What's New in Peru

This week has been a busy one!

The clinic was a little frustrating. I was still working in "Nino Sano," which is the department where babies and toddlers come for vaccinations and routine check ups. There are a lot of Peruvian nursing students working in the clinic as well and there aren't that many tasks for us to do. I have be feeling like if do something at the clinic, I am just taking that experience away from a Peruvian nursing student.

This is one of the exam rooms in the Nino Sano department.

This is the inside of the clinic.

One of the waiting rooms.

The pharmacy is on this strip which is the outside of the clinic.

This is the entrance of the clinic. To the right, people wait in line to check in for appointments.

One of the nurses, Karol, that I worked with on Tuesday and Wednesday was really amazing at explaining everything. One thing that we talked about is how healthcare isn't prioritized here in Peru. She said that she feels like politics are put infront of healthcare and this results in poorer service for patients. We also discussed how they have a really hard time getting parents to bring their children in for the required check ups and vaccinations. Many mothers complain that they aren't able to take off from work in order to bring in their babies. I found that many babies where under the average/suggested height and weight for their age. If parents brought in their children as frequently as recommended, this malnutrition could be caught earlier,

On Friday, I made some great friends at the clinic! They are obstetrics students working at the clinic to earn clinical hours. We didn't have anything to do, so we talked and laughed for a few hours. Norca, one of the students, asked me to write out the song "La Isla Bonita" by Madonna for her because she wan't to learn how to sing it in English. She then made me speak the whole song for her so she could record the pronunciation on her phone. It was a riot. They all love to dance, so tonight we might go out dancing!

My new friends at the clinic! On the left is Sharon, and in the middle is Norca.

Me and Norca.

Next week, I'll be working in the emergency room, so hopefully there will be more for me to help out with there.

Monday night, Magdalena, Liselot and I went to watch some typical Peruvian dancing. It was very interesting and the costumes were gorgeous. I really enjoy the culture that has remained in Peru over the years.

They had a very small museum to display the typical clothing worn for the dances!

Funny enough, while watching the dances, I thought to myself that someone in the group dancing looked vaguely like my "uncle" Ronald here in Peru. When I got home and told my family that I had been at the dances, it turns out it WAS Ronald! I thought they were all joking at first, but Ronald actually dances for the group in Peru. I didn't get any good pictures of him, but I'm planning on going back before I leave.

Tuesday was an incredible day. Magdalena and her mom invited me to an envent at this non profit called Peru for Life. They learned about the organization while they were on a tour of a different organization. The project is a home for teen moms ages 10-18. Many girls here are kicked out of the house when their family finds out they are pregnant and then they have no where to go. The program not only provides them with food and a place to live, but takes care of their babies while they go to school so that they can continue getting an education.

Every bedroom in the house has two cribs and two beds.

They couldn't afford to buy dressers for the girls, so the keep their clothes on top of their beds for now.

There is a big brick oven in the house. They are hoping to teach the girls make baked goods for them to sell to raise money for the program.

The beginning of a little garden outside.

The girls put on a dance performance for us!

We had a delicious lunch in their dining room!

Me and one of the teen moms who loves to have her picture taken.

Right away, I got a great feeling about the program and wanted to do something to help them out. It occurred to me, based on what I have seen at the clinic, that many mothers, especially young mothers, don't know what to eat while breastfeeding and what to feed their babies after they stop breastfeeding. I spoke with one of the founders, Angelika, to see if I could develop some teaching materials for the girls. She said they could definitely benefit from some more education surrounding health! I'm meeting with her on Monday to discuss the project more. I'm really excited to be doing something in addition to the clinic. I feel this will be more beneficial to the people here.

Tuesday night, Irma very kindly invited Magdalena and her mom over for an evening snack! Irma and I cooked a pie!

It was a great time.

Thursday was sadly Magdalena and Liselot's last day. They invited me out for dinner at a very nice restaurant in the Plaza. The food was delicious, and there was a Peruvian band playing. I am so lucky that I met them here in Peru. We shared many great times together! I begged them to come visit in Boston soon.

Me and Liselot.

Me and Magdalena.

The band playing in the restaurant.

My delicious dinner.

Can't forget the Pisco Sour!

After dinner, Magdalena and I went out with some volunteers we met at the Peru for Life event. We went to a bar called Norton's for a drink, and then to a hostel that has a great bar called Wild Rover. It was really nice to hang out with a bunch of other volunteers.