How I ended up in Huaraz again....

What exactly am I doing here….or rather what I am attempting to do and why I came!...

As most of you already know, I visited Peru last September as part of a university course studying different approaches to tourism. During my month in the country, we visited a wide range of tourism projects across the country. The project that impacted me the most occurred in the community of Vicos in the Andes and is type of tourism often referred to community-based tourism.

Often viewed as an alternative to ‘normal’ or ‘mass’ tourism, Community-Based Tourism, is generally small scale and is controlled by the community in which tourism is occurring. Generally speaking, tourism ‘happens’ to communities, locals have little to no control over it and are rather subjected to whatever it may bring; frequently drastic and detrimental changes to their society and way of life. Thus Community-Based tourism is seen as a way to grant communities control over how they want tourism to be instigated in their lives. Furthermore, it often allows them to directly benefit from tourism, something that too often does not occur in mass tourism.

Established by the NGO The Mountain Institute, the Community-Based program to Vicos is a homestay program, in which you stay in ‘Alojamientos’ (basically ‘tourist lodges’) within the community and take part in daily life there. Vicos is a rural farming community, located about an hour from the main city of Huaraz. Spanish is a second language for the ‘Campesinos’ there and Quechua is generally the spoken language. I could continue for quite some time about the community and the unique history it has, but for length and time’s sake I will stop!

Basically, the few days we spent in the community, last September, made a very lasting impact on me. The memory of the amount of hospitality and generosity we experienced in the community is something I brought home with me. Furthermore, the contrast between life in Vicos and at home stuck with me, and I couldn’t forget the purity of life they have there. I knew from the moment we left the community that I would return someday. When we visited in September the program to Vicos was being promoted through a small ‘sustainable travel office’ in Huaraz. The ‘Yachaqui Wayi Center,’ was established a number of years ago through the generous work of many people; especially Crooked Trails (the non-profit travel organization who facilitated our university trip.) Run by Pablo, a Vicosino, the center was struggling to put it lightly. While, highly motivated, Pablo lacked promotional skills and needed assistance. Thus the idea to return, and help him with the program, was planted…..

 

As much of I hate to say it, the idea of graduating in these ‘economic times’ is simply frightening. The job market in Bellingham has always been rough, due partly to the large number of people graduating from Western and wanting to stay in our wonderful city! It is quite common for your barista or waiter to be a college graduate. However, in light of the economy, the job market in my city is now even worse, even the serving jobs are difficult to come by! It seems everyone is considering staying in or going back to school to avoid the depression that comes with searching for employment. With only one required course left to finish, I face the doom of graduation in June. My last course is ‘correspondence.’ Meaning I complete required reading and assignments and submit all my work by email, which also means I can complete the course anywhere in the world….

A number of things lead me to where I currently sit in Peru; the memory of my wonderful time spent in Vicos, the fear of graduation and the job market, the call to get on the ‘road’ again, a wish to speak and improve my Spanish, the desire to further my understanding of community-based tourism and to assist the Vicos project, and many other things.

The final push to leave came when my hours at work were cut in more than half. In a manner of minutes I became part of the statistics we are all too familiar with in the US right now. Ensuring me it was due to the economy, not my work ethic, my employer stated he preferred I not seek out another job; once business picked up in the summer they would want me back full-time. When I explained I could not survive on a paycheck from working only two days a week and would be forced to seek additional employment, he acted surprised. Apparently, because I travel ‘all the time’ I must be rich; when really it is merely because I spend frugally at home and travel exceptionally cheaply. The really frustrating part came when I discovered I would be the only employee to receive decreased hours; having worked there longer than most of my co-workers and having more experience in the industry than all but one – this was rather maddening. When I sought explanation, I was once again told it wasn’t a decision based on my work but rather on the belief that since I traveled, I must have money and wouldn’t be hurt by a decrease in hours. Needless to say, it didn’t take long for me to realize I needed to leave, and planning began hours after our ‘meeting.’ Within the week I spent 35,000 airline miles and booked my ticket to Peru.

Almost all of my trips are planned ‘last minute’ and this one was no exception. Learning not to stress the details, I always just figure it out as I go; I’ve come to realize that everything works out in the end. Thus this time around; I bought my ticket with the intent to return to Huaraz and give Pablo a hand. However, I discovered less than a week before I left things had changed slightly since I’d visited last September….. I had just assumed Yachaqui Wayi still existed and Pablo still needed help. However, I came to learn that the center had been shut down and Guido, a Dutch guy, who also had a strong connection to the community, had opened up a different travel office and was doing what I intended to do and so much more. I ended up showing up in Huaraz two days after the new office opened! So, like is often the case, my original plan has changed quite a bit; but as always things have worked out quite well!....

Once again, I have ended up writing too much and will attempt to stop before this gets any longer (though like always I could go on for some time!) For all those interested the new website has fairly decent amount of information on it and is worth a look! (www.respons.org) Until next time, ciao and hope everyone is well up north!.....oh and Feliz Cumpleanos to Kiah, mi Hermana (a day early!!) y Todd (a day late!)