In- Service Training

Teaching the Caritas group how to make a "losa" top for Cocinas

Meeting room for our WATSAN training

Teaching my fellow PCVs what I've learned about Cocinas

On the road this week to Trujillo, up north in the state of La Libertad on the coast, for EIST (early in-service training). A week with my WATSAN homies and staff.

Before I left, I squeezed in a workshop, teaching Cocinas top (losa) construction for the construction staff at Caritas, a local Catholic charity. They will be building about 60 of the improved cook stoves in various communities around San Vicente and San Luis. They were using a cast metal tops, but have had problems with cracking, poor fit for pots and difficulty of transport. They will still be doing a different design from my stoves (theirs has a sweet little oven part), but they really like the custom made concrete top. I’ll also be working with Caritas on the Vista Alegre water system, so enjoyed building a working relationship. I especially enjoy this type of physical, tactile teaching, since it overcomes my sometimes ragged Spanish. I had a class of seven attentive students and all went well.

Another prep for the trip was the conversion of two pairs of unused long pants to more useful shorts. Had I been posted to the hills, they would have been welcome, but of little use here on the warm desert coast. Dear Paulina, who runs the tienda across the street, was once a full-time tailor. She did an absolutely perfect job, with some of the finest stitching I’ve ever seen. Her bill for two pairs was US$1.85. Let’s just say she got a nice tip.

And so, the journey began – my first loooong bus trip in Peru. Up to now, my trips have all been 2-3 hours on Class B busses, mostly on the Soyuz line. These are fairly comfortable and very clean vehicles. Seats recline slightly and ample leg room, if I can get an “Executive” seat. If not, knees are just a little cramped. They have no bathroom, but a nice snack service – reasonably priced, and movies, which I rarely watch. There is much too much to see outside. To Trujillo, I rode Class A  VIP service. This fleet is spotless, with a “sofa-cama” service that is like a 1^st class airline seat or “cama-cama” which is like overseas 1^st class, where the seat folds down to a bed. On the way up, I did the sofa, as it was during the day. I got the front seat on the second floor, which is directly above the drivers, who work in pairs. This is truly an “E Ticket”, as those of us of a certain age would say. I flinched every time we passed under a low clearance bridge at high speed, but enjoyed a spectacular panoramic view. This class of service also features AIR-CONDITIONING, something I’ve rarely experienced in Peru, and in-flight meal / beverage / snack service, as well as a pristinely maintained bathroom. As well, I had the company of a delightful young lady – Isabela, a nurse from Trujillo.

The coastal desert north of Lima is larger and more rugged than in my area, with vast expanses of blowing sand and steep cliffs right at the ocean’s edge. Approaching Trujillo, there are enormous agricultural “fondos” or plantations, stretching from the coast to the sharp and rocky Andes mountains to the east. Avocados, asparagus and sugar cane are the primary crops; ironic crops for a desert, as each of these are water-intensive crops. While the 2^nd class busses stop frequently to discharge or pick-up passengers, we made only one stop in Chimbote. This was thankfully quite short, as Chimbote is the center of the fish-meal industry, and the entire town reeks of rotten fish smell. Perhaps beyond reek, as one gentleman ran to the WC to discharge his lunch. Interesting to note that the British abbreviation for “water-closet” is used for bus “banos”, even though it has no real meaning in Spanish – a relic of British colonialism.

The city of Trujillo, at least the parts I saw, is filled with gorgeous Colonial architecture, intricate wood-work and delightful balconies, which give shade to the sidewalks below. Since the north of Peru suffers less seismic activity than the south, the structures are well preserved. Appropriately, we stayed at the “Colonial” Hotel, with ancient wooden floors (which were incredibly uneven and creaky) and elaborate wrought iron railings and balconies. Our rooms were sparse, with only one small window and 20 ft ceilings, shared 4 or 5 to each room. Transportation is a sea of taxis, whose drivers are much more courteous than elsewhere, perhaps as Trujillo is a major tourist destination. There were many other Americans, some Brits, Germans and Scandinavians at our hotel.

It was WONDERFUL to be with all my WATSAN Brothers and Sisters. We grew even closer and more appreciative of each other during a week packed with classroom and field training and nightly outings around town. The whole thing was expertly coordinated and ran on-time and on-target. A major factor was that we ate breakfast and lunch at the same cooking academy where we had classes. The food was cooked and served by students who were all eager and quite talented. Of note is that all the students were on scholarship from high poverty areas. Food and service were so good, that I cajoled the kitchen crew out to stand with the servers and receive our applause. I think it made their day. Training focus was primarily on composting toilets (eco-banos) and Cocinas Mejoradas, the improved cook stoves, but introduced some other excellent and useful concepts and information on development. I got to do some teaching from my PowerPoints on Room Improvement and Cocina Construction Tips. And completed my 15 minute Diagnostic presentation in the 10 minute time limit, though at that speed, my Spanish suffered horribly.

Another WONDERFUL surprise was a visit from Sanjay, our Country Director, who announced that the changes in bike policy that Ben and I suggested will ALL be implemented !! So, from here forward, all PCVs who need a bike will get a high-quality mountain bike delivered to their service site, complete with repair kit , lock and good maintenance/repair training. No longer will Vols have to suffer with buying bikes on their own in a foreign land. This was personally very gratifying and speaks volumes about the PCHQ staffs care for us and willingness to change policy when appropriate. For a government agency to move so quickly was impressive.

I left Trujillo at 10pm on an overnight VIP bus with full cama and slept quite well after a delicious in-flight meal service, and arrived back home in San Luis at 10 am the next morning. Smiling a big, albeit weary smile.

A final note from last week: Whenever I visit our Health Center, I can’t help but notice the large number of very young pregnant women. I’m not good at judging Peruvians’ age and too timid to ask, so was delighted when Gloria offered to share the age data on current pregnant women in San Luis with me, to wit:

Age/# : 13/1, 14/5, 15/12, 16/16 , 17/21, 18/12, 19/12, 20/4, 21/9, 22/3, 24/5 , 25&up/28.

I hope that the educational programs we have planned can skew these numbers to the right, at least a little.

The latest fresh produce to come into season is grapes. Not the bland Thompson seed-less like you get in the States. These are mostly wine grapes – full of flavor AND seeds. Just delicious and cheap – equivalent of US$0.25 a pound. Lots of kids dropped off on corners to sell them around town out of wicker baskets. One little guy hawked his wares with an “Uva, Uva, Uvaaaas” song that was irresistible. I bought from him. These same grapes will be made into wine and then distilled into the famous Peruvian Pisco, a raw brandy.