Day 2 at Huilloc

As we boarded the bus today on our way up the dirt road, we decided to take a different approach than yesterday. Once in Huilloc, I first met a boy who sweetly followed me around. I gave him a box of crayons and told him they were for him to take home. After a hug and a tickle he gave me an adorable smile!This second day Kim, Gordon and I took the suitcases and gathered with Carlos from Lima Tours and went from class to class. The Eagle Scout project of the young man in our ward, Brady Pope, was a complete success. After getting permission from the principal, Carlos took the chalkboard, bag, box of chalk, and eraser and showed the children exactly what it was and what it was intended for. Once he would say that the chalkboard was for them to take home and practice their math and writing, many of them cheered out loud from happiness. What a joy it was to be a part of passing out the bags and chalkboards, etc. Each child received the intended set of bag and board and eraser. We also saw them taking them home as intended. When we first started handing them out, we handed out maybe a dozen (outside of class). The sweetest, and most dainty little girl pulled out the board and chalk and wrote Juana. It was so sweet. I took a picture of it and then the other children started to write their names on the board and I took their pictures as well. Who knew they had a Bruce Lee and a Van Dam at their school. Goes to show that even children in Huilloc have a sense of humor. With the distribution complete and the Utah State group complete in their projects, the children all gathered around in the field in front of the school and sang the Peruvian national anthem. One little girl performed a poem, very sweet. We went to each class again, this time passing out candy. Crazy. Like any other kid in the world, candy is always a hit.

Two groups of boys performed songs. All in all it was a very touching experience. The Director of the school had previously asked for a donation to take the children on a field trip so we ponied up some cash and expressed our thanks for allowing us to participate in their school. We were also treated to potatoes that were just cooked and a very hot sauce. Tired from the day, we boarded the bus and on the way down we picked up 5 kids to take them down the road a few kilometers. These people live in a nice but harsh climate. Weather is beautiful. Sun is powerful. Air is thin.

Back to Yucay:
We were so happy to hook up with Erwin and his family. We joined them in a local bus (small van) to Urubamba to watch Megan in her dance class. We figured that since Kate was back in Utah going to dance at the same time, it might be a sweet irony. After dance we walked the streets of True Urubamba. No tourists. This is the place the tour companies keep you away from. All I can say is that it was a treat. Sights, smells, and sounds of true Peru. We stopped at the church building and met the branch president. What a beautiful church building.

Since Kim's bag is again a now show she broke down and purchased 5 shirts and 2 pairs of pants. 40 soles. About 14 dollars. Crazy. We hope that the bag will be in the Lima airport when we arrive there on Friday. Todays experience is what we are normally used to. Being able to see the true face of a country and people. The people here are humble and happy. We asked Irwin, Yolanda, Megan and Moroni to join us for dinner. It was fun to spend time with them. Ben made a paper airplane for Megan then Irwin showed us a cool transformer that he made from his paper placemat. Ben was impressed!
On the way back to Yucay from Urubamba we boarded a small van (a "Combi" they are called after the VW of the 70's) that seemed already full but Irwin assured us we could fit. After his family and the three of us got in there were 24 people in there. True Peru. The ride costs half a soles. That's less than 20 cents. Hasta everyone.