Paro 2012

The last time I posted I was on my way back to Cajamarca after my Mom's visit. When I got into Cajamarca the volunteers were under a stand fast due to a department-wide strike. There have been several small strikes and lots of protests about the mining projects in my district throughout my time here, but this one is a lot bigger scale. So I flew into Cajamarca and was told by Peace Corps head of safety and security that it was unsafe to travel during the strike. I spent a whole week waiting in Cajamarca. Luckily after the first 4 days by myself some other stranded volunteers came into Cajamarca city and waited out the rest of the time with me.

It wasn't really a bad place to be stuck. I had internet, television, hot water, but during the protests I felt nervous about going outside too much. I spent a lot of time alone watching American tv and feeling pretty lonely. It was a heck of a lot better than my fellow volunteers that were stranded at their sites with absolutely nothing to do with themselves. I spent a lot of time on the phone with the others in their sites. I heard about MCAT study books being opened for the first time, rooms being imaculately cleaned, painting and repainting fingernails, lots of card games with the host family, and general mind numbing boredom from my fellow volunteers. All schools and health posts were shut down and roads were blockaded. It was sort of like everything just stopped. I heard rumors that family owned businesses were being threatened by the Ronda to close their doors to show solidarity with the cause; remember those neighborhood watch type guys in the countryside where there are no police.

Last week myself and 2 other volunteers from the Bambamarca area finally made it through the road blocks into Bambamarca. We were able to get back to our sites, but with the knowledge that we didn't know when this strike would end or how long we would now be stranded in our small towns. It sounds scarier that it really was and I had mentally prepared myself for something to go wrong on the ride into Bambamarca, but it was completely calm. One of the reasons that Peace Corps was so conservative with our returning back to Cajamarca is because the mines in question are owned by an American company. The worry being that someone like me with blonde hair and white skin sticks out here. It's not like Peace Corps is widely known or recognized throughout all the rural communities. I regularly need to explain to people in my town; where there have been 2 previous volunteers, what Peace Corps is about.

That first week of being back at site with no work to do went by faster than I expected. On my first day back I spent pretty much the entire day reading. I would find a spot to sit outside and move from the sun to the shade or cement to a wooden bench. I kept alternating to keep from getting sun burnt and having my butt fall asleep. That day was pretty crappy. On tuesday and wednesday I worked in the field behind my host family's home to help my dad and brother build a new corral. It was really hard work and I felt sore for days afterwards, but it helped pass the time.

At nights I am a little embarassed to say I watched the entire first season of New Girl from my external hard drive. I know that Zooey Deschanel should annoy me, but I love her. Maybe I am just so starved for American-ness that I thought she was charming. I don't want to sound whiny, but it feels really terrible to just sit around doing nothing. I feel like such a failure. I can't get working on my projects and even before this strike started I was already feeling pressured to get things started. Now I just feel like the whole town has stopped and we are all just waiting for something to happen. I shouldn't complain, but I just get thinking about what I would be doing if I hadn't come here. Would I be doing something with myself, because right now it feels like I'm not getting anything done.

This past week was week two for me stuck in site with no hope of getting project work done. The health post opened up this past week, but they were flooded with people since they had been closed the previous 2 weeks. I helped with filing and checking patients in, but I wasn't really able to work on coordinating project plans with the health post. Witman, Eduar, and I have been reading the first Harry Potter out loud most afternoons this week. It's really exciting for me to see them becoming interested in reading. There is not much recreational reading happening out here-none that I have seen so far.

There are rumors that the paro or strike will continue for up to another month depending on what the Peruvian government does in response to the people's demands to end the mining project that threatens the water supply for my district. That means that the kids in my town will have lost almost 2 months of classes (so far they have lost around 4 weeks). I will have lost a lot of time myself for project work, but no one can be interested in working on projects with me when this big political drama is dominating every one's attention.  I feel completely safe in my town-so not to worry.  I am just bored out of my mind with nothing to do with myself.  So here's hoping that the strike ends soon!

Cajamarca have not done a very good job of publicizing their cause-I mean there have got to be some human rights violations going on if their sole water source is truly being threatened. However, if you google this paro there's not too much to read about. Here is what I found if you are interested in reading a little more about what's going on in my area:

http://www.elregionalcajamarca.com/2012/06/16/the-strike-in-cajamarca-rights-violated/

this link seemed a little intense...obviously their target audience is cajamarquinos and the people need to stay riled up to keep the protests going strong.  I would like to emphasize that I am completely safe in my small town surrounded by people who know me as the girl that teaches English, hangs out alot at the health post, and plays Frisbee with their kids.

*I forgot to take a picture of the corral that I helped build.  I'll be sure to post it as soon as I get internet again.