JANUARY 2007 NEWSLETTER
And the winner is … Pumamarca
With the school year over, volunteers Andrew, Tiffany, Holden, Phoebe, Chris and Nick joined Peru's Challenge volunteer manager, Ginny, to put together a program for a January summer school at Pumamarca.
The idea was a Pumamarca Olympics in which the kids could combine competitive outdoor events with some geography, art and theatre, generally have fun and learn a little about the world.
However, when only four students showed up on the first day it was clear that summer school would need a little marketing. Posters, free bananas and a lot of walking through the village eventually got about 60 students regularly participating on Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings.
The kids were divided into teams representing Canada, Indonesia, Italy and Australia. First they made flags for each of the countries and learnt a little about them, including counting to ten in English, French, Italian and Indonesian; the national animal and cuisine of each country, and where it is on the globe. Each team created a collage of animals, plants and foods representing their country and even created war cries before the competition began.
The teams scored points for a whole range of events including a competition to find countries on the globe; a quiz; the loudest and most creative war cry and of course the outdoor events. These ranged from balloon race relays and long distance running to the glamour football event.
We were all delighted at the enthusiasm that the kids took to the competition – even making discipline a little easier when points could be deducted for poor behaviour.
On the final day, despite a little rain we held a closing ceremony complete with medals and prizes for every competitor. Both Australia and Indonesia were tied up on 66 points and a cheer off was necessary to determine which team received the special chocolate medals.
Australia ultimately prevailed with its creative war cry which roughly translated as
“Indonesia, Indonesia in the kitchen peeling mandarins.
Australia, Australia on the jet plane traveling to the world championships.”
Beats the hell out of Aussie, Aussie, Aussie, oi, oi, oi.
Written by Andrew. Volunteered with his family for eight weeks.
Antips group for Pymble Ladies College
 Over Christmas and New Year, Peru's Challenge received a four-day visit from a Australian girls school- Pymble Ladies College.
The group consisted of 18 girls between 15 to 17 year of age, two teachers and one team leader.
Before their trip to Peru, the girls had worked hard to fundraise for their specific volunteer projects within the Pumamarca community.
Half the group worked on building a toilet block from scratch while the other half worked within the community installing chimneys and flus into ten houses.
They all got to work quickly with mixing cement, laying the floor and piping, painting the walls and designing a great mural for the front wall.
 The team camped at the school within on of the classrooms and also had to cook for themselves- a hard task for 21 hungry people.
Thanks to Antipodeans Abroad for organising this school visit.
For other schools that are interested in volunteering with Peru's Challenge as a group for four days or more, please contact jane@peruschallenge.com for more information.
Cultural knitting exchange for Talleres (workshop classes)
Despite the different knitting languages we speak, the Talleres knitting group and I have really bonded, mostly over the mutual amusement about our diverse knitting styles.
 The group has been one of the most dedicated and committed this month (a lot of people are too busy with their farming work to come at the moment), and have been producing at a cracking rate. We’re all thrilled with this new project and look forward to them being able to sell their scarves at the next exhibition.
Our new tarjetitas (little cards) have arrived from the printer, and add a really professional touch to the Talleres products.
We have streamlined card product and design, and have some ideas for rejuvenating the sewing and ceramics groups, so we hope that the next group of volunteers will include someone who can keep the impetus of Talleres going.
I, for one, will really miss my afternoons knitting, cleaning cupboards and being laughed at for my appalling Spanish.
Written by Tiffany. Volunteered with her family for eight weeks.
Home visit experience
A home visit in Pumamarca with Peru’s Challenge social worker Iris and volunteer coordinator Ginny in January was an interesting experience.
Sitting on a tiny wooden bench, guinea pigs scurrying at our feet, Andrew and I were warmly welcomed into a family’s home. Looking around the room we were told that this was a standard kitchen, a mud brick room with a very basic fire pit acting as a stove.
As Iris spoke to a women we had both seen at Talleres, we were informed by Ginny that she was over 30 weeks pregnant even though her body certainly didn’t show it. Supportive information was given to her to aid her final weeks of pregnancy and help identify any assistance that Peru’s Challenge could offer.
At another home visit we spoke to a couple who were dealing with serious issues relating to alcoholism and domestic violence. Iris’s approach was firm but considerate and though these are difficult issues the couple were apparently comfortable with our presence and open to Iris’s counsel.
This was an eye opening and somewhat confronting experience and although it was quite alien to the world I know back home, Iris was clearly helping a troubled family.
Written by Chris. Volunteered for three months from Australia.
Finishing the Pumamarca wall
Before the rainy season started in December, the community made over 15,000 adobe mud bricks to help with the construction of a workshop for the Talleres Group.
 In January volunteers Chris, Nick and Andrew helped Peru’s Challenge Pumamarca caretaker, Jesus, finish the adobe wall around Pumamarca school with the left-over bricks.
With the wet season rapidly eroding the wall, a tile roof was needed to ensure its longevity which our volunteers helped with.
Over 1000 tiles are needed in only a 15 metre stretch of wall, making this a big project for January.
Thanks to the Peregrine Adventures group that visited for a day and also got their hands dirty working on the wall and also painting the outside of two classrooms.
Pumamarca teens learn to flirt in English
Be careful what you say in English in Pumamarca these days - English classes for teenagers and year 5/6 are rapidly improving English standards.
English, which for many students is a third language after Spanish and Quechuan, can be a particularly useful skill in the tourist-oriented Cuzco region. Although Peru’s Challenge classes are at best introductory and skill levels vary greatly, they do offer a taste of another language that some students may go on to pursue elsewhere.
In January the youth of Pumamarca learnt English words for emergency situations, to help explain a soccer game, to ask directions and for effective flirting. Some of the girls were particularly keen to try out their English flirting technique on Peru’s Challenge driver, Benjamin, who – as usual - bashfully agreed to assist.
This month English classes were attended by up to 20 students and the classes are an important ongoing contribution made by Peru’s Challenge volunteers to the Pumamarca community.
Nick, Andrew
A new mural for Pumamarca
The Australian mural at Pumamarca currently sports gum trees, a koala, a possum, a kookaburra, a beach scene, and a few sea creatures. The Pumamarca kids are quite taken with the koala, but insist that the possum is a cat. I’m the first to admit that my artistic skills are not a patch on the creator of the Pumamarca mural …
Unfortunately it’s not quite finished yet, despite the best efforts of all involved, including kids and overseas visitors. But we’re hoping there will soon be a volunteer who’ll be happy to do the finishing touches.
After all, the Talleres workshop building will soon be finished and needing a mural too!
Record set by youngest trailers
As Peru’s Challenge volunteers who have completed the Inca Trail know, the four day walk is challenging. On the second day it climbs over 1200m to the encouragingly named Dead Woman’s Pass in a morning’s walk.
Future volunteers, however, should know that the 45km walk was completed in fine spirits by Peru’s Challenge youngest volunteers - Phoebe (6) and Holden (9) – along with their 10-year-old friend, Austin … and accompanying parents, of course.
The kids did the walk with minimal assistance and didn’t need to be carried at all in the epic journey to Machu Picchu. The same couldn’t be said for some of the adults attempting the walk.
A special thanks to our volunteers who leave us this month
Thank you Tiff for all of your work in developing talleres. The cards are fantastic and the scarves are really coming along well. Thanks for bringing your kids over to volunteer with us - the kids and mothers of Pumamarca have a soft spot for both of them.
Andrew, thank you for keeping this program in your mind for more than three years and bringing your family over to volunteer with us. Thanks also for your help in putting together the December and January newsletters along with the newsletter style guide for future volunteers to use.
 Thanks to Holden for helping put together a very successful Mini-Olympics during summer school and for also being the "coolest kid in school".
Phoebe, thank you for always having a smile on your face and helping out with the mural and the Mini-Olympics.
Thanks to all of your for joining us for a Peruvian Christmas and for making it such a great event for the local community.
Next month our program is closed so all our staff can take a well-deserved rest. A great deal has been achieved over the last year and we look forward to what we can achieve during 2007.
Jane Gavel
President and Co-Founder
Peru's Challenge.
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