Cusco...Here we come!
Welcome friends!
If you haven’t noticed, I haven’t blogged since last Tuesday…I know you were all eagerly awaiting my blog…Here I am now! So just to keep you updated on what is going on, we are no longer in Lima. Our three weeks in Lima came to an end, we are now in Andahuaylilas and are currently staying in a Jesuit retreat house. Our last day in Lima was June 8th (a.k.a MY BIRTHDAY) and then we flew out Friday morning. We are in Andahuaylillas until Monday night and then we make our way to Aguas Calientes on Tuesday. Then, we fly back to Lima on Saturday and Sunday depart to the United States.
June 9th:
Day 1 of Cusco. We arrived at about 11am and made our way to the retreat house. Let me just say this retreat house is the best. There is a total of 6 rooms and each room has its own bathroom with water! Many of you might be thinking “Who cares, it’s just a bathroom” but remember that at our host family house we did not have water so this is great! Moving on, today was mostly a free day. We didn’t do much considering we need to take it easy with the difference in altitude. The best part of the day was my three-hour nap, it was much needed. Lunch and dinner was delicious as usual. During the night, it got cold so I ended up sleeping with two pairs of socks, sweatpants, a sweater, and about four blankets.
June 10th:
Today we started the day with a tour of the Baroque Route. This route consists of three churches and in all honesty, there are no words to explain either of them. Unfortunately, pictures were not allowed so you can’t see it for your own eyes but let me just say I have never seen anything like these churches before. These churches were filled with murals that were so unique, I’m not sure there are words to describe it. After our tour, we came back and pretty much had the rest of the day to ourselves. We ate lunch, very filling, and then after went to walk it off. The rest of our day was spent relaxing.
The past three weeks in Lima have been nothing but great. I don’t really know how to explain how wonderful it has been to visit the different places within Lima. Thinking about the schools we have visited the past three weeks, I think it’s important, as an educator, to do the best you can for your students. I know many of you might be thinking “Well duh” but I feel like sometimes teachers don’t follow through with this. It’s crucial to learning about who your students are and to teach them in their best interest. It’s important to understand the student’s context before making assumptions. As I think about spending the next week in Cusco, I can’t help but tell myself to keep being open-minded. Learning about different cultures is something special and it’s important to respect that culture. It might be hard for people to understand a culture, but I’m excited to learn more about the culture within Cusco and others as well. Something that I’m curious about is what role does education play in Cusco? Is education something that is important for this community, or is it not so much cared for? If not, then what is most important for this community? Also, how much help of the government does each district receive? As I spend the next week in Cusco, I hope to answer some of my questions as well as continue thinking about new questions.
Smiles,
Liz
