Sacsayhuaman & Cushions!

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Hi Everyone,

Today I have lots to catch up on, fingers crossed that it all makes sense!



First things first, an update on the girl that I have told you all about. She is still in hospital and today should be, all going well, having an operation to treat what they suspect is a swollen and inflamed colon and kidney stones. the information that we have is very sparse and the family are not really told very much, it is very difficult for them to find someone to tell them what is happening. However, she seems to be doing a bit better and we are hopeful that she will be on the mend and out of hospital later this week. I must move on to Brazil tomorrow but the other volunteers here have promised to keep me up to date on her progress which I will then share with you.

So, the next thing to tell you about is the cushions! Just imagine how excited I am, soft furnishings, some of my favourite things in life. a few of the other volunteers and me set about the cushion task. We wanted to make some bright cushions which would be comfortable and would help the girls to enjoy their films even more! So we went to one of the local markets, there are lots of these and after a few conversations in spanglish and international sign language we were able to source the material and the stuffing (just picture us trying to use sign language for comfortable cushions!)

Once we had got everything we set to the task of making them, which took a fair amount of time, with no sewing machine in sight. But the hours of stitching were well worth it. After we took the bench cushions down to the girls, one of the most shy girls straight away said thank you and remarked that now she wouldn't be as cold anymore. That was more than enough payment for us, you know how much of a softie I am, I even shed a little secret tear!

Other than our sewing exploits we also took a tour of Sacsayhuaman, which is an Inka fortress perched high up on the hill overlooking the city of Cusco. The views there were very good and you could see how everything fitted together. Including the runway for the airport which is amongst the houses, not far from where I have been staying. Next to the fortress there is a statue of Christ which also overlooks the city and which can be seen from almost all areas. They call it Cristo Blanco, due to its white colour, in the evenings it even appears to glow.

A short entry but there are more to come as I try to catch up, speak to you soon,

Tasha

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