Gone fishing...

This is my bathroom. Please notice the small trashcan next to the toilet. This is because Peruvians don't flush their tp. Needless to say, I forget this minor detail (especially in the mornings)so I've been doing some fishing...

It's only 8:30 and I'm getting ready for bed haha Peru is kicking my butt! But in a good way, I've been soooo busy! Between yesterday and today I've eaten cow stomach, cow heart, more potatoes and rice to last a lifetime, and a million other delicious things. Last night I went with my mom and dad to her family's house that they do every Tuesday and hung out with her brothers, mom, nephew, etc. It was the running joke between them that I will try any food and like it...sure enough they gave me the dish with cow stomach in it and it was seriously delicious! Also I'm known as the "gringa" over here and I've gotten used to EVERYONE staring haha. I also tried pisco, which is the traditional Peruvian liquor that everyone drinks over here, tastes like rum but a little bit sweeter. Que mas? It's already getting a lot easier to speak Spanish and am understanding the fast Peruvians better. I have class every day from 9am to 1pm with the 3 other Americans that are in my program, but alraedy next week we have the whole week off so I'm going with my family to a town called Arequipa, which is south of here on the coast.

Best things I've learned so far:
1.Estoy excitada does not mean I'm excited, it means I'm horny.
2.Estoy embarazada may sound like I'm drunk...it means I'm pregnant.
3. Chicha morada is a common drink down here, kinda like a grape juice. NEVER say Tomo mucho CHUCHA morada...(that means a chica's vajayjay...hey-o!)
4. Don't say "Gracias" to the people on the bus who take your money.
5. Don't smile at random guy passing on the street, especially if you're a gringa because they'll think you want them haha.
6. TRY EVERYTHING because it's all DELICIOSO!

Y ya es todo para hoy. Buenas noches!

This is my family: Juan Manuel, Paohla, she's with Juan Manuelito, and Fernando (we call him Chinito)


We went to a Museum of Anthropology today and these were some kind of pre-Incan columns? Yo no se...

This was at the museum...a lot of the public places here like malls, museos, etc. have an open center
The kids that go to school here wear uniforms..and in some schools their uniforms are track suits haha. !Que suerte!

This is Inti. Yes, this is a dog. He freaked me out the first night because he was so weird. But believe it or not he's growing on me, probably because he doesn't have fur to get all over the place (mi mama likes this too. Our live-in maid Teo probably likes this too, less work). He's a traditional Peruvian dog and he's not even a year old even though he looks like he's really old.

Inti is posing for the camera. Pobrecito. He's tan feo... so ugly. We call him Feito!

This is my room, looks kinda small but really isn't...It has a big closet and past the couch is the outside what has my little porch/terrace.

Estoy cansada!

Welp, my first day as a Peruvian was a whirlwind. I didn't get to my host family until 1:00 this morning, then had to get up around 8:00 to get ready for school and take a placement exam. Mi mama is Paohla and she is awesome! She was extremely welcoming and is making me feel right at home already...she's also very pacient with me because my Spanish is a little rusty andthey talk realllly fast. After the placement exam the three other Americans and I went with our two host students, Santiago and Jose Luis, who speak really good English, to Starbucks and I spent my first Peruvian soles (dollars) and my host student told me that the cashier was blatantly flirting with me haha. Quality. After orientation I rode my first micro which is a type of public bus to eat at a Chifa, which is a type Chinese restaurant and very popular. We ate a ton because lunch is the biggest meal of the day for Peruvians (I'm still stuffed now!) We got ice cream after and went to the coast to see the beach. Then we went to El Metro which is just like an American grocery store, except everything costs about 1/3 of what it would in the US. Por ejemplo, we got 2 bags of groceries for $4.50. Que bueno! Mi mama picked me up after school and let me tell you, driving in Peru is a free for all. There are basically no rules on the road and it's seriously chaotic...constantly taxis are honking at you trying to get you to take a ride.
I had to take a siesta when I got home because I was exhausted, but then I got to meet mis hermanitos (little brothers), Juan Manuel and Fernando. They are sooo curious and love looking at all my stuff. I brought them candy, a coloring book, and coins and they loved them. I brought mi mama chocolate from Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory and she loved it so much she wouldn't share! haha.
Overall I'm having a BLAST, but it's still overwhelming and exhausting. Class for 4 hours tomorrow, then we have all next week off already for the Peruvian Independence Day (so they get the whole week off?). But now i'm off to bed! Esta toda para ahora. Buenas noches!

And I'm off!

Bienvenidos to my blog! I am SOOOO excited to be heading to Peru tomorrow morning bright and early with all my pink stuff (I already know. I'm going to stick out like a sore thumb. I'm prepared haha), but am going to miss everyone! I'll keep everyone as updated as I can with posts and pictures from my aventura in my new home for five months.

Little bit about what I'll be doing down there: Along with taking Spanish and History classes at the University of the Pacific in Lima, I'll be going on tons of trips including Machu Picchu in 3 weeks and the Amazon...ahh!!!! I'll be living in an apartment with a host family in a district called San Isidro in Lima. My "father" is Juan and he's an engineer for a gas company, Paohla is a manager at a hamburger shop, and I'm also pumped for my two new little brothers, Juan who's 11 and Fernando who's 6. I brought them some little gifts and candy from Colorado so they can get a little taste of what it's like where I'm from.

I can't believe it's finally here! Here I go! Keep in touch! Love u all!