Extrañando algunas cositas

Along with the last blog, I thought I’d write about things that I miss and don’t miss about home (besides the obvious things like family and friends).

Things I miss:

• WI FRESH milk
• Mexican food
• walking to class (although not so much in the winter months)
• change of seasons (spring and fall)
• short 50 minute classes (here they’re two hours, one of mine is even three!)
• feeling cozy (coffee shops, carpet, cozy couches)
• drinking faucet water
• using my debit card instead of cash
• blending in (aka not getting whistled/stared at constantly)
• pedestrians having the right of way
• general organization and efficiency
• texting, cheap phone calls, and a nice cell phone
• thunder storms (it literally never rains in Lima)
• not having to be worried about getting robbed

Things I don’t miss:

• winter (especially walking to class in freezing weather)
• how expensive it is to eat out
• $1 bills (I much prefer dollar coins)
• really expensive textbooks (I’ve spent a total of $25 on ‘textbooks’ this year)
• having class everyday
• working (although making money is nice)
• getting tan only in the summer
• super expensive movies (You can be $1 movies off the street, or to see a movie in theaters as cheap as $2 on Tuesdays)
• having to cook for myself all the time
• lack of traveling
• speaking English all the time
• having to be on time to everything
• being constantly busy and having very little chill time

For now,  I'll marvel at the differences between Peru and the US because in just over two months, I'll be missing a whole new list of things.

Amor y Paz.

Foreigner?

It’s odd how familiar Lima has gotten. I know what buses to take to get around the city, what Peruvian snacks are my favorite (margaritas), where the good places are to eat, when I’m getting ripped off, or what a non-Peruvian Spanish accent sounds like.

When taxi drivers try to make me pay twice as much, I refuse to pay the gringa price.  When people tell me prices in dollars, I convert it back to soles and think how many lunches or how many alfajores I could buy with that many soles.  When people talk about Peruvian food, I try to avoid saying that I don’t like ceviche, but emphasize the fact that I love pollo a la brasa and aji de gallina.  I may struggle with my Spanish at times, but I love it when I can throw in the word “manyas?” (Got it?) or the ever-so-popular “chevere” (cool).

It no longer feels strange to eat rice with nearly every meal, drink juice instead of milk, use soles, write the date as day/month/year, or speak Spanish.  It kinda feels like a second home and if I didn’t know I was so far away, I wouldn’t feel like I was so far away. A lot of times I have to picture myself on the map of South America to remind myself that I can’t drive home on the weekends (although tanning in January was a good reminder).

And despite what Peruvians might say about my appearance as a foreigner, I really don’t feel like one anymore.

Amor y Paz.

Thinking about the EEUU

I finally have a flight back to the States! I’ll be in the land of red, white, and blue on the 12th of July (sadly, missing the freedom celebrations by a week but not much I can do about a July 7th final).  It’s weird to think about going back because I’m sure a lot will have changed in the almost year that I’ll have been here.  I guess I kind of have this thought that while I’ve been here life just stopped back in Madison and Menomonie (my hometown) and will start up again when I get back. Obviously that’s not the case because 8 months have gone by. Honestly, it’s hard to believe I’ve been here that long already.  Based on how fast last semester went by, I know these next few months are going to be gone in the blink of an eye (so to say).

I am excited to go home, but I know when I get back to Wisconsin I’ll be hit with real life. It’s a kind of paradise here as I have much less homework and I don’t have a job.  This is the most free time I’ve had since….probably Middle School, and probably the most free time I’ll ever have again in my life. So I’m really soaking in every Peruvian second, knowing that I’ll miss it, but at the same time looking forward to going back to everyone in the EEUU.

Amor y Paz.

So long sweet summer...

School is now in full swing and I actually have homework again. I do miss the time at the beach and the unlimited free time, but I guess it’s  nice to feel productive. This semester I’m taking four classes-Peruvian Narrative Literature, Phonetics, Human Development 1, and Education and Development in Peru.  I’m interested in all of my classes (although my literature class is pretty boring) so that makes doing homework not so bad. My favorite class is by far phonetics as I love anything and everything language. I’ve also already taken phonetics in English at UW, so that makes it easier to understand the linguistic vocabulary. Anyways, I do have some homework I have to get to, so I’m going to get back to that!

Amor y Paz.

Carnaval in the land of blue, green and yellow

If anyone knows anything about Carnaval (Portuguese spelling) or Carnival (English spelling), you know that Brazil is world-famous for their pre-lent celebration, or maybe a better word to use would be crazy-over-the-top-country-wide-festival.  The biggest cities, Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, are famous for the competition of samba schools in their Sambodromos.  While in northern Brazil the celebration is carried out in blocos, big groups of people following semi-like trucks calld trios topped by Brazilian bands. The party really isn’t complete without music, a very important part of Brazilian culture.

Well, when I decided I was going to study abroad in Peru, there was one vacation destination that I for sure was going to hit up–Brazil.  I’ve taken Portuguese at UW, but that’s not the only reason I wanted to go. In fact, the reason I wanted to go to Brazil was the same reason why I wanted to learn Portuguese in the first place.

My senior year in high school I became good friends with an exchange student from Brazil, Carol.  I figured if I was already in South America, I had to go and visit her in Brazil as I hadn´t seen her for two and a half years. I started saving money early on, as Brazil is pretty expensive, and when I got to South America I started planning my Brazilian adventure, deciding that I would go for Carnaval in March.  After buying my flight, the trip was official and I was really excited! I decided to spend two weeks in Carol´s city, Joao Pessoa, located on the eastern most point of Brazil.

When I arrived, my thought was “this is paradise.” She lives really close to the beach and the sun shows its face all day long among the striking green palms and perfectly blue sky.

Here’s my top 10 from the trip (in no particular order).

1. Jet-skiing and eating crab in areias vermelhas (red sand) out in the ocean.
The ocean near João Pessoa isn’t very deep, so you can stand up in the ocean pretty far out. Oh yeah, and the Atlantic is warm unlike the Pacific!

2. Speaking Portuguese.
I´ve taken three semesters of Portuguese at UW and it was great to practice. To me it sounds like a mixture of Spanish and French and I think it’s a beautiful language. Considering how easy Spanish is coming to me now, Portuguese was frustrating at times, but Brazilians LOVE speaking English so I was able to give my brain a rest every now and again.

This is one of the souvenirs I bought. Their flag says “order and progress.”

3. Cafuçu.
This is a Brazilian pre-Carnaval party that takes place at night in a plaza with a live band. Cafuçu is known for its crazy costumes and outfits and Carol and I did not hold back.

4. Learning Brazilian music.
Brazilian tunes are a key part to Carnaval, as it’s a huge part of their culture.  A lot of the songs are summer hits that get repeated by various bands throughout the festivities. I was able to learn some songs and I even got a cd to bring back so I can keep jamming to hits brasileiros.

5. My going away/American food party.
The last night I was there, Carol and I threw a party and made American food aka cheeseburgers, fries and milkshakes and let me tell you it was delicious.  Seven of her friends came over and besides pigging out, we talked and even had an impromptu sing-along as some of the guys brought guitars.

6. Trying lots of new food.
My favorite Brazilian treat was definitely açai, a fruit (kind of looks like a blueberry) that they freeze and then blend. It has an ice-cream like texture and is just the right amount of sweet. It’s very refreshing and apparently really good for you too. In Brazil they serve it as a drink or as a snack with whatever toppings you want. I had mine with strawberries and bananas, sweetened condensed milk, and different kinds of cereal. So yummy!

7. Carnaval in Olinda.
João Pessoa doesn’t have a Carnaval celebration, so Carol and I took a bus to Olinda, a city about two hours away.  And while I was begging middle school boys to spray me with their squirt guns (it was super hot!), I really felt like I was experiencing culture at its finest as we danced through the streets to Brazilian music.

8. Virgens do Tambú.
This is a Carnaval party that takes place in the streets of João Pessoa at night. The best part of Virgens is that all the guys dress up as girls, complete with dresses, makeup and for the extra brave guys—heels.  Needless to say, I was laughing all night.

9. Hanging out with Carol’s friends.
I had a blast spending time with Carol and her Brazilian friends. I really enjoyed not playing the role of tourist with my nose in my Lonely Planet book, as I could just let Carol be my guide to everything Brazil.

10. Staying with Carol’s family.
I felt so blessed to stay with Carol and her family in their home. They fed me amazing Brazilian food and treated me like I was one of their own. I couldn’t say “obrigada” enough!

Amor e Paz.

My time with Inca Link

I have returned to the southern homeland of Lima, but my month in Trujillo was really great. As you may know, I was there for a month working as an intern with Inca Link (incalink.net), an organization that works to link North Americans and South Americans through service and the love of Jesus.

In Trujillo, Inca Link has three different ministries going. The albergue, or children’s home, is under construction but will soon be home to 70+ kids who are either orphans or from poor families. At the children’s home they’ll learn a trade (sewing, construction etc) in order to help them get a job once they’re old enough. I helped sweep and clean some of the walls in the children’s home to prep for painting, but I didn’t spend a ton of time there.

The kids eating lunch at the daycare

Another ministry is the guarderia, translated daycare, but it’s more of an after-school program. There are around 80 kids that go to the guarderia, ranging from ages 3 to 15, all sponsored by North Americans. The guarderia is three days a week, including lunch and teaching separated by age groups.

The first couple weeks I helped out with the younger kids and played with them and braided the girls’ hair. They quite enjoyed feeling pampered, check out the picture of all of them cramming to see themselves in the mirror.


The last two weeks I was there, another intern, Ashley and I started teaching English to the two older groups. While it’s frustrating that they don’t listen very well, many of them seem to be genuinely interested in learning English and it makes me smile hearing them say English phrases such as, “I am from Peru.” Ashley will continue teaching English, as she’ll be with Inca Link for a year.

Before

After

Another thing Ashley and I did for the daycare was bring organization to the donation room. It was the definition of chaos with toothpaste, notebooks, markers, stuffed animals and clothes in random bags and boxes just packed into the room. I definitely think the phrase “out of sight, out of mind” applied to this room as the door stayed tightly closed. It seemed that it had gotten so bad that no one wanted to take on the challenge of organizing it, but for Ashley and I, there was nothing we wanted to do more. We spent four half-days separating the donations into categories and getting shelves and boxes to help organize it. I labeled everything in Spanish and English so both the natives and the missionaries would know what goes where. Now I just hope it stays the way we left it!

Another ministry is at the city’s garbage dump, which is on the smelly outskirts of town, an area where the locals avoid, and rightfully so. But once you got past the smell and sight of tons of garbage, you saw the people that worked and lived there and it broke my heart to see the conditions that people worked and lived in.

The programmed ministry is on Saturdays, where a group of people teach the kids and play games with them, much like a Sunday school class. This was my favorite ministry as the kids take joy in simple things, such as taking pictures with my camera or playing soccer with us gringos. When I talk about the kids at the garbage dump, they don’t actually live in the dump, but rather alongside it (not much better than living in it to be honest). Many of their parents work in the dump as the city’s recycling: taking out glass, plastic, and cardboard in order to make some money.

One day, after getting permission from the city, we North American missionaries went into the dump. We didn’t really have an agenda, it was more to see it and talk with the people about their experiences. It was definitely nothing like I’ve ever seen before as the stench of garbage was overwhelming and there were people of all ages, dirty from head to toe with hopeless eyes digging through everyone’s trash. After walking around for a bit, I got the chance to talk to a lady about 50 years old. She poured out her life story to me about how her son is an alcoholic and how it’s tearing apart their family. I prayed for her that God would give her peace and that her son would be able to get help. She is also a Christian so we were able to bond over the fact that our God is a God of joy and peace. She told me she felt much more happy and content after talking to me and I gave her a big hug and kiss on the cheek goodbye. I was delighted to have the opportunity to pray for her and yet I was distressed over the fact that there are so many people who work in the dump and are suffering hardship.

While I had many other experiences during my internship in Trujillo, such as singing Dancing Queen at Karaoke or eating ice cream on the beach, this is the moment that I will never forget.  I’ve realized that life is about relationships and despite supposed cultural differences or socially created ladders, “We all live with the objective of being happy; our lives are all different and yet the same” –Anne Frank

Amor y Paz.

New Home for a Month

I’m no longer in Lima! (No worries, it’s only for a month) I’m currently in Trujillo, Peru which is north of Lima on the coast. I’ll be here until the beginning of February working with an organization called Inca Link doing missionary work as an Intern.  I’m still not entirely sure what I’ll be doing here, but I know I’ll be serving God’s people which is very exciting! There are a few different ministries that Inca Link does down here, including a daycare and serving the people that dig through the garbage at the garbage dump. For more info or to contribute, check out their website.

Amor y Paz.