AYP: Travellers, Trekking and Presentations

Alex gets the first bite of his cake

Welcome to August! The winter, though bitterly cold, seems to have passed quickly and we are now into the windy month before truly nice weather comes once again. The city continues with its traditions of fireworks as always and the fiestas patrias of Peru means time off for Mosqoy students and fun cultural events. All of our students are in school right now: Mosqoy 3 will be finishing their final courses at the end of August, Mosqoy 4 are just starting their new semesters, and Mosqoy 5 are so excited to be done their classes next week. The month of July had only one birthday - Happy 21st birthday to Alex Sotalero of Mosqoy 3!

Mosqoy’s volunteers and students have met so many interesting and wonderful people over the past two weeks, it’s hard to know where to begin. On July 16th, we hosted another intercambio with the San Blas School where Karina (Mosqoy 4) gave an amazing presentation of Ollantay Raymi for 25 guests to the house that night. In addition to the great crew from San Blas, we had the pleasure of meeting a lovely couple: David and Andrea. They are currently travelling throughout Latin America, having started with a little volkswagen van in Mexico and have driven all the way down to Peru (http://www.zaiguaweb.com). Their plan is to continue to the Tierra del Fuego at the bottom of the continent, getting to know locals and NGO projects along the way. They have included us on their blog, talking about their experience at the cultural exchange with San Blas with some great photos of the students and house. Check it out at the following link: http://www.zaiguaweb.com/2013/07/16/cena-multicultural/ (There are translations available on the side bar).

Karina presenting on Ollanta Raymi for an
attentive audience

We are also incredibly excited to announce that we are working with Apus Peru Adventure Travel Specialists SAC (http://www.apus-peru.com)! The company is going to be involved with Mosqoy in a few ways - as a sponsor for our students, and as a member of our employment network. We are looking forward to working together and supporting each other. On July 27th, Johnny (Mosqoy 3) and Kristina went with the crew from Apus and Threads of Peru (a textile program associated with Apus, who Mosqoy works with regularly with our Kallpa k'oj program) to give a capacitation workshop in Rumira on their homestay program. It was a great success where weavers listened to Johnny as he explained how their homestay houses should be set up (with separate spaces for sleeping, cooking, etc) and how to maintain hygienic standards. The women were fully engaged in what Johnny was saying, and while many of us do not understand the language, we could all understand his talents as a presenter.

Kristina, Maggie and Rolando Huillca (Mosqoy 3) trekked out to the Mapacho River Valley for the monthly weaving meetings in Parobamba, Bombon, and Pitukiska. It was a beautiful time with lots of walking and joining in on festivities. It was Bombon’s anniversary, so the three of them rested a bit on Saturday afternoon and joined in the fun! They joined the parade around the square as members of Pitukiska, and watched as different groups competed for some prize with different dances. At one point, Kristina was pulled into the mix to dance with a cabbage/balloon baby on her back and tried to avoid getting whipped with a vegetable stalk - everyone in the town seemed to enjoy her clumsy efforts.

All in all, it has been a great two weeks at Casa Mosqoy with students displaying their talents for translation and presentation - Karina, Johnny and Rolando have impressed everyone who have had the pleasure to witness them in action.

Rolando and Maggie walk with a man from Pitukiska
nearing the end of the longest hiking day