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OKAY so on to my new experience in Peru. Like I said in the beginning, it is extremely different, but having been in Bolivia briefly, I was a little bit more prepared. I had a 3 ½ hour flight to Lima, went through customs with my bags, paid $25 american for my bags being too heavy (which I’m not sure how that’s possible because I had less stuff then when I flew over to South America and didn’t pay a penny…who knows). I had an hour flight to Cuzco, and when I arrived I could tell the air was thinner just as I was trying to haul my bags outside the airport. It was a tiny airport, but no one was there to pick me up, and the only phone number I had for contact was for the Lima coordinator (go figure). Finally some guy came up and said “Kristina?” and I just prayed that he wasn’t going to kidnap me. He told me his name was Ronnie, and was the brother of my host mom. He took me to my house, and I was greeted by tons of stairs made of rock and about 6 family members. I could barely make it up the stairs without feeling like I was going to pass out with the thin air.
my house in Calle Lucrepata, Cuzco
They gave me cocoa tea to battle altitude sickness (cocoa leaves are illegal in the states), and I unpacked all my stuff. The house is very different here and difficult to explain. I live with grandparents, parents, a 7 year old son, and a 20 year old girl who I think is the sister of my host dad, but it’s really confusing. We also have about 2-4 dogs depending on the day (2 of them sometimes stay on the street, and sometimes they stay in the patio). I have a pretty huge room here with two beds in it, a couch, and chairs which is nice for living space. Every room in the “house” is separate and is all connected by the outside patio. The patio is where the sink is and where all the laundry is hung. I’m still getting used to the fact that I have to go outside my room just to use the bathroom, although there isn’t much difference because the temperature in my room is the same as outside (realllyyy cold at night here, I’m living in the Andes, remember?). I’ve only killed one huge spider in my room so far, I’m hoping I won’t see the rest… (I’ve come to learn that ignorance is bliss when it comes to the bugs sharing my room with me). My bed has literally about 6 thick blankets on it, and I still sleep in sweats, socks, long sleeves, hoodie, and a scarf. I feel like I’m living in my room in Boston (during the winter of course). My house is literally on a mountain, so when you are on the patio you are able to see some of the Andes Mountains which is really cool, especially in the morning when the sun is rising.
The view from my street.
Right now it is the Fall Season in Cuzco, so that means that during the day if it’s sunny, it is really hot during the day from 11am to 5pm (about 70-85 degrees depending on the day) and at night it usually drops below freezing. Stupid me, I brought about 2 hoodies, and don’t even have a winter jacket. I’m going to have to look into having my parents send me stuff because it’s only going to get colder as we enter the Winter season here very shortly…
Sunday, Ronnie took me on a walking tour of some of the city. The city is MUCH smaller than Cordoba. I am able to walk to the main square in probably 10-15 minutes, even though I don’t live in the touristy part. Although I like being able to walk everywhere, I miss Cordoba and how it was a bigger city to explore. But I’m trying not to compare… In one plaza, I was sitting on a bench with Ronnie and I saw Justin, my friend from Northeastern University. He also has been co-oping in Argentina/Peru but we had never met up. It was good to see a familiar face. Later in the day, I talked to my host grandparents and got to know them a bit. They are harder to understand in their Spanish because they speak very softly but I was so grateful that I had gone to Argentina before to learn Spanish or else I would be in a lot of trouble communicating. They have a harder time understanding me then my host parents in Argentina did, I’m not sure why but hopefully it improves. I’m having a hard time changing from my accent in Cordoba also. In Cordoba they use the term “vos” instead of “tu” (for “you”), which is a hard habit to break. They also pronounce “Y” and “ll” as a “shh” sound instead of “yuh” like they do in Cuzco. Also very hard to change, but everyone asks if I’m from Cordoba which makes me laugh because Cordobese people are known for this ridiculous sounding accent.
In the Plaza de Armas
Monday, some lady (yes, some lady, I’m getting used to just going with the flow because everything is always so disorganized) picked me up at my house and took me to my first day at the Kindergarten. The kindergarten is only about 5 or 6 blocks from the touristy area, but it’s in the ghetto. It’s crazy how the city changes so quickly from where all the tourists are, to where the “rest” of the people live. The Kindergarten is at the top of an apartment building, where they have about 40 kids in 3 small rooms. This job is really going to challenge my patience. It is much different from working in the orphanage, and after the first three days I had a major headache. The kids are adorable, but extremely hard to contain, and the teachers are always telling me to keep the kids in their rooms which is impossible because the rooms don’t even have doors! I literally have to block off the entrances with chairs. Thank God I know some Spanish or I would be really stuck. My second day at the Kindergarten, 3 other volunteers from the US came in, and they will be here for a week. They didn’t know any Spanish, and I felt so bad for them when they were trying to control the kids. The kids in my room are ages 1 to 2 years old. Basically the whole place is a day-care for the kids of the parents who have to work on the streets selling things to get by. I’m there from 8:30am to 1-1:30pm everyday, which doesn’t seem like a long day, but believe me with 40 kids screaming and crying all day I am so exhausted I have to take a siesta afterwards. I’m in the process of trying to change my job because I don’t get a lot of practice using my Spanish with the babies since they can’t talk. I’m hoping I can work with older kids but we will see what happens…
a little boy at the preschool I worked at.
Wednesday I went out with the 20 year old that lives in my house, Yvonne. We met up with Justin (from Northeastern) and went place to place getting free drinks. It’s crazy how in Cuzco they offer free drinks everywhere just to get people to come into their bars and clubs. In Argentina we had to at least pay for drinks, if not entrance fees too in some places. It was good to catch up with Justin and meet some of his friends although most of them are leaving Peru soon.
Justin, Yovanna & I out in Cuzco
Thursday night I met up with Kim and her friends (Kim is a friend of Holly’s who is has been in Peru since January) and they showed me some good places to go out to. At midnight I had my first “legal” drink at InkaTeam. It was fun but didn’t feel too different since I have been able to drink legally since January in South America.
Friday on my 21st birthday, I woke up early and went whitewater rafting with 2 volunteers from my job, Kristen and Alex, and 3 other volunteers from another location. It was a beautiful day and we had an awesome time! Our guide was really funny and spoke some English which was good, but when he found out I was learning Spanish he refused to speak to me in English haha. It was good practice though! We spent 4 hours out on the river, and the water was freezing! We jumped off a cliff into the water during one of our breaks, and then at the end we jumped off a bridge into the water which was fun but so cold! It was a great way to spend my birthday. The scenery was absolutely gorgeous, and we had some 3 & 4 level rapids which was exciting. That night, Kristen and I got dinner at an Italian restaurant and we tried our first Pisco Sours (the drink of Cuzco). It wasn’t bad but not my favorite. Afterwards I went out for a bit but was so exhausted from rafting all day that I didn’t make it much past 2am. All in all, the birthday was good, but I can’t wait to celebrate with everyone from home in July :).
A few of us jumping off a bridge during our lunch break.
So that’s pretty much what’s going on here, I am getting used to not having internet in my house and using internet cafes which is kind of a pain, but is doable. I am also getting smarter about showering (only doing it during the daytime hours, since a hot shower is rare, and being outside with wet hair during the night is asking to die of pneumonia)...oh and sometimes there isnt any water at all, not even cold water. I'm also getting use to not drinking the water, and not getting lost in the bad areas of Cuzco. Although I don’t really look Argentine, I could pass for one if I had to (some of them have light hair and light eyes like me) but here in Peru there is no way I can pass for a Peruvian. Because of this I have to be really careful ;) Tomorrow I’m heading off to “el campo” with Yvonne to see her house which is in the country. This week went by really slow, but I’m sure once I get used to things here, things will be pick up…
Hasta luegooo
So I’m finally in Peru and I’ve got very mixed feelings about it. I’m excited to explore a new country and have a new experience, but the truth is it was much harder to leave Argentina then I ever imagined. My time there went so fast I can’t even believe it. I remember my first day there like it was yesterday. After I returned from Mendoza, I had about a week and a half left. I spent it enjoying my time left with the orphans, and with my family and friends. I can’t believe how accustomed I had become to the way of life here. From riding the busses, talking to the taxi drivers like I’d known them (they are friendly, unlike the ones in Boston I’ve had that don’t even talk to you), to asking how to find things in stores or asking directions, I am not the same timid girl I was when I arrived in January. I remember my first weeks in Argentina I was too nervous to even ask for a drink at a kiosk or to pick up empanadas to go for lunch. Even if I screw up with my Spanish it doesn’t phase me anymore because the people here are (usually) extremely forgiving.
Leaving the kids at the orphanage literally broke my heart in two. I knew it would be hard, but I had no idea what I was in for. The kids that I work with in the “casa de Amarillo” (the yellow house) are all ages 4-6 years, and they made me a mural with their handprints on it. It was so cute. They also sang me a farewell song which I luckily have on video (let’s hope my laptop doesn’t crash from so many pictures/videos from this trip). It was also hard for me to leave some of the older kids. After they had bullied me for the first couple weeks, we had actually built relationships through jokes and sarcasm as I built up on my Spanish vocabulary. I was told that the older kids have a hard time when volunteers leave because they have more of a vivid memory of the time shared then the younger ones.
I had one close friendship with a 16-year old named Belen. Belen has some really serious attitude problems, but somehow we built a friendship through boy talk (it always works to start a conversation), and I listened to her tell me stories about school and the drama going on. The last few days before I had to say goodbye, she began to ignore me completely. The women working in the house told me that it was because I was leaving and that she was just really hurt that I was leaving her. I felt awful. :( On my last day I was just about to leave and I lost it (I had lasted the entire day without crying) and Belen asked me what happened, the first thing she had said to me in days. She ended up walking me to the bus stop with my 2 English friends (Roxy & Lucy) and gave me a note and a painting. The note told me that she hopes that God watches out for me now & forever, and that I was the best friend she ever had and that she would always miss me. Although it was really hard to leave, I was glad that I had made connections with the kids, and impacted their life in a small way, especially Belen. She’s definitely one of the ones I will never forget.
Belen & I
The Wednesday before I had to leave, my host parents had a goodbye dinner for me (and early Birthday dinner). Matias, Mike, Nati and Pat were there which was really nice. Adri (my host mom) made “Disco Pollo” which is an Argentine tradition. It’s basically chicken cooked outside on an open fire with rice, vegetables, and lots of spices. It was deliciousss! It was nice to have one more dinner as a family (we ate lots of meals together, my host parents, Mike, Jimena & I. I’m really going to miss our dinner conversations, especially when Mike and I became able to contribute to the conversation in Spanish.
Mike & I, and our host family :)
On Thursday, a bunch of us went out to learn Salsa at a club. It was really fun! Matias was also teaching a bunch of us since he’s grown up with it. We also got to watch a salsa competition at the end which was amazing! It was good to go out with everyone one last time, but really hard to say goodbye. Friday I spent the day getting my things together and then with my local Argentine friends at Matias’s house. It was terrible saying goodbye. I haven’t cried that much in awhile but I think I was tired too which didn’t help. Before I left on Saturday morning, Adrianna (my host mom) gave me a note and a rosary. The note was lots of motherly advice in Spanish, and she told me I’m always welcome to stay in their house if I can come back. She also said that when I have kids someday, they have grandparents in Argentina :) . I know 3 months doesn’t seem like a long time to feel that close to people, but I really felt like I was leaving my family and friends in the USA behind (and thinking I was never going to see them again). I’m just grateful that I have such an awesome experience to be upset about leaving (if that makes any sense).
Okay now onto the beginning of Peru…
For Semana Santa (Easter weekend) I went to Mendoza and had an amazing time! It might be one of my favorite cities in Argentina (although I haven’t visited that many). It is located right by the Andes Mountains, and about 7 hours by bus to Santiago, Chile (the bus goes directly over the Andes).
The Wednesday before Easter, I was of course running late as usual. Matias was bringing me to the bus terminal, and the bus from his house was taking FOREVER so we ended up jumping in a cab to get downtown so I wouldn’t miss my bus. I had to shove my way through the biggest crowd I’ve ever seen at the bus terminal, only to find that my bus hadn’t even arrived to the terminal yet. Nati, Emily and I waited a least another 1 1/2 hours for our bus to arrive at 1am. The bus was more uncomfortable then the others that I’ve ridden but it was alright. It took about 11 hours so we arrived in the morning.
The bus terminal in Cordoba, at midnight before Holy Thursday. CRAZY.
We walked to our hostel (should have taken a cab, it took forever with our bags) and met up for lunch with a bunch of the other kids studying in Cordoba. It’s funny how when I’m at home, I never crave pasta, but here I can’t get enough of it. Probably because Argentina is so well known for it’s Italian influence. After lunch, we strolled through Plaza Independencia and enjoyed the beautiful “fall” day (seasons are opposite in South America). We shopped around at the stands in the plaza, and made some new friends with vendors, as always. We also had gelato and talked to the nicest 5 old ladies I’ve ever met in my life!
Nati, Me, Jessica, Emily & Marina in Plaza Independencia
Around 8pm we went back to the hostal, and I met up with Emily Williams, my friend from home! She is studying in Santiago, Chile for the semester and I was so happy that our plans came together to meet up in Mendoza! Around 11:30pm we set out to find a place to eat for dinner with a group of about 12 people. In Mendoza, there are these huge gutters in the street that are literally about 4 feet deep and 1 ½ feet wide. Probably the most dangerous things ever, especially when the streets are lit very well. Anyways, on our way to finding a restaurant, Emily went to cross the street and fell right into a gutter and slashed open her elbow. She claimed she was fine, but the cuts were deep so the 12 of us sought out a clinic. It was the fastest doctors consultation/stitching up process I’ve ever seen (especially considering we were downtown in a relatively big city). They had her in and out of the office, complete with 4 stitches in less than 40 minutes. They even let me take pictures of the process hahah… so funny. The doctors thought we were cute so they gave us a 50% discount… I didn’t know that that was possible but hey, I’m not complaining! We finally got dinner afterwards, then went out to some bar with some locals our friend had met. We stayed out till about 6am as usual and made our way back to the hostel.
The doctor, Em & me :)
Us with our local friends :)
The next day we were supposed to go rafting, but because of Emily’s new stitches we decided to cancel. We ended up spending the day with Veronika, Marcella and their friend from Mendoza, Ariel. Ariel works in tourism, and grew up in Mendoza so he drove us around to see a winery and some scenery. It was nice to not have to take public transportation for once. We had churros with dulce de leche (to die for), sampled wine, and even went down this crazy slide haha… compliments of Marcella. That night we had an amaaaazing asado at a nice restaurant, and Ariel even got me to try intestines. I didn’t like it but oh well. We went to a club called VooDoo after. The club was mostly outside which was nice because it wasn’t as hot as the clubs normally are. We only stayed until 4am because we all had tours to go on the next day at 8:30am.
Emily & I sampling the grapes at a Bodega (winery)
Saturday – Emily and I went horseback riding in the Andes mountains. It was a lot of fun, but freezing because the sun wasn’t out. The scenery was gorgeous, but would have been even better if the sun was out. I had such a lazy horse, so most of the time the gaucho guide had to whip my horse to get it to stop eating/drinking. Kind of annoying but oh well haha. Afterwards Emily and I napped for hours before dinner and going to another club that night. The club that we went to didn’t have any foreigners and was all locals. The entire night people were asking us why we were there because foreigners never hear about this place (it’s out in the outskirts, our local friends had recommended it). The music was good, and it was a lot of fun. The club looked like a house party because it had a huge outdoor patio, and the club itself was shaped like a house.
Sunday- I went to the Thermas (Hot Springs) with Marcella and Veronika. The morning was kind of a disaster because our tourist people accidently booked our horse tour and hot spring tour on the same day without us realizing. We took the problem to the office, and the guy closed his office and drove us to the hot springs himself (because our bus had already left and hadn’t picked us up). I can’t imagine this ever happening in the US and having them be that accommodating. He also picked us up after we were done relaxing there too. The springs were in the middle of the mountains, and it was such a gorgeous day. We spent the day relaxing in the different pools and catching some sun. Veronika even read us some passages in Spanish from her Spanish bible for Easter. Later in the day I also recognized Dave, a BC student, who I met in Salta briefly. Small world… Sunday night I was pooped and slept for about 15 hours…
Relaxing in Las Thermas
Monday – we checked out of our hostel and spent the day wandering around the city looking for something to do. We ended up going to the zoo, which was the most dangerous zoo I’ve ever experienced in my life. There was no one working in the zoo besides the person selling tickets at the front which was a little bizarre. It was also the off season, so not many tourists were in the zoo either. All the animals looked miserable, and all the vicious animals, such as lions, etc, were pacing in their small cages. There weren’t even behind glass…you could literally reach out and pet it if you dared. We fed the monkeys, and I thought this one baboon was going to break his door down. Then when we got to the elephant exhibit, Emily started feeding it and it was wrapping its trunk around her arm. I couldn’t believe there wasn’t anyone to tell us to stop petting the animals…they must not have many lawsuits here in Argentina…
Feeding the elephant...
After the zoo, we trekked up to the top of this monument and watched the sun set over the Andes. Of course by this point my camera was dead which was beyond depressing, but it was enjoyable nonetheless. We talked to this tour bus driver who had a tour of about 6 old ladies from Argentina, and he offered to drive us back to Plaza Independencia for free if we wanted to take the rest of the tour. Of course we agreed…it’s nice to get free stuff for being young and female in Argentina haha. There were a bunch of older ladies on this tour also, who loved talking to us in Spanish and thought we spoke the language well :) it's always really encouraging to hear that every once in awhile. That night we took our bus back to Cordoba around 10pm and got back just in time to head to work on Tuesday…got to love sleeping on the bus.
Oh, and after all that, I forgot to bring wine home from WINE country. Fail…
I'm leaving on Saturday for Peru, I can't believe that my time has gone by so fast...it's going to be hard to say goodbye...my heart is already aching to say goodbye to my second family here and all the friends I have made... :( life goes on I guess but I'm going to end this post before I get too corny... chau, hasta luego chicos <3>
