Dec 24

sharing our life in Puerto Supe

I'm relishing ever minute of having my brother and mom here in Puerto Supe! One of my top sources of entertainment this week has been watching them experience all of the you-have-to-see-it-to-believe-it moments of Peruvian culture.

1. The Peruvian Party.
So far they've been here 3 nights. You may recall that the prom from the first night had me awake from 2-6 am. The second night passed without any blog-worthy noise violations, but last night I started popping pills to get to sleep. It sounded like the child kareoke party was in my living room. Kareoke is bad enough with adults. No one should ever give a child a microphone and expect them to adhere to musical traditions like staying in one key for more than 3 notes. Mom looked like she was going to tear out her hair.

2. The Doorbell.
Every afternoon between 3 and 5 (and some mornings on top of that), our doorbell rings two times in a row, usually 3 sets within in 10 minutes or so. It's a physically and mentally handicapped girl who wheels herself around town looking for someone to entertain her. This is an ongoing difficult situation. Yesterday topped it all. Someone wheeled her up on our porch, so instead of having to ask passing pedestrians to ring the bell, she did it herself. At least 94 times.

I was genuinely busy, and my mom went out to tell her so. Somehow that didn't register, so she continued ringing the doorbell and calling out "Amiga Amy!" (not my name in any language) for half an hour. Finally Tim went out to remind her that I was busy, and she gave him a little talking to: "When I ring the doorbell, you should answer it the first time so I don't have to continue ringing it over and over." Oh dear. I know this story isn't doing the reality justice, and I'm already disappointed. It was priceless.

3. Water.
We ran out yesterday around noon. The tank is still bone dry and we're wondering if water delivery continues on Christmas Eve and Christmas. It could be a few days before we get any water. We're brushing our teeth with bottled water again and stacking our dishes high. I don't think a big Christmas Eve meal is really in the works at this point. Maybe we'll eat Chinese take-out.

To counter, let me list some of the positive things they've been enjoying about Peruvian culture and life: