Buenos dias from Lima!
I spent last night in Miraflores, a nicer suburb / neighborhood of Lima. It´s loud here. LOUD. I guess Ive been in a sleepy tourist town or hiking for too long. Theres a jackhammer digging up concrete right outside the hostel and cars start honking early in the morning, honk constantly all day and then well into the night. Although, its still relatively sleepy compared to last night. Its definitely a shock to my system to be in an urban area again! The first thing I did after checking into my hostel and dropping off my bags was to walk up the street to Vivenda, Perus answer to Whole Foods. It felt heavenly to be in a grocery store! Dont get my wrong - Ill still miss Mercado San Pedro and getting 2 huge glasses of Jugo for super-cheap...but it was fun to browse the aisles and pick up a few things for lunch.
One thing Lima is known for, is its restaurants. Siri and I were fortunate to eat at some pretty delicious places in Cuzco (despite usually involving rice and/or pasta and/or potatoes and/or bread), but I was looking forward to trying some of the highly recommended restaurants in Miraflores, especially ceviche. I went in search of Astrid y Gaston last night, but was too early (as a result of trekkig, Ive been eating at 7pm and in bed by 8pm! That will change soon...) and then a ceviche restaurant, but couldnt find it. On my way back to my hostel, I stumbled across Edo, a sushi restaurant. In this case, a meal with rice was completely acceptable! It was wonderful to sit at the bar, watch the sushi chefs slice fish and create amazing rolls, and just relax. One of the chefs suggested his favorite roll, which had shrimp tempura, avacado, and was topped with thin slices of fish and oyster sauce before being hit with a kitchen blow torch (yum!!!). What an excellent meal! Afterwards, I stopped for gelatto & cafe. Its amazing how good excellent sushi, gelatto & cafe can make one feel.
The plan for the day...taxi up to Central Lima to visit Plaza de Armas and some of the churches and a monastary (with catacombs!) near there, walk around China town (dim sum?!), maybe more shopping back in Miraflores, one more amazing meal and then off to the airport for a red-eye. Ive got 140 soles left to spend...
Things Ill miss - the mercados, juice-y avacados, crispy banana chips, views of the mountains, gorgeous catholic cathedrals, plazas, amazing fresh jugo everyday, trying new fruits, peoples smiles, spanglish conversations, tamales...Things Im looking forward to - seeing my friends, talking to my family, continuting to improve my spanish, seeing my cat, oxygen!, my bed, a bath, cooking, going for a bike ride, going for a run...
More about the treks when Im back in the atl...and of course, pictures! Hope everyone is well! Thanks for reading! Hasta luego!!!
Saturday, May 22, 2010
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Back from trekking...time for shopping!
Siri and I arrived back in Cuzco yesterday from our 5-day trek around Ausungate. The views were absolutely amazing! The altitude was impressive too - our group crossed 3 high passes, 5100 meters, 5200 meters, and 5300 meters...It was definitely slow-motion walking! Probably the highlight, other than being at 5300 meters, was seeing not one, but two avalanches - both at a safe distance. Both occurred in the same spot on the same mountain, but the second one was huge. Each time, it sounded like a plane was flying overhead, but I noticed a huge cloud falling down the mountain (Cuyangate). It was an amazing event to witness!
I'll do a longer write-up on each trek when I return...and of course, I'll post pics. Just a quick comparison though...Inca Trail - hiked that with a small group of friends and 399 others...lots of leap frogging with other groups on the trail. Ausungate - just 3 or 4 of us, a few horses, a guide, cook & a porter. We didn't see any other trekkers and very few local farmers. Both treks had all food prepared for us, although first trek had better food. I'm looking forward to a break from rice, potatoes, and pasta - soemtimes served all at the same meal. During the Inca Trek, I would have loved to have shorts and a tank top - it was warm! On Ausungate, I woke up to frost on the tent a couple of times and was glad I had all the fleece layers I had! The Inca Trek had ruins - no ruins on the Ausungate trek, but we did walk through numerous grazing pastures for llamas, alpacas, sheep and horses. The Inca Trail is paved most of the way with stones that were set there for the Inca royals. The path around Ausungate isn't as clear - no rocks, sometimes we were wandering on local paths created by the farmers and other times, we were criss-crossing through boggy-land that used to be a lake.
It was an interesting morning in Cuzco. Siri and I headed to San Pedro Market early in the morning. It was neat to see people setting up shop. We got in some important shopping and enjoyed fresh-squeezed juice. The fruit & juice here is amazing - I may just have to invest in a juicer when I return! I'm going to miss papaya...The market is a bit of a chaotic place - you can buy just about anything there, from touristy goods to kitchen staples. There's a huge selection of weaving, beading, and other good gifts. The fresh fruit & vegetable sections are amazing. We avoided the meat section - seeing and smelling recently butchered animals at 8am is not always a good thing. Although, I think the smells probably get stronger later in the day... On our way out, we heard music - there was a huge parade heading into the Plaza de Armas. Dozens of groups of dancers were dressed up in an amazing assortment of costumes. Many schools & the grades at schools were represented. One group was dancing with bones & skulls, a couple of groups were dancing with boughs from trees, and everything was incredibly colorful! After the main groups went by in 20minutes or so, we continued and then came across another parade with lots of ninos and ninas dressed up in costumes. They were cute! What a beautiful day for a parade. :-)
Only a half day left in Cuzco...Almost done with shopping - may take in a museum this afternoon for something different. I fly out to Lima tomorrow morning, get all day Friday and Saturday to explore Lima / Miraflores before flying out early to Atlanta...If anyone's up for dinner Sunday evening, zip me an email...I'm thinking I might bookend this trip with meals at Farm Burger. Adios!
I'll do a longer write-up on each trek when I return...and of course, I'll post pics. Just a quick comparison though...Inca Trail - hiked that with a small group of friends and 399 others...lots of leap frogging with other groups on the trail. Ausungate - just 3 or 4 of us, a few horses, a guide, cook & a porter. We didn't see any other trekkers and very few local farmers. Both treks had all food prepared for us, although first trek had better food. I'm looking forward to a break from rice, potatoes, and pasta - soemtimes served all at the same meal. During the Inca Trek, I would have loved to have shorts and a tank top - it was warm! On Ausungate, I woke up to frost on the tent a couple of times and was glad I had all the fleece layers I had! The Inca Trek had ruins - no ruins on the Ausungate trek, but we did walk through numerous grazing pastures for llamas, alpacas, sheep and horses. The Inca Trail is paved most of the way with stones that were set there for the Inca royals. The path around Ausungate isn't as clear - no rocks, sometimes we were wandering on local paths created by the farmers and other times, we were criss-crossing through boggy-land that used to be a lake.
It was an interesting morning in Cuzco. Siri and I headed to San Pedro Market early in the morning. It was neat to see people setting up shop. We got in some important shopping and enjoyed fresh-squeezed juice. The fruit & juice here is amazing - I may just have to invest in a juicer when I return! I'm going to miss papaya...The market is a bit of a chaotic place - you can buy just about anything there, from touristy goods to kitchen staples. There's a huge selection of weaving, beading, and other good gifts. The fresh fruit & vegetable sections are amazing. We avoided the meat section - seeing and smelling recently butchered animals at 8am is not always a good thing. Although, I think the smells probably get stronger later in the day... On our way out, we heard music - there was a huge parade heading into the Plaza de Armas. Dozens of groups of dancers were dressed up in an amazing assortment of costumes. Many schools & the grades at schools were represented. One group was dancing with bones & skulls, a couple of groups were dancing with boughs from trees, and everything was incredibly colorful! After the main groups went by in 20minutes or so, we continued and then came across another parade with lots of ninos and ninas dressed up in costumes. They were cute! What a beautiful day for a parade. :-)
Only a half day left in Cuzco...Almost done with shopping - may take in a museum this afternoon for something different. I fly out to Lima tomorrow morning, get all day Friday and Saturday to explore Lima / Miraflores before flying out early to Atlanta...If anyone's up for dinner Sunday evening, zip me an email...I'm thinking I might bookend this trip with meals at Farm Burger. Adios!
Saturday, May 15, 2010
Transition Day
Yesterday was a transition day for Siri and I in Cuzco. We´d spent the last day and a half in Urabamba, exploring the ruinas at Ollantaytambo and staying at the cutest hotel - Las Chullpas. I think I´m going to have to buy some Brazillian music to listen to in the morning now while I drink my coffee and enjoy fruit and granola. :)
We had a whole list of errands to due yesterday - breakfast, cab ride, drop off laundry, pick up laundry, check into hotel, withdraw more soles from the ATM, pre-trekking meeting, lunch, buy snacks, pick up luggage from South American Explorers Club, check email, meet up with our friend Kristy, shopping, tamales and dinner. whew. we managed to get it all done! It´s been a balance between being relaxed and being on vacation and taking care of responsibilities that needed to get done, like yesterday. But it´s all good. Had a lovely dinner at a Thai Fusion restaurant, complete with soup and amazing dessert - so good to meet new friends on this trip!
We leave in a few minutes for our next trek - around Ausungate, a 6200 meeter peak. It´s the highest peak in this region and the 2nd highest peak in Peru. It´s going to be COLD. It´s Siri and I and 2 other random people who signed up. It´ll be a different dynamic that trekking the Inca Trail with friends. In addition, we´ll have a few horses, 2 porters, a cook, and a guide. Rumor has it, that Apu feeds their clients well. I´ll post updates about this trek & the Inca Trail later.
A few last thoughts on Peru before I catch the van to our trek...corn nuts here have creamy centers - which is actually quite good; granola here means quinoa and not oatmeal - looking forward to trying out this variation at home!; speedbumps mean you speed as fast as you can between bumps (I´m thankful the cars here seem to have good brakes!); stray dogs have learned to follow tourists around in hopes of getting food; there seems to be a strict one raisin per cookie or tamale or granola bar policy, coca leaves are good in tea, candy, toffee, jam and earrings.
Adios!
We had a whole list of errands to due yesterday - breakfast, cab ride, drop off laundry, pick up laundry, check into hotel, withdraw more soles from the ATM, pre-trekking meeting, lunch, buy snacks, pick up luggage from South American Explorers Club, check email, meet up with our friend Kristy, shopping, tamales and dinner. whew. we managed to get it all done! It´s been a balance between being relaxed and being on vacation and taking care of responsibilities that needed to get done, like yesterday. But it´s all good. Had a lovely dinner at a Thai Fusion restaurant, complete with soup and amazing dessert - so good to meet new friends on this trip!
We leave in a few minutes for our next trek - around Ausungate, a 6200 meeter peak. It´s the highest peak in this region and the 2nd highest peak in Peru. It´s going to be COLD. It´s Siri and I and 2 other random people who signed up. It´ll be a different dynamic that trekking the Inca Trail with friends. In addition, we´ll have a few horses, 2 porters, a cook, and a guide. Rumor has it, that Apu feeds their clients well. I´ll post updates about this trek & the Inca Trail later.
A few last thoughts on Peru before I catch the van to our trek...corn nuts here have creamy centers - which is actually quite good; granola here means quinoa and not oatmeal - looking forward to trying out this variation at home!; speedbumps mean you speed as fast as you can between bumps (I´m thankful the cars here seem to have good brakes!); stray dogs have learned to follow tourists around in hopes of getting food; there seems to be a strict one raisin per cookie or tamale or granola bar policy, coca leaves are good in tea, candy, toffee, jam and earrings.
Adios!
Friday, May 7, 2010
My mother knits juice
Apparently, my grasp of the Spanish language still needs some work. My translation skills aren´t quite what I´d like them to be. It´s absolutely no reflection on mis professoras - they are some of the most patient people in the entire world! Today was my last class - very sad. Siri and I bought our teachers and Deena, the woman who´s house we´re staying at - flowers for mother´s day. They were all so happy! It was great to treat them and also fun to head into the Mercado Juancha again - less touristy than Mercado San Pedro. Of course, we had tamales, but they weren´t quite as good as the ones in front of the supermercado just off of Plaza de Armas. Siri and I just went there again - the woman recognizes me now. :-)
I´d forgotten how taxing and tiring it can be to travel and live in another country. I´m always reminded that errands take 2 - 3 times what I think they should. Best just to keep that in mind and smile and through in the most appropriate Spanish phrases when I can. After running around, we´ve gotten cash, secured hotel rooms in Cuzco for our remaining nights here between treks, purchased more water, and of course, enjoyed some tamales - who knows if anyone will be selling them on the trail so best to enjoy them now while I can.
Some of the things that I´m reminded not to take for granted when I return...regular trash pick up, catalytic converters, short lines at the bank, good water pressure fo rshowering and flushing the toilet, having hot water, having my own washer and dryer, the scarcity of dogs roaming the street, being able to brush my teeth with tap water, eating ice cream, and not needing to worry about saving and giving out change (everybody wants change and small bills and coins, but no one wants to give change - frustrating, but it just takes some practice)...I´m not complaining - there are certain comforts I am happy to give up while traveling, even for long periods of time. It just takes a few days to adjust and I´m more appreciative of those comforts when I return.
I´m really going to miss Deena - she has treated Siri and I and the other estudiantes de Fair Play who have been fortunate enough to stay with her like her children. The meals are delicious and she puts up with our broken Spanglish. but we communicate as best as we can and smile and laugh.
Tomorrow we start the Inca Trail. We had our first taste of ruins yesterday when Siri and I visited Saksaywaman (pronounced like sexy woman) with our teachers in the morning. There were only a few tourist buses there so it was pretty tranquilo. It was nice for us, but Peru is still suffering because the tourist numbers have been down since the floods. Along the trek, we´ll be able to see how high the waters got - we´ve been told it´s pretty incredible. It´s amazing to think how long the stones from all of the ruins have been standing. no cement. and they´ve survived numerous tremblors (earthquakes) while other buildings have collapsed. They´re the closest ruins to Cuzco, but not the most impressive. What lies ahead should be amazing! I´m doing an anti-rain dance and am hoping I´ve adjusted to the altitude well enough this week so get through it OK.
Hope all is well in Atlanta or wherever you´re reading this from!!! Adios!!!
I´d forgotten how taxing and tiring it can be to travel and live in another country. I´m always reminded that errands take 2 - 3 times what I think they should. Best just to keep that in mind and smile and through in the most appropriate Spanish phrases when I can. After running around, we´ve gotten cash, secured hotel rooms in Cuzco for our remaining nights here between treks, purchased more water, and of course, enjoyed some tamales - who knows if anyone will be selling them on the trail so best to enjoy them now while I can.
Some of the things that I´m reminded not to take for granted when I return...regular trash pick up, catalytic converters, short lines at the bank, good water pressure fo rshowering and flushing the toilet, having hot water, having my own washer and dryer, the scarcity of dogs roaming the street, being able to brush my teeth with tap water, eating ice cream, and not needing to worry about saving and giving out change (everybody wants change and small bills and coins, but no one wants to give change - frustrating, but it just takes some practice)...I´m not complaining - there are certain comforts I am happy to give up while traveling, even for long periods of time. It just takes a few days to adjust and I´m more appreciative of those comforts when I return.
I´m really going to miss Deena - she has treated Siri and I and the other estudiantes de Fair Play who have been fortunate enough to stay with her like her children. The meals are delicious and she puts up with our broken Spanglish. but we communicate as best as we can and smile and laugh.
Tomorrow we start the Inca Trail. We had our first taste of ruins yesterday when Siri and I visited Saksaywaman (pronounced like sexy woman) with our teachers in the morning. There were only a few tourist buses there so it was pretty tranquilo. It was nice for us, but Peru is still suffering because the tourist numbers have been down since the floods. Along the trek, we´ll be able to see how high the waters got - we´ve been told it´s pretty incredible. It´s amazing to think how long the stones from all of the ruins have been standing. no cement. and they´ve survived numerous tremblors (earthquakes) while other buildings have collapsed. They´re the closest ruins to Cuzco, but not the most impressive. What lies ahead should be amazing! I´m doing an anti-rain dance and am hoping I´ve adjusted to the altitude well enough this week so get through it OK.
Hope all is well in Atlanta or wherever you´re reading this from!!! Adios!!!
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Cuzco para una mas dia
Hola! Mañana is our last day in Cuzco...at least for the next week. I´m sad that language class will be over and hope I don´t lose too much of what I´ve learned in the past few days. I´m loving Cuzco, but so far, it´s the only part of Peru I´ve seen so it´s kind of a limited view. For now, here are just a few general impressions and observations of Cuzco...
The streets (most of them) are incredibly narrow. On our walk from our homestay to The Plaza de Armas, there´s one street that´s barely wide enough for a car. and some cars only have an inch or so to spare. but this seems normal and people walk along the very narrow sidewalk and hop back and forth between the road and the sidewalk letting each other and cars pass. along this street, there are homes and businesses. In addition, many walls are really high - I took pictures, but it´s still hard to describe. It makes for gorgeous views down steep hills leading to the main plaza.
This should normally be a very busy time in Cuzco, but it´s tranquillo because the trains just reopened so the normal masses of tourists aren´t here. I feel pretty bad for the people who make a living off of tourism. The markets should be crowded, but from our perspective, it´s nice that it´s not so crowded. I´m doing my best to support them and spent a lovely afternoon shopping for goods.
In case it wasn´t clear from my last post, the tamales sucre are amazing. I will miss the tamale vendors on the sidewalks. Someone in Atlanta should look into that...I think they´d make a killing if they set up stand along Clifton Rd...
The weather has been beautiful! Crisp, clearn mornings, sunny & warm afternoons, and chilly evenings. So far, no rain, a few clouds, but mostly sunny. May is the start of the dry season - let´s hope it stays that way the next 2 weeks.
The traffic here is chaotic...i´d describe it as somewhere between Atlanta and Cairo. There are stoplights and stop signs which drivers respect (unlike Cairo) but crossing the street is sort of like playing Frogger - the cars really don´t stop and almost speed up for pedestrians (sort of like Atlanta). but, with patience, crossing a street eventually happens.
Cuzcoans LOVE festivals! While we´ve been here, they´ve been celebrating the Fiesta de la cruces. Siri and I can´t really figure out what it means, but our teachers at school say that everyone just really likes fiestas. it´s an excuses for musica, bailar, y cervesa. muy cervesa! We´ve witnessed to parades so far with eleborate costumes, lots of dancing and loud music. We got pictures, but obviously they don´t capture the music and watching the procession. We went into one of the main, gorgeous, grande Catedrals on Plaza de Armas. the ornate details inside the church were incredible. It was a mix of traditional Peruvian art and classic Catholic themes.
Ok, time for bed...Our Inca trek starts Saturday! Our trekking company said they´d pick us up between 4am and 6am...We´re hoping for some clarification tomorrow. :-) Adios!!!
The streets (most of them) are incredibly narrow. On our walk from our homestay to The Plaza de Armas, there´s one street that´s barely wide enough for a car. and some cars only have an inch or so to spare. but this seems normal and people walk along the very narrow sidewalk and hop back and forth between the road and the sidewalk letting each other and cars pass. along this street, there are homes and businesses. In addition, many walls are really high - I took pictures, but it´s still hard to describe. It makes for gorgeous views down steep hills leading to the main plaza.
This should normally be a very busy time in Cuzco, but it´s tranquillo because the trains just reopened so the normal masses of tourists aren´t here. I feel pretty bad for the people who make a living off of tourism. The markets should be crowded, but from our perspective, it´s nice that it´s not so crowded. I´m doing my best to support them and spent a lovely afternoon shopping for goods.
In case it wasn´t clear from my last post, the tamales sucre are amazing. I will miss the tamale vendors on the sidewalks. Someone in Atlanta should look into that...I think they´d make a killing if they set up stand along Clifton Rd...
The weather has been beautiful! Crisp, clearn mornings, sunny & warm afternoons, and chilly evenings. So far, no rain, a few clouds, but mostly sunny. May is the start of the dry season - let´s hope it stays that way the next 2 weeks.
The traffic here is chaotic...i´d describe it as somewhere between Atlanta and Cairo. There are stoplights and stop signs which drivers respect (unlike Cairo) but crossing the street is sort of like playing Frogger - the cars really don´t stop and almost speed up for pedestrians (sort of like Atlanta). but, with patience, crossing a street eventually happens.
Cuzcoans LOVE festivals! While we´ve been here, they´ve been celebrating the Fiesta de la cruces. Siri and I can´t really figure out what it means, but our teachers at school say that everyone just really likes fiestas. it´s an excuses for musica, bailar, y cervesa. muy cervesa! We´ve witnessed to parades so far with eleborate costumes, lots of dancing and loud music. We got pictures, but obviously they don´t capture the music and watching the procession. We went into one of the main, gorgeous, grande Catedrals on Plaza de Armas. the ornate details inside the church were incredible. It was a mix of traditional Peruvian art and classic Catholic themes.
Ok, time for bed...Our Inca trek starts Saturday! Our trekking company said they´d pick us up between 4am and 6am...We´re hoping for some clarification tomorrow. :-) Adios!!!
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
Por ejemplar...
I am at our awesome language school, FairPlay, waiting for flight websites to load so I can get my ticket back to Lima from Peru. I'm tempted to change my flights and stay here a few more weeks, but should probably not do that...
Thought I'd write more about a typical day in class. It starts at 8am. Our practical teachers, Ileana y Moly, pick Siri and I up at our homestay and we walk around Cuzco and talk for about 2 hours. How can I have a conversation in Spanish for 2 hours if I can't understand or speak the language very well? It's surprising, but it actually works out just fine, mostly because my teacher is so patient. I'm not quite sure how she deals with having to remind me for the 3rd time in 10 minutes that an umbrella es en paragua.
All 3 days, we've gone to markets or mercados. And all 3 days, I need to be reminded what an onion is, what a papaya is, what an avacado is...I thought avacado would be the same. nope. it's plato, or plano or, well, I've forgotten already...We talk about food, me gusta platana, me gusta tomate, me gusta queso, etc...and colors. Manzanas son rojas, el arbol es verde, me bolsa es roja, tengo dos hermanas, etc...and all 3 days she asks me how many niños I have. I reply, no ninños, solo una gato. Why not, she asks? Ít´s hard enough to explain in English, but in another language and across cultures, it´s a little more difficult to describe American dating and how cultural attitudes here towards being single and not having kids has changed... We had a great conversation about children today! I understood that she has 3 kids, and her first 2 boys are twins! I got excited to explain to her that I have dos amigas en U.S. who also have twins. ...and then I learned and promptly forgot the Spanish words for twin boys and twins with one boy and one girl...Another excitng thing about today - I bought my teacher and I tamales and chocolate. I´d be very happy if I was able to enjoy a tamale every day while I´m here. It´s the little things...
After exploring the city for 2hrs, we go to the school for 2 hours of grammar with my teacher Antonia. I have homework! Last night, I had 30 or 40 minutes worth of homework. I feel like I´m in elementary school again filling out worksheets. and I feel bad when I confuse el and la or masculino y feminino. Again, she´s very, very patient which I soooo appreciate! By the 3rd day, I feel like I´m starting to get the hang of somethings and other rules (and excepciones!) are very confusing. Today I learned how to ask and respond to all sorts of questions, what kind of foods do I like, what kind of sports, when is my birthday, how many hermanos y hermanas I have, how many niños I have (no niños? por que no?), etc...I´m so incredibly thankful for the week here to practice Spanish intensely, but I really appreciate how much further I could get with even more time.
so...to my Spanish speaking friends, I´m serious about having Spanish-only lunches o dinners. Although, I can completely understand that it may be a very frustrating experience for you and I may use up all of your patience when I describe the color of the 10 nouns that I know to you over and over...El perro es grande, el perro es marron, la gata es negra, la casa es blanca, los zapatos son azules...
Oh - and I finally remembered...En ingles, esta una avacado, en español, esta palta.
Ok time to run! We´re also planning the last few details of our treks. We leave Saturday (Sabado) por Machu Picchu via the Inca Trail. From everything I keep hearing, it´s going to be amazing. and I´m going to be out of breath and possibly cold and am going to take a bazillion pictures.
Adios!
Thought I'd write more about a typical day in class. It starts at 8am. Our practical teachers, Ileana y Moly, pick Siri and I up at our homestay and we walk around Cuzco and talk for about 2 hours. How can I have a conversation in Spanish for 2 hours if I can't understand or speak the language very well? It's surprising, but it actually works out just fine, mostly because my teacher is so patient. I'm not quite sure how she deals with having to remind me for the 3rd time in 10 minutes that an umbrella es en paragua.
All 3 days, we've gone to markets or mercados. And all 3 days, I need to be reminded what an onion is, what a papaya is, what an avacado is...I thought avacado would be the same. nope. it's plato, or plano or, well, I've forgotten already...We talk about food, me gusta platana, me gusta tomate, me gusta queso, etc...and colors. Manzanas son rojas, el arbol es verde, me bolsa es roja, tengo dos hermanas, etc...and all 3 days she asks me how many niños I have. I reply, no ninños, solo una gato. Why not, she asks? Ít´s hard enough to explain in English, but in another language and across cultures, it´s a little more difficult to describe American dating and how cultural attitudes here towards being single and not having kids has changed... We had a great conversation about children today! I understood that she has 3 kids, and her first 2 boys are twins! I got excited to explain to her that I have dos amigas en U.S. who also have twins. ...and then I learned and promptly forgot the Spanish words for twin boys and twins with one boy and one girl...Another excitng thing about today - I bought my teacher and I tamales and chocolate. I´d be very happy if I was able to enjoy a tamale every day while I´m here. It´s the little things...
After exploring the city for 2hrs, we go to the school for 2 hours of grammar with my teacher Antonia. I have homework! Last night, I had 30 or 40 minutes worth of homework. I feel like I´m in elementary school again filling out worksheets. and I feel bad when I confuse el and la or masculino y feminino. Again, she´s very, very patient which I soooo appreciate! By the 3rd day, I feel like I´m starting to get the hang of somethings and other rules (and excepciones!) are very confusing. Today I learned how to ask and respond to all sorts of questions, what kind of foods do I like, what kind of sports, when is my birthday, how many hermanos y hermanas I have, how many niños I have (no niños? por que no?), etc...I´m so incredibly thankful for the week here to practice Spanish intensely, but I really appreciate how much further I could get with even more time.
so...to my Spanish speaking friends, I´m serious about having Spanish-only lunches o dinners. Although, I can completely understand that it may be a very frustrating experience for you and I may use up all of your patience when I describe the color of the 10 nouns that I know to you over and over...El perro es grande, el perro es marron, la gata es negra, la casa es blanca, los zapatos son azules...
Oh - and I finally remembered...En ingles, esta una avacado, en español, esta palta.
Ok time to run! We´re also planning the last few details of our treks. We leave Saturday (Sabado) por Machu Picchu via the Inca Trail. From everything I keep hearing, it´s going to be amazing. and I´m going to be out of breath and possibly cold and am going to take a bazillion pictures.
Adios!
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Tamales save the day
another really short post...
I´m in Cuzco it´s beautiful (muy bonita!). flight to Lima was fine and the overnight at the airport was OK as well. it turns out, we were not alone in sleeping there. as much as I thought Atlanta´s airport was always busy, I think Lima´s never went to sleep. first we tried sleeping in one area, but it was too loud. we moved, and then the cleaning people came, so we moved again and repeated this scenario 3 more times. after maybe an hour of sleep, we stood in line and finally got to our plane and the 1hr flight to Cuzco. nice views, when I was awake enough to look out the window!
once we landed, we thankfully were met by Mimi, from our spanish school. we arrived at our homestay, enjoyed Pan y coca te with our wonderful host, Deena, and then promptly crashed. the lack of sleep and lack of oxygen was exhausting.
since then, both Siri and I are adapting to the altitude pretty well. we´ve been walking all around the city, no shopping yet or visiting museums. we started classes yesterday. my head hurts ! but it´s an amazing experience, very intense, all one on one teaching, both practical and grmmar. most of the time, i´m frustrated and am certain I´m the slowest student they´ve ever had. but I´m sure I´ll catch on...eventually...
a few other thoughts, the FairPlay School and homestay experience are absolutely incredible. so glad we went with FP. they are not for profit, have the best teachers and treat their teachers very well. before we left, everyone in the states thought that Siri and I being gone for 3 or 4 weeks was a really long time. when we´re here, everyone we meet thinks that´s a very short time. most people are here for months traveling and learning spanish. went to a pub last night. there was trivia and soccer on TV. felt more like England than Peru!
and the tamales...the food here so far is excellent. Deena is an mazing cook! on our way to class yesterday, my teacher stopped and we bought tamales from a woman on the street. it was excellent. later in the evening, siri and I and another student were wandering around and we were all starting to get "hangry". then I spotted woman selling tamales - soooo good and everyone´s spirits improved immediately. :)
off to lunch, shopping and more exploring. hope all is well in the atl!!! adios!
I´m in Cuzco it´s beautiful (muy bonita!). flight to Lima was fine and the overnight at the airport was OK as well. it turns out, we were not alone in sleeping there. as much as I thought Atlanta´s airport was always busy, I think Lima´s never went to sleep. first we tried sleeping in one area, but it was too loud. we moved, and then the cleaning people came, so we moved again and repeated this scenario 3 more times. after maybe an hour of sleep, we stood in line and finally got to our plane and the 1hr flight to Cuzco. nice views, when I was awake enough to look out the window!
once we landed, we thankfully were met by Mimi, from our spanish school. we arrived at our homestay, enjoyed Pan y coca te with our wonderful host, Deena, and then promptly crashed. the lack of sleep and lack of oxygen was exhausting.
since then, both Siri and I are adapting to the altitude pretty well. we´ve been walking all around the city, no shopping yet or visiting museums. we started classes yesterday. my head hurts ! but it´s an amazing experience, very intense, all one on one teaching, both practical and grmmar. most of the time, i´m frustrated and am certain I´m the slowest student they´ve ever had. but I´m sure I´ll catch on...eventually...
a few other thoughts, the FairPlay School and homestay experience are absolutely incredible. so glad we went with FP. they are not for profit, have the best teachers and treat their teachers very well. before we left, everyone in the states thought that Siri and I being gone for 3 or 4 weeks was a really long time. when we´re here, everyone we meet thinks that´s a very short time. most people are here for months traveling and learning spanish. went to a pub last night. there was trivia and soccer on TV. felt more like England than Peru!
and the tamales...the food here so far is excellent. Deena is an mazing cook! on our way to class yesterday, my teacher stopped and we bought tamales from a woman on the street. it was excellent. later in the evening, siri and I and another student were wandering around and we were all starting to get "hangry". then I spotted woman selling tamales - soooo good and everyone´s spirits improved immediately. :)
off to lunch, shopping and more exploring. hope all is well in the atl!!! adios!
Saturday, May 1, 2010
Peru!
Aimee's downstairs - time to run!
Briefly - flying to Lima, meeting Siri at the Atlanta airport, arriving in Lima, customs, sleeping (?) at the airport, meeting Minnesota friends, flying to Cusco, recovering at host family's house, Spanish class for 5 days, Inca Trail, Macchu Picchu, Urubamba, Ausangate, Cusco, Lima, home...all in 3 weeks. whew!
thanks for everyone's well-wishes, help with last minute shopping, gifts, and watching Lilith! she knows something is up...
More when I'm there...
Briefly - flying to Lima, meeting Siri at the Atlanta airport, arriving in Lima, customs, sleeping (?) at the airport, meeting Minnesota friends, flying to Cusco, recovering at host family's house, Spanish class for 5 days, Inca Trail, Macchu Picchu, Urubamba, Ausangate, Cusco, Lima, home...all in 3 weeks. whew!
thanks for everyone's well-wishes, help with last minute shopping, gifts, and watching Lilith! she knows something is up...
More when I'm there...
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