Peru
The Chaves de la Rosa Orphanage is located in Arequipa of southern Peru. Around 65 abandoned, homeless and orphaned children, all under eight years old, call it home. It was founded in 1794, when Bishop Pedro Jose Chavez de la Rosa Galvan became deeply moved by the children he saw fending for
themselves in the streets and alleyways of his city, and decided to build a home for them.
The Orphanage made its way into the realm of literature when the French socialist and feminist Flora Tristan visited it on her travels to Arequipa in 1833. In
her book, Peregrinations of a Pariah, she describes how it received children without incriminating those who gave them away. She writes: '[The way the orphans gain] admission to the hospice struck me as rather ingenious: it is a box shaped like a cradle, accessible from the outside, so that the wretched mother can abandon her child without being obliged to show herself to anyone within—a dispensation which often leads to crime' (p 122).
Nowadays, the children are not so much abandoned
as orphaned or taken by the State due to unfit parents or homelessness. The Orphanage relies on volunteers to help the staff care for the children—some as young as ten days old—and to take the older ones on excursions to places such as the zoo and beach. When volunteer numbers drop, so does the ease with which the staff take care of the children, as well as the attention each child is able to receive individually.
As for living arrangements, for a small cost a Peruvian family has offered to welcome you into their home. We also have academic Spanish language programmes for you to choose from in either the Universidad Nacional de San Augustin (www.unsa.edu.pe) or the Instituto Cultural Peruano Norteamericano (www.ccpna.edu.pe).
Arequipa
Arequipa is known as The White City because its buildings are constructed from a white volcanic rock that was thrust from the bellies of the three surrounding volcanoes a few million years ago. It is located in the middle of the arid desert of
southern Peru, in the south-western district of the Andes, and is known as the city of intellectuals and artists.
It has a strong mestizo (mixed Spanish and Indian origin) tradition, evidence of which can be found in its rhythmic and distinctive music and dances (such as the waititi,.JPG)
carnaval and marinera Arequipeña), its delicious and often spicy typical dishes (such as rocoto relleno, chicharrones and papa rellena), and its colonial architecture (some buildings have two meter wide solid walls for earthquake resistance).
For a city where earth tremors are a common
occurence, it has a remarkably relaxed atmosphere. Its climate is known as the best in Peru: warm and dry with very little rain or wind, and cooler in the evenings.
It has many places to visit. These include the 400-year-old Santa Catalina Monastery, which was until a few decades ago a complete mystery. Its doors and high walls closed off all inside activities, and the only people
allowed in were aspiring nuns, who were never again allowed out.
There is also the famous Colca Canyon, where tourists flock to watch as many as 12 condors float up on the thermals a few metres away; and there is the less famous, more difficult to reach Cotahuasi Canyon, which is the deepest canyon in the world.
Toro Muerto is a nearby desert valley scattered with over
3,000 blocks of sillar rock, all carved with enigmatic petroglyphs of crazy dancers, grinning cats, pumas, llamas and native dogs. The carvings are thought to be at least 1,500 years old, and were perhaps created by a band of people from the Wari civilisation who took a break while migrating toward the coast.
There are dinosaur footprints, the Valley of the Volcanoes, and 8,000-year-old cave paintings. But most excitingly, there are street parades and processions, dances and fiestas that take place during the entire year.
Peru
Peru is a land of towering peaks that form part of the roof of
the world, of dry and inhospitable deserts that rival the Sahara, of a coastline that boasts tropical beaches and deserted islands, of turquoise-coloured lagoons and the highest navigable lake in the world, and of the steamy and still largely-unexplored Amazon jungle. Its diverse and varied terrain, wildlife, rhythms, 
dances and food (Lima is the gastronomical capital of the continent!) fuse together in the energy and algería that its people embody.
It has been home to the most advanced ancient civilisations on the continent, including the Tiahuanuco, Wari, Mochica, Chachapoyas, Nasca, Paracas, Chimu, and not to forget the Inca, who in the 16th Century controlled the largest empire in the world. These ancient peoples' remains are scattered all over the
country: from recently-discovered Caral, the oldest city in the Americas, on the northern coast; to the enigmatic, enormous and perfectly formed Nasca Lines in the south; to the unspoiled stone citadel of Machu Picchu in the ceja de selva near Cusco.
Peru is a country of many peoples. The Andes is where most Quechuas (Inca decendents) call home, while the culturally older Aymara people live mostly in the Titicaca basin. The jungle is home to many nomadic tribes who have little or no contact with the outside world, and is also home to the Ashanika and Shipibo. The other half of the population is a people of mixed descent that include Spanish and Indian; as well as Africans, who were brought by the Spanish; Italians, Austrians and other Europeans; and Chinese and Japanese, who arrived to help build the highest railway in the world.
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Caring for Orphans in the Land of the Inca
The Chaves de la Rosa Orphanage is located in Arequipa of southern Peru. Around 65 abandoned, homeless and orphaned children, all under eight years old, call it home. It was founded in 1794, when Bishop Pedro Jose Chavez de la Rosa Galvan became deeply moved by the children he saw fending for themselves in the streets and alleyways of his city, and decided to build a home for them.The Orphanage made its way into the realm of literature when the French socialist and feminist Flora Tristan visited it on her travels to Arequipa in 1833. In
her book, Peregrinations of a Pariah, she describes how it received children without incriminating those who gave them away. She writes: '[The way the orphans gain] admission to the hospice struck me as rather ingenious: it is a box shaped like a cradle, accessible from the outside, so that the wretched mother can abandon her child without being obliged to show herself to anyone within—a dispensation which often leads to crime' (p 122).Nowadays, the children are not so much abandoned
as orphaned or taken by the State due to unfit parents or homelessness. The Orphanage relies on volunteers to help the staff care for the children—some as young as ten days old—and to take the older ones on excursions to places such as the zoo and beach. When volunteer numbers drop, so does the ease with which the staff take care of the children, as well as the attention each child is able to receive individually.As for living arrangements, for a small cost a Peruvian family has offered to welcome you into their home. We also have academic Spanish language programmes for you to choose from in either the Universidad Nacional de San Augustin (www.unsa.edu.pe) or the Instituto Cultural Peruano Norteamericano (www.ccpna.edu.pe).Arequipa
Arequipa is known as The White City because its buildings are constructed from a white volcanic rock that was thrust from the bellies of the three surrounding volcanoes a few million years ago. It is located in the middle of the arid desert of southern Peru, in the south-western district of the Andes, and is known as the city of intellectuals and artists.It has a strong mestizo (mixed Spanish and Indian origin) tradition, evidence of which can be found in its rhythmic and distinctive music and dances (such as the waititi,
carnaval and marinera Arequipeña), its delicious and often spicy typical dishes (such as rocoto relleno, chicharrones and papa rellena), and its colonial architecture (some buildings have two meter wide solid walls for earthquake resistance).For a city where earth tremors are a common
occurence, it has a remarkably relaxed atmosphere. Its climate is known as the best in Peru: warm and dry with very little rain or wind, and cooler in the evenings.It has many places to visit. These include the 400-year-old Santa Catalina Monastery, which was until a few decades ago a complete mystery. Its doors and high walls closed off all inside activities, and the only people
allowed in were aspiring nuns, who were never again allowed out.There is also the famous Colca Canyon, where tourists flock to watch as many as 12 condors float up on the thermals a few metres away; and there is the less famous, more difficult to reach Cotahuasi Canyon, which is the deepest canyon in the world.
Toro Muerto is a nearby desert valley scattered with over
3,000 blocks of sillar rock, all carved with enigmatic petroglyphs of crazy dancers, grinning cats, pumas, llamas and native dogs. The carvings are thought to be at least 1,500 years old, and were perhaps created by a band of people from the Wari civilisation who took a break while migrating toward the coast.There are dinosaur footprints, the Valley of the Volcanoes, and 8,000-year-old cave paintings. But most excitingly, there are street parades and processions, dances and fiestas that take place during the entire year.Peru
Peru is a land of towering peaks that form part of the roof of
the world, of dry and inhospitable deserts that rival the Sahara, of a coastline that boasts tropical beaches and deserted islands, of turquoise-coloured lagoons and the highest navigable lake in the world, and of the steamy and still largely-unexplored Amazon jungle. Its diverse and varied terrain, wildlife, rhythms, dances and food (Lima is the gastronomical capital of the continent!) fuse together in the energy and algería that its people embody.It has been home to the most advanced ancient civilisations on the continent, including the Tiahuanuco, Wari, Mochica, Chachapoyas, Nasca, Paracas, Chimu, and not to forget the Inca, who in the 16th Century controlled the largest empire in the world. These ancient peoples' remains are scattered all over the
country: from recently-discovered Caral, the oldest city in the Americas, on the northern coast; to the enigmatic, enormous and perfectly formed Nasca Lines in the south; to the unspoiled stone citadel of Machu Picchu in the ceja de selva near Cusco.Peru is a country of many peoples. The Andes is where most Quechuas (Inca decendents) call home, while the culturally older Aymara people live mostly in the Titicaca basin. The jungle is home to many nomadic tribes who have little or no contact with the outside world, and is also home to the Ashanika and Shipibo. The other half of the population is a people of mixed descent that include Spanish and Indian; as well as Africans, who were brought by the Spanish; Italians, Austrians and other Europeans; and Chinese and Japanese, who arrived to help build the highest railway in the world. Back to top
