Living in Peru : your everyday companion

Claudia Dammert's experiences and her project to better the quality of life of the people of Huaripampa, Caraz.

If I don't know how I got here and how I will leave, if I don't have any place to go back to" these are the lyrics that the Argentinean group The Intoxicados sing, and even though Claudia Dammert didn't know of their existence before then, their philosophy was already floating around this talented actress who looked for something far from the grasp of her peers. You could see in her eyes that she was looking for a game with no rules, for an adventure with no beginning nor end. This happened near Caraz, a little and colourful town in the Callejon de Huaylas, in Ancash, which has the best climate along the river Santa valley. "Looking for something to feel better" is what The Intoxicados would sing as well. And Claudia is definitely doing much better now that she has found her time and her world.

Well, she can probably explain this better. “Once someone asked me what I desired for my life: to grow old and be wise and not full of “b.s.” the difference? A wise old woman is happy, positive, she does not judge people, she smells like roses and jasmine, she is kind, she has a wider vision of the world she is healthy inside and out. She doesn't care about her grey hair or her wrinkles, she doesn't think about lipo or liftings, she makes love without prejudice and she has lovers of all ages, and she eats what ever she wants no matter what people say. An old woman full of b.s. is resentful, she talks all day long about diseases, she criticizes, she is fresh, she smells of urine, she is always on some diet because of her cholesterol, diabetes, her belly fat (the wise woman would call this her love handles)".

The Bees Attack

The Beatles had nothing to do with the ferocity of the bees but funnily enough now that everybody is talking about their White Album, Walter Hupui decided to visit a bee farm in Caraz wearing a new black tee shirt with a picture of the four of Liverpool on it, the bees swirled around him in a very aggressive way and as he decided cautiously to leave the owner told him a little to late that bees hate the color black. Maybe he did this on purpose, just to have a little fun with this exotic looking Chinese fellow with a long pony tail who stood out next to the traditional people of the Callejon de Hauylas.

Blood of the Nusta

Claudia passes her time in Hauripampa, not far from Caraz, where the sun rises over the Cordillera Blanca. Personally, if you don't mind me telling you this, I spent a few nights in Huaripampa back in the 80's with my friend Ana Maria, who now lives in Cleveland,Ohio, teaching foreigners and Latin Americans typical Peruvian dances and I have not been able to forget the density of the silence, the enormous amount of stars in the sky and the warmth of the streets and the look in her eyes, my dear Ana Maria, that has filled my mind with many memories.

Well then, this is where Claudia visits, very proud of her multiracial background: her maternal grandfather was from huamanga and married to an Italian and on her father's side Germans and Spaniards. Her "papapa" used to tell her that they descended from a daughter of Sayri Tupac. 'I always believed this and even felt the nusta blood through my veins. That must be why I love the sierra. I feel like a tsaka nuna (a bridge person) in between cultures. In the south they are called chaka runa. I believe by my own intuition that I have a mission in Hauripamapa where the people are bombarded with other cultures and they need to find their own identity. The more you know yourself the healthier you are. I think that this sounds logical, right?

But Claudia has always felt the richness of our culture. In 1968 she won a scholarship in the States, she was only 18 years old and she wore long alpaca coats, ponchos, hats made in Puno and skirts from Monsefu.

I was always called a “chola” because I wore llicllas, alforjas, and llanques. Today I am considered to be fashionable. And every time I have gone to act abroad I become even more Peruvian. Alpaca shalls and such things… so much so that the Washington Post did a story on me and titled it “Positively Peruvian” , in it my honest pride is displayed.

Sweet City

Let’s ground ourselves and return to the city of Caraz. Antonio Raimondi called this city “sweet” due to its climate which at 2.256 meters above sea level allows for there to be splendid fruit fields with delicious produce. Of course the Italian-Peruvian was objective on other subjects which is why he designated the town of Recuay as “thieving”.

Let’s go back with “el chino” Hupiu and his stroll down the streets of Shoksha. The town advances at the steady pace of the blacksmith’s hammer, Manuel Guerrero (50).

“When I came to live to Huaripampa I separated some money to put into art”, Claudia says. “One day I was standing by the road with my companion Oscar, and suddenly I heard the melody of the Shaqshas. It was the first time I’d ever heard it in Huaripampa. Shaqshas is a traditional Ancashina dance. Danced by men mostly it symbolizes the journey from being a boy to becoming a man. Just at that moment Claudio Milla came running down the road and asked us for help in order to get the costumes for the dance to the Child of Christmas. I must mention that we have about six godsons in the area, so what I did is that I told him I would help him as long as the dance was faithful to tradition and the suits were white and the music was authentic. I also said that I would get him Pepe Malca, the most important folklorist of the region (and the witness at our wedding) to help with the details. He accepted and I began to work.

I called other friends such as Tito and Elbi La Rosa, Juan Carlos Alvarez and others and offered them everything for their help and support. We managed to get them the wardrobe and some of the instruments. Then, for the first time in several decades they danced for Child of Christmas. The people of Huaripampa were excited. Today two different groups exist Shaqshas exist but we are more involved with Mushuq Shunqu (New Heart). Terre des Hommes, a German organization heard about what we were doing and offered us their support which solidified the group. From then on we started a relationship and Pumpumllay (My Land’s Heart Beat), a projected that works with children and mothers from Huaripampa, came to be.”

An Afternoon of Trout

Walter was amazed due to his education on junk food and food made on carts, after he learned that in Shoksha they have products they seal themselves and that they also have an oven to beak their own bread. His attention was devided between the food and “Katrina”, the lovely Argentinean girl who makes them. However he still had to learn more about the heart of Puka Rumi: the mill administered by Norma Vidal (35). She explains how before the mills support system was made of wood nut now it has a metal body. “My grandfather bought it fifty years ago, when my father modernized it he almost died from the shock. But the mills feel is still the same.”

“Finally we land on paradise”, Walter says. The “Piscigranja” is the place where place where you can pick your own trout and then ask for it cooked in whatever style you most prefer.
Afternoon swiftly came accompanied by cold beers and delicious trout.

Custody over Hearts 

Pumpumllay, the heartbeat of my land is a project born from feeling that which is around you and the search for better alternatives in life. We are in the second stage of development; we are listening to our own heart. Our goal is to open the doors to innovation, self-sufficiency and nutritional security and for that to translate into better standards of living”, states Claudia full of conviction.

“We look after 25 children, 6 mothers, 18 dancers and musicians, 13 young women who are working in self-development and jewelry design workshops. The mothers make dolls with the town’s traditional garb. The children do theater and dance. Our approach is focused on emotional intelligence and creativity. We have learned that what is forced on someone does not work. When the quest is an intercultural one then we must learn to be flexible”.

“This has not been an easy journey. At the beginning silence is a terrifying sound and in the darkness is where all the monsters lurk. Today, when I go for a walk in the dark, all my monsters are what they should be, the shadows of corn crops, trees and mountains.”

It feels like the time for something new. Every time I walk through a town more populated than Huaripampa I see the beauty in the warmth of the people. Now, my friend Orlando Velori, who is in Washington  D.C. has written to me asking if I would go on tour with him. It might be time.  

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I loved reading this story!. I have been to Peru two times and I loved the beautiful sites. I would love to share in some of your adventures you are talking about. I did see some of the dances and music there, it was a great experience.
The traffic and driving really scared me sometime! HA. I have some beautiful Peruvians friends that live in Lima. Can't wait to go back some day. Chow! Wanda

Dear Alvaro,
I visited caraz many times because my mom was born there also my wife's relatives,sweet Caraz and places around there are wonderful for ever.

Juan Centeno.

Funny that Claudia does not care about "lipos or liftings" now.

What about when she did surgery to her huge, parrot nose?

It is easy to feel fantastic and critize other "b.s. women" on their 50s or more.

We did like her more when she had the cheek and grace to show the world her "Cyrano de Bergerac" big nose.  That was the Claudia Dammert most Peruvian devoted respect and admiration.

Good to know that she feels like a Peruvian woman, many Peruvian women feel self-confident of ponchos, chaquiras and chullos, not only her.  Give us a break, please!

Jeanne.