Monday, July 25, 2016

Peru, Lima: Wrap up post

The last survivors, Lucas and I (Kathryn), are here. Everyone else left for Machu Pichu and we are left with the responsibility of the wrap up blog post. Overall this experience was fantastic, I’ve made long lasting relationships with the team members here and I truly don’t want to leave. The experience of Peruvian construction was one to test our strength and patience. We didn’t have a clear objective, but laid the groundwork and foundation for the support wall, as the next DWC team will be arriving soon after us.



We enjoyed the outreach portion as well as the outings and adventures we went on throughout the week. Some highlights were the bike tour along the districts into the coast, the Inca market, fruit market, visiting the youth market, and simply walking the streets at night to get churros or crossing the street to get desserts at the little cafĂ©. 



One thing that will truly stick with me this trip was how energetic the kids were at the school. They wanted to always play and although the language barrier was tough, their smiles and laughter were worth the early mornings and crazy Peruvian traffic. I wouldn’t exchange this experience for anything and am very grateful for the opportunity and the people I’ve spent it with.


Kathryn Ferragina  and Lucas Ortolano
Peru, July 2016

Tuesday, July 19, 2016

Peru, Lima: Day 8

The beautiful Miraflores district of Lima has thus far been eventful, as our diverse DWC team enjoyed our last “free-day” by touring the city on bikes. 



After a short ride along the city’s winding and bustling streets, the tour eventually gave way to a long beachside strip full of breathtaking views. After checking out a variety of places, the team eventually settled and stumbled upon a busy “La Lecha,” an old-fashioned Peruvian diner with delicious creamy milkshakes and guac-topped burgers.



The first workweek was definitely not easy, as the majority of the project has consisted of excavating and clearing rock with only the most basic of shovels, pikes, axes, and chisels. 





The vision is to construct a support wall for a new school library for the small Barrio de El Salvador primary school. Still a long way to go.




Lima has been amazing and the work has been very satisfying! Back to the grind tomorrow…

Aassem Abdel-Aziz
Peru, July 2016