Monday 2 December 2013

A new journey begins

Arriving in Cusco and there's clear evidence of rain. Humidity and significant clouds clinging to the verdant mountain terraces. Draping delicate arms over the greens and browns...notable indeed after the dryness of Arequipa.

Cusco architecture
But let's just rewind a few days. My last day with the youngsters of Flora Tristan English school was full of hugs and cards and followed by a creepy Halloween night out in Arequipa where I witnessed streets full of people clad in all manner of fancy dress. The prize for originality going to the guy dressed as a man having a shower.
Then 24 hours of gastric flu later and I'm back in shipshape form packing up all my worldly possessions ready for a ten hour overnight stint on the much-more-comfortable-than-an-aeroplane (yes, it's true) Cruz del Sur double decker coach. I snuggle down into the soft leather folds of the almost vertical bed-like seat and attempt to sleep.

Saying Hi from Cusco!
As usual my inability to sleep on moving vehicles has me in a fitful slumber. The rising altitude affects my delicate recovering tum making for an unwanted distraction from snoozing. Well, at least it was warm and comfortable. Perhaps I was lucky enough to get three, maybe four, hours of kip.re's clear evidence of rain. Humidity and significant clouds clinging to the verdant mountain terraces. Draping delicate arms over the greens and browns...notable indeed after the dryness of Arequipa. But let's just rewind a few days. My last day with the youngsters of Flora Tristan English school was full of hugs and cards and followed by a creepy Halloween night out in Arequipa where I witnessed streets full of people clad in all manner of fancy dress. The prize for originality going to the guy dressed as a man having a shower.

My weary, dry eyes crack open to see dawn breaking into watery pastel shades in the clouds I can see through the little gap in the curtains. I close my eyes again for a some more tired moments and reopen them to see the hills and their cloud sombreros. Cracks of blue blaze through the grey covering the sky, a more intense blue than even in Arequipa - a clue to Cusco's higher altitude.

Sheets of surface water coat the ground and the chilly temperature is borne out by the occasional person wandering the streets (which all seem to lead upwards) clad in numerous layers of warm practical clothing.
My comfortable bus seat

I'm writing this in the bus terminal. I feel like I have all the time in the world before my travel buddy Dorota arrives in 5 hours time. We've arranged to meet at our hostel so I need to gather my thoughts and figure out how to get there...

 ...and an overpriced taxiride later I'm here. Very welcoming and helpful hostel staff and I'm now tucking into their complimentary breakfast of cereal, bread and jam, tea, fresh watermelon juice and papaya chunks. Couldn't ask for more after a tiring bus ride to ease away the chills of the damp early morning. I've even seen an advert for an Indian restaurant, the first I've seen so far in Peru! Cusco thus far is ticking all the right boxes!

By the way, I'm traveling without my laptop for the next three weeks (to avoid carrying a whole extra backpack) which makes it more tricky to upload photos. I'll do what I can but apologies in advance if the next set of blogs are a little light on pictures...I'll try to keep the text-only entries short and sweet and will try to add photos when I get to a hostel computer.

Plaza De Armes in Cusco














Written by Julianne Ezra


See how you can get started volunteering with HOOP Peru here.

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Tuesday 5 November 2013

Peruvian rock…rocks!

My most enduring memory of the Peruvian rock festival Vivé Peru is of being utterly and completely iced to the bone. I don’t know quite how it happened. I am well aware of the change in temperature that occurs between night and day in this city of 2,328m altitude so I should have come prepared, but somehow I still had to jump up and down continuously in order to regain some semblance of feeling in my feet. To be fair, I was wearing six layers of tops, t-shirts, jumpers, jackets, but it was my legs and toes that were cold inside my paltry one layer of jeans and socks…next time I’ll wear my thermals.

Rock On!

But I didn’t go home early. I didn’t want to. Because Peruvian rock is actually really good. Good enough to keep me there, freezing my proverbials off until the icily small hour of 3am.

I found out about this music festival through an advert on Facebook posted by the lovely people involved in the Couchsurfing network – people who host travelers on their couches in return for the simple enjoyment to be had in finding out a bit about the rest of the world through the eyes of their visitors. A bunch of people who, on the whole, will bend over backwards to make you feel welcome in their city and spend their free time coordinating language exchanges, bike rides in the countryside, trips to off-the-beaten-track sites of interest, to local communities to provide free healthcare to those in need, to the inaugural concert of the University’s philharmonic orchestra and of course to rock concerts…among an array of may many other things.

The University's Philharmonic Orchestra - their first ever gig
Being an enthusiastic festival-goer back in the UK and lover of pretty much all live music, when I got wind of this gig I figured that it would probably be up my street. I coordinated with Tom and Mauricio to get my ticket and checked out the links to YouTube that were posted on Facebook to sample the ambient (and not-so-ambient / rather heavier) Peruvian rock tunes that would feature at the concert. At least 18 bands were in the line-up so I could only listen to a few of them before the concert but the ones I did sample were on the whole rather good…I was particularly looking forward to seeing the interestingly-named Libido and Tremolo and the slightly less imaginatively-named Miki Gonzales and Daniel F.

Later on in this post I’ve included some links to the music on YouTube so you too can listen and enjoy! Here's a link to the overall line up if you're interested:
 http://www.cuadra7.com/2013/10/06/viva-peru-arequipa-2013-agenda/
My Couchsurfing buddies

Before the festival I also listened to some of the catchy tunes of rock star Pedro Suárez-Vértiz.

He can no longer grace Peru with his dulcet tones due to a throat problem and so didn't play at the festival himself. However, he is a legend in these parts: pin-up boy, musical talent and commercial success in the 1990s. This concert, Viv̩ Peru, was a homage to him and a celebration of what is genuinely an impressive Peruvian rock scene РPeru being where allegedly rock in Latin America arguably started its life in the 1960s.

As it turned out, much to my relief, Tremolo, Micky Gonzales, Daniel F and Libido were all worth the hour and half in the epic queue and the eight hours of standing around in the night-time mountain chill.

Tremolo were heavy and contemplative, reminding me a bit of some bands I listen to back home.

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sPYPqhbMInE

Miki Gonzales threw out a happiness vibe that got everyone singing along – even me, with a little help from my Spanish-speaking companions and the useful fact that the lyrics weren’t really too hard to master!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W9wwVznsAjs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3GlZposTd0g&list=PL541F5D055C61CFFE

Daniel F gave us the pleasure of his voice and guitar, both excellent and again with plenty of songs that the crowd could sing along to.

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=03C7Lm_i9vAX

 Dinero were a fun and bonkers interlude – Arequipa’s most successful home-grown band – their Muppet themed costumes starting their set on a hilarious note to compliment the wacky ska-influenced bouncy rhythms. I think they may have had a little bit of Arequipeñan beer before coming on stage but it didn’t matter, it added to their “loco” approach, the crowd loved them and sang along to every song word for word.

The biggest revelation for me was Uchpa, checkout their video below. A group who sing mainly in the indigenous language of the Andes – Quechua – understood by a rapidly diminishing number of Peruvians. They combine ponderous, soulful Andean melodies, traditional instruments and distinctive tongue-contorting Quechuan syllables with rapid rock riffs and power drumming, resulting in something all at once strangely heady, enchanting and energizing. They also have the added element of splendid traditional outfits and dancing to get the crowd suitably worked up.



The endurance test was the wait for Libido. They were preceded by a number of bands who, although high quality in vocals and instrumental talent (namely Amen and Zen), slightly overstayed their welcome and dragged out their sets just that little bit too long to keep the crowd on their side…there are only so many guitar and drum solos one can handle when one’s toes are on the verge of frostbite. Finally, Libido came on.



They delivered rich melodies and intense percussion overlaid with the lead singer’s fascinating voice and for 20 minutes I forgot about my chilled bones and grinned. Only five songs due to the over-run in the timetable but it was worth it. When they finished we made a dash for the comfort of a taxi and once my body had defrosted, my mind replayed the best tunes of the night in a curiously comforting Peruvian rock n’ roll lullaby.

See how you can get started volunteering with HOOP Peru here.

To learn more about HOOP Peru please check out HOOP's Twitter and Facebook

 https://twitter.com/HOOPPERU
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Thursday 24 October 2013

Walking with Dinosaurs


Children playing. Scrambling for the front of the queue. Shrieks of delight. Screams of despair, then... “I’m sorry but you’ll have to wait your turn.”

The September excursion for the youngsters of Flora Tristan English School was to the not-just-your-ordinary-park in Socabaya.

One of the many things for the kids to do on the excursion
A long morning, gathering the students together, handing out ID badges and suffering the hour and a half bus journey (standing up!) led us finally to this kids-mecca. A forest of play Рtrampolines, swings, ball pools, an inflatable slide, bouncing animals, tree houses, tunnels, mini-cars and even a bucking bronco! Things to clamber and climb on, under and through, all of which are surrounded by an educational array of life size dinosaur sculptures with accompanying explanatory boards. Misti overlooks all and the Arequipe̱an sun shines unfailingly.

The ID badges (a new departure for the HOOP excursions courtesy of our excellent Tawianese volunteer – Kai) came in exceedingly handy as all the volunteers, even those who haven’t been here for long, were able to identify which children were part of our group. It all felt rather organized and orderly, probably also due to the fact that the whole group was in one place with a clearly defined entrance and exit – we weren’t going to lose anyone.

Unless of course they were thrown discourteously off the bucking bronco.

Trying to stay on the bull!























Or jumped too high on a trampoline.

One of the many trampolines

















Or flew unceremoniously off the swing in full throttle.

Or were eaten by a dinosaur.

A view of Misti Volcanoe from the park
None of which happened of course, in case you were worried for a minute there... We might lose someone however if they went into the bouncing animals ride and refused point blank to get out again…little Mauricio is rather notorious for his confused expression of “but I’m having fun, why would I leave this place?” followed by a pitiful wail if we insist on removing him.

Mauricio is still too young to reason with but the rest of the youngsters are generally well behaved. The wonderful thing to watch is how, even in such a huge park with many distractions and attractions, they seem to manage to methodically try out everything as if their lives depend on it, some of them looking so forlorn when they couldn’t get into the ball pool or the bouncing animals.

Usually a volunteer is on hand for such tragedies and we can check to see if it is possible to get them their turn and if there’s a problem explain to them why (some of the rides were only opened intermittently depending on the park’s staff who have their work cut out trying to run numerous rides all at once).

If your interested in volunteering with HOOP Peru you can find more information here: 

http://www.hoopperu.org/get-involved-volunteer/




This excursion was a lovely leisurely day. The children really enjoyed the park and it was safe and diverting enough that the volunteers were able to spend time getting to know the youngsters, rather than just herding and organizing them. This was particularly nice for me as I only know the older ones through my teaching role and don’t get a chance to meet the rest of the school other than in cancha time and on the excursions, so it was a privilege to spend some time putting names to faces, pushing them on the swings, taking pictures and chatting.

However, there was a bit of herding required when it came to taking the obligatory group photos. A process of gathering unwilling children from every corner of the park ended in a countdown to photo-time and anyone who wasn’t there by the time we hit “1” wouldn’t star in our excursion piccie. Needless to say the picture is missing a few rather more willful young‘uns but we got most people in.

A group photo in front of the entrance of the park
As usual, there were a lot of mothers who came on this excursion to keep an eye on their teeny tiny ones. This made for a precious family atmosphere, huge picnics produced from bags slung over parents shoulders and mothers chatting about who-knows-what, relaxed and evidently enjoying the day out. I sensed, from the peaceful smiles on the mothers faces that this was a day not only for the children to let their hair down but also for the hard-working mothers to breathe a sigh of relief and to allow the weight of their tough day to day existence to melt into the soft green grass and flow silently
 away to be devoured by the grey-brown 
fiberglass jaws of dinosaurs.


Posted by Julianne Ezra


To learn more about HOOP Peru please check out the following websites:

 http://www.hoopperu.org/
 https://twitter.com/HOOPPERU
https://www.facebook.com/HOOPPeru


Monday 14 October 2013

Happy Birthday Teacher Julianne!


Upon arrival at Floran Tristan English School on the 10th of October 2013, I was directed in no uncertain terms to wait outside my classroom while my students shuffled about inside, giggling, Esperanza barking orders at the boys.

A few minutes later, little Joel from Kai’s class ushered me over to the door…I walked in…
The work of my students

“Feliz Cumpleanos Teacher Julianne!”

The shout greeted me as my students leapt out from behind the door of the classroom and presented me with a snow dome with the label “Happy Birthday Teacher” stuck across the bottom of it…well, it’s a version of a snow dome where, upon vigorous shaking, the animals disappear entirely under a sea of slightly polluted-looking froth and it takes about half an hour to get back to normal. However, I’ve never been quite so moved by a snow dome before given that such thoughfulness lay behind the idea.

Then, in front of me on the white board, the elegant handwriting of my student Jesus welcomed me in the form of the words “Happy Birthday Teacher Julianne”.

And yet more! Luz, the eldest student in my class, presented me with a painstakingly detailed handmade card with Snoopy-themed pop-up figures adorning the inside and a lovely message on the back.

Our class party with Kangaroo class
To be honest, I wasn’t completely surprised that they’d planned something. The previous day I’d mentioned that it would be my birthday and later in the class I caught Luz, Esperanza and Daniel passing a note around when they were supposed to be doing something else. Normally I would insist sternly that they give me the note because it’s not really acceptable classroom etiquette. However, this time Daniel’s beaming grin coupled with Esperanza suggesting that it might-just-might be a surprise made me think twice and I let it lie. I’m glad I did. My awesome students came up with the goods and made me feel very special.

The past month has been a busy but successful month in Leopard class. They all passed the exam for the Cambridge Starters Curriculum – with flying colours I might add, everyone got 75% or more – and we had a party to celebrate, combining with the three littler students in Kai’s Kangaroo class. I’m going to be teaching them as part of my class from mid-October so it was a nice opportunity for the two classes to get to know each other a bit more.

I’m starting to discover the big personalities that have been hiding away while my students have got to know me…and now, with just three weeks of my volunteer placement remaining, I feel like I'm only just starting to get to know them properly.
The students happy during their well earned party

As is usual at the end of the month, there was an assembly for the whole school, at which I presented specific students with certificates for enthusiasm, reading and listening. Sometimes I award writing but we hadn’t done much writing this month.

The next thing was writing letters to penfriends in the U.S.A. With a bit of encouragement most members of the class created beautifully written and decorated letters. Every time I do something that involves drawing I’m endlessly pleased and surprised by the talent in the class. They always come up with something beautiful. This is a wall calendar they created in the first month I taught them.


If your interested in volunteering with HOOP Peru you can find more information here:

                                    http://www.hoopperu.org/get-involved-volunteer/


As for the rest of my birthday celebrations…well, I made the most of what Arequipa has to offer and went out for an exceedingly un-Peruvian Italian meal for the evening of my actual birthday, enjoying a delicious vegetable lasagna to the dulcet tones of live panpipe music (which made up for the un-Peruvian-ness of the restaurant choice!).

Then the Friday night was a jovial gathering of almost all the people I know in Arequipa…which actually turned out to be more than I thought!

Junior, Elisa, Kai and I
An enormous chocolate and cream cake was produced later in the evening…

...which subsequently ended up all over my face and up my nose! Apparently it’s a Peruvian tradition to take a bite after blowing out the candles (and of course get a face-full of chantilly), but I’m not sure who to believe. The cake throwing that ensued almost outdid the cake eating but I managed to enjoy a few slices while watching Team Taiwan and Team Arequipa go head to head in "Torta Wars"…

All of this was followed by plenty of dancing in Arequipa's boogy establishments and a feeling of general merriment. I slept soundly despite my sore feet and reflected on the past few happy days with the friends I’ve made over the past few months…what a wonderful way to celebrate. I will remember my 31st birthday in Arequipa with great fondness.

                                                                     
                                                             
                                                                   Posted by Julianne Ezra



To learn more about HOOP Peru please check out the following websites:

http://www.hoopperu.org/
https://twitter.com/HOOPPERU
https://www.facebook.com/HOOPPeru

Thursday 26 September 2013

Organised chaos: An Excursion with Flora Tristan English School

It was a beautiful sunny Arequipenan Saturday in early September and it was that time each month that all the HOOP volunteers look forward to – the weekend excursion with those students from our English school who have shown their commitment with good attendance and behavior. This time there were about 30 children accompanied by a handful of mothers keeping an eye on their toddlers.

The early shift had already caught the bus to Floran Tristan with our School Coordinator to pick up the students. I went with the late shift into town ready to meet them when they arrived at our first destination: El Mundo Alpaca (Alpaca World).

Brad, Kai, Miriam, Kordi and I waited in the courtyard with the Alpacas until our crowd arrived – full of glee at seeing the noble beasts in person. They clamoured and clambered on the fence to get a look and to try and touch them but to no avail – the Alpacas decided whether they wanted to be a part of this gang or not and either stood aloof or sniffed nonchalantly at the tiny outstretched hands.

The children of Flora Tristan at El MundoAlpaca
El Mundo Alpaca is essentially an Alpaca showroom – showing off the animals themselves but also the wool they provide and the products that can be made from it. There is a huge barn with a variety of weaving looms on display to demonstrate the various ways the wool can be processed, including a senora in traditional clothing demonstrating hand-weaving.

There are huge piles of wool and lots of things to prod and poke and touch and climb and jump into so all of this was thoroughly engrossing for our students. Like a giggling whirlwind they charged through the place until we managed to gather them together for a drink of water ready to move onto our next destination – the Cathedral Museum.

Hsiang, the School Coordinator, had miraculously managed to negotiate free entry to the Cathedral Museum for everyone in our group – playing the charity card seemed to work! At the Cathedral we arranged the tickets, stored our bags in the cloakroom and our group filed through the metal detector into the building under the beady eye of the security guard.

The first part was a tour of the Cathedral itself – the students particularly interested in the “Diablo” at the foot of the pulpit and mesmerized by the richly adorned statues of the Virgin Mary all around the walls. One of my students was impressed most of all by the Cathedral’s organ that has pride of place as soon as you walk in the door and stretches majestically from the floor to the roof.
Inside the beautiful Arequipa Cathedral

Our patient and professional guide quickly and calmly gathered the students together at each point of interest and told them something exciting to grab their attention – for example that the Bishops’ smocks on display, decorated with gems and golden thread, weigh a mighty 30kg! Many of the stunningly preserved artifacts spoke for themselves – gleaming gold and bejeweled, spraying sparkles into the goggle-eyes of the youngsters.

“NO TOQUES!” was the oft repeated refrain – keeping curious mitts away from the shiny display cases. The younger students were getting a little impatient so our guide took us to the crowning glory of our visit – the roof of the Cathedral, only accessible via guided tour. Impressively high, boasting views of the Arequipenan volcanoes and the Plaza de Armas, the roof is the home of the Cathedral’s two famous towers, in one of which we came nose to nose with the giant antique bells. You can even try to ring them if you’re daring enough.

The amazing view from the roof of the Cathedral
Being in such an imposing setting was a little scary for some of the children so we scurried back downstairs and reclaimed our belongings. The final stop was chill time at Plaza de San Francisco, where there is shade to enjoy an ice-cream, benches and steps to sit-down, peace and quiet to have a chat and space to play tag, football, volleyball or even fill up empty ice-cream bags for a water-fight...which eventually became a little too enthusiastic so we enforced a quick round of plastic bag confiscation to calm things down a bit!

Personally I love the excursions, the children are always so delighted to be visiting somewhere outside Flora Tristan and it’s a pleasure to chat to them outside the classroom, see their personalities in a different setting and find out what makes them tick. We’re due for an excursion to a park or mini-golf course next time because scooting around the town centre gets a little bit chaotic when trying to cross roads and keep everyone together and safe…but we’ve not lost anyone yet and don’t intend to, thanks to the diligence of the School Coordinator and supporting volunteers. We did however almost gain a new child last time…so we’re planning to introduce ID badges so all volunteers, including the new ones, can identify everyone in the group!
The children playing in Plaza de San Francisco


Can’t wait for the next trip…and, actually, I still don’t know the difference between an Alpaca and a Llama…

Find out more about volunteering for HOOP Peru at http://www.hoopperu.org -

Posted 4 hours ago by Julianne Ezra





Thursday 19 September 2013

Teacher Julianne: The Leopard in my Tank

Chatter chatter, mutter mutter, fidget fidget – chairs scraping, pens tapping, texting on phones, listening to music.

Teacher Julianne is troubled.

Our Class Calendar
Troubled because one and a half months into teaching at Flora Tristan School and the usually focused and calm Leopard class, the oldest and most advanced in English in the school, are suddenly deteriorating into a rabble. How did this happen? Is it something I’ve done? Something I’ve not done? Something wrong with the activities I’m doing? Are they bored? Are they pushing the behavior boundaries to test my limits?

When I started teaching my class of around eight students, there had recently been a lot of changes in teachers so when I took over I had a few classes of incessant chattering, fidgeting and general teacher button-pushing. I soon realized, however, that all they needed was a bit of structure and plenty of varied activities to keep their brains occupied, coupled with plenty of lighthearted jokes and fun to allow their personalities to blossom in the class – the wacky cheek of Jesús, Luz’s understated humour, the intent studiousness of Cesar, Alex’s off-the-wall adventurousness with vocabulary and of course Daniel’s shining face, full of sincere enthusiasm, greeting me in class every day of the week thanks to his flawless attendance record.

It’s always been a challenge in this class because of the huge age range of 11 to 21 years old. I’m wary of patronizing the older ones and losing the interest or dampening the energy of the younger ones. Using a varied yet structured approach seemed to engage and motivate them in August and we settled into a routine: reading a few pages of the latest book, revising vocabulary followed by writing, talking and listening activities from the Cambridge Young Learners curriculum. They indulged their artistic talents by making a wall calendar, practiced their singing with the song of the month to perform at the end of August assembly – Here Comes the Sun by the Beatles. Lots of interactive activities where they would draw or write something on the white board to practice their English – or I’d draw some pictures and they’d throw out phrases and words to describe what I’m drawing (clock faces for the time, a person going about their daily activities, animals etc).

Singing the song of the month
This formula made August an enjoyable, productive month where I could actually see their confidence growing and their ability in English improving.

Then it was time to check their knowledge, as is usual at the end of each month. Some little tests to see how well they’d picked up the various topics, which they uncomplainingly completed in silence – students such as Cesar and Esperanza relishing the opportunity to show off their English language talents. The results were excellent – a bright bunch – but for some reason, after these tests, something changed…even the ever-keen Alex started to wind quietly and darkly back into himself. Not what I’d bargained for.

And this last few days they've lost the plot…or rather, perhaps I’ve lost the plot. My mistake, I think, was to give them tests and go straight into a new topic. What I should have done was play games, watch a film, look at some photos…something different from the usual routine, something fun, something to relax their minds and lift their spirits to congratulate them for being so awesome in August.

I quickly realized this mistake, thanks to the reliably candid Esperanza who, when I did in fact produce a game for them to play, muttered in Spanish that “finally we’re playing a game instead of always listening, writing, reading, speaking…” I’m not sure if she realized I could understand what she was saying but it was for the good that I did. There was a certain doggedness that had crept into the last few weeks, perhaps also due to me having been under the weather and lacking in energy myself. But whatever the reason for it, this was my first, biggest lesson so far…not learnt from a book or a tutor, but from the students themselves.

 Leopard class
It did trouble me. Perhaps I’m being hard on myself and over-analyzing (as usual) but I think I still have to make up some ground. I have plans for next week involving photos and games which should bring things onto an even keel. Then for the rest of September hopefully we can settle back into a productive routine with that amazingly focused atmosphere I’ve seen the Leopard class achieve before, with very little help from me. This time though, we’ll have a few more games! My next main challenge is to get through what remains of the curriculum before an exam in the first week in October when they have the opportunity to gain the Cambridge certificate to show for their hard work. Then we can move onto the next level of the curriculum. I hope I can find the right combination of techniques to inspire them…they warm my heart with their enthusiasm and I sincerely want them to succeed.

Written by Julianne Ezra

To volunteer with HOOP Peru click here: http://www.hoopperu.org/get-involved/

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Thursday 12 September 2013

HOOP Bus Adventures (Bajaaaa)

Squinting into the reflected sunlight on the bus windows I can just about make out the words “Villa Fontana” printed in an elegant typescript underneath “Villa Paraiso”, “Saga” and “Metro” – other destinations displayed in the windscreen. Waiting with me on the corner of the street, also known as the ‘bus stop’ boasting no label nor sign, tall Austrian Miriam expresses her simple desire that perhaps today, for our half hour commute to the English school, we might be lucky enough to catch a bus where there is enough headroom to stand up straight…wishing for more than that, a seat for example, would be wasted fairy dust.

We flag down the bus, a slightly oversized VW campervan-type vehicle, and the man hanging out of the door bustles us on. “Avancer avancer!” He urges us and the people clustering in the middle aisle to move up. Ok, so some will move, some won’t, just like the variation in attitudes back home on London buses…but what’s completely different is that here in Peru its perfectly acceptable to barge your way through a non-existent space to get to a partially-existent space and make it your own by leaning into and up against whoever is nearby, even those sitting down, and grabbing with both hands the ceiling rail that is mercifully (for shorties like me) within reach. The beautiful thing is the silence that accompanies such an awkward move – the usual “tuts” I would expect from Brits are conspicuous by their absence and no-one bats an eyelid. In fact, many have their heads bowed in a nodding snooze as the soporific sunlight amplifies through the windows and sends them off into dreamland.

teaching leopard class
Teaching Leopard class.
Sadly for Miriam the probability of this being a bus with height is somewhat negligible but she manages to bag a seat at the front. These seats are often free because the innate politeness in the Peruvian consciousness leaves them empty for mothers with babies, senior citizens and anyone with problems standing. Indeed, when one of the aforementioned board the bus the door guy politely requests in his penetrating monotone that those occupying the premium seats should make one available: “un asiento por la Senora por favor, por favor un asiento”.

Now that my Spanish has improved somewhat I can better understand the chatter between the driver and the man at the bus door. The former mostly remains silent, apart from the odd question to confirm if there are definitely people getting off, and the latter is almost continuously chattering – he informs pedestrians of the destination “Sagaaaa, Villa Paraiso, Fontana Fontanaaaa”; tells the bus driver there are people getting off at the next corner “baja esquinaaaaa, baja bajaaaa”; gets the driver to set off again “vamos”; requests payment and incessantly urges people to move up, board quickly, alight quickly and make seats available for those less able to stand.

To begin with it seemed excessive that there was a driver and a door guy (or lady) but by now I can truly see the point – the driver has more than enough to do to keep the bus from careering into other vehicles (there was one journey home where two buses bounced off each other when cornering simultaneously and rather too quickly) and taking the corners with such precision that I’m sure there is little more than a centimetre between the wheels and the curb. On a practical level the vehicles themselves don’t allow for passengers to come anywhere close to the driver, unlike in the UK where you board and pay the driver first. Instead the driver stays hidden away in the front corner and door guy possesses an amazing power of memory to know who has paid and who has not, even when faced with a bus bursting at the seams with passengers.


The emphasis is on speed so they can get to as many bus stops as possible within the time available in order to collect the most cash. The driver’s main tasks therefore are to stop for as little time as possible and to accelerate rapidly between stops. The door guy’s job is to make sure the people boarding and alighting the bus do so quickly and safely (i.e. without getting run over).

It’s a game of tiny margins and precision timing – I’m now more used to starting to get off the bus while it is still slowing to a halt. I have faith that it will have stopped by the time I reach the last step and this is invariably the case. I’m now more used to the bus behind me immediately setting off at a pace a millisecond after my feet touch the pavement. I’m also highly entertained and impressed by the athleticism of the door-guys/girls who frequently throw themselves off the moving bus, sprint into a shop to presumably record their passage through this part of the route or perhaps collect money, and then sprint back and leap onto the bus. All this time the bus has continued to move so is often 20 metres or so further down the road.

I’ve seen the door guy help mothers with their children, assist with shopping bags, lift a schoolgirl’s bag of books up the step for her. I’ve also seen one violently throw a drunk off the bus and kick him to the dirt.

A common sight is someone getting on the bus and addressing all the passengers – he or she more than likely is selling little chocolate-covered marshmallow balls for the delectation of anyone who wants one and to try and make a modest living. Many Peruvians reach into their pockets and buy something – the price is nominal, the equivalent of a few pence, yet several people per bus making a purchase might mean the difference between getting a meal today or not.

Another thoroughly entertaining bus-related occurrence is the buskers. Two of them board – squeezing in with their instruments amongst the uncomplaining passengers – and they do their intro spiel: “We’re from Argentina and…… (my Spanish fails me at this point).” However, no Spanish is required when they start their merry serenade – perfectly harmonious and upbeat to bring a smile to many faces. I managed to film them so hopefully you can see the video below…and of course I gave them a sol for the welcome tuneful diversion.

I can honestly say that I really enjoy the bus journey to school. It’s one of the many things that I find thoroughly and endlessly fascinating about life here. Sometimes it’s hot and cramped and uncomfortable; it is always dusty and smells faintly of feet…or dung…or dirt…or sweat; sometimes I have to stand the whole way; sometimes seated I have leg room; sometimes I’m curled up in a ball with my feet crowded out by the wheel arch; sometimes I sit facing backwards on the step that forms the foot rest for seats close to the front; usually, even when seated, I am up close and personal with someone I don’t know. Occasionally I get the luxury of the front seat next to the driver, which I find incredibly interesting, watching how he skillfully takes the blind corners and junctions without a flinch, even when another vehicle is coming at him head on.

I love to observe the people who get on – mothers with babies, elderly women with heavy shopping bags, businessmen, teenagers in their school uniform blasting out tunes on their radio for all to hear, young couples helping each other stand up as the bus swings and jolts, people in traditional clothing, workers from the mines, dolled up girls, tired-looking housewives on errands, a nurse, a nun, a vendor of miscellaneous wares, friends of the driver or door guy who might also join the hanging-out-the-door party, students with an armful of notebooks.  

Every bus plays music on the radio – it’s unusual for the growl of the engine to have nothing to compete with. Sometimes the music combines with the struggling engine’s roar into a background stream of indistinguishable white noise. Sometimes, especially in the evenings, a single blue light glows close to the driver and the music blares like some kind of fiesta-bus. My fondness for latino beats has been somewhat enhanced by this continuous presence of music and I sometimes wish they would turn up the volume. Sometimes however, I just want to listen to Lady Gaga or Incubus or Foo Fighters so if I’m lucky enough to sit down I whip out the iPod and sink into my own little world.

Finally, after the traffic of the main street, the tight corners of the suburbs, the stadium, the swimming pool and the barbed wire airport fence, we arrive at the dirt track that is the signal to ready ourselves for our own shout of “baja baja esquina”. Flora Tristan’s mountainous surroundings and chilly air greet us and out come the excited butterflies in my tummy – I can’t wait to teach my lovely class.

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Friday 22 March 2013

Jess taking on the Butterfly class

Finally, after months of planning and preparation I have arrived in the beautiful city of Arequipa with plans to spend the next four months volunteering with HOOP Peru. I had initially planned to take on the role as the “assistant” in the newly created Mother and Toddler Class. However, once I arrived we began discussing re-structuring the classes as it quickly became apparent that the class needed to be split up, as it had grown so large. We decided to move the older/ more advanced children up to the “Parrot” class and the younger ones stayed with me in the “Butterfly” class.

We have started implementing a new curriculum in the Parrot and Butterfly classes. One of the volunteers, Mariette, helped to develop the curriculum based on 26 weeks of teaching, focusing on activities to teach specific colors, letters, numbers and shapes each week. We are also working to focus on developing the children’s motor and social skills through arts and crafts and cooperative play games.

Jess with the girls at HOOP - volunteering charity in Peru
The kids have responded really well to the new class structure and curriculum. In just a few short weeks I have watched them learn to recite new English words, say please and thank you and to grow more comfortable using tools like scissors and glue. The best part was hearing one of the kid’s mother say that her daughter has been reciting the words she learns in school when she goes home at the end of the day! It’s such an incredible feeling to see their little smiling faces every day and to watch them learn and grow.