Peru for trip #5

Decided to re-start this, since I'm on the road again....not that I haven't been. I'm in Peru for my 5th here! Amazing to realize.

First though, I'll do a quick re-cap of where I've been since I wanted this blog to also be a record for myself of where the hell I've been.

December-January - Europe for circus

? - 3 days in Florida at Disney World for a Job with Josh

? - 4 days-ish in Chicago for a quick job acting as an excuse to see friends

June - 3 days in Canada for Cirque du Soleil filming & 2 weeks in

Vermont for amazing nothing. Of course with a stop in NYC.

Now I'm back in Peru where the second I stepped on that flight to Lima I could smell it. 5 hour flight to Miami, 5 hour flight to Lima, 5 hour layover, and 1 hour flight to Tarapoto we were stepping off the plane and were hit with the humidity and green surroundings. Waiting for our car to Moyobamba we chatted with one of the moto taxi drivers and he knew of the clinic being built, even commenting on how many volunteers from all over the world that had been showing up. Basically....everyone knows what Luis is doing!

We arrived to 22 volunteers, 3 of which we had met from a previous visit, which was a complete surprise. It hasn't rained for awhile here, which means the electricity goes in and out (electricity is hydroelectric). It went out our first night. Luckily our hotel had a generator, but it still meant water was hard to come by. After two days of travel I was ready for a shower, but all I got was 10 seconds of strong cold water, turn off and wait 5 minutes, turn back on for a 10 second spurt. Basically you better have that soap all ready! I was rather frustrated but after drying off I couldn't help admit that was the best damn show I'd ever had - anything to get travel grossness off.

The next day in the morning we filmed a pathologist dividing blood samples in her hotel room. We had actually interviewed her in Milwaukee - her story is Luis walked into her office 2 years ago, laid out the clinic plans, pointed to a room, and said, 'I need a lab, can you help me?' This is her second trip here and she is the head of the some-day-to-be lab in the clinic. Nothing like an early morning lesson on blood, a whole populations different reaction to drugs, and a new serum from sea horses that could possibly keep blood samples longer in the hot jungle. Oh how I love my "job". Then, we took the bumpy ride to Yantalo where construction on the clinic has finally started! holes, foundation, tall towers, workers with hard hats! All very exciting.