Most Dangerous Ways To School | PERU | Free Documentary

(attractive music) Presenter: We all know it, we walk it every day, but none of us were like that. The world's

most

dangerous

roads to

school

, climbing,

free

zing, paddling for hours, all for the chance at a better life. Risky, spectacular and sometimes simply beautiful. The

most

dangerous

roads to go to

school

. Peru, Lake Titicaca, 3,800 meters above sea level, the largest mountain lake in the world. In this lake two schools where children learn and fight for their dreams. But the way to school passes through endless waters and even the smallest children have to fend for themselves. Almost daily, almost four hours paddling and walking through reeds, al

ways

fighting with nature on one of the most dangerous roads in the world to school. (dramatic music) At five o'clock, the first rays of the sun break through the clouds over Lake Titicaca, Peru.

A new day dawns. (light piano music) A few kilometers from the mainland, somewhat hidden among huge fields of reeds, about 50 families of the Uru clan, the native inhabitants of Lake Titicaca, live together on the community of floating reed islands. A family lives in each one. At dawn, Mariella, nine years old, and her little sister Belinda get up. Still a little sleepy, they put on their traditional school uniform on their own. His parents are fishing. The older brothers work on the continent. Hair care is especially important; every morning the sisters comb their hair abundantly and then braid it.

That is what Indian tradition demands. (The girls laugh) Because hair means strength, beauty and life in Uru culture, it needs special attention. On the other side of the town something is also moving. Four-year-old Harold is an early riser; After all, kindergarten awaits him, but the morning bath in cold lake water is not one of his favorite pastimes. The colorful children's hats are not only part of traditional clothing, but also offer protection against the aggressive sun in this high mountain region. (attractive music) Far from the town, a three-hour boat ride from the mainland, 11-year-old Vidal and his family also get up at dawn.

They live on a small, isolated island in the middle of the largest mountain lake in the world. (The rooster crows) But before Vidal can prepare for the dangerous journey to school, he must take care of his family's livelihood. Like every morning, he checks the fishing nets. Vidal has built his boat himself, which like almost everything on this lake, is made of reeds. The water here is only two meters deep. The 11-year-old boy pushes the boat forward with a long wooden stick; This is how the Urus have navigated the lake peacefully for centuries. Especially in winter, with

free

zing temperatures, fishing is hard work; on a lake located 3,800 meters above sea level.

By tradition Vidal replaces his father, who at this time of day is busy with other tasks. Due to increasing water pollution in recent years, performance has not improved. Vidal is even happier if he finds something on the net. (dramatic music) (foreign language spoken) -: I really like fishing because then we could eat the fish, if there is anything left in the basket, my mother can exchange it for something else on dry land. Presenter: After work comes time for a well-deserved refreshment; Cooking and eating is done outdoors. Vidal's mother prepares breakfast for the family of eight. She bakes traditional Uru bread.

Her entire life passes on a 30 square meter island with two small cane cabins. None of the children have their own room. Vidal is prepared with reed flower tea. Today he will need a lot of strength, because Lake Titicaca, with a total surface area of ​​almost 8,300 square kilometers, which he must cross on his way to school, is the largest navigable lake in the world. (dramatic music) At half past six, Vidal begins his adventure trip to the Uru State Primary School. Two hours await him, crossing the large lake, alone. (birds singing) Two hours to arrive and another two hours to return in the afternoon.

Since Vidal turned eight years old, he has rowed to school on this long trip. His mother Paulina is nervous about seeing him disappear into the infinite lake. (speaks foreign language) -: I am very worried when it starts up, what happens if it collapses? I don't even want to think about it. Presenter: Most Uru children go together with others in larger boats, so they can take turns. Vidal lives so far away that he has to go alone but he has a goal. (speaks foreign language) -: I really want to study, that's why I travel so far. (dramatic music) Announcer: Slowly, Vidal pushes the boat forward.

He has to ration his strength, but kicking with a long wooden stick is the most effective and at the same time least tiring method to make way. But still he forces him to the limit. (intense dramatic music) It's a long road, especially for an 11-year-old. (engaging music) A few kilometers away, in the town of Uru, nine-year-old Mariella and her little sister Belinda are still busy tying colorful wool pompoms to their braids. Only then are the girls ready to leave. Mariella likes to go to school because she also has a dream. (speaks foreign language) -: I want to study medicine.

Presenter: That is why the nine-year-old child has to face such a difficult path to get to school. At 7 in the morning, she and her sister Belinda set off rowing; The girls have an hour ahead of them across the large lake before reaching the private primary school. (dramatic music) (foreign language spoken) -: I'm afraid they'll fall into the water. It happened to Belinda, who luckily Mariella was able to save her. I thank heaven for that. Presenter: She has no choice but to let them go alone, she and her husband have to work. (popular music plays) Mariella's path runs through the town, crossed by many large and small canals.

Sixty minutes of rowing, exhausting for the nine-year-old boy, but also for the daily routine. Her sister Belinda is lucky, being younger she can enjoy the boat ride. Mariella, being the oldest, had to take it on at an early age. (speaks foreign language) -: I didn't know how to row. My mother taught me when she was about five years old. At first it was difficult, but when I turned six it started to get easier. (rowing oars) Presenter: Vidal, 11, also learned to row at a young age, most of the time he is completely alone on the lake in his traditional reed boat. (speaks foreign language) -: I like my boat because it is very easy to handle.

To build it, we first dry the reeds, then braid the boat by weaving the two wide middle parts with the smaller parts used for the edge, and tie them with nylon ropes. To help the boat float, we put empty plastic bottles in the middle part; It takes me between two and three days to build the boat. Presenter: The 11-year-old boy is used to being alone when he is on the go; only the men who work in the sugar cane cross their path from time to time. Today he took a route that took him to where his father Carlos was, so he could say good morning. (rowing) (speaking in a foreign language) Since dawn, the 40-year-old man harvests the tortora cane with a kind of scythe.

He cuts the stems just above the root and drags them into mounds. He wants to use a new crop for the island's expansion, just one of many

ways

to use cane on Lake Titicaca. (splashes of water) (speaks foreign language) -: For us on the lake, the reed means life, with it we build our boats, our houses, our islands. We even eat it; We use cattails for everything in our lives. (melancholic music) Presenter: With his harvest Carlos returns to his family's island. Fresh cane forms the basis for the continuity of the family-owned island. Once a week, Carlos must do some repair work on his houseboat, because the islands are fragile structures. (dramatic music) The Uru are the only inhabitants who live on Lake Titicaca.

After battles with other tribes they built their floating islands of reeds and fled to the lake with them. In case of danger, they can continue with their island whenever they want. The islands float to this day. The reed that makes them rots from below and the polluting gases that rise keep the construction afloat. Today, the Urus are more or less settled, having made themselves at home on their floating islands. Still, almost everything is made of reeds. (attractive music) People live off the things the lake offers them. Fishing has always been the main source of income for the Uru;

As they are a water people, they do not own land to grow fruits or vegetables and therefore have to exchange a large portion of their catch for other lakeside foods. Carlos, Vidal's father, also makes a living from fishing and built the island with reeds as is customary. As he rots underneath, Carlos has piled up a new layer of cattails over and over again to keep his family from getting wet. But it's a race against time. After three years, the repair work is no longer enough and Carlos builds a completely new island. Vidal's father observes the sky.

The dark clouds over the mountains worry him. The weather changes rapidly over the huge lake and that means danger for his son. (speaks foreign language) -: If clouds like these appear I always get a little nervous. But the real problem is not the rain, it is the wind. Presenter: Because the wind causes waves and for Vidal and his boat that does not mean ideal conditions. The change of weather usually occurs around noon; These are the hunches. (dramatic music) A few kilometers away, in the town of Uru, nine-year-old Mariella and her sister Belinda row to school. It's windy here too, but the many islands offer protection and so the water is calmer. (speaks foreign language) -: If it is very windy it becomes exhausting;

Sometimes the wind is so strong that it blows me away and I fall asleep. (folk music plays) Presenter: Due to its size and location, Lake Titicaca is unpredictable. It is located on a plateau between the Andes Mountains, at an altitude of 3,821 meters. Apparently, the lake is the cradle of the legendary Inca civilization. According to legend, the gods created the first Incas here. They emerged from the bottom of the lake. For many, a magical place. Today only the numerous temple ruins testify to the existence of the ancient high civilization of South America. (engaging music) Mariella makes a stop on the way to school.

After all, the lake offers students a special delicacy. (splashes of water) The so-called chullu is the favorite food of Uru children and can be found in the white insides of the reed. Mariealla and Belinda peel the cane and enjoy the pulp of the fruit. Children love chullu because it has a slightly sweet taste. It contains many important minerals and also whitens teeth. The reason why the descendants of the Incas usually have this bright white smile. (speaks foreign language -: I like chullu de reed, it is delicious, because it is sweet. It also gives me strength to be able to row.

Presenter: Vidal also detours towards one of the cane fields on the way to However, he rows between the intertwined cattail reeds, looking for nesting waterfowl, which he wants to bait (the reeds rustle). Only those who, like Vidal, are very familiar with the reeds, find the way, many have even gotten lost. if you know the place (rustling of reeds) (splashes of water). Sometimes the 11-year-old boy gets stuck even with his narrow boat. He tries to free himself by swinging the boat with his feet.) Finally, Vidal sees a nest full of. fresh eggs (speaks a foreign language) -: When I go to look for nests, I just get into the reeds and keep looking.

Host: But Vidal isn't really interested in eggs. In his plan, he wants to catch the parents. They are the only source of meat for the Urus and are therefore especially valuable. Only if Vidal catches something will his family be able to eat something other than fish for a change. Ducks are supposed to get caught in these nylon traps; Carefully, Vidal puts the eggs back into his nest. Parents will only return if the clutch is full. Upon returning from school, Vidal will check his trap. Newly revitalized, Mariella and Belinda continue on their way to school. Since the Urus always help each other, a small scale is also on the agenda today. (engaging music) The girls pick up four-year-old Harold and row him to his kindergarten.

In the town community, older children usually pick up the younger ones and thus share the trip. (Oar splash) Quite a responsibility for a nine-year-old. Especially since they are now on the town's busy main canal with lots of traffic. (speaks foreign language) -: It worries me when Harold goes with the girls. What happens if you fall or an accident occurs? There is a lot of traffic in the morning. That's why I bring it myself as often as possible. Presenter: Harold doesn't know how to swim. Most children learn to swim at school. Mariella rows as carefully as possible.

A couple of times she almost collided with other boats. More and more urus in the town own speedboats. The children with their boatswood hardly have any possibilities. (speaks foreign language) -: I am afraid of a collision because we would sink instantly. (dramatic music) Announcer: Mariella made it through the heavy traffic and delivers Harold safely to her kindergarten island. (engaging music) The girls wait until the four-year-old has arrived safely at the building. Every year, three little ones drown in the town after falling off the island while playing. (attractive music) Then the girls keep going at all costs, they want to reach the school at the other end of the village long before lessons start.

Meanwhile, Vidal has already been on the road for an hour and a half. His path to school takes him through fields of reeds, crisscrossed in places by networks of canals. (oars) (speaking foreign language) -: I never get lost in the cane; I simply use the sun to guide me. (water splash)Presenter: And so the 11-year-old boy continues to make his way through the numerous channels of the cane. Undeterred, for more than 90 minutes of the exhausting journey he walked. (water whispers) (attractive music) After a good hour, Mariella almost made it. She and her sister arrived safely at the private elementary school.

Fellow students from all over arrive little by little; This is the best moment of the entire day for Mariella. Because here at school she knows her friends, she can't let go of her responsibility of being an older sister and she just goes back to being a girl. (engaging music) An hour before school starts, the girls meet because they have something to do before the serious side of life begins, every morning before school; They practice swimming together. The fact that the water is only 12 degrees Celsius only bothers Mariella and her friends at first. (engaging music) But Maria's splash has serious undertones.

Learning to swim is essential for children's survival in the lake. (dramatic music) But they don't have proper sports lessons where they can receive safe instructions. After half an hour, the nine-year-old boy had had enough of cold water for the time being. (water splash) Finally, Vidal almost made it too. The State Primary School is in sight. He has already been on the road for two hours and is tired, but he is also happy to be there and meet his friends. (melodramatic music) Children come from everywhere. Some are given away by their parents; Others have shared a stand-up cane boat because the way to school was short. (engaging music) A quick spit dip in the lake and it's finally time to enter the schoolyard.

The first steps in more than two hours for Vidal and although his walk to school is very exhausting, he is glad to be here. (attractive music) (speaks foreign language) -: Here I can have fun and be with my friends. Whether on Reed Island or not, like anywhere else, the schoolyard is where children can play. It offers much more space than home islands. Finally the children can run. But even if most of them have had their fair share of sportsmanship, the pleasure of running foolishly is not affected by it. (fun music) The teachers move among themselves, they already look around for their teachers and run to meet them.

Vidal's teacher, Mrs. Condori, also has a long way to school, she comes from the mainland and it took an hour and a half to get there, yes, by boat. At 9 o'clock the 40 students begin their classes with a morning assembly. (chantments in a foreign language) Vidal and his companions sing the Peruvian national anthem, a little out of tune, but always with fervor. (the children sing) To both classrooms. Two age groups are taught together in one classroom each, as there are only two teachers. It is not the only obstacle that public schools face. (speaks foreign language) -: Many of my students come from distant islands, for them it is physically very exhausting to row the boats and many times the children had little or no breakfast.

So when they arrive; They are already very exhausted, which makes it difficult for them to learn and concentrate, which is why the level in this school is lower than in Puno, on the mainland for example. (children clamoring) Presenter: However, teachers try to convey their curriculum. The schedule begins with mathematics as the first lesson. Although it may be boring for some, it is Vidal's favorite subject, who wants to be an engineer. Today it's geometry, Mrs. Candori, you have to teach third and fourth grade together, and always make sure everyone understands. Even in mathematics, the ever-present reed plays an important role. (speaks foreign language) The pieces of cattails are wonderfully suitable to illustrate the polygons that the teacher showed earlier on the board.

A few kilometers away, in the village of Uru, the private primary school also started at nine o'clock. Mariella schools are run by the religious community of Adventists, however, religious education plays a minor role. (attractive music) The teacher follows the ordinary national curriculum, the main subjects are reading, writing, arithmetic and geography. At this moment Mariella and her fellow students are having difficulty with Spanish syntax. (engaging music) Also at Vidal's school, it's time for Spanish classes. Unlike the population of the continent, the Uru speak their own and distinct language. The so-called Aymaras have to learn Spanish from scratch. (speaks foreign language) -: For children it is very important to learn Spanish, because in mainland towns like Puno, and everywhere else, Spanish is spoken almost exclusively.

People who speak Aymara are often discriminated against, which is why I encourage students to learn Spanish. (whistles) Presenter: 12 o'clock, break. Lunch time; There is nothing to buy on the school island, so all the mothers give their children something to eat to take with them. Since some have more than others, the children share their food so that each one receives what he wants. Vidal loves fish and rice. The girls prefer roasted beans even if they are a little rocky. (attractive music) Whoever becomes thirsty afterwards simply pours himself from the lake and drinks with his own special technique. (water splash) The teacher, Mrs.

Condori, always looks at the sky around noon, because here on the plateau there is usually a sudden change in weather around 12 o'clock. (speaks foreign language) -: The biggest problems here are storms and the wind, especially in the afternoon, is dangerous. Because just when our children go home, the weather often changes. If we see the weather getting worse, we finish school early so the kids can get home reasonably safe. Presenter: At the moment the weather doesn't seem so bad, but no one knows what it will be like when the children return home. After half an hour the break is over and this Spanish test awaits you.

Nothing escapes Mrs. Condori's rigorous gaze. Even if the kids try to cheat a little. Spanish is not exactly Vidal's best class and he is falling a little behind in the subject. (speaks foreign language) -: Vidal is a very active student, he participates in everything, and being one of the oldest, he even sometimes helps me teach the other students, but I worry about him, because at this moment, especially Los Friday he often misses school, his parents want him to stay home and help because his older brothers have already left home and have their own families. And that is why they often expect Vidal to lend a hand at home and help support the family, that is very difficult for him.

Presenter: The tests are corrected immediately since in almost all places in the world girls are the first to take them and anxiously await their results. (dramatic music) Vidal and his desk neighbors still struggle with the questions. (attractive music) For Vidal the test is quite important. The last one failed badly. (speaking in foreign language) Presenter: This time he got at least 14 out of 20 points. He can be proud of himself. At 2 in the afternoon classes end, after five hours of school it is time to take the long and dangerous road home. (suspense music) (speaking foreign language) -: The way back is much more difficult because I am already tired and the wind often blows in the afternoon.

Announcer: Alone again, Vidal rows toward his parents' isolated island. (engaging music) The weather seems to be keeping up. Mariella's school is also over, depending on which direction they are heading, the children share rides. (speaking in foreign language) Presenter: Mariella and Belinda's island is located at the other end of the town; The two row home together. Vidal can't take the shortest way home. He wants to check the trap he set in the morning on the ducks' nests. (oars) He again sails his small boat directly towards the Tortora reed. He has to concentrate to retrieve the traps from him in the middle of the endless tangle of reeds. (oars) But after a quarter of an hour, through the reed, he finds the nest, with a dead duck inside. (speaks foreign language) -: It is important that I catch something because it is the only meat we have. (melancholic music) Presenter: Vidal takes the remaining egg home.

He will incubate it at home. The sisters picked up little Harold from daycare and took him home on their return. He might play the rest of the afternoon. (engaging music) In theory, Vidal only has half an hour left, but the wind has gotten stronger and he can't find protection in the canals. Whether he likes it or not, he has to cross the wide open space to get home. (water creaks) The 11-year-old boy struggles to keep his balance. (speaks foreign language) -: I have to be careful, if I move too much I can fall. (suspense music) Announcer: Vidal is exhausted but he still has a long way to go.

Because the town is close; The water is calm where the girls are. Since nine-year-old Mariella was rowing all the way there, now it's Belinda's turn. She's supposed to learn to steer the ship by herself. Next year Mariella will have finished primary school, the little one is already quite capable of movement sequences, but she is careless and does not pay attention to the other boats. To Belinda everything seems like a game. She will have to practice for a while before she will be allowed to paddle alone. She has half a year left before she has to go into the water alone and Mariella goes to high school. (attractive music) (dramatic music) It's very tiring paddling against the wind and waves, but Vidal must keep concentrating or he will collapse. (suspense music) Water enters his reed boat.

Time and time again he has to stop and rescue him. His arms are burning but it is already after four o'clock and since the equator is so close, the sun sets in half an hour. The student must not brake. Finally, his home island comes to the fore. A moment that always releases extra strength in Vidal. (speaks foreign language) -: As soon as I see our house I know it's almost finished, just a little bit more. (attractive music) Presenter: Shortly before sunset Vidal arrives home after two and a half hours soaked. He was gone for ten hours.

He does not arrive empty-handed. Capturing him means his family will finally be able to eat some meat after 10 days. But her mother Paulina has little interest in the duck, so happy that her son has managed to cross the enormous lake unharmed. (speaking foreign language)-: I'm always worried until he comes back and then I try to warm him up with a jacket and hot soup. Presenter: Mariella and Belinda also arrived safely at their house in the town, like good girls they quickly do their homework. Mariella does math and Belinda draws. Her mother puts little Harold to bed, but she also has to do some reading exercises before going to sleep.

Exhausted from a long day. Vidal and his family warm themselves by the fire in the last light of the evening and feed the babies; He knows why he endures his hard journey to school. (speaks foreign language) -: I do this every day because otherwise I wouldn't be able to study. I'm lucky, my older brother couldn't go to high school but my mother told me that they will allow me to study and that makes me happy. Presenter: And tomorrow Vidal will row for four hours across the largest mountain lake in the world, and for his dream of a better future he will have to take the longest path to school. (attractive music)