Lima, Peru: Day 1

Ok, so after a long day of traveling that started very early this morning, I am finally in Lima. As I write this, I am sitting in the CCS Lima Home Base, which is where all of the volunteers live together for the duration of their work in the country. It's been a long time since I last sat in a common room with others that are my age and have come together for a specific cause. And I have to admit, it's a great feeling. Even though I have just met some of my fellow volunteers, I automatically feel a sense of camaraderie.

The air is fairly laid back. We are all getting to know each other, mentally preparing for the work that is ahead of us starting tomorrow. We will all be working in different fields in a shantytown in Lima called Villa el Salvador. Some will be teaching English to children, others working in health centers. Yet others will be working towards women's empowerment or working in a daycare center for the elderly. All of these volunteer sites will be emotionally and spiritually stressful, especially in the beginning. There is a "learning curve", so we have been told.

My volunteer placement is a hospice that was originally founded by Mother Teresa's nuns. The hospice is home to over 50 children and many more adult males. All of these individuals are severely disabled. Their illnesses are severe enough for all of them to be abandoned by their friends and family. I cannot comprehend how a person can be completely left behind by the only people they know. But that is the unfortunate reality when poverty surrounds a city's inhabitants. My tasks will be to help feed, change, and interact with the patients at the hospice. I will also be able to take vital signs when working with the infirmary physician. I wonder how I will react to the surroundings at my volunteer site. This work will certainly test my ability to work with those who are utterly and completely dependent on help from strangers.

I have already witnessed great differences here in Lima as compared to home in New York. Both are large metropolitan areas, but one has rampant poverty that I have never seen before. In Lima, many peoples' homes are built of scraps - nothing more and nothing less. This is especially evident on the outskirts of the city, where the Andes Mountains begin. This city is home to some 9 million people. Many people literally live on top of each other. However, this cannot be avoided due to the poverty that many people find themselves in. Yet others parts of Lima are rich and plush, in stark contrast to the poverty that I witnessed on the ride from the airport.

This trip will certainly be an adventure. It will be a chance for personal growth while also facilitating small changes in the lives of individual people. I pray for success, not only for me but for my fellow volunteers and for those that we will be serving.