Marianne’s    News

                                       February 2008

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dear All AT LCPC

 

¡Greetings from lima!

 

I am   writing this in bed with a temperature, swollen glands, sore throat and ringing ears! Ahh!  But apart from that I am fine.

I was sent home from school today to recover as there is one last final meeting at the end of this week before school starts on Monday, so if anyone had anything to say,  that was their last opportunity!.

 

I am quite excited about all the kids coming back but also a little nervous, because I know if I was in their situation ( the older ones) I wouldn’t want a teacher who could be my older sister!. Can you imagine that!!? Hopefully they will react well to me…..

I will be working with ages ranging from 3-15 so from one end to the other end of school. God willing I will also help  in the Art department as well as the English, as long as the English dept don’t keep me too busy!  The art teacher is the same teacher who taught my Dad so we are talking donkey years ago! ( just  joking papi)

 

The new headmaster is Clive Bailey, who used to teach in the school 30 years ago.

He is now back  in Lima  for the next 4 years. It is nice to have someone else here who is just as new as I am! His wife , Ruth, will also be volunteering , however she will be working with primary only. It must be quite daunting for him  not only to start in a different school  but also to lead it in another language, one that he has not  been speaking at all for 30years!

 

I am attending The Union Church of Lima, which is a non denominational English speaking church. My Spanish is improving daily but a sermon on an intellectual scale is not very easy to follow or  understand … yet!  I have been made to feel very welcome and very much at home.  Also  I have been asked to help  with Sunday school as the group is rather large.

The church is made up  mainly of  Americans,  working in Lima for a couple of years or so while on business, but of course, there are lots of missionaries too. For this reason the congregation is changing quite often, however there is definitely  a large core of people that are here  for a long term!  And of course there are Peruvians who attend as well  whom claim they are trying to improve their ingles! Also there are ambassadors from European countries who attend and even the Mayor of Lima, when he’s not too busy,  I am told!

 

They have an adult Sunday school before the service and it  is very well attended At the moment we are working through Luke’s gospel. It is very informal, very much like the Sunday school when I was young… younger!! , and it is mainly discussion. Now that the schools are going back, the church is jammed packed as families are back from  holidays  in the States.

I am enjoying living here in Lima but missing home as well. The atmosphere of this city is different from that of London. It is has  the bustle , busyness no time to stop feel about it,  however it seems to me the people are a lot more friendly.  For example, if you start a conversation with a passenger on the bus on your way home from work people won’t stare at you and think that  you’re a weirdo!  Which is nice!

Although Lima is developing gradually the poor are still very much on the scene. There are still boys of 10 years and under doing cartwheels and stunts in between cars and at traffic lights just waiting for a driver to throw them a few cents. Women  walking through parks, selling,  with their babies strapped to their backs. Peru is still very much a land of contrasts.

I live with my aunt and uncle and their 8 month old baby daughter. I feel really part of the family I now have the baby sister I always wanted! I have a second family!

 

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