Building a House in Paredones, Piura - Peru

Yesterday, our delegation woke up early and fueled ourselves with a yummy breakfast here at Santisimo before hopping in a truck and heading out of town to a desolate area filled with bamboo shacks and dusty roads. 

When we arrived, we saw a stack of simple building supplies - logs of bamboo, sheets of plywood, framing 1x1s, and wire. We immediately got to work cutting bamboo, nailing plywood to framing, and digging holes. Lots and lots of deep holes which would become the home to 16 bamboo posts to create the structure of the house. The work was laborious but everyone rolled up their sleeves and dove in, seeking out a new task as soon as the previous was finished. 

We worked until 12:30 and then headed back to the parish for lunch and a siesta. Everyone was beat from working hard under the blazing sun. At 3pm, we headed back to finish the job. We hung the "walls" - simple weaved banana leaves to enclose the house. As we sweat and toiled to finish the house, the family and children from the "neighborhood" started to gather to see this new home brought to life. 

At 5:30pm, we finished the house. Our team leader, Juan Carlos, gathered us with the family and snapped our photo in front of their new home. Then, he knocked on the door and symbolically, the matriarch of the family opened it and invited us all in. We gathered with the family and closed the door. As we stood, Juan Carlos said a prayer and then told us that this house was brought to life "through the grace and blessing of God and it is through this grace and our hard work that this family has a new home."  He continues by telling us that the family is "grateful to all of us who have come from so far away, leaving our own families, to provide a new life for them."  

Arriving at Santisimo Sacramento Parish

After a delicious breakfast at The Meeting Place in Cusco, we bid a fond farewell to Lili and made our way to Piura!

We were met by Ginet and some of the wonderful staff members of Santisimo Sacramento when we arrived at the airport. They brought a pickup for our luggage - they must have experience with teenagers! 

When we arrived at the Parish, we were a bit overwhelmed. Piura is a very different city from Cusco and the parish is a maze of stairways, hallways, and dorm-style rooms. We got settled and then came to dinner in the community room. There are 72 volunteers here right now! 

Tomorrow we will tour the parish and get to know a little more about all of the good work that happens here. Continue to keep us in your prayers as we do God's work. 

Exploring Cusco

After yesterday's long & exciting day, it was wonderful to sleep in a bit. We gathered for breakfast at the hotel before heading out to visit Cusco.

Our first stop was the Cathedral de Ascesion de Maria - a stunning basilica in the center of Cusco. We had a wonderful guide who showed us the three churches within the cathedral as well as the many small chapels. We saw an incredible painting from the late 17th century that detailed a major earthquake in Cusco that destroyed everything except the cathedral and a crucifix which still stands in the church today. Jesus has been aptly named Senor de los Tremboles. 

After the cathedral, we visited San Pedro market where we sampled granadilla, pan chuta, and muña.  It was an incredible adventure into life in Cusco. 

We had a delicious lunch at Papacho's - Peruvian burgers and fries with milkshakes! The girls were in heaven!!

Our afternoon was spent shopping in the market and walking through the festive streets of Cusco enjoying the celebrations & parades in honor of the city's anniversary. 

In the evening, we had a lovely dinner and then saw a dance show of traditional Incan dances before heading back to get ready for our departure. 

Machu Picchu

What a glorious day!

We got up early and had some breakfast before making our way to the train station in Ollantaytambo accompanied by a parade of the town's dogs! We boarded the vista train for our ride through the Andes to Aguas Caliente. 

The train ride was a stunning two hour journey through the landscape of the valleys of the beautiful Andes mountains with a view of the Urubamba river to our left. 

Upon arriving in Aguas Caliente, we walked to meet "Eddie" - our guide for the day in Machu Picchu. We boarded the bus and rode up and around the mountain to reach the entrance to the Machu Picchu site. We were amazed at the skill of these bus drivers, squeezing two buses into a lane that only looked wide enough for one. 

Upon entering through the gates of Machu Picchu, we were immediately transfixed by the beauty of this place. 

The ruins of Machu Picchu have a vibrant and spiritual feel and is probably one of the world's best examples of architecture  integrating with the surrounding landscape. Adding to Machu Picchu's mystery is the fact that archeologists still do not know when or why it was built. The ruins were known by locals who led Yale archeologist Hiram Bingham to them in 1911.  There is not a stone out of place there; terraces, gardens, temples, staircases, and aqueducts all have purpose and grace. 

After two hours exploring Machu Picchu, we bid farewell to Sr. Betty and made our way to the entrance to Waynapicchu or Huayana Picchu. 

We hiked up the steep mountainside for an hour and twenty minutes to be rewarded with the most stunning view of Machu Picchu and the valleys below. 

Welcome to the Sacred Valley

Before the crack of dawn, we said tearful goodbyes to our sisters in Lima. It was hard to believe that it was already time to depart. 

We boarded our flight to Cusco - just an hour in the air over the stunning Andes. 

We arrived in chilly Cusco at 7:50am and were met by our awesome tour guide, Lily. We boarded our bus and set off for Pisac.  We had a delicious breakfast and headed into the market. The girls did an excellent job bargaining for their purchases. 

We stopped and had the opportunity to meet some beautiful alpaca, llamas and vicuña. So cute! 

Our journey continued through the Sacred Valley to the sacred site of Pisac ruins. We had our first hike in the altitude and everyone did a great job of taking it slowly. 

Our ride to Ollantaytambo was long and arduous but worth it as our accommodations are terrific and the town is quiet & quaint. 

As Maddie Tallman '17 remarked: 

Today was a long day, but being together with our group all day for the first time on our trip led to unique memories and experiences of Peru!