Two Months

I can't believe I have been in Peru for two months. Paraphrasing my host sister, time really does seem to move faster in this country.

It's kind of surreal to think about how much my life has changed in the last two months, but I believe I have the perfect story to share that will put it into perspective. With exactly one week until I left for Lima, I was making a late-night walk towards the Lakeshore area on campus when I got a phone call from one of my friends. I remember telling her that in seven days' time I would be walking the exact same way in an entirely different country. New buildings, new neighborhoods, new people. Now, two months later as I sit in my bedroom writing this post as a way to not study for my looming Literature and Linguistics midterms, I get the feeling that I've finally become a part of Lima. As I walk through my neighborhood, I see the same people going about their lives. I see the guy who cuts my hair every now and again, and we always stop to chit chat between haircuts. When I go running, I pass the same neighborhood watchmen (called watchiman here). I guess what I'm trying to say is that Lima has now become familiar to me and I'm prepared to see what else it has to offer.

That being said, I offer my loyal readers some updates regarding life here. First, I have decided not to move out of my current homestay. It's really odd, but ever since this past Wednesday, everyone has been a lot more social, a lot more inclusive, and a lot more conversational. Last night, I went to Jockey Plaza, the nice mall here, to go to Pizza Hut with two new students who are moving into our house, their Peruvian friend, and my host sister. The company was great, but let me tell you about this Pizza Hut. It was the classiest Pizza Hut I've ever seen in my life. Nicely decorated, well-lit, LCD televisions. It served red or white wine, beers, more traditional alcoholic drinks, sodas, and delicious appetizers. I was really taken aback by its beauty. Also, the pizza was a lot less greasy (yet still equally delicious!) than the Pizza Hut pizza in the US.

As far as my Spanish-speaking goes, I'm not sure what to say. My host sister told me yesterday that my Spanish has improved a lot - I'm using expressions that are common in Peru, my fluidity has increased, and I'm a lot more confident and natural when I speak. I'm still not sure if I believe her, but I think that's probably just me being hard on myself. Regardless, I have seven more months to accomplish my goal, and I am confident that I will do just that.

I haven't any new pictures to share. After exams, a couple of friends from the UW Program and I are planning on going to Trujillo, a town in the north of Peru that has a lot of ancient ruins and other fun things to see. Although I only have two midterms and an essay, there still seems to be a lot standing between me and my mini-vacation. I guess I should get crackin'. Send me some love and luck, I could really use it.