Sunday Morning in Lucre
Abbie shares a journal entry:
Cock-a-doodle-doo!
No, that was not a tacky alarm sounding but an authentic rooster waking me up. I checked my watch and realized it was 3 in the morning.
A few short hours later, Kourtney and I left our warm beds with layer upon layer of alpaca blankets to see what the morning in Lucre had in store for us.
The evening before, as we sat around our family’s dinner table drinking mate de coca and watching kittens play on the dirt floor, our host dad, Olmer, asked if we wanted to pick choclo, or corn, the next morning. We quickly responded that we did, and after seeing our shocked expressions when he suggested 6 a.m., he decided that 6:30 would be OK.
At 6:28 we opened the door and stepped into the sunshine. Olmer greeted us, and we were quickly led past the cuy pen, under lines of drying laundry and over a “flojo” wooden bridge. The view was breathtaking. There were lush, green mountains on every side, and the sky was a bright blue with just a few puffy clouds. It was hard to believe that this small hamlet and Lima were even in the same country.
Soon we arrived at the chacra, and although the harvest season for most products was ending, there was still a field of young choclo growing. Olmer pointed out peach and apple trees, lettuce, parsley, cilantro and avocado as we explored the small field. Olmer’s pride in this land and his produce was evident. He unwrapped an ear of purple and yellow choclo, grinned, and instructed us to record the moment: “Toma un foto!”
When we returned to our home, Kourtney and I met the two puppies, Bruce and Pelusa. Our peaceful playtime was soon interrupted as a scuffle between a bull and our host dad and host uncle broke out, with Michael and David also looking on.
When the bull ran into the woods, we had time to talk with Michael and David about our experiences from the night before. However, the loose bull soon came back, took notice of David and me, and charged straight at us. Thankfully, the men quickly untangled the bull’s rope and it calmed down before it reached us.
David and Michael’s host mom approached and rattled off something to them in Spanish. They both turned to me with bewildered expressions, and I explained that she was telling them to follow her husband (their host dad and our uncle) up the mountain. With a gesture, Olmer indicated that Kourtney and I were to follow as well.
So we began our one-and-a-half-hour hike up and down the mountain to lead the bulls to their spot to graze. This turned out to be much easier said than done. The path was narrow, with many small stones that had a tendency to slide out from under me when I least expected it. Some plants smelled lovely, of herbs; other were dense with thorns.
We had barely been in Cusco 24 hours, so our lungs were still adjusting to the mountain air. As we climbed, we focused on stepping carefully to avoid falling down, but when we finally took the time to look around, the view seemed unreal.
By the time we reached what we were told was the “vista mas bonita del Lucre,” we were very tired, but our dads were right — it was the most beautiful view in Lucre. We could see mountains all around, houses far below and a laguna in the distance. Our dads smiled with pride as we stood speechless.
As we walked back down, we learned that they make this hike two times a day, to leave and then collect the bulls. Despite the hard work, the families find joy in living in such a beautiful place.
We returned to our houses tired and a bit dirty, with clothes full of thorns. But we also felt a sense of accomplishment and lucky to have shared this experience and completed the climb, all before church at 9 a.m.