Peru - Day 3

Our third day in Peru was a Sunday so we were able to attend church.  There were actually several wards and branches to choose from in the city of Puno.  We ended up going to the nearest chapel at the best time.  We couldn't have picked a better Branch to attend  in my opinion.  I have a great love for Spanish wards, ever since my mission, and I was thrilled to be able to attend one again.

Our group is large and we made up half of the congregation.  Kristen Moore played the piano and several of our boys blessed and passed the sacrament.  It was so wonderful to be there.  The members welcomed us with open arms and kisses on the cheeks.  Sacrament meeting was so inspiring.  The Bishop got up to speak at the end and he shared one of the most humbling and powerful testimonies I have ever heard.  To paraphrase, he talked about how he could tell some of us understood spanish and that he wanted us to know that he too has a testimony of the same Gospel that we do.  That they believe in the same things.  He then said that they may not have much in their lives but they are truly a happy people because they have the church and the knowledge that it brings.  I can't do it justice with my words but the spirit was so strong that I couldn't help but cry as did many other people.  These people literally have nothing, temporally speaking, and yet they are sincerely happy and at peace.  I was so touched.

Afterwards, I was able to attend primary.  There were about 12 kids total in the whole primary and they met in a tiny room.  I was there for the lesson and I was so amazed at the knowledge these young kids had.  They are just like my primary kids at home with such an enthusiasm and love for the gospel.  They knew the scriptures and the Articles of Faith and the answers to every question they were asked.  They impressed me and I was once again struck by how the gospel makes us family and how we are all striving for the same goals in this life.

I also attended Relief Society and once again felt the sisterhood that the gospel brings us.  What a cherished experience it was to be there.

Later in the day we had the opportunity to do one of our service projects.  Our group had collected and sorted all kinds of clothes to give away.  The plan was to give clothing and buy food for some of the struggling members.  We had an alloted amount of money for this project and we went to a small store to purchase the food items.  We sent the men in our group into the store to help Hernan buy and carry the stuff.  We bought as much as we could with our budget and when the men saw how little there was going to be, they all pulled out their wallets and started giving more money to Hernan to purchase even more supplies.  I was impressed by our group and their desires to give selflessly inspite of the fact that they had already donated so much.

I took pictures of us in the store with Missy's camera.  I must state now that on our last day in Peru, Missy's camera was stolen.  We figured that we would share pictures upon our return so we also took turns taking pictures.  It is sickening to think that we lost so many memories in those photos.  So I am just saying now, that unfortunately some of our adventures, won't be documented with photos.

Anyway, back to the store.  We bought so many supplies that the store didn't have it all in stock.  So they sent workers out to other stores to pick up the stuff.  I noticed this the whole trip.  It was like everyone was one big co-op and if they didn't have something they would go to their friend next door.  Way different than in our society.

We then met up with the Bishop from the ward that day as well as another Bishop and a Bishop's wife.  They were going to direct us to the member's that needed our help.

I mentioned earlier that Puno is surrounded by hills and the higher you go up the poorer the people are that live there.  So naturally we went up into the mountains.  We were in a large charter bus and to say we stuck out like is sore thumb in an understatement.  The bus could only go so high before we had to get out and hike the rest of the way.  This was especially challenging considering the lack of air and I felt it.  But getting out and walking sure gave you a sense of how people lived.  The adobe houses (if you could call them that) were crudely built and a sewer reminants were flowing out of pipes onto the dirt road.  The smells are hard to describe but they were not pleasant.  People everywhere would poke their heads out to see what this group of Americans were doing.  Kids would follow us and they were quickly rewarded with candy that our people willingly handed out.

This little boy was playing with a small rubber tire.  He would roll it down the hill and with the way he giggled you would have thought it was the best toy in the world. 

The streets were small and one group of people had a volleyball net stretched across the road.  We had to pay them with candy to temporarily take it down so our bus could pass through.  Everywhere I looked was something new to see.

We visited 7 different families that evening and into the night.  We delivered clothes and food to the most humble of people and in the most dire circumstances.  They all cried, including the Bishops, out of gratitude.  By our standards we didn't do much and yet too them it was huge.  Many didn't know how they were going to get food for another month.  Most of them had such sad stories to tell.  One guy was taking care of his aging mother that couldn't walk.  He was supporting them both by driving a little combi around town (the little taxis, so to speak, that is pulled by a bike).  He was hit by a car and could no longer use his legs, yet still had to support them both.  This was just one example of the challenging lives of these members.

Most of the homes were a square room with blankets on the dirt floor for a bed.  They had makeshift stoves and no running water.  Yet in almost every home we saw a picture of the Prophet on the wall or something else from the church.  It  seemed so out of place and yet reminded me that they were still doing their best to follow the gospel.  Amazing.

By time we got to our last home, it was dark and Hernan was feeling quite nervous.  As we were delivering our things, a fight broke out right in the street.  There was a drunk guy and he was yelling.  He was also punching anything that came into his path, including women and children.  The women were crying and begging him to stop.  It was scary and dangerously close to us.  Hernan quickly herded us out of the area and we made a run for the bus.  It was a sure reminder that I wasn't in Saratoga Springs anymore.

Overall it was a truly humbling day.  I was reminded of all the blessings I have in my life and how much I take for granted.  I don't know why I was born when I was to a good family in America that has the gospel, but I am so grateful for it.  And my blessings keep expounding with my own little family, extended family and friends.

And to top off the day, Hernan had a laptop that he let me borrow and I was able to ge online and live chat with Roger.  It was nice to reconnect with my reality after such an emotional day. 

Peru Day 2 - Part 2

So to continue on with my second day in Peru, I must write about Puno. The bus ride from Juliaca to Puno was about 1 1/2 hours. We came over a large mountain and this is the view I saw out the window. I have included some facts about Puno in order to understand the dynamics a little better.





Puno is a city in southeastern Peru located on the shore of Lake Titicaca. The city was established in 1668 by viceroy Pedro Antonio Fernández de Castro as capital of the province of Paucarcolla with the name San Juan Bautista de Puno. The name was later changed to San Carlos de Puno, in honor of king Charles II of Spain. The city has several churches dating back from the colonial period, they were built to service the Spanish population and evangelize the natives






Today, Puno is an important agricultural and livestock region; particularly of South American camelids (llamas and alpacas) which graze on its immense plateaus and plains. Many homes in Puno, much like surrounding cities, are half-finished. This is done so that the inhabitants do not have to pay taxes. Much of the city economy relies on the black market, fueled by cheap goods smuggled in from Bolivia.



Puno is situated between the shores of Lake Titicaca and the mountains surrounding the city. There is less than 2 miles distance of flat land between the shores and the foothills, which has caused the growing city to continue to expand upwards onto the hillsides. As a result, the town's less developed and poorest areas, which are high on the hillsides, often have very steep streets, which are generally not paved and cannot be accessed by automobile.



Puno is known as the "Capital folklórica del Perú" (folkloric capital of Peru) due to its wealth of artistic and cultural expressions, particularly dance. They are most notable during the celebrations of the Feast of the "Virgen de la Candelaria" and the Regional Competition of Autochthonous Dances. Puno's access to Lake Titicaca is surrounded by 41 floating islands. To this day, the Uros people maintain and live on these man-made islands, depending on the lake for their survival, and are a large tourist destination.




We arrived at out hotel, The Eco Inn, around lunch time. It was considered a very nice hotel by Peru standards. It did have a beautiful view of Lake Titicaca and surrounding areas. Puno is located in the South-West tip of Peru. Because of this, we were at a high altitude of 12,421 feet. Since Saratoga Springs is only at 4,505 feet there was a noticeable difference in the air (or should I say lack of air) and many of us felt the feelings of altitude sickness. I was light-headed and felt as if I was floating. Simple things like climbing stairs or bending over made your heart race. This was a strange feeling. You can drink a tea made out of cocoa leaves that is supposed to help. I couldn't choke it down, it tasted too much like hay. So I just suffered through.

By now, I was going on about 36 hours with very little sleep, so Missy and I found our rooms and crashed for awhile. Boy did those beds feel wonderful.

After we rested, we took our group into town by taxi. It cost 3 soles per cab which is equivalent to 1$. We went to the town plaza. It was beautiful in it's own right. There were old churches and cobblestone and quaint fountains and shops.

We went to the outdoor market and it was fun just to walk around and see the various stands. To see so much food out on carts was unbelievable. There was meat and cheese and all kinds of other things that weren't refrigerated and yet selling like crazy.

There were piles of bread on carts and for 1 sole (33 cents) you could buy a whole bag. I took of picture of this lady's cart and she yelled at me. Apparently she didn't appreciate her picture being taken. I told her I was sorry and then pretended not to know any more Spanish. Overall the people were really nice, maybe she was having a bad day.

We went to a restaurant in the plaza. It was nice and the food was delicious. I had Beef Lomo with onions and rice. We usually ordered off a "menu" which is basically a set 4-6 dishes you could choose from as well as an appetizer and a dessert. Throughout the trip, I found the choices to almost always be the same. They eat a lot of chicken, alpaca, trout, beef and pizza in Peru. I wouldn't say the food had a whole lot of spice and pizazz but it was generally good. The avocados there were to die for and I had several of them throughout my trip.

While we were eating dinner we heard a commotion out in the street. We went to check it out and the people were having a parade in honor of one of their Virgins that they worship. It was so neat to see their colorful costumes, listen to their musical instruments and see their joy in dance. I was having one of those surreal moments where I just couldn't believe that I was there and really experiencing that moment. Wow.

It was a lovely evening and gave us the chance to get to know our group a little better in a more relaxed setting. We came with some wonderful people and by the end of the trip I can say that we were all pretty close. I felt like I had known them all forever and couldn't have chosen a more fun and inspiring group of people if I had tried.

Here is our group:

Ronald and Doradene (the grandparents of the group)

Nancy and Gordon Palmer (seasoned travelers)

Greg and Pamela Palmer (young married couple)

Ryan Palmer (newly returned missionary)

Beau Palmer ( just got his mission call to Peru of all places)

Jenny Palmer (a young adult seasoned traveler

Ceann and Jayden Whitehead (mother and 14 year old son)

Randy and Robin Moore (great couple)

Kristen and Taylor Moore (single kids of Randy. Super great and hard working)

Rob and Marilyn Moore (Loved loved loved this couple)

Amanda Moore (single adult daughter of Rob and Marilyn)

Micah Miller (single gal that is my age and just a neat person)

So that is our group. I am sure I will write more stories about them later.

And of course there is Hernan Carrasco, our guide. He is from Cuzco, has a cute family and is a member of the church. His whole extended family helps out Eagle-Condor. They are all salt of the earth kind of people. Hernan was with us for an entire week and did it all without pay. He is grateful to anyone that would serve his people and so he willingly wanted to help us because of that. He is a humble man that would give you the shirt off his back. Missy and I were with him constantly since we were running the show. We couldn't have pulled off this expedition without him. He was a real joy to get to know and I loved speaking with him in Spanish. I can honestly say he became a close friend of mine by the time we said goodbye.

That was pretty much the day. Missy and I were getting along fabulously and thanks to the Internet I was able to keep in touch with my loved ones back home. I seriously still couldn't believe that I was fortunate enough to be there and I constantly reminded myself of how lucky I was to have this experience.