Rotary and Rotaract
I have had the opportunity to visit three clubs already, including my host club. The Rotarians here are incredible. They are so welcoming and committed to service. Rotary is well known throughout Perú, and in almost every city I've visited, I have found a dedication to Rotary…I am trying to take a picture for every city that I find a dedication to Rotary or Rotaract.

I spoke at the Rotary Inka club in Cusco, and presented banners to both clubs in Cusco and gave them a small souvenir to remember Arizona and D5500. I met with my host sponsor last week who took the afternoon off to treat me to lunch and give me a quick "urban tour" of the stores in the shopping center to show me which ones were from Perú. We also ate all kinds of local dishes and desserts. The next evening I went to visit the entire club, and I was overwhelmed by the warm and generous reception. They all stood and welcomed me with a round of applause as I entered the room, and I was greeted by everyone with a kiss on the cheek (instead of shaking hands, everyone greets each other with a kiss on the cheek). It's a small, very close group, with less than 20 members. There are three married couples and two sisters, so it's very much like a family. There were a lot of smiles and laughter throughout the entire evening, and at the end everyone took turns, going around the table to introduce themselves again. There are doctors, business women and men, a former military officer, professor, and more. They made a special dessert that night (they meet at 8:15 in the evening and always have dessert) because they knew I would be attending; corn-cake, made from the sweet, white, very large-kernel corn that is used in a lot of dishes in Peru.

This past weekend I had another opportunity to speak at the 27th Rotaract Conference in Chiclayo, in the north of Peru. I just returned yesterday morning on a 15-hour overnight bus ride from the north to make it on time for orientation at the university at 9:00 am. I had an amazing time. I learned about the projects their clubs have done in their communities and I also shared my experiences in Rotaract. I made a lot of friends, and I have been invited to speak in more clubs, and to attend more conferences. The Rotaract club from Iquitos, (a well known city in the jungle) invited me to speak at their club, and presented me with a gift to remember them by at the conference. It was great to meet Rotaractors and Rotarians from the district working together with the same enthusiasm for service above self…or, in Spanish it's "dar de si, antes de pensar en si." I also had a fun time learning their dances, trying new dishes and visiting sites that are thousands of years old, still in the process of excavation, and a fascinating discovery into the long history of civilization and culture in the area.

Dancing in the North
The North is a very hot, dry desert, but with a beauty of its own, like Arizona. Temperatures can reach as high as 100 degrees, and there is no air conditioning to escape the burning sun. The rooms can feel like sanas at night because there is little ventilation, but that didn’t stop up from dancing the night away after the meetings! The cumbia is really popular in Peru, and they are fiercely competitive with groups from Uruguay…sorry Erin, our Grupo Cinco, a popular band from Chiclayo, is by far the best. (A little side note: we also beat Uruguay in soccer a few weeks ago, I went to the game with some friends from the language school in Cusco and I loved it! We were all decked out in the loyal colors of red and white for our teams).

They also have a local dance that I’m not sure what it is called, but they definitely had a great time watching me as I hopped about trying to get the steps right. They laughed a lot and took lots of photos…hopefully I can get a hold of those.

My favorite dance was the local marinera. Two members from the Rotaract club performed a version of the dance and it was beautiful. I hope to make it back to Chiclayo during the festival where there are days of marinera performances. The women are dressed in their elegant, long, flowing dresses, and the men wear long black pants, white shirts, boots, sashes tied around their waste, and large cowboy hats. Both the man and the woman in a marinera dance carry a handkerchief in their hands that they wave as they dance. There is also an exclusive breed of horse from Chiclayo, whose trot is different from other breeds, that is used in some marinera dances.

Uncovering the Lord of Sipan
Amidst the sometimes barren, mostly flat and dry desert, are pyramids buried from civilizations thousands of years old. We had the opportunity to visit the tomb of the Lord of Sipan, and a pyramid close by that dates over 4000 years old. Both sites are still under excavation. Sipan belongs to the Moche culture, who ruled the north coast centuries before the Inca (approximately 100ad-700 AD). His tomb was discovered along with hidden treasures of gold, silver and copper. In addition to his tomb, three more have been found belonging to a priest, a warrior and an earlier Lord.

The 4000 year pyramid under excavation nearby, has a colorful painting found on its walls, showing the already sophisticated skills and culture the people in the area had at the time.

Beautiful beaches and the best Ceviche
To escape the burning sun, Chiclayo and Piura have some of the best known beaches in Peru. In Piura, people come from all over Peru to celebrate the New Year on the beaches, because in December summer is just beginning for them. (Side note: It’s the strangest thing to enter into a shopping center right now because it’s hot and there are signs hanging from the ceiling saying “Back to School Sale,” when it’s March.)

On Piura’s beaches you will find the best Ceviche, one of the most popular dishes in Peru. I don't like seafood and my stomach turned when I thought about how it was prepared, but I tried it and it was pretty good…I just can’t get over the texture of seafood. Ceviche is raw fish cooked only by the juices from lemons. It can be made with shrimp, squid (at least I think it was squid I ate), shell fish, and many more different types of fish. I also ate the popular green tamale made from corn, butter and cilantro, and that is by far one of my favorites (in addition to Pollo Huancaina, chicken in a cheese sauce). You might hear me talk a lot about food, but it’s because there are hundreds of different types of local dishes that vary from region to region, and food is an important part of their culture. Lunch, as I’ve mentioned, is the largest meal of the day, and a lot of time and preparation is taken for the meal. I love listening to the people as they describe and debate how the plates are prepared and where to find the best (although, I can barely understand cooking in English, so it’s really difficult in Spanish, but I’ve bought a Spanish cookbook to help me).

The ride home
On the 15-hour bus ride home I sat on the second floor and had a great view of the vast desert and the people going about their daily lives passing by my window. At times there were no plants or trees to be seen, only an ocean of sand with the sun in the distant horizon, but then little shops and homes with thatched roofs would sprout up in small green areas. I watched the men lead their burros carrying loads probably from the day's work, and women sell food or other products to passing busses. Some women even hung their items on long sticks with a can to collect money to sell to passengers sitting on the second floor of the buses.

It was a long journey home, but I’m glad that I had a chance to see the scenery and life passing by my window, before the sun set and I tried my best to sleep.

SERVICE
This weekend I'll be planting trees with my Rotaract club in a poorer District of Lima, to create a local park for the people that live there, and celebrating World Rotaract Week.

I’ve also been in contact with a woman interested in starting a shelter for abused women, the first in Peru. It sounds like a great project, so I am excited to see how I can help, and if my Rotary club might be interested…it might be a great project to support in honor of Dia de la mujer (Woman's Day).

Classes begin at the University on Monday, so I’ll be getting pretty busy soon, but you can still expect to hear from me!

Lots of love,
Katie