Day 3- June 17, 2013

Queridos  padres,

familiares y amigos:

Yesterday, June 17, we spent our first day at the Inca town of Ollantaytambo. Ollantaytambo is located in the Valle Sagrado (Holy Valley) of the Incas. It is 2,800 meters above sea level. I leave you the math part to do the feet. The diversity of its architecture, and the uniqueness of the various types of constructions, make Ollantaytambo Peru’s most amazing archeological park. Grand pieces of stone, varying in shapes, and with excellent engravings present a veritable work of art in every architectural grouping. The originality of the town that preserves the lively image of its urban planning, its residences and its water canals is secured by an impressive fortress with its temples, step terraces, and walls.

The students spent the morning doing a scavenger hunt activity that allowed them to explore the town and identify the most impressive building as well as some of the community buildings. They all are in good shape: no headaches and acclimatizing to the altitude very well.

E. Faus

We were given a list of locations, buildings and businesses and were told to find as many as possible in 2 hours. My group was Miah, Melissa and I, a combination of Peru veterans and Spanish speakers. We set out and quickly found the market and the church, then the soccer stadium and train station. Once we knocked out the locations that we knew it got more difficult. We needed to ask for help and directions, and although this was probably the hardest part of the activity, it was my favorite. By interacting with the people in town, we were able to find our way to the clinic, the cemetery, and a street called “Pata Calle”. While successful and vital to achieve the objective, the real value of the activity was being able to communicate with the locals, getting to know them a little better, and explaining why we are here.

Early in the evening we all moved to Bandolista to meet our host families and to see the local school where we will do our service work. Our families were waiting for us at the road and they helped us to carry our backpacks to the houses. The house James and I are staying at is very impressive and elegant although simple, as James pointed out “Dude, we’re in a valley of awesomeness”. It is a 2 story building with a courtyard on the main floor. There is a garden and a spectacular view. My family is outgoing and kind; we spent all evening with them playing soccer, a Peruvian game with tops, watching Combate, singing and dancing and talking. I’m having a great time and I can’t wait to spend more time with my family.

Julian H-W