Puno, Peru

Despite being robbed at gunpoint 2 days after arriving in Peru, I am still very sad to be leaving Puno.  I'mpretty sure mostof that has to do with our volunteer project at the local orphanage.  We went to paint cartoons on the walls of the bedrooms, but I think what we were really there for was the children.  These are kids who have been taken away from their homes, many times abused, and just want someone to play with.  Someof the saddest stories were those of the littlest babies.  There was one baby who was a month and a half who's mom had been raped.  The mother was only 11.  Fortunatly, the orphanage seemed to be a good place to be.  There were lots of so-called substitute mothers and the kids are in houses that function like family units.  But even so, there was only so much to go around.

I can't begin to explain how it felt to know that such a simple thing that we were doing made so much of a difference for these kids.  By the endof our week there, the kids would run up and hug you, talking non-stop the whole time.  They became family so quickly, and they just wanted to play.  Two little girls, Maria and Adriana, were especially dear to me.  One afternoon, the three of us played all afternoon.  They put flowers in my hair,played tag with me and swung in swings with me.  They couldn't have been more than 4 or 5, but I just wanted to take them home with me and give them a real family.  Seeing how happy these kids were despite all of their disadvantages was really overwhelming.

It was super hard to leave today.  We stayed lateso we could finish painting all the rooms, and when we came down to get on the bus all the kids and the moms were waiting for us.  They sang us songs and gave us these adorable little pouches for our cameras and then we played games until our bus arrived.  Then we spent maybe 10 minutes trying not to leave.  All of the kids gave me a hug and I swear I almost cried.

If I ever visit Puno again, I'll be sure to visit.