Friday Photo – Meeting Margariette in Lima – in Peru
January 23, 2009 by HeatherCowper
Meet Margariette, who my friend Joanne made friends with while in Lima in December.
Joanne was in Starbucks, having a coffee with a view of the ocean when Margariette waited until the security guard’s back was turned and approached her, selling Christmas wrapping paper. Through the common language of gesture and expression, and with the help of a pocketcomms picture guide that Joanne had with her, they managed to chat for some time about their lives.
Margariette went to school in the morning and then in the afternoon, she earned money for her family by selling wrapping paper. Once she had sold all the bundles of paper for 2 sols (60 cents US or 50p UK), she was allowed to go home. Of course Joanne had to buy all the wrapping paper and then was faced with the dilemma of what to do with it. She tried to give it back to Margueritte to sell again, but the little girl wouldn’t accept it, so Joanne ended up distributing it around the other bemused Starbucks customers. Margueritte was keen to tell Joanne all about her brothers and sisters and her life in Lima and even more keen to be bought an ice cream.
Is this the essence of travel, to make connections with other people’s lives, leaving a little trace of sunshine in ours?
Photo friday is hosted by Delicious Baby - see all the other Friday photos at Delicious Baby here.
Read related posts
My Indian Sponsor Child
Sleeping in a canoe in Ecuador
Defending the rainforest in Ecuador
See Joanne’s photos from Peru on Flickr here
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soultravelers3 on Fri, 23rd Jan 2009 11:36 am
Yes, connecting with locals is the essence of travel! It reminded me of some girls we met on a very small island in Turkey only accessible by boat. We had a great time talking to them and buying their handmade items that we ended up wearing around Turkey for the rest of our trip.
We like immersing deeply on our open ended world tour and really getting to know the local people if at all possible by going slow. We have been surprised by how many people invite us into their homes. We tend to find the more rural areas and small, authentic villages more rewarding, although we enjoy the culture advantages of big cities for short visits too.
Boy you have lots of changes here on your site, looks great!
Beth Whitman on Fri, 23rd Jan 2009 3:26 pm
Heather – I’ve seen so many of these young beautiful children in my travels. Selling trinkets, postcards, jewelry. Margariette looks so sweet I want to reach out and hug her!
Angela Nickerson on Fri, 23rd Jan 2009 5:01 pm
What a stirring story (I am so glad she goes to school) and a charming photo!
Lifecruiser on Fri, 23rd Jan 2009 7:11 pm
I just love when things like this happens! Such wonderful moments to treasure
Deborah Dubrow on Fri, 23rd Jan 2009 11:43 pm
We love connecting with kids when we travel – they’re so open that you really get a fuller picture of what real life is like. Thanks so much for sharing.
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Dominique on Sat, 24th Jan 2009 5:35 pm
Like Angela, I was glad to hear your new friend has the opportunity to go to school.
Sounds like a nice encounter with a sweet young lady
MachuPicchu Tours on Wed, 28th Jan 2009 6:45 pm
Nice to hear such a pretty story. As a peruvian guy I can understand when some foreigners (and locals too)
feel uncomfortable because of the persistent insistence of street vendors. But as everything in life it depends on the persons, in this case in who tries to sell us something, when we find a friendly aproach instead of aggression, smiles instead of long faces, honest words instead of an attempt to deceive, the result can be not only a successful sale for a person who really needs some money, but a nice experience for both sides, as shown here.
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