacrificed right in front of me, an experience that was both gruesome and mesmerizing. Something I continued to think about and analyze for the subsequent two days. I spent each day with a new unfamiliar family, yet still called them mom, dad, brother, and sister. I think all of this contributes to an experience that is difficult to duplicate. It’s an experience I’m still processing and probably will continue to process for awhile. I think Q’eros should remain available to those who can truly benefit from this lifestyle without compromising their culture.

Why We Q'eros

mariasmap — Thu, 26 Nov 2015 11:27:00 GMT

Why I Travel

mariasmap — Wed, 18 Nov 2015 11:26:00 GMT

When I started telling people I was taking a gap year, everyone wanted to know what I´d be doing. The easiest response was ¨traveling¨. Many people interpreted that as, ¨ Oh you want a year to relax and travel to nice places¨. Sure, I´m probably more relaxed than all my friends who are applying to college or pulling all nighters cramming for their mid-terms. And I´d be lying if I said the views here are anything less than spectacular. But that´s not why I travel.

My dad always used to make this joke that when we moved we could only bring 100 things with us. I ´ve had a lot of time to think about what it is I would take and what items I have at home that I don’t really need. Traveling has made me more aware of how realistic 100 items actually could be. Maybe not cutting back to 100 (sorry papa) but seeing all these families without internet or phones, not even hot water, yet so content with the way they live their lives, has definately been enlightening. And this, I have learned through travel.

Traveling is a comparison. I´m constantly comparing my experiences of the cultures I´ve encountered, the food, the people, even the public transportation. I certainely haven´t made a dent in all the cultures, but for me, with each new place I visit, my global perspective is widened and I understand that much more about humanity.

I travel because I love to learn. I love to see things as they are, not just words in a textbook. I love to learn about history and art, but most importantly about myself. I find it easy to be happy when I´m surrounded by comforts at home. When I´m bored I can pull out my iPhone and have access to almost anything that occupies my mind. But what makes me happy? In the middle of an unfamiliar place with few of my traditional comforts and no iPhone to play on to keep me occupied – I´ve found I´ve learned more about myself than in years at home.

So to answer the question I´ve been asked so many times; yes, I´m taking a gap year to travel. What is traveling? To me, it is so much more than I could put into words. Each second is a unique experience, a unique lesson, and something I so greatly appreciate having the privilege of doing. But I think it means something different to everyone. So yes – I´m relaxed and the views are great.

Round 2

mariasmap — Thu, 12 Nov 2015 11:22:00 GMT

Returning to my homestay has been an even better experience than the first stay in Tiquipaya. I‘m not sure if it was because returning to somewhere familiar was nice, or being able to call someplace “home” (even for only two weeks) is more appealing. The first day of my return, my host family was so excited. My host mom welcomed me with open arms and my sisters helped me unpack all of my stuff. They’ve definately made me feel like a part of the family over the course of my stay. My host mom always jokes around about being her third daughter and my host sisters always invite me along when they go out with their friends. Sometimes, I refer to my host mom as just “my mom” – to a point where I sometimes confuse people if I’m talking about my mom in the U.S.. I find myself asking “which ones?” when questions are proposed about my parents. Another benefit of my home stay is that I finally know what it’s like to have cats and dogs (and even cows and now two calfs). Overall, I’ve gotten used to the way of life here and have come to really appreciate it.

The second day into my homestay was Todos Santos – a big holiday here, my sisters didn‘t have school and we spent much of the day cooking. My (host) mom took me to the cemetary, where the celebration of the holiday mostly occurs. Walking down the street was insane. It was packed with people and stalls on either side selling food, candy, jewelery, and anything else you could think of. There were trampolines and bouncy houses and a corner that had five or six foosball tables. As we walked down the street my mom grasped onto my shirt tightly for fear of losing me to the crowd. It seemed every other vender was a friend of my mom, handing us plates of food and ice cream from their small restaurants which were set up for the special occasion. What should have been a 3 minute walk took about 10 minutes, from a combination of the crowds and stopping to talk to everyone, When we finaly made it into the cemetary I was immediately overwhelmed by the commotion. More or less every grave was surrounded by people or were filled with offerings of bread and pastries from friends and family that had already visited. As we walked further and further into the cemetary the chants of prayers in unison filled my ears. On occasion we saw small bands playing music at the graves. I was fascinated to see such appreciation all at once.

Coming back to my homestay was definitely a change from living on a boat for three days. There are parts of each that I appreciate more, but so far each different experience has contributed to the overall lessons I have learned and being able to compare all the different experiences has been truly amazing.

Jacob and Maria Take the Andes

mariasmap — Fri, 23 Oct 2015 11:17:00 GMT

The past 9 days on trek have been some of the most amazing experiences. Two days into the trek, after a day of uphill hiking, we made it to our campsite next to Lago San Francisco and decided to swim – despite the ice cold temperature of the water. We all ducked under the water and immediately tried running out because of how cold it was. We walked the 3 minutes back to camp, wet and cold but it was worth it. That night a few of us had talked about sleeping outside but after the water temperatures it ended up just being Jacob and me. It was amazing. Our camp was in a valley with mountains on either side of us and snow covering the ones in the distance. We saw at least 10 shooting stars which was more than I´ve seen in total throughout my life. Falling asleep under the open sky was incredible. That morning we woke up with frost covering our sleeping bags and frozen shoes, but it was still easily the best night of the trek.

Homestay

mariasmap — Mon, 12 Oct 2015 11:05:00 GMT

The first 10 days of my homestay were incredible. They were filled with laughter (mostly at my lack of ability to speak Spanish), and I both taught and learned a lot. I taught my sisters Italian and English and in exchange they taught me Spanish and Quechua. I think some of the most important things I learned were responsibility, self – sufficiency, and that it´s ok to make mistakes (no matter how frequent). There were many embarrassing moments – asking my 13 year old host sister how to wash my clothes was up there – but it definitely helped me become more independent. I learned how to cook and prepare meals, hand wash my clothes in the sink, and wash dishes without a dishwasher – all skills I had never needed before but now ones I felt proud to be able to accomplish, I feel less reliant on others (and technology) for simple tasks.

The benefit of a homestay is becoming part of a family. I didn´t just hang out in my room and sit and wait for meals. I helped cook, I worked alongside my sisters in the store, I came home to feed the cows and cut plants in the yard. My two sisters (13 and 15) came home from school at 1:00 and from then on more or less ran the house. It was very different from the culture I grew up in, sure I had chores, but my mom somehow managed to do almost everything while still taking care of my brother and I, but here it was almost the opposite. The responsibility made me more aware of my impact on my surroundings and how much I could help with little things every day (or big things) if two girls younger than me could run an entire household.

Potosi

mariasmap — Sun, 4 Oct 2015 11:03:00 GMT

When I was 12 years old I played on two different sports teams and spent my summers vacationing. Not only did I not work, but if I had, it probably would have been at a place of my choosing, not in a cemetary. We spent a day working with children through CONNASTOP, a child labor union, that´s where I met a 12 year old named Felix. Seeing a 12 year old so cheerful during his job of cleaning toombstones shocked me. Spending 4 hours a day, cleaning for about 2 Bolivianos (for refrence it´s about 7 Bolivianos to a dollar) definitely would have gotten to me. What shocked me even more was when he spent the little money he had earned on juice for me. We made one unpaid stop – to one of his friend’s parents. He was so meticulous in his cleaning, making sure it was perfect before we moved on to the next paid job. It was heartbreaking to see someone so young surrounded by death so frequently and to see him so dedicated to his work when I had spent my childhood playing with friends.

I remember learning about Potosi in history class. I remember hearing about the working conditions and how terrible they were. I don´t think anything could have prepared me for the experience of actually going into the mines. Sure, the working conditions have improved over time but it is still a job I wouldn´t wish upon anyone. The constant sense of claustrophobia, the fear of collapses, and the oxygen saturated with dust all contributed to the overwhelming experience. Nothing could make me choose to go down in the mines every day, but then I realized – it´s not a choice. It´s unregulated work, meaning that kids can start working as early as they need to in order to support their families. I started to realize how Felix could be satisfied with his job in the cemetary. Seeing the mines was even more surprising than experiencing work through a child. I consider myself short but in the mines I still had to duck to walk through the tunnels. The bandana I wore around my face was supposed to help me breathe in cleaner air, but I could still taste dirt in every breath. Silicosis is the leading cause of death in the mines, it leaves miners with a life expectancy of about 40. It’s scary to think about, if my parents had worked in the mines, they wouldn´t have gotten to see me graduate, go to prom, or help me through the college application process.

This experience has left me feeling thankful. Thankful that I was born into a family with safe jobs. Jobs that allowed me to grow up and didn´t force me to mature early. I also feel fearful that change won´t happen soon and that as I grow older and begin work, there will still be miners in Bolivia working in conditions that shorten their life, or children forced to support their family before they´ve even finished school.

Cordillera de los Frailes

mariasmap — Mon, 28 Sep 2015 10:59:00 GMT

Never having been trekking or even camping, I wasn´t sure what to expect. The start of the trek had an amazing view, we could see all of the mountains surrounding us and we hiked down into a cave where we could see old drawings covering the walls. The paths we walked on were dusty which seemed to wash out the colors of the landscape. We saw browns and faded yellows and greens. By lunch time we had made it to another cave, and seconds after we got there, the skies opened up. It poured, the thunder shook the ground below us, and the lightning seemed to flash right in front of our faces. We ate and waited for the storm to pass and by the time we were ready to leave, the mountain had completely transformed. What had once been the dull faded colors were now vibrant reds and greens, saturated with water. The path we had walked from was unusable. Walkways had become a channel for the rainfall. Fast-flowing rivers had formed and waterfalls seemed to cover the mountain. It was truly amazing to see such a drastic change in just an hour. We continued our trek – careful of slippery rocks and mud. The rainwater had caused all the rivers to rise and widen, so we took off our shoes and socks, rolled up our pants, and waded through the icy water. It took the whole team of us to get everyone across but we managed – backpacks and all. We made it to camp pretty late and had to cook dinner and set up tents in the dark under the stars. As inconveniant as it was in the pitch black with only our headlamps, the view of the tents under the stars was the best way to start the first night of the trek.

Orientation

mariasmap — Tue, 22 Sep 2015 10:48:00 GMT

I realized I was in Bolivia about four days into the trip. As a group we decided to hike to the nearby aqueduct to watch the sunrise. At 5:00AM we all woke up with our headlamps to make our way there. We made it down to the creek, but forgot to account for the storm that night – what had once been a bit bigger than a puddle was now flowing too fast for us to walk through. We had to find a small path of rocks in the dark and hop from one to the next until we had all crossed. We made it up the aqueduct and all lay down on the wall and looked at the stars while we waited for the sun to rise. The sunrise itself wasn´t anything special. In fact most of it was blocked by the mountain on our other side. All we saw was the sky getting brighter as time passed, but just the experience of getting there was enough for me to finally realize that my adventures in Bolivia had just started.