February adventures

Yet again feels like ages since I wrote anything so apologies!

It feels like this week has gone incredibly slowly, and I've been desperate for this weekend, more just because I've been really looking forward to spending time with Lima volunteers. We went out last Saturday night with them and got on really really well. Time wasn't really helped along by the fact that Alex has been ill for a few days both last week and this week. The tías were convinced we were going to have to take her for a blood test to check she didn't have Dengue (some jungley disease you can catch from mosquitos) I think before this I've taken for granted how much I rely on Alex to push me, because when it was just up to me to get things going with the kids it was definitely a lot lot harder to get myself to do anything!

I managed to get a few games going in the ludoteca, only to realise I'd taken way too many kids to handle on my own and they were all inbetween 4 and 6 so a VERY stressful games session, which mostly consisted of me running around trying to make sure they didn't kill each other with the massive space hoppers. A game they all seem to find hilarious, until they end up on the floor screaming!

We did a cooking session with a few of the kids on friday, we managed to get it down to the basics so we could still do it in our house, because we don't actually have a hob or oven or fridge! Incredibly messy, but also incredibly fun! The kids were all awesome and loved doing it, it even worked out pretty well, no accidents. They made like chocolate crunchies, basically crushed biscuits with chocolate on the top, their highlight was definitely when we told them they were free to bash their bags of biscuits around until they had crumbs! All the tías were incredibly jealous of them too-I'll try and get some pictures up next week :)

Friday night was cine in the aldea, which was pretty exciting, although instead of the standard popcorn to go with the film we got chicken sandwiches!? I've given up asking now and just take it as it goes, the kids seemed to like them just as much though. I've discovered the kids in our aldea all absolutly love Alvin and the Chipmunks...which I found out on Friday when I had to sit through one and two all in spanish-with squeaky, high voices I literally didn't have a clue what was going on throughout both. The highlights for me were the chipmunk singing because the songs were in english! Haha.

On Saturday we got woken up to no water and no electricity and then got asked to house sit for 2 different houses. Quite a hassle but took us back to basics with old fashioned duck duck goose which they all seem to love with a passion. Alex and I went out with the 2 boys from lima on Saturday night for tea and managed to get caught in an absolutely insane rain storm, so by the time we walked into the restaurant it literally looked like we'd just got out of a shower in our clothes!

Today we went back to Quistachocha (the place we went with some of the kids back in October) but this time with the Lima volunteers. Luckily the rain held off long enough for us to go swimming in the laguna. It was awesome! I can't believe it's taken us this long to get back there, the water was weirdly warm but the further  out you got it was nice and refreshing. I couldn't persuade anyone to swim across the laguna to the otherside with me though....We had a yummy jungley lunch with my new favourite style of banana's-called tacacha and is basically mushed up banana with salt, don't knock it till you've tried it because peruvian banana's are nothing like the sweet english bananas. I'm definitely going to miss them when I get home!!

ALSO the most exciting thing possibly to happen to me since i got here in August...

I held an anaconda!!!!

It was beyond weird, we were walking through the zoo half of Quistacocha and saw these people holding them. It's the weirdest sensation, they didn't feel like I expected-a lot slimier and very very heavy and really bony they look like it's just all fat but you could really feel all the boney bits in them. Still can't believe they persuaded me to do it, but once in a lifetime thing right? And I can safely say it's not something I'll be repeating, once was more than enough!