(...or, "a letter from Fed," express e-mailed to me yesterday. Fed Baradello is currently in Peru, and had a bit of a problem accessing his weblog. So, he e-mailed me this description and am posting it here, as what he had to say is quite eye-opening, and worth sharing as broadly as possible)

(Lloyd and friends... There's some problem with my weblog... I'll try to get this on it later, but forward this entry to some other of our friends (i.e. Tom) who I don´t have an e-mail address handy. Internet is scarce here!! it´s hard to get online!!)

...

Let's begin with an excuse for my tardy entry. I arrived at SFO fresh, excited and ready to go. Unfortunately, the small plane I was taking to Los Angeles to catch my LanChile connection to Lima didn't. After a one hour delay and being convinced by American Airlines that I would in fact make my LanChile connection, I left SFO a bit flustered, but excited nonetheless.

By the time the plane landed in LA, I was already checking my watch nervously, seeing that my International flight was only 30 minutes from takeoff. As overconfident as I've been known to be, I was already beginning to doubt myself. I ran as fast as I could across the airport (if I bumped into you along the way, my most sincere apologies) and finally arrived at the LanChile gate, only to see the door bolt shut right in my face.

Argh.

After much frustration and flashing around of my dad's indispensable AA Platinum Card, I was able to fly to Miami six hours later that evening and the evening of the following day a ticket on American to Lima. So I'm here, alive and well.

Let me begin by telling you what perhaps you already knew: this is another world; and in that acumen, if this is another world, I am an extra-terrestrial. Yes, I speak some Spanish, but I am completely clueless where people, culture and traditions are concerned.

Ladies and gentlemen, I am on the other side of the Divide. Of the 1,200 children that frequent this public parochial school/orphanage, there is 1 computer with Internet access capability, which, because of the extortionate hourly rates, is used at most thirty minutes a day. Motorola and Discovery Channel have recently begun Proyecto Plata here, with promise to expand the computer lab and media center in the school within the next few months.

Enough with that. I was very happy to be met in the Lima airport by Sister Alejandrina, who took me the orphanage and made me feel so welcome these past days. I am the first American teenager in these parts, and needless to say I'm being considered by the students as some kind of rock-star. Already, I've been asked to sign autographs, take photos, and all sorts of questions about the United States. Perhaps most striking are the little orphaned girls here, who lacking a paternal figure cling to your legs and follow you wherever you go.

My first day was spent in the English and Computer classrooms, introducing myself and answering questions (half in English, half in Spanish). I was dismayed especially in the computer lab to see four teenagers huddled around a 4-5 year old Pentium learning how to use WordPad. The Digital Divide is Real.

I also put my dad's words to the test and inspected the business quotient in the equation. The students, along with their studies, devote a piece of their day to a certain trade. The school is equipped with a small bakery and textile mill for kids to learn how to make products These goods are eventually sold or bartered to neighboring schools and businesses to help raise money for the school. I can see perfectly where the Internet could step in, allowing the school/orphanage to make itself public, raising greater outside interest in the goods it has to offer, as well as philanthropy.

There is no electricity tonight due to a short circuit (maybe caused by my Powerbook? :-/) but let me leave you with one final thought: gratitude. I spoke the other day about how important it is for us to be thankful to own everything we do, etc., etc. We are so fortunate to live in the United States, yet we are also very forgetful (as I have been) and failed to see the greater spectrum of the world. We're all in the top 0.001% of the masses! What, therefore, should be our responsibility to take care of the rest?

I look forward to reading your responses and writing more when I have the opportunity.

FB

{ net.casting }
^