After a long and pleasant bus travel along the coast and through the Andes, we arrived in Huamanga, known to Westerners as Ayacucho. Here, we had learned, was the artisanal capital of Peru. With its large blocks full of colonial architecture and generous court yards, rich indigenous history and a stunning Andean panorama, Huamanga is a sight to behold.
Unfortunately for us, after a few days in the city, we concluded that alpaca textiles played a relatively small roll. Therefore, we decided to split up: Gabriel would continued on to Puno, where many locals recommended us to go, while I stayed in Ayacucho. This Update will thus detail my time in Ayacucho, while Update 8.2 paints a picture of Gabriel’s experience in Puno.
As we had done in Cotacachi, I decided to volunteer with a family of artisans, giving English classes to kids whose families can’t afford them. This family is quite amazing: owning a small, simple, house without a toilet, hot water or floors, in a community of little wealth, they dedicate their lives to helping others. Often, they will offer free meals to the hungry, especially children. What little spare space they have in the house, they offer to volunteers in order to be able to provide free English classes. And for the future, they hope to gain volunteers with medical backgrounds, in order to offer free basic health services to those around. They are a true inspiration to us and, no doubt, anyone who spends some time with them.
Professionally, I spent much time with these people learning about textiles, from spinning over embroidery to weaving, giving us a far greater understanding of the products we are working with. The sheer skill, precision and effort required to weave an even scarf is incredible. Adding patterns and other designs makes the process even more complex. All this deepened our admiration for the people we work with, fostering our appreciation of the products they craft.
By the end of the week, Gabriel and I had a final call to decide on where to proceed with the project. Although we would have loved to keep working with the host family, we had to recognize the huge presence of alpacas and the products they enable in Puno. Paired with the very skilled craftsmen and -women, whose pride is rooted in a long tradition of working with alpaca textiles, Puno turned out to be the ideal location for us to establish a fair, local supply chain for alpaca products.
However, if you are interested, we highly encourage you to take a look at the beautiful products made by my host family’s Wiñay Maki. They specialize in embroidery and woven products, offering beautifully coloured items from belts to table runners. What’s more, you can be sure that a Wiñay Maki product was hand-made in fair working conditions, so buying their fair fashion helps local community members improve their income and quality of life. For more details, see http://winaymaki.com/indexEN.html.
And despite not being able to cooperate with Wiñay Maki (for now), I am eternally grateful for the amazing experience of volunteering here. I learned a great deal about local Andean cuisine, traditional dances, and community customs. For instance, while you may barely notice when a new house is built in your neighbourhood, an Andean community will celebrate such an event for hours on end, with singing, dancing, food and fireworks. An amazing experience, leaving me envious of the strong sense of community people have in this region.