I just want to start my blog today by saying a big HAPPY BIRTHDAY to papa Parrott, I’m so sad I couldn’t be there for the birthday celebrations today but I’m glad you had such a lovely day and evening and I can’t wait to see you on Saturday, in… FOUR days!

P.s the wifi is finally working well enough to upload pictures and so my blog from yesterday is now full of them!

Today at El Kinder, it was our last proper day as assistant teachers as the next few days there are different activities and events scheduled, leading up to the children’s holiday. After starting their day with marching round the garden, they split into their classes to start their lessons. My class’ teacher wasn’t actually here for the start of the day and so along with the actual assistant teacher, I gave out the children’s work books and got them started with their patriotic colouring and learning about the Peruvian flag. They’re not a stupid bunch and were finished very quickly and with no other work set, they were free to grab some puzzles off the shelves and basically play for the rest of their lesson. Soon it was break time and while Juliet and I sat in he sun, we were bombarded by all of the children hugging us, and kissing us and telling us just how much they loved us! We’re really going to miss them. Soon enough though, they always get bored and run off to play and only a few are left. Along with lots of the girls in my class who always play hairdressers with my hair, it’s always the same two who are left with me, Sandra and Rayli.

This is Sandra:

She is a four year old little girl, with an absolutely huge smile. She is always the first child to run over and hug me at the start of the day, she thinks my feet are an ideal seat, she’s always dressed in pink, super friendly and obsessed with taking photos and then looking back at them! And although I shouldn’t be saying it, I’m probably going to miss her the most once the volunteering is over.

This is Rayli:

Rayli is also four years old and quite small for his age, he doesn’t really talk… Ever and is violent towards the other children and even teachers if they don’t do what he wants or likes. And it’s Rayli’s story that has probably touched me the most while I’ve been volunteering. He lives in Ccorao with his mum and doesn’t have a dad, however his mum works in Cusco, which is forty minutes away. El kinder starts at 9am and ends at 1pm, Rayli’s mother works much longer hours than this, meaning that in the morning, Rayli wakes up on his own and packs his dog shaped backpack full of fruit and popcorn, himself, and then walks to El Kinder, again all by himself. The children receive breakfast at El Kinder at about 11am, normally it’s milk and biscuits, they don’t get lunch. At home time Reyli then walks home alone, or sometimes one of the other mums who lives close walks with him, his mum doesn’t get home until the evening. I think the reason he doesn’t talk is because he has no one to talk to, and doesn’t know how to interact with the other children for the same reason, he has no one to interact with at home. Sometimes he doesn’t even come into El Kinder so he must spend the while day alone. Last Thursday he fell over on the patio and hit his nose which was bleeding everywhere, he didn’t come into the kindergarten on Friday and on Monday when he arrived he still had dried blood all over his face, no one had cleaned it up for him. This week he’s had a serious cold AND conjunctivitis, he’s just such a sweet little boy but such a troubled case. While all the children sit on he floor to eat their milk and biscuits, Reyli will wander into the classroom and bring out a chair for himself to sit on. He’s hilarious, he opens his doggy backpack and will have an unbelievable amount of fruit and popcorn in it, because he packs it himself. He doesn’t match or sing, he’ll stand with the teachers in the middle and if anyone tries to stop him, he’ll hit them or lie on the floor and scream. He’ll sit on the floor if he’s right next to me and can lay his head on my knee and if he’s crying and I go over he’ll stop immediately. He always offers his fruit to everyone and despite not talking, he’s actually very polite. One moment he’s he sweetest little boy and the next he’s the devil child and I’ll definitely miss him so much too! I just hope his whole home situation gets a lot better.

For lunch today, Juliet and I went to Presada, the yummy vegetarian restaurant and had an extremely healthy meal, before coming to Basilica for a cake! (It works out evenly that way)