The Villa Maria team may have only been in Lima for a couple of days, but they have already thrown themselves feet first into life in the community – and we’re guessing a few of Lucho’s practical jokes as well!

The team are bonding well and although bleary-eyed after some early morning flight arrivals spent Monday honing their carpentry skills for their construction work by building a table and set of stools, with the evening spent getting to know the Peruvian project team.

After some much needed rest the team set out on Tuesday to explore Villa Maria, visiting some of the families with houses made by previous Quest teams, and meeting one of the ladies who will be the recipient of their first house. A visit to her current house followed so the team could see first hand why they are in Villa Maria this summer and why their work is so important. The house is in a terrible state, with only a plastic sheet acting as the roof protecting her and her grandchildren from the elements. Hopefully this will spur the team on to work hard on the first of the new homes they will be building.

Tuesday afternoon also saw the first (we’re sure of many) Gringos v Peruvians football match, up in the Japon community. Depsite a valiant effort the Quest team suffered a devasting 11-1 defeat – a sporting misfortune that has been Alejandro and Pato’s favourite topic of conversation ever since.

Yesterday the team got down to some hard work, starting the construction of the house for the Grandmother they met the day before. Rising from their crushing football blow, an energised and enthusiastic team measured, sawed and hammered their way through the morning to complete 2 of the walls – a fantastic effort for their few hours of construction. We can’t wait to see the photos of the finished house.

So well done Team Villa Maria on your first few days in Peru – keep up the good work!