New projects, more travels, and an ongoing political crisis

Now I'm checking in again. The last month has passed by super quickly and a lot has happened.

About four weeks ago, my project at the preschool was supplemented by two more projects. I am still working three days at my "Pronoei", and now there are two additional days where I teach English at a school for grades 1-6. I do this together with a social work student who is responsible for the organization and sometimes helps me when we need to explain something in Spanish. Because the students didn't know any English yet, I'm only teaching them the basics for now. The project is a lot of fun, although it also requires lesson preparation. It's nice to see that the children enjoy learning a new language.

Once a week, I also have a project in the afternoon/evening with older people. Here, too, I work together with three students. The project aims to encourage older people to continue using their talents and also serves as Alzheimer's prevention through various playful activities. This project is also a lot of fun and the elderly are all very funny. Unfortunately, the project will end next week.

My other two projects will also take a break because of the two-month summer holidays. I will probably get other projects for the holidays in mid-January, but that's not confirmed yet. In any case, there will also be time for traveling.

Speaking of traveling, I have been on the road again in the past month. First, I went to a beach location with two other volunteers and two Peruvian friends. We discovered a beautiful hidden beach that was only accessible by a little climbing. We were the only ones there and could enjoy the beautiful sunset both in and out of the water in peace.

The second small trip I took was with my friend Bela, who is currently on a South America trip. He visited me in Chiclayo for two days before we drove to Trujillo, a town south of Chiclayo. Trujillo has a beautiful center with historic buildings. There are also well-preserved remains of ancient historical cities in the surrounding area. Unfortunately, we had another bad meal one evening, so I was incapacitated with food poisoning for a day, especially. Nevertheless, it was a nice trip that showed me new cultural aspects of Peru.

On December 7th, a deep political crisis began, which is still ongoing and has already claimed many lives. Due to a planned vote by Congress to oust President Castillo, he dissolved Congress and imposed a state of emergency with curfews nationwide. My host family was shocked and feared violent protests, especially in Lima. There were already quick incidents of looting, etc. However, Congress reconvened a few hours later and removed the president through a clear vote. He was then immediately arrested as he is being investigated in various corruption scandals. Shortly thereafter, the former vice president Dina Boluarte was appointed president. This is the first time in Peru's history that a woman is at the political helm. In the following days, the situation has unfortunately continued to escalate, so there have been violent protests, especially in southern Peru, for about a week. There have been 20 confirmed deaths reported in connection with the protests. The protesters are calling for new elections, the release of the former president, and a general political reform. Despite corruption scandals, Castillo was still seen as a beacon of hope, particularly among the rural population. Three days ago, the new president declared a national state of emergency for at least 30 days. This includes suspending the right to assembly and demonstration, and involving the military. Despite this, protests are continuing, and it is very difficult to predict how the situation will develop.

I haven't personally experienced much yet, fortunately, the north is relatively calm. However, for example, the already strong police presence in public squares has increased even more. I hope it calms down soon and a democratic solution is found.