Easter in Peru

We have finally finished our work on the reception of the Hacienda. It turns out we have been the most successful group of any of the programs as we have got so much done. After scraping off the first mural and starting again we finally finished it after working many extra days over our easter rest time. It looks very colourful and cool. We also finished the front path, the garden and the reception. Someone in our group even donated a new computer and printer to the community so they can run the hostel with a computer. It was sort of sad to leave Huaran after living there for five weeks but i was also ready to leave and discover the next place. We left yesterday and at the moment i am in Cusco again and getting ready to leave tomorrow morning for the 8 hour bus ride to Puno at Lake Titicaca. We´ll also go to Copacabana on the Bolivia side of lake Titicaca and then we´ll go to Amantani Island where we stay for 3 weeks. We have been told to prepare to be unclean and cold for three weeks. I´m a bit nervous about it now because there are no toilets, no showers, no taps, no lights. We have to wash in the lake if we want to get clean but then we can´t actually swim because it is way too cold! Actually i am looking forward to the challenge and seeing the place. Also there we will be building a school lunchroom which is apparently quite important as it will encourage parents to actually send their kids to school to get a meal instead of keeping them home to work. We will be living with families there so it should be very interesting and challenging. Well i guess i will update on that when i get back and see how it went.

Easter here has been quite fascinating. I have not seen a single easter egg or hot cross bun but i have seen lots of processions and jesus statues. The biggest one i saw was on Good Friday night we went to Calca (a nearby ¨largish¨town) and all the central streets were lined with colourful designs on the roads made of coloured sawdust in all sorts of pictures and words. As the procession slowly moved the colourful designs got trodden on and all mixed up and then swept up. There were so many people there despite the freezing weather and there were families there and lots and lots of young people all so enthusiastic and fervent about singing and praying.

On Good Friday day we had a 12 course lunch as part of the tradition. Well, to be honest one of the ocurses was popcorn and one was biscuits and there were about three or four different desserts so it wasn´t as filling as it sounds.

Last week after our last official work day we came to Cusco for a night to watch the Cenciano versus Sao paullo (Brasil) match as part of the south america cup. it was a freezing cold night and i was so cold and hungry that i very nearly bought an anticucho which is a popular snack at the game. That probably doesn´t sound bad until i tell you that anticucho is a bbq´d kebab type thing which consists of three alpaca hearts on a stick with a whole potato plonked at the end of the stick. it actually smells really good but so far i can´t bring myself to eat alpaca heart - although i have had alpaca steak which is so good.

The person next to me is smoking and talking really loud on the net and coughing on me so i´m going to leave and maybe write an update in Bolivia or so.