How do I say "Thank you"?

Everyday, I am more and more amazed at the work and generosity of our Rotary Families. I´d like to share a few choice stories, some more personal than others.

One of the most beautiful experiences I have had occurred just this past weekend when the Rotary Club of Paita took us to see the marvelous work they are doing for the extremely poor members of the community in Northern Peru. In Paita, the club is working to empower mothers of very little means to feed their families. Besides teaching them how to cook and prepare nutritious meals, the Club has raised funds to support the function of a machine that produces soy milk. With this machine (a vaca mecanica), which is located in a community center of sorts, the women will be able to provide their children with better nutrition. In turn, these children will be healthier and need less medical care.

Similarly, in Piura, there are Rotary Clubs sponsoring a walk to end Polio. The walk takes place on June 14th, and it is a major event. The GSE team took part in a press conference where Rotary Club members talked about the importance of erradicating polio in the world. Television, radio and newspaper sources covered the press conference, and reporteres interviewed GSE team members to talk about our impressions of Peru, the fight to erradicate polio and--of course--the walk! We left the press conference enthused and energetic. Rotary is doing wonderful things in the world, and together, we are enabling our brothers and sisters around the world to live happier, healthier lives.

Finally, I want to mention something that happened when the GSE team was still in Trujillo. I innocently mentioned to my hosts, Erick Barakat and his wife Mary Ann, that over the course of 12 years, I had never gone a day without speaking to my husband, Breton. It was getting late that night, and Erick asked me if I had talked to Breton that day. I said, "No, but it´s not important; I´ll call or e-mail him tomorrow." A few minutes later, Erick pulled out his cell phone and said, "Maria, what is your husband´s cell phone number?" I said, "Why?" He said, "Because, Maria, I am not going to be the reason that you don´t talk to your husband tonight." I started crying and couldn´t speak. Then Mary Ann started to cry. And finally, Erick, who is a tall, strong and quite fierceful looking Peruvian, started to cry. I got up from my chair and hugged Erick and Mary Ann. The two of them are like my brother and sister. They are two more reasons why Rotary means so much to me.

Famous U.S. Citizens, Per Conversations with Peruvians

Seriously, folks, what is UP with the Jonas Brothers?!?

more pictures

5 tips for vegetarians

1. learn to say the following phrases:
nada con cara (nothing with a face)
nada con una mama (nothing with a mother)

2. Ham is considered a vegetable. You are going to have to be very specific when you order eggs or anything else. You never know where it will pop up.

3. Be prepared to explain yourself and why you don´t eat meat in full detail.

4. Try not to sit next to, or across from, anyone who orders ¨cuy¨

5. Be prepared to eat a lot of potatoes.

The Plants of (Northern) Peru

Hello, world:

We're here in Piura, "the city of eternal heat." This is the closest that I've ever been to the equator, but the heat doesn't seem to be bothering me much. What is bothering me is my stomach. All of the octopus, guinea pig, and other exotic meats that I don't eat in the United States (oh yeah, and the beef, pork, and chicken, too) have finally caught up to me. Fortunately, my host family is taking very good care of me, with plenty of tea, soup, and Sportade (Peruvian Gatorade).

I think everyone else is feeling more or less ok, although some of us are starting to feel less rather than more. We are one day past the halfway point of the Rotary portion of our adventure. The two weeks we've been here feel like two months... or two years. Fortunately, we have this afternoon to rest and relax, so hopefully the other ladies will have time to chime in with their impressions.

One thing I've enjoyed greatly on this adventure is seeing and learning about plant and animal species native to Peru. I'd like to share some of the plants that exist here, but not in Ithaca. I'll start with some of the trees and succulents. I'll save the tropical fruits and animals of Peru for another post. :)

The tree of the guayanabana fruit is tall, with very large, egg-shaped leaves. The leaves are a lighter green with darker green blotches. The guayanabana fruit grows in a long, green pod; the flesh of th fruit is white, gently sweet, with large black seeds.

More so in Piura than elsewhere, there are a lot of palm trees. This picture is from Sullana, near Piura, I think.

The almendra tree (almond, right?) has light grey, smooth bark with bright green, medium sized, elliptical leaves. The fruit of the tree is small, orange-yellow, and American football shaped, with a large nut in the middle. This picture is from Piura.

The acacia tree has palm-like fronds and very large seed pods. During the summer, it blooms with brilliant red flowers. This picture is from Piura.
The floripondio tree is small, distinguished by large, white, trumpet-shaped flowers that hang downward. This picture is from Trujillo.
This isn't a tree, but I'll include it anyway. Sugar cane is an important crop here. We visited a sugar cane processing plant outside of Trujillo (I think... the days are starting to blur together!).
There are cactuses in the sierra (the mountainous region, such as near Huaraz), as well as the desert areas near the coast (such as Trujillo and Piura). Here is a typical cactus. I took this picture in Huaraz.

This succulent is known as tuna in Peruvian spanish. I believe that this is prickly pear, correct? Apparently, there is a little critter, which I think is the carmine beetle, that lives on this cactus and is used to made pigments, such as for lipstick. This picture is from Huaraz.

This succulent is known as penca or cabulla. These plants are shaped like our common aloe vera plant... on steriods. I've seen some specimens here that are probably as tall as I am! This picture is from Huaraz.

Finally, I'd like to conclude with a picture from a garden in Huaraz. "Vivir sin plantas es como no vivir." To live without plants isn't to live.