Christmas

Hello all,

Well, this week was a fairly eventful one for down here. Christmas was a mixed bag. On Christmas Eve I ran into an American tourist I met in the regional capital of Chivay. He had walked all the way to my town, an hour´s ride by combi and a 3 day trip taking it easy. We hung out most of the night and then went to my municipality at midnight to share in hot chocolate and paneton, a type of fruitcake before heading off to bed (as that is significantly past what I´m used to staying up to down here... I´m turning into an old man).
That is pretty much all that happens down in the valley on Christmas. The next day the municipality hands out toys to the kids in town and paneton to the families to enjoy. Then the families go back to doing what they usually do, which means going out to work in the fields like it was any other day.
The next morning I gave my family their presents (a small radio they can carry to the fields so that husband and wife will both have one and markers for the little girl) and walked to the nearby town of Lari to watch my buddy place a soccer game. I actually did get a present from the municipality, which was a little unexpected because adults don´t generally receive anything. It was my own entire Paneton, which I shared with my friends a couple of days later.
To celebrate Christmas using some English, me and some buddies from the area took a day trip over to a town called Tapay in the canyon. It is very unique for a couple of reasons. First off there is no road there. You need to hike down a mountain to get there, which takes 2 and half hours down and 4 to go back up if you´re in miserable shape as I still am, regardless of all the weight dropping. The second reason that it is unique is its temperate climate. It is nestled in the canyon next to the river and has an almost tropical climate. It has lush vegetation and fruit such as peaches and pears are grown there, a rarity in the valley. It was a nice trip, although I wish I had spent some more time there, if only to rest, as I was pretty much broken at the end of the day.
Well, that is about it. I hear that not much besides drinking is accomplished on New Year´s Eve, which would be consistent with most places worldwide. I will probably try to use this opportunity (because nothing will be accomplished that day) to bounce down to the capital and take care of some errands during the day, like finally getting my bank changed over to one that is at all useful to me, before doing a little cookout in the evening to celebrate (it is summer and all down here)...