On December 18, the very last day I was in Huancayo in 2011, I felt like a real Peruvian for the very first time. No, I didn’t get my Peruvian citizenship (even though I would like to be a legal Peruvian one day). This was even better: a stranger thought I was Peruvian!
Peruvian
Conquer Self-Doubt with Reminders of the Past
Dance means a lot to Valentino, a breakdancer in Huancayo. To him, every new acrobatic move or dance step symbolizes life’s challenges. Every new achievement on the dance floor acts as a reminder that there are no limits in life. In this video clip, Valentino shares why dance is important to him: It takes a … Read more
The State Versus the Church on Sexual Health
In 1995, Alberto Fujimori, the former president of Peru, promoted birth control by actualizing a national family planning program as part of his agenda to decrease population growth and therefore poverty. The program involved universal access to reproductive healthcare and sex education in schools. Proponents reasoned that the program would lead to decreased maternal mortality … Read more
Keiko Fujimori: Just Like Her Father?
Peruvians will choose their new president in the second round of elections this Sunday. The competition is between Keiko Fujimori and Ollanta Humala who are neck to neck in the polls. Despite Ollanta’s wishy-washy proposals and his association with Hugo Chávez, he has gained a strong following with many of his supporters hardly voting for … Read more
A 5K Race on Crutches
Yesterday, Nestle Milo hosted their annual five-kilometer race through the city — the Milothon. Out of the near 10,000 youth that participated in the event, the winner, in my eyes, was a 17-year-old in crutches who finished the race strong. I had the chance to meet Christian because he wanted to take a picture with … Read more
The Sea of Nonconformity: A Poet and Capoeirista in Huancayo
“El arte nace del mar de la inconformidad.” – Elio Osejo [Art is born from the sea of nonconformity.] Elio Osejo is recognized as a famous name from “Juliana,” one of the most well-known Peruvian films of all time, but you wouldn’t know it from the humble and quiet lifestyle he now lives off the … Read more
Sweet Fifteen
When I look at my schedule and think of all the occasions I attend, I feel a serious lack of special, formal, and large-scale events in Canada other than weddings. (Speaking of which, does that mean people who decide not to marry are just not special enough?) Here in Peru, above and beyond the seven … Read more
Wisdom
The first phase of the project has finally come to an end. We have officially conducted sixty parent questionnaires in sixty homes to assess the general development of sixty babies. As we take our first peeks at the data we’ve collected and as we clarify and refine the approach for the second stage of the … Read more
Phase 1 Complete
This week, Maria and I are wrapping up phase one of our infant stimulation project in Peru – the individual home visits and infant assessments. We’ve visited five different towns in and around Huancayo, each with a very different feel and personality. Some random thoughts and experiences to summarize it all… We gave a workshop … Read more