I'm now in Tumbes which is perilously close to the equator and therefore much warmer than Chimbote. It's quite perfect at the moment but it sounds like summer could be sweltering. I have a new host family who are lots of fun and have, of course, already had a good old Latin American knees-up.
This is the music group that played at my host dad's 40th birthday. There were also so fab dancers that I didn't get photos of cos I ran out of memory.
My host 'mum and dad' (Frinetd and Luis)
My little brother and sister (Lenda and Sergio)
Me and Frinetd on the balcony outside my room. The top floor is the roof where the dogs and the washing line live (not always in perfect harmony).
EL TRABAJO
I'm working for DISA which is the Regional Health Board here in Tumbes. I really like the people and I think it's going to be an interesting place to work. They do much the same work as the District Health Board in New Zealand probably does - health promotion, regulation, inter-departmental communication, surveys, etc. Yesterday we went for a field trip to a couple of out-of-the-way places to give some presentations to local community groups. I think there's going to be a fair bit of travelling around to different places in the region which is very exciting for me.
The other exciting thing is that they have a big education project coming up and they want me to come up with some songs to teach school students and maybe take some English classes. I'm not sure how this fits into the whole health theme but I think it's kind of like a festival programme with lots of different community-type things going on. With somewhat limited Spanish skills I have to just go with the flow a little at the moment.
This photo is completely unrelated to my job except that I took it in one of the towns we did a health presentation in. I just thought it was kinda picturesque (although the house didn't come out as well as I would have liked).
SOME GENERAL INFO ON TUMBES FOR THOSE INTERESTED
Puyango, the area I live in. This photo is taken from the roof of our house. You can just see the countryside in the distance.
Territory: 4669.2km
Climate: It's sub-tropical with temperatures ranging from 17-36 degrees Celcius. There are periods of rain in the first couple of months of the year. Apparently it only rains in the afternoons though.
Political divisions: Tumbes has three provinces (Tumbes, Contralmirante Villar and Zarumilla) and 12 districts. I live in the Tumbes district which is in Tumbes province which is in the Tumbes region. But my suburb is Puyango (or New Tumbes) which means that I still have to say, 'to Tumbes, please' when I get in a coletivo to go to the centre of the city.
Population: I'd like to tell you the population but it seems to be different depending on what you read or who you talk to. I think this is because it's growing fast. In 1940 there were 25,709 inhabitants and in 2005 (according to the health plan) there were 215,635. I'm told Tumbes City is the smallest city in Peru.
Approximately 90% of the population is urban and it's a very youthful population with only 5% over 65yrs and a third under the age of 15.
Poverty: In 2001 46.8% of the population of Tumbes was living in poverty, with 7% living in extreme poverty.
Main industries: cultivation of rice, bananas (hmm...fried green bananas) and maize, fishing.
My impressions: It's quite a pretty city, especially in the centre - the cathedral and plaza are really classy (photos to come when I feel brave enough to pull out my camera in the area). The centre is nicer to wander around than the centre of Chimbote. There's a few more trees around, which is nice. Like Chimbote (and, I suspect, most Peruvian cities) there's a crazy, hectic chaos to the place. Somehow the population manages to be incredibly busy and rather relaxed at the same time.
TUMBES HEALTH FACTS FOR THOSE INTERESTED
Major health concerns (according to a DISA survey):
- High prevalence of VIH/SIDA (HIV/AIDS)
- High risk of transmission of malaria and dengue fever (don't worry, I'm taking pills)
- Alcoholism and drug addiction
Health-related problems include:
- Poor quality of health services
- Inadequate basic sanitation and environmental contamination
An aside: I used a Ministry of Health toilet in one of the towns we went through yesterday and it was ugly - dirty, no loo paper, the loo didn't flush and there was no soap or water in the tap. I'm not sure they're really leading by example.
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