Camping!

This week I headed out to the stunning Chaparri nature reserve here in the department of Lambayeque for Camp ALMA, a leadership camp for adolescent girls. The camp touched on a wide variety of themes ranging from sexual health to volunteerism and project planning. Since the park focuses on rehabilitation of spectacled bears and breeding of the Pava Ala Blanca, an incredibly endangered species of bird. The girls, many of whom had never left their hometowns, were excited to sleep in tents, eat s'mores, and partake in other summer camp type activities. This concept was completely foreign and absurd to most parents, therefore it was difficult to find girls who's parents would allow them to attend. Since I am a new volunteer, I did not bring girls from my town but I learned a lot from observing and I am looking forward to helping run the camp next year and even bringing some young, motivated Pacoran ladies.
Aside from the natural beauty, the highlight of the camp came when one of our Peace Corps doctors came to give a talk on sexual and reproductive health. The girls proved to be incredibly mature and asked enlightened questions about pregnancy, STDs, condom use, and tampons. Most of the girls had never seen a tampon before and most were thrilled that there is a way for them to go swimming and exercise while they are on their periods. This presentation served as an open forum where the doctor was able to clear up a few myths that these girls believe. One girl cited the instance in which her cousin's friend got pregnant from taking a bath after a guy and another brought up her cousin who had been pregnant for 14 months. The bathtub conception situation was telling of a culture that expects girls to remain virgins until marriage. After showing the girls some rather offensive photos of sex organs infected with STDs, we began the condom relay. The mere fact that these girls were willing to touch a condom was a breakthrough. I strongly believe that empowering these girls to take control of their own reproductive and sexual health will be an effective means to promote sustainable development. Most women here have little to no say in their futures and are completely dependent on their husbands. I recently read a Hilary Clinton quote saying "women's rights are human rights." I completely agree and I intend to work diligently to give the young ladies of Pacora the confidence to pursue a destiny of their choosing. I feel fortunate every day that I have not been limited by my sex and I hope that I can serve not only as a source of information but as a role model for the next generation of Peruvian women. The most wonderful part of this camp was that it created a safe space for these girls to ask questions, express doubts, and dream about futures that do not depend upon the wills of the men in their lives.
I ended this week with a nice walk/run into the campo. I have decided to train for the marathon that the Peace Corps hosts every July in a local beach town. Even though I am pretty sure my parents and grandma will be visiting on the date of the marathon, I am going to train as if I were running so that I will have a head start for next year's marathon. My runs have been my relaxation and therapy time where I leave the populated area and just observe. There are frustrating moments but they tend to be more of the comical variety. Today for example, as I approached one of the pyramids in the national park, I noticed a heard of very large, horned cows watching me. They started walking towards me and I decided to proceed calmly along my path. When they quickened their pace towards me, I quickly veered off the trail and found a tree to climb. I heard their footsteps trotting up behind my so I put my phone and Ipod in my sports bra and grabbed the lowest branches. At this point the footsteps stopped so I proceeded very quickly towards the main access road to avoid a running of the bulls situation. When working with the park on management strategies maybe I should tell them that not only does grazing in the forest destroy the ecosystem but it has the potential to scare away all the tourists.
On my way home from the forest, I passed my fellow Peace Corps volunteer Tyler's house and stopped for a glass of boiled water and some English conversation. After chatting for a few minutes his extended Peruvian family showed up indicating that a big, special lunch was around the corner. Being a spoiled, urban Peace Corps volunteer, I did not catch on to what was about to occur until I heard the screaming pig being dragged around the corner. Tyler laughed a little and asked me if I was ready to see this (in a previous encounter he explained to me that the pig slaughter involves slitting the throat and the draining all the blood into a receptacle to be used in a typical dish). I immediately said goodbye and took off running down the road. The screaming pig behind me served as excellent motivation for my marathon training.