Dreams do come true

Yes, it's true! I will soon be living out my dream to teach English in a remote land for just long enough to genuinely miss a hot shower.

On May 30, I will be travelling to Peru to teach English in a village high in the Andes. I learned about the expedition from my friend Beth Weiss who (lucky for me) couldn't attend herself, but immediately thought of me. Thanks to Beth, I connected with another Atlanta-area volunteer who got me in on this opportunity.

The trip is under the direction of anthropology professor Dr. Ralph Bolton from Pomona College in Los Angeles. Bolton set up The Chijnaya Foundation to help the townspeople improve their lives, and our work in the village will be done through the foundation. I will be travelling with Dr. Bolton; Jim Sisto, the Atlanta-area medical anthropology student that my friend Beth spoke with; and nine undergraduate students from Pomona College.

Why Chijnaya?
In the 1960s, Bolton worked for the Peace Corps and helped relocate 74 families from the flooded Ramis River delta at Lake Titicaca to what is now the village of Chijnaya (pronounced "chi-NAI-ah"). Some 40 years later, a former resident of Chijnaya came across Bolton's name in a Google search and urged him to return to the town he helped establish.

When Bolton arrived, he saw that the Chijnayans had made some progress, but the townspeople hoped he could help them even more. Bolton agreed and returned to the States to begin efforts for improving the town, starting with the purchase of four computers for the local school.

What is Chijnaya like?
Chijnaya, Peru is home to 750 people of Incan descent who speak Spanish and the indigenous language, Quechua. The town is located 9 hours by bus from Cusco and Machu Picchu and 2 hours from Lake Titicaca, both destinations on the Inca Trail.

Chijnayans hope to learn enough English to draw tourists to their town so that they may earn more money and make improvements. I will teach them some of the English they will need to communicate with tourists who visit.

Chijnaya has no running water, one phone, two cars, and basic electricity. Oddly, they also have a satellite Internet connection soon to be provided by the Peruvian government to the four computers in the town school. (At this time they have only an elementary school. Students must leave home if they wish to continue their education further.)

If the Internet connection is working while I’m there, I’ll be updating my blog with photos and stories about my trip. If not, I hope to be able to make occasional blog entries by travelling to other towns. Stay tuned for more...