Lunahuana, and life in Lima

Ahh! I've become such a horrible blogger since I moved to Lima. It's hard to keep up when I'm super busy with work, dance, and my social life. I'm still in the same apartment in Miraflores (the 1 bedroom) and it feels good to be in one place for more than 3 months (well, almost 3 months at the end of December). I've really settled in, I bought a bike, and I've been enjoying Lima more, now that the weather has gotten a bit better. It's crazy how much of an effect the sun can have on your day. I notice that I'm much more energetic, happy, and positive I am when it's nice out. When it's grey, I feel tired, sluggish, and I'm usually pretty crabby :( good thing Gerardo has lots of patience for me! 

Anyway, besides work and getting used to making sales, I've also been assistance teaching a Jazz class in Chorrillos. It's awesome because I don't have to pay to take class now! The only downside is the teacher, Diana, is leaving to start her own dance company and won't be with D1 Escuela de Dance next year :( I'm so bummed. I've also been taking a Contemporary class which has really allowed me to let go and relax. I get super tense at work, and contemporary is really out of my element, but allows me to use my technique which is nice. It feels good to start getting back in shape again, although i have a LONG way to go.

Some other highlights of the last few months were my trips to Lunahuana and then my recent trip to Ica and Huachachina with Daloma, Spencer, and Kat, my coworkers. 

Lunahuana

The weekend after Thanksgiving, I had my mind made up to get out of the city and go anywhere. I mean ANYWHERE. Once you are stuck in a city of 10 million people and listen to noise constantly everyday (especially when you're from a small town like Groton, as I am) you start to go a little crazy without some peace and relaxation. So, on a Friday night we packed our bags and got on the next Soyuz bus in the direction of Ica, a city 5 hours from Lima. I had heard Lunahuana was a nice relaxing place, with a rushing river, good food, white water rafting, and SUNSHINE so I figured why not? The only downside was I wasn't really sure how to get there, and all I had was my handy-dandy Lonely Planet book which ended up being all we needed. By the time we got to the Soyuz bus station and got on a bus (the ones that go towards Ica leave literally every 10-15 minutes, and cost less than $15) it was around 8:30pm.

Luckily, we woke up just before the bus stopped in Cañete and grogily stumbled off. I took out my book again and saw that to get to Lunahuana, we had to take a combi (a ghetto mini-van type of public transportation) to Imperial, 10 minutes away, and from there another combi to Lunahuana, another hour away. As we looked around the deserted bus stop of Canete, where hardly anyone got off the bus, we realized we probably missed the cut-off time for combis (it was now almost 11:30pm). We talked to the nearest taxi and negotiated for him to take us to Lunahuana for about $25. Not too bad for a 1 1/2 hour ride through the Andes at midnight. He even gave us a history lesson on the way. I was so happy that I could see the stars for once, and the moon shining down on the Andes mountains. This is the Peru I know and love, and tend to forget about while living in Lima. 

Once we arrived to Lunahuana, it was completely dead, so we took the recommendation of the driver and stayed in a hostal near the main plaza (it was also in my Lonely Planet book so I knew it had to be okay.. haha). The room cost about $15, but was one of the dirtier hostels I had ever stayed in. No toilet seat (squatting  required), no shower curtain, and a rock hard bed. Oh well, we were exhausted anyway so we passed out early. Upon waking up, there was construction going on right outside the building and it felt like they were going to saw right into our room. Needless to say this was NOT how I wanted to spend my "relaxing-weekend-get-away-from-the-huge-city-of-Lima-that-is-full-of-construction-and-noise-everyday". 

We came out of the hostel and walked around until we found an alternative. It was a nicer hotel, definitely a bit more expensive (expensive for Peru is nothing like it is in the states, but still). It had direct access to the river where you could swim, beautiful grounds, a nice (clean) pool, and beautiful views of the surrounding mountains. It was definitely worth the splurge (and by splurge, I think I spent like $100, tops). I was in heaven. Tranquility (besides the sound of the river, which was fine by me), and beautiful views. Ahhhh. I think I transformed into a different person. After lounging around a bit and getting breakfast, we walked around and decided to do some white-water rafting. I think the rafting cost about $10 each, and we didn't sign any waivers... hm... The rapids were pretty slow but it was still a fun experience. 

After taking an afternoon nap, I was dying to do a horseback riding activity so we went back to the same agency and did ride throughout the town and into the surrounding mountains. The ride was fun, and we even got to run the horses a bit which was something I hadn't done in so long. We rode through some pretty poor areas though and it was a good time for some reflection. That is one thing that I am learning so much from living in Peru: really appreciating what I have and being grateful. 

That night we went to a restaurant recommended by my manager, Ric, and we had some of the best "chupe de camarones" which is crawfish soup. It is creamy and delicious, and the crawfish are fresh out of the river! The restaurant was a bit far out of Lunhuana so we had to take a taxi out there, and on the way back there were no taxis so we walked about 25 minutes before we hitchhiked with a car going by... We also bought some homemade pisco infused with peach which was also delicious ! 

The next day we relaxed by the pool and negotiated for a late check-out so we could relax the whole day. I sunbathed and swam for most of it. After trying cuy (guinea pig) for lunch, we packed up our stuff and took a combi, stuffed with over 15 people, back to Imperial. From there we took another combi to the Soyuz bus station in Canete, and then took the next big bus back to Lima. I was not happy to be back in Lima but I was very refreshed from a nice weekend away from the big city, and a tan (and a million bug bites) to prove it. 

No time to write about my trip to Ica & Huachachina now, but more to come later :)  

3rd Home in Lima

I can't believe it's already October! With the seasons being opposite here in South America, I feel like I often forget what time of year it is since it's so different from the States. Although the weather is still grey most days, it definitely feels warmer, and I haven't had to wear so many layers :) The sun also peaks out more often then not - and people say once it's out, it will be out for good for the summer months (November-March). I can't wait! Now that I've made it through the worst months weather-wise, its good to know I'll be in the clear for awhile enjoying the beach while everyone at home is dealing with cold weather :) 

So, what have I been up to? Hmm... well work has slowed down a bit since we are technically out of the busy season. On one hand, it's nice to not work long hours (9-12 hour days) for late bookers, but on the other hand, some days can be really slow when there are not many requests coming in. Things have been good though, and I'm really enjoying doing sales :) 

As for my living situation, I have moved yet again. Long story short, there was some drama with Danielle's boyfriend and we were basically kicked out of our apartment because of him at the end of September. We only had a week's time to find a new place to live which was VERY stressful since I also had to work. Luckily, I was able to find a 1-bedroom in Miraflores, which is only a few streets away from my good friend Daloma and her boyfriend's apartment. It's a little more expensive then I wanted to pay ($600 everything included) but its kind of nice having my own apartment and space and not having to worry about roommates. I thought I'd feel lonely but I'm enjoying the peace and quiet and not having to worry about who didn't wash the dishes, etc, etc... I guess now I know how my mom feels now that my brothers and I are out of the house! 

All in all, I'm starting to settle in here in Lima, and am thinking to stay here until at least June. For awhile I was stressed thinking about the future, when I was coming home, and my expectations of my family back home. I've finally arrived to a place of more peace, where I'm enjoying where I am and making the best out of my situation here. Nothing is ever going to be perfect, but I've made the decision to be here and I'm going to run with it. I had a number of goals I wanted to accomplish/work on while being here so I'm going to write them down here so I can remind myself and keep these things on the forefront as I move forward.

Goals:

*Improve Spanish grammer & vocabulary

*Travel & get to know more places in Peru especially

*Dance! and challenge myself with harder classes especially. 

*Live in the moment. I'm only 23 once so I'm going to start acting like it! :) 

That's about all I got for now. Oh, and I'm pretty sure I'm coming home for Christmas which is exciting! I miss my family and friends so I'm so happy to be able to see them :) 

Hasta luegoo

The Amazon & Machu Picchu

So, just a few weeks ago my mom was here in Peru :) She arrived on September 1st with her boyfriend, Tom, and it was so great to see her. Here's a rundown of our time together in Peru:

Lima. 
Mom & Tom only spent two nights in Lima so that they could spend the majority of their time in Cusco and in the Amazon. The first night I picked them up at the airport around 10pm and we took them to their hotel near Parque Kennedy. We only had time to get some juice at La Lucha before they wanted to go to bed.

Sunday, the next day, was jam-packed with all the things I wanted to show my mom about my life in Peru. We started the day by checking out Parque Kennedy, where we saw a zumba class going on outside. We then moved on to see LarcoMar (the outdoor shopping mall/restaurants located on a cliff in downtown Miraflores) and from there jumped on a "local" bus to get to Barranco. From there I took them to see the best views from my district and the main park. Luckily the sun came out and made Lima look a lot more beautiful than it normally is when it's grey and depressing... 

From there I showed them my apartment. After spending a few hours there, we took a taxi to Parque de Las Aguas, where we walked around and took a bunch of pictures with all the beautiful fountains. From there, we grabbed a pizza at Pizza Hut and called it a night (whew what a long day!)

The Amazon - Puerto Maldonado 
The very next morning, I woke up at 5:30am to get to mom & Tom's hotel by 6am to get a ride to the airport. We took a flight from Lima to Puerto Maldonado (with a stop in Cusco) and once we got off the flight it was scorching hot and SO humid. We were met by our tour guide, Jaime, who took us to the jungle office to drop off the luggage that would not be coming to the jungle lodge with us. From there, we took a 45 minute bus to the dock, and then a 2 hour boat ride down the river to our jungle lodge, Refugio Amazonas.On the boat, we were given lunch which was fried rice wrapped in a banana leaf :) oh and boxed peach juice, of course.

Our lodge was so cool. Our room only had three walls, and the third wall was open to the jungle. Our beds had mosquito nets over them, but at night the jungle was so loud that it felt like we were outside (well, we kind of were). The walls were made of bamboo and we had curtains for doors which was interesting. We also had a hammock right in our room which was awesome! We spent 4 days and 3 nights in the jungle doing a variety of tours such as observing clay licks (watching Macaws, parrots, wild pigs, etc eat the clay), night hikes, night watch to see the Caimans, swimming in the amazon, climbing a canopy tour to watch the sunrise of the tree tops, and a variety of other activities. 

We spent nights relaxing in the lodge, eating local food, and enjoying happy hour cocktails :) We were so exhausted from every-day activities provided at the lodge that we were passed out by 9pm and up at 5am in the mornings to begin the next day's activities. Although it was exhausting it was a cool experience and we saw a variety of animals including ant-eaters, sloths, monkeys, macaws, caimens, parrots, wild pigs, and a number of other animals. 

Cusco
After leaving Puerto Maldonado, we flew to Cusco. Getting off the plane in Cusco, I felt at home again. I really love that city and it has so much charm and culture it's hard to forget. The sun was shining when we landed, and the sky was bright blue. Upon arrival to our hotel, Casa San Blas, we all went up to the balcony to have some Cocoa tea and relax. That night, after relaxing a bit, we went to Papa Pacha for dinner which was nice. We also went out to Inkateam and danced some salsa. It brought back so many memories to be back in the same places that I spent so much time in two years ago when I lived in Cusco. It was great to see old friends and faces and catch up. 

Sacred Valley
The next day, we left in the morning to head off to the Sacred Valley. We stayed in Casa Andina Private Collection there, which had amazing scenery but was pretty remote and not near the down-town Urubamba area. Later on, we went downtown for some dinner (12 sol pollo y papas at a local place, not bad). We then came back to the hotel to drink some wine, and the hotel wanted to charge us 35 soles to open our wine so Tom somehow figured out how to open the wine with a nail clipper and a tooth brush... nevertheless, it worked and we had two bottles of wine and enjoyed conversation and looking up at the cloudless sky full of stars (living in Lima, its been a very long time since I've seen the stars). 

Machu Picchu
The next day, we woke up early to eat breakfast and catch our ride to the train station in Ollytaytambo. After an hour and a half train ride, we arrived to Aguas Calientes, and took the bus up to Machu Picchu. It was amazing being back there, but there were many more tourists this time around which I did not enjoy :( The last time I went with my mom it was not crowded at all and it felt more magical in a way. Nevertheless, our tour was great, and our tour guide Fabricio was phenomenal. After the tour we had lunch at the Sanctuary Lodge, explored the ruins a bit more, took about 200 photos, and then headed back down to Aguas Calientes to find our hotel and have dinner. 

Huayna Picchu
The next morning, we woke up around 5:30am to have breakfast and get up to Machu Picchu in time for our Huayna Picchu hike. Unfortunately it was raining pretty hard which was disheartening, especially since the rainy season doesn't usually begin so early in the Andes. Once we got up to Machu Picchu around 7:30am, the rain had stopped but the fog was still pretty thick which made Machu Picchu look pretty mystical. We did the hike up to the Huayna Picchu peak which took us around an hour. The view from the top was still breathtaking even though the fog made it hard to see the ruins. It is an incredible feeling to be sitting above the clouds :) When climbed down and it began to pour so we were grateful we had gotten the hike in beforehand. We still got completely soaked, but luckily had some dry clothes to change into once we got back down to Aguas Calientes. We then had lunch and took the train back to Cusco.

Cusco
Our last day in Cusco, we spent wandering around and enjoying the city. We had lunch with my good friend Jhon, which was nice :) In the evening, we all went out to dinner with my good friend from home, Emily, who I've known for years. From there, we all went out to InkaTeam to celebrate the last night. We didn't end up staying out too late though because we were all exhausted from all the travels we had done. 

The next morning we flew back to Lima and after dropping off my mom and Tom in Barranco, I had to go to work to answer about 200 emails in my inbox. They spent the afternoon in Barranco then took a cab back to the airport to get a flight out that night. All in all it was a fantastic trip together and we had a great time. While it was hard to say goodbye, I look forward to traveling more during my time here in Peru.

That's all for now, hasta luego :)

Mi Vida Peruana

Holaaa here I am still surviving in Peru, finally getting over the changes and finally getting used to my life here. As I had suspected, I knew that the beginning of my move would be "easier" than the second and third month. And I was right. The first month I was very involved with my new job (I will am, I am turning into a work-a-holic) but after the first initial month is when a wave of home-sickness hit me. As much as I didn't want to admit it, I missed home, my family and friends, and my life in general. Not to mention, it doesn't help that the weather here SUCKS right now. It is Winter until September and everyday is grey and overcast and chilly. I actually prefer that it rain over this weather. When it "rains" here, it really just mists which, to me, is not rain. I'm not going to lie, going on facebook and seeing everyone enjoying their summer days, laying in the sun and drinking on patios made it even harder for me to be far away. I have to say, my extended family (my uncles and brothers especially) teased me by Skyping and Facetime-ing me from my grandma's lake-house. I just keep telling myself that when they are 2 feet deep in snow I will be laying on the beach, which is oh-by-the-way one block from my house. So I'll try to re-cap the last two months.

I'm an Official TA :)
By the middle of July, I had passed my oral exam to become an official Travel Advisor for Latin America for Less. It was almost 2 1/2 hours long and I had studied pretty extensively and I am so glad it's over with. Since then, I have been working decently long hours because we have a lot of work to get done. We are constantly getting new requests and working with new clients. One thing that keeps me sane at the office are my co-workers. The environment is really relaxed and I really love the people I work with. They have a sense of humor and it helps keep the stress level a bit lower. Everyone seems really close and I hope to be able to go out more with everyone. It's tough when I'm not motivated because I'm so exhausted from work... 

Back to the job... Luckily, we do not do any cold-calling so that's one nice thing about my job. Another thing I like alot is that I am never bored. I always have work to do, and if I don't, I'm  receiving more requests from my manager. So far I've sold about 4 or 5 trips :) I've also done 13 airport transfers this month... some at 4:30am and some at midnight... we get $50 for each transfer we do so I try to take advantage as much as I can although some days I'd much rather be sleeping after a long day at the office...

New Home in Barranco :)
Enough about work (who wants to read about work anyway?) I have finally moved into my "own" apartment in Barranco, Lima. Barranco is a cute, "artsy" neighborhood in Lima which is next to the popular Miraflores district. It has a lot of personality, and it feels less stuck up then Miraflores. There's also a lot of creative graffiti everywhere which I enjoy reading on the daily. I live with my friend Danielle, who I met in Cusco 2 years ago. She is now working at Latin America for Less as well, since I convinced her to stay in Lima a bit longer than she had planned. I am really glad that we searched in Barranco and didn't give up. We had to live in a hostel (well two different ones) for over a week before we found a place to settle. The land-lady is in the states and is trying to sell the place, but she told us we can live here through October so that at least gives us some time to look for another place. It's so nice to be settled and to not live in a room in someone else's house. As much as they say "our house is your house" it doesn't feel your own until you feel responsible for it. 

The apartment is beautiful (a bit more expensive than I was looking to pay, but it's worth it). It's got tons of windows and lets alot of light in (although the sun won't shine for another month). I finally have a room with a bed bigger than a twin bed which is a miracle in itself (I spent 5 years in college with a twin bed and everyone always made fun of me..). I also have my own bathroom which is amazing, although everything is always so wet and mold grows easily on EVERYTHING. We constantly have to clean and keep doors open while we shower so the water/steam doesn't help the mold grow. We also have our own laundry unit which is really nice. Oh, and as I mentioned before, we are 1 block from the Malecon which is where the coast is. We are also 4 blocks from the super-market and super close to the combis that take us to work. All in all, I'm really happy with the location and it feels more like home than I ever felt in Miraflores. 


Life in Lima
Besides the weather, my life in Lima is good. I have been trying to get into a routine with dance, and also have been trying my hand at cooking. I'm not very good, but I like practicing :)

On Mondays and Wednesdays I have been taking a jazz class at D1 Escuela de Dance in Chorillos which is about 10 minutes by bus from my apartment. It has been a huge stress reliever for me, and I hope to continue and do a larger variety of classes at D1 Escuela.  I'm learning really quickly that everyone has their outlet, and when they don't use it, it's hard to function in life. I am a much happier person when I'm dancing so I definitely plan to continue that.

Anyway, I think I've written enough to fill everyone in on what I've been up to. I plan to write more about Lima/Peru in the upcoming blogs. My mom is arriving to Lima tonight with her boyfriend, Tom, and I'm so excited to see her! She is spending the day in Lima tomorrow. After that, we are off to the Jungle and Machu Picchu :) I will be sure to update my blog on the trip once I am back.

Hasta luego chicos :)

2 1/2 Weeks in Lima

So it's been about two and a half weeks since I arrived in the city of Lima, and in some ways its flying by and in other ways it feels like I've been here forever. 

Luckily, I was able to move into an apartment only a day after I arrived. I had been emailing with a girl named Teresa that posted an ad on expat peru and I came by to see their apartment and moved in on the same day. It's a bit expensive for what I wanted to be paying living in Lima ($400/month) but I figured it was a good starting point because its a safe building and its in downtown Lima. My roommates are super nice and friendly, and have made my transition a lot easier on me. They also have a dog named Hatchi who's great :) The district is called Miraflores and from here I can take the bus to work which takes about 10 minutes on the bus + 15 minutes of walking...or just a 40 minute walk. I'm hoping that in the next two weeks I'll be able to find my own apartment with a coworker so I can start making my "home" in Lima rather than just renting a room in someone else's place. Although I have to say it is really nice to have three roommates since it can get kind of lonely not knowing many people in such a gigantic city.

As of today, I’m 2 weeks and 2 days into my training as a Travel Advisor for Latin America for Less. It's crazy to think of how much information I have learned in the last two and a half weeks. Basically my training has consisted of learning all the ins and outs of the company, learning the process of projects, how to use all the excel spreadsheets to do price matching and itineraries, and how to quote packages and hotels to clients. And most of all, I've been learning about all the countries we sell - Peru, Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador, Bolivia, Chile and Costa Rica. It's like being in college all over again. Normally, the first 3 hours of my day consist of studying a handful of destinations in a given country (for example, today I studied the Amazon, Iquitos, Puerto Maldonado, Chiclayo, Trujillo and other cities in Peru). Not only do we learn the destination, but we are required to know all of our "top pick" hotels for three, four, and five star hotels, why they are top picks, where exactly they are located, and what makes them special. I'm starting to feel like an encyclopedia but I like it because its all about travel which I'm passionate about. After being quizzed on the destinations by my trainer, I usually have some kind of class to learn about operations of the company, etc and then I work on fake itineraries or shadow other TAs during the day. 

Lucky for me, I'm not the only new one this month. There's two other TA's, Mark and Matt who started a week or two ahead of me. It definitely takes the pressure off knowing that I'm not the only one who doesn't know what they're doing. The office environment is really chill and its interesting to see how everyone has similar backgrounds...either studied or lived abroad before in South America, and came back down because they missed it so much. Many people are from the US, but also some from Canada, Europe and Peru as well. Between the 40 of us, it feels like a close-knit family and even after only a few weeks I'm feeling comfortable there. My AGM also has a puppy that hangs out at the office which makes life a little better too :) Oh, and we have a cook that comes in everyday and cooks us a two-course lunch for 8 soles (about $3) so I haven't even had to worry about cooking myself many meals. 

Besides work, I haven't been doing too much else mostly because I've been so exhausted from working 9am-6pm everyday. I'm hoping to start taking some dance and zumba classes soon though so I can get into a good routine. It's definitely weird working a 9-6pm job when I'm used to working crazy hours in a restaurant back home.

Hopefully the next time I write there will be more interesting stuff to write about but that's all I got for now :) 

Hasta luego.

Moving to Lima, Perú

After returning to the states two years ago after living abroad, I'm now a recent college graduate, and am preparing to move to Lima, Peru for a year-long contract with a company called Latin America for Less. There, I'll be working as a travel advisor doing sales and making itineraries for people interested in traveling to Central and South America.

It's crazy that after 3 month-long trips back to Lima, Peru in the last two years, I'll finally be staying in the city for an extended amount of time. While it's going to be hard leaving behind family and friends again, I'm excited for a new challenge and a chance to improve my Spanish, and live in another foreign city.

Preparing for this trip is definitely different than my first trip abroad, as I am less nervous about communicating in Spanish and not knowing anyone beforehand. Lucky for me, I have a handful of good friends in the city of Lima, and there are lots of young adults working in same office as me so hopefully  I won't have trouble meeting people and making Lima my new home. I think the biggest issue for me right now is packing and trying to decide whats coming with me and what to leave behind...

Hasta luego :)