Mas que 30 dias...

Thanks to everyone who has been following this blog! I´m so glad that so many of you want to help!! At the end of this blog, you can find the address, etc. for donations.


It´s a long one, so for those of you who just want to skim, here are the highlights of the last few weeks:


- Climbed a mountain
- Went to Arequipa
- Partied with the locals
- I´m living in a new house
- Rode on an over-crowded bus for 11 hours
- Learned some spanish, worked at the hospital, etc.
- Going to the jungle in September?



This month I've moved into the family home of one of the doctors at the clinic. Even though all of the doctors in Peru have the same amount of education and experience, if they choose to serve the poor rather than the wealthy, they make less than a quarter of the salary of doctors who serve the rich. Dr. Haydee (below on the right) is a single mom who was having trouble making her rent on a doctor's salary. One of the volunteers donated some beds for a spare room so that she could rent it out to volunteers at the clinic.


We're still continuing to work on improving conditions at Belempampa. This week we are constructing shelves so that they can re-organize their patient histories. Originally, the forms were stacked in piles arranged numerically by the last two digits of a seven-digit number, separated in two piles of the same number... sometimes, maybe... (???) While it would take over a year to re-organize the thousands of files alphabetically, we can at least arrange them numerically, vertically, in order, and in one place. (Pictures coming soon.) We are also installing seat belts in the "ambulance" which right now is a just a truck with a backseat for the patient. I think the next step for the ambulance will be medical supplies of some sort...



For those of you who are curious, here is link ([URL=http://travel.webshots.com/photo/2749123230105416534yMdCgG][IMG]http://thumb14.webshots.net/t/55/555/1/23/23/2749123230105416534yMdCgG_th.jpg[/IMG][/URL] ) to pictures of the delivery room in Belempampa (considered the most sterile and high-tech in the hospital). One of the requests from the obstetricians who work there is for a sink or any kind of access to water for bathing the babies, cleaning, and hand-washing. (As of now, we constructed a mobile cart with a basin and water which they use in some of the exam rooms- also missing sinks. )

The other pic is of us volunteers at an orphanage. The child in Courtney's lap is one of many that have been found wandering alone in the jungle.


Also: pictures coming soon!!!!! - This weekend we went to Arequipa, one of the most beautiful places I´ve ever seen. Snow-capped volcanoes, elaborate churches, and palm trees. It was the aniversary of the City, so the weekend was filled with parades, fairs and parties day and night. (Apparently, 7am is a normal time to leave a discoteca if you´re Peruvian). However, my purse was stolen along with my camera, so pictures from here on may be a while in coming.








HOW TO HELP:


I´m still helping my teacher make the bilingual website, but you can mail donations for the street children (such as candy, used clothes and shoes, toys, toothbrushes, etc) to:


Jorge Alberto Huaman Condori
Tandapata 676-B
San Blas, Cusco- Peru


Keep in mind that it can take up to a month for the package to reach Peru, so you would need to mail items by October to make it here by Cusco. If you would like to become more involved, let me know and I can make you a contact for the website.


If you would rather donate money, I can ask about a paypal\ bank account for the Street Children. To donate money to Belempampa, we are currently working with a rotary here, but you can also paypal funds directly to the volunteer organization at payment@maximonivel.com. Just make sure that you make sure the message says Belempampa.


And you can always email me with questions!!






There is so much more that I´ve experienced here, but words on a blog site just aren´t enough. I don´t even think pictures are enough. If you have a free afternoon sometime when I get back to the States, maybe I´ll try to tell the story and do it justice.