Back in Puno/Pictures coming soon!!!

I have returned to the city of Puno for the weekend and will be returning to Chijnaya on Sunday at some point. This week has been quite eventful. This week was the celebration for the anniversary of the school which in Peruvian terms means that Monday is used for pickaxing the grass to prepare for the bonfire, Tuesday is all day volleyball/soccer tournament for the students, Wednesday is all day volleyball/soccer tournament for the parents and Wednesday night is the party where all the students make faroles, which are candlelit objects that they than parade around the village with until returning to the bonfire where the sixth graders dance around the bon fire. They then decided that we also needed to dance which was really fun until you breathed in the smoke. There has not been power during the day in the village because they are doing electrical work in the district capital of Pucará. Thus, we haven´t had english classes...or any classes for that matter since Monday, although the adult classes have been going on. Also, there is a livestock festival on the 23rd and 24th so to prepare they had to dehorn various cows to pacify them, which was quite a gruesome experience...and they wanted me to take pictures...so I will have those to show you all as well. Today was the anniversary party for the neighboring village of Tuni Requena. So we left Chijnaya at about 9 and then the party began with lots of dancing and elaborate costumes...much more elaborate than I was expecting...it was quite crazy. Then we took combis, which are like taxi vans more or less, to Juliaca and then to Puno, found a place to stay and now are using the internet. We are going to dinner soon at our favorite place here in Puno called El Buho, The Owl, which has amazing pizza, something that Puno is really big on, and great garlic bread. This internet place I am at now has easily accessible usb ports, so I hope to upload pictures tonight or maybe tomorrow. As for me, I am doing quite well and am in good health and am getting more used to the Andean lifestyle everyday. It is pretty far removed from the comforts of the US. However, the people here are so welcoming and excited that we are there it makes for a fun time. Another newsy bit, next weekend we are planning to head to Copacabana, which is an island on the Bolivian side of Lago Titicaca. I will be sure to report on how that all goes. Until then I will be here in Puno enjoying the city life and the hot water, showers, beds, and great food. Keep posted for some of my awesome photos. I look forward to talking with you all soon.