December Travels

After a four hour scourge of my room, I'm finally packed up and ready for my travels home. I'm hoping all goes well and there aren't any major delays because I've heard the snow in the Midwest is massive right about now. To put the climate shock to my system in perspective, here's a photo of my recent vacation to Mancora...

 

 As soon as I returned from the beach, I headed for the much cooler and damper Cusco. The city was beautiful but overwhelmed by tourist agencies and street vendors. I actually heard a tack I hadn't before at the city's Plaza de Armas when multiple children were coming up to me with hats and bracelets. The first boy asked where I was from, and in an attempt to avoid him immediately speaking to me in English, I lied and said Italy. Like some kind of crazy record player, he starts reciting facts about Italy for almost two minutes. A second girl came up several minutes later and did the same thing for the US. It was incredible that they've memorized so much but it wasn't really convincing as a sales tactic.

 On Friday, I went to Machu Pichu. The site was amazing and I explored it first on a personal tour and then on my own for several hours. The day was an excellent way to complete my time in Peru, and I would love to go back someday and experience it with others. As I went in a single day, most of my time was spent in transit. The train on the way there had enormous glass windows and a delicious "snack" (which was really a full breakfast), but I took a less expensive one back which seemed a lot longer than four hours. I've definitely had my fill of long-distance travel and am looking forward to not be in a bus/train/airplane for a very long time. Of course, that is after today. Next time you'll hear from me I'll be back in the US. Nos vemos!

Final Month Reflections Part 2: USA!

Alright, the much delayed Part 2 of my final reflections. With just two weeks to go in Peru, I am thinking about all the wonderful and not-so-wonderful parts of my home country. In honor of point one of my "looking forward to" list, the names of the categories will be... book titles.


GREAT EXPECTATIONS

   1. Books and libraries: The nerd in me is excited to have a school library in which I can loan a book for longer than 4 days. I have read over 5 novels here, but being in Spanish, its much less relaxing than my usual reading. Up next on my reading list- The Bride Quartet series by Nora Roberts, Madam Bovary, Theater of the Oppressed by Augusto Boal, and A Hundred Years of Solitude.
   2. Broccoli: Representative of my desire to see a fiber-filled plate of greens. I am so ready to control my own diet once again.
   3. Transportation: I would love to have a grand total 15 minutes in  the car to get to some location. It would also be nice to have traffic laws which are actually obeyed and drivers who know they don't possess that squeezing-car charm in the Harry Potter movies. No, you are not the Night Bus and you will not fit through a 2 foot gap, sorry.
   4. American concepts of time: I'm a product of my society and would gladly return to a place where things are expected to begin on time, end on time, and, umm, actually happen when scheduled.
   5. Seeing my family and friends! I miss them all like crazy and can't wait to spend some quality time with them for the first time in over 5 months.

HEART OF DARKNESS (Joseph Conrad- if you haven't read this book, do yourself a favor and don't)

   1. Winter wear: The temperate temperature of Peru means that there is rarely a need for drastic wardrobe changes. Not looking forward to whipping out the clunky snow boots and winter jacket at all.
   2. Large lecture halls: I've gone soft and gotten accustomed to small classes, active discussion, and personal attention from teachers.
   3. Prices: It's going to be a huge shock to buy any food when I return, mostly because it's all ridiculously cheap here.
  4. Lack of corny, whole-hearted affection: You just don't have guys saying "My dear friend Catalina" to you in the US, like my friend Miguel does. They also say "mi enamorada" to describe their partners, and how much better does "my beloved" sound than "boyfriend/girlfriend"?

Alright, that's it for now! Tomorrow morning I leave for Cusco for 3 days, and then I'll be returning home! Expect a nice, picture-laden post on Saturday or Sunday.