jubilation
25 October 2006
Monday (the 23rd) was my last day in Chijnaya, for now. i spent most of it wandering around, saying buenos dias to people for the last time. i came upon the newborn calf again, and i officially named it lily. in the evening i worked with the head of the comite de becas writing an application for people in the village to apply for a scholarship for a year of school, studying something that will help the community in the end. that is the hope. the seven scholarships are funded by the chijnaya foundation: http://www.chijnayafoundation.org/
hugo left in the early afternoon to go to juliaca, an hour and a half away, in order to buy my bus ticket to cusco for tomorrow and to pick up some wood to use for the roof of his new house. well hugo hadn´t come back by around 9pm, when it was hailing quite heavily, and i was quite concerned that he either got into an accident or was stuck in juliaca. i walked across the village to his house, and that was quite an adventure in itself: huge puddles of muddy water filled the dimly lit streets while hoards of hounds chased me with vicious growls. well hugo wasn´t at his house and his family was concerned, but they told me he should be home in the early morning. well it turns out he was held up in juliaca until late into the evening because the cars back to pukará didn´t want to carry the wood he bought. he eventually returned home late in the night.
the bus ride yesterday was quite peaceful, and noticeably much more green than the bus ride i took in the opposite direction a month ago when i arrived. as we reached slightly lower elevations the valleys were filled with lush green fields and rushing rivers. chijnaya is at a much dryer, slightly higher elevation and never experiences the river where people go to bathe and wash their clothes.
but the people of chijnaya are happy. they do not need more progress to be happy. they´re in peace in their community and their animals. from my experience living there, i would have to argue that chijnayans, and the world, would be better off if americans followed the way of life of chijnayans, rather than the other way around, which seems to be the natural progression these days.
upon arriving at the hotel in cusco i was filled with immense jubuilation with the use of a shower and toilet, and a warm room. and i came upon a restaurant called greens with a buffet of fresh vegetable dishes all washed in boiled water (and thus safe to eat). this, too, filled me with immense jubilation.
Monday (the 23rd) was my last day in Chijnaya, for now. i spent most of it wandering around, saying buenos dias to people for the last time. i came upon the newborn calf again, and i officially named it lily. in the evening i worked with the head of the comite de becas writing an application for people in the village to apply for a scholarship for a year of school, studying something that will help the community in the end. that is the hope. the seven scholarships are funded by the chijnaya foundation: http://www.chijnayafoundation.org/
hugo left in the early afternoon to go to juliaca, an hour and a half away, in order to buy my bus ticket to cusco for tomorrow and to pick up some wood to use for the roof of his new house. well hugo hadn´t come back by around 9pm, when it was hailing quite heavily, and i was quite concerned that he either got into an accident or was stuck in juliaca. i walked across the village to his house, and that was quite an adventure in itself: huge puddles of muddy water filled the dimly lit streets while hoards of hounds chased me with vicious growls. well hugo wasn´t at his house and his family was concerned, but they told me he should be home in the early morning. well it turns out he was held up in juliaca until late into the evening because the cars back to pukará didn´t want to carry the wood he bought. he eventually returned home late in the night.
the bus ride yesterday was quite peaceful, and noticeably much more green than the bus ride i took in the opposite direction a month ago when i arrived. as we reached slightly lower elevations the valleys were filled with lush green fields and rushing rivers. chijnaya is at a much dryer, slightly higher elevation and never experiences the river where people go to bathe and wash their clothes.
but the people of chijnaya are happy. they do not need more progress to be happy. they´re in peace in their community and their animals. from my experience living there, i would have to argue that chijnayans, and the world, would be better off if americans followed the way of life of chijnayans, rather than the other way around, which seems to be the natural progression these days.
upon arriving at the hotel in cusco i was filled with immense jubuilation with the use of a shower and toilet, and a warm room. and i came upon a restaurant called greens with a buffet of fresh vegetable dishes all washed in boiled water (and thus safe to eat). this, too, filled me with immense jubilation.
posted by Gabriel Klapman | 6:50 AM
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