Ayacucho is famous for having 33 churches - one for every year of Jesus' life. While this guidebook image of a city full of churches - some big, and some very small
- is true (I walk past five churches on my twenty minute walk from my house to the shelter), Ayacucho is also a city full of dogs. The dominant sound of the night in Ayacucho is that of dogs barking and my walk home in the evening involves walking past several packs. As I am not the most comfortable around dogs, the first few times I had to do this were stressful experiences (which I did with a fast pace and a large stone in one hand).
- is true (I walk past five churches on my twenty minute walk from my house to the shelter), Ayacucho is also a city full of dogs. The dominant sound of the night in Ayacucho is that of dogs barking and my walk home in the evening involves walking past several packs. As I am not the most comfortable around dogs, the first few times I had to do this were stressful experiences (which I did with a fast pace and a large stone in one hand).But then I discovered that if I talked to the dogs as I approached they would be calm. So every evening I walk up to my house repeatedly saying "Buenos noches perros. ¿Como estan? Sean tranquilo, gracias". This has worked so well that now a few dogs happily follow me all the way up the hill to my door - while this wasn't quite the result that I wanted, I am quite proud of my newfound ability to cope with dogs.
Since they are up all night, the streets are full of sleeping dogs during the day. So for me a true picture postcard of Ayacucho would be one that includes both a church and dogs, like this photo I took 100 metres from my house.
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