Loving Lima

After a brief 5 hour nap, we woke up to an incredibly mixed cup of thick espresso blended with heated milk.  There were some eggs involved too.  Stepping outside the hotel, an anti-tuberculosis fair was happening across the street in the PLaza San Martin.  The plaza, named for the Argentinian who liberated Peru for the Spanish, is full of marble benches and all imaginable greenery, so families, friends, and couples were taking advantage of its flower-lined walkways to enjoy their Saturday.

We set off down the Jiron de la Union, one of the main streets here, to the PLaza de Armas. Plazas are big here, and this was even more spacious and beautiful than the last.  Its orange and yellow marigolds all honored the two palaces on the square, the Palacio del Arzobispo (Archbishop) and the Palacio del Gobierno (Goverment- this is the home of Peru's president).  We arrived in time to see a blue-uniformed band playing glistening white instruments to usher in the daily changing of the guard.  Machine gun-toting military men scanned the crowd taking photos of the fanfare.  I wonder what would happen if some of the money allotted for ceremony were to be diverted into services for the people...

Our next stop was the Monastery of San Francisco, which featured bone-lined catacombs.  The most interesting part of this was a huge (10 meters deep) well, which was 7/10 full of skulls and femurs, delicately arranged in a circular pattern.  An obsession with death?  Nope- the well was actually a support feature to help the building withstand earthquakes, and the monks needed a place to put all the bones that were coming in.  Despite the prohibition on photography, Erin managed to snap some great shots that we'll be sharing when possible.  The other interesting tidbit from this place was a Catholic ritual item (I don't remember either the English or Spanish name for it) that actually used an image from Incan worship as the focal point of its design.  Made me think back to classes in Cuba about the syncretized religions.  In a reversal of the Catholic images that were blended with African ones in religions like voodoo, palos, and santeria, this showed the Catholic church bringing in an important native symbol.

Who doesn't get hungry after a site like that?  We decided to try a much-acclaimed Peruvian dish, Papas a la Huayacaina.  These are potatoes covered in a chili-spiced cheesy, creamy sauce, served with slices of eggs and some olives.  Expecting a hot dish, we were suprised by the tepid temperature.  I definitely enjoyed it (along with the nation's specialty beverage, the Pisco Sour) and am looking forward to dinner!

While stopping in a local grocery store (and being thrilled out of my mind to discover maracuyo), we realized that Erin's earlier money exchange had resulted in some false bills. While she made sure to trade with a gentleman wearing the city's "uniform" for licensed exchange people, it was to no avail.  We did get a lesson on counterfeit bills from another, much chagrined, Peruvian.

We had heard many unfortunate things about Lima before arriving, including from Limenos themselves, but I think there are reasons to visit the city if you're in Peru.  The architecture, at least in Central Lima, is beautiful, the history interesting, and I didn't have a single minute where I felt unsafe as we were walking (once we realized how to safely cross a street, that is).

After a much-needed nap, it's time for dinner, drinks, and then a few more hours of sleep before our early-morning flight to Cusco.  On to the Sacred Valley of the Incas!

We're here!

Spring break has landed...Erin and I just got in to our hotel, the Gran Bolivar in Central Lima.  It's beautiful- was a landmark in the 1920s and has retained much of the exterior splendor. The people are extemely nice, and from our room we hear the Beastie Boys blasting in the square.  Now, to begin the explorations...

Machu Picchu, here we come!

Today, Erin (my former coworker and philosophizing friend) and I are leaving for an epic trip to Peru.  The schedule is as follows:

March 22- Depart IAD at 4:30 PM
March 23- Spend an adventurous day and night in Lima
March 24- Fly from Lima to Cusco
March 24-26- Explore Cusco
March 27-30- Participate in a 4-day Inca Trek with the final day summit Machu Picchu
March 30- Spend a last night in Cusco
March 31- Fly back to Lima and spend the day in the city (or in bed, depending on how the trek goes!)
April 1- Fly out at 8 AM, with a fun layover in Panama City
April 2- Arrive back home in the wee hours of the morning

Feel free to follow along and enjoy the scenery, people, and food of Peru along with us :)

Goodbye Bogota

Diego and I set off from the hostel around 3 PM on Sunday afternoon, intent on seeing the Carlos Moreno film “Todo Tus Muertos” (“All Your Dead Ones”). It was a Colombian film based on the political reality of the country, and both of us were looking forward to it. Getting to the theatre was no easy matter; it involved two bus rides and a twenty minute walk. We talked the whole time, so it didn’t seem like a long trip, but by the time we arrived and made it through the ticket line, our movie was literally about to start. Diego suggested we buy tickets for the next showing and have dinner together first, so we went to a restaurant across the street. Some of the soccer match and a whole lot of talking later, we realized that the next showing was starting and we were about to miss that as well! We ran across the street and were seated just in time to take in the film.

Thank goodness I saw it with him, because between the accents and my poor knowledge of Colombian political history, much of the true humor/sadness went over my head. To make a very long story short, it referenced politicians and their desire to be reelected irrespective of the best interests of the people, as well as the paramilitary groups and the fact that they still wield a bit of power from the shadows. Talking about these issues literally took us all the way home again, and it was really interesting talking to Diego about his perspective, because even in his younger years he remembered some of the urban

warfare that occurred and shared those memories with me. He also gave me a great potential idea for research next time I’m in the country.

Once back in our area of Bogota, we went to Whitney’s house and the three of us spent the next few hours hanging out. Finally, Diego and I caught a cab home (no easy feat in El Chorro at 2 in the morning), and stayed up watching movies and talking until 6 AM, when I had to prepare to leave. I sadly left the hostel at 6:30 in the morning, went through airport security, and scared my seatmates on the plane by sobbing all the way back to Miami.

I can’t easily summarize everything that Colombia meant to me, even after being back for almost three weeks now. I can say for certain that it

was rejuvenating. Something about being in a beautiful place and meeting so many amazing people reinforced my inclinations to see the best in life and to be the best version of myself possible. It reawakened my thirst for travel, certainly, and made me even more sure that teaching, and helping other people to improve themselves, is the path in life that I want to take. This next year of school has already proven itself to be an intense experience, but it’s worth getting through because at that point, I can literally go anywhere in the world and drink in all that it has to offer.

And none of this would have happened without the people I met along the way. Whitney Pray was my inspiration to travel to Colombia in the first p

lace, and despite the fact that it meant I would leave her, encouraged me to get to know the entire country. Teresa Ingram welcomed me to travel at her side, stimulated my intellect at every turn, and modeled for me a clear vision of what a good human being should be. Daniel Dobleu, our gracious host at Musicology who also traveled with Teresa and I, showed me the country through the eyes of its people, making it even more fascinating in the process, and being a constant source of thought-provoking conversation. Diego Romero, the constant dialogue between us is something I still think about, and you made the last few days in Bogota eminently enjoyable. There are so many other people who impacted my trip and continue to be a part of my life, and I hope they do long into the future…thank you one and all for a life-changing experience.

Back to Bogota

I'll start this post with an advisory to anyone who may enjoy the photos more than the stories: there aren't many here. I was too excited to be back in Bogota, and having too much of a good time with everyone, to be bothered with my camera. In hindsight I regret this, but it was nice to fully participate in life as opposed to being stuck behind the lens for the last few days.

Between the ever-long busride and getting stuck in a cab during rush hour traffic, I finally rolled into Bogota somewhere around 5:30, which was 29.5 hours after I had left my hostel in Cartagena. Clearly, a shower was in order. Whitney materialized as I was getting ready, and we made the executive decision to eat some delicious Middle Eastern food a few blocks down Carrera 4. After that, we called Diego, a Colombian friend who works at Musicology, to meet us for drinks in El Chorro. Drinks, in this case, meant cheap boxes of sweet red wine. Between the three of us plus Whitney's new roommate Hazel, we had maybe 4 or 5 boxes of wine, and also lots of great conversation. Soon we decided to head to Rincon Cubano (I love finding the Cuban dance spots in Colombia, haha) and Whitney paired off with our new friend Carlos as I salsa'ed with Diego. After El Chan Chan played, Diego and I decided that more wine was in order, and set off to find some. Unfortunately, all the local stores that had been plying their wares were already closed, so we returned to Musicology for a few more nightcaps, and spent the night hanging out.

After breakfast with Diego the next morning, I met up with Whitney and Hazel, who were attending casting calls in the La Suba neighborhood of Bogota. We were all slightly unclear as to whether they were going to be in a show, movie, or what, but for a week of work as native English speakers they were going to earn the equivalent of about $700 US, so why not try? After reading short parts each, we hopped back on the inward bound bus, but stopped to check out the pet store district of Bogota, located around the 54th street stop on the Transmilenio. Whitney and I had notice this on my first full day in the city, being particularly amused by a store whose title in Spanish translated to "Seagulls and Canaries". We searched for this store to no avail- perhaps in the 4 weeks since it was first seen, the owners quickly realized that not many people were interested in seagulls for pets. Nonetheless, the puppies were adorable and we had a great time.

Back to the hostel for a quick nap and some dinner, then I was meeting back up with Whitney, Carlos, and Cesar en El Chorro. After a failed attempt at going to the reggae bar (it wasn't a good night by the

standards they know), getting a street arepa loaded with roasted veggies- mm- and some walking around, we all ended up spending the night hanging out at Whitney and Hazel's new apartment. Cesar is a street performer and we watched him do some juggling-type acts as we gazed out the windows over the city of Bogota. Around 2 AM, Cesar walked me home, I spent some time learning about soccer from Diego, and then it was time for bed.

Saturday morning I met up with Whitney and we walked around the city, just enjoying the gorgeous warm of the sunshine that does not always fall in Bogota. We also spent some time in this arcade where you can go and play any game on whatever gaming system you want- we chose Guitar Hero since Whitney and her friend Daniel (neither the Dan mentioned here nor the Daniel that I spent time with in Tayrona and Medellin) had scheduled a competition later that day. We met up with Dan and Raquel for lunch, and watched the first of the two semi-final games in the Copa America. Colombia lost :( After that, Whitney and Raquel headed for ice cream while Dan and I bought some wine and headed back to Musicology to watch the second game, since

Diego had already told me that he and his friends would be watching there and we were welcome to join them. Sadly, Argentina lost too. Two expected victors were down.

The rest of the night for me was spent drinking and hanging out at the hostel. Whitney, Dan, Raquel, and their friend Ani all decided to go out dancing, but I felt that it was beyond me at that point. I alternated between watching a movie with Daniel, and talking with Diego and his friend German. We ended up staying up and talking until about 5 AM, since we had excitement around 3 in the form of a girl returning to the hostel, vomiting and semi-hysterical. Diego, who was working reception at that point, had to call an ambulance, and it was a long ordeal, after which we relaxed by watching some Ali G and planning to see a movie the following afternoon. German finally had to sleep around 5 to get rest for his soccer game at 9, and I didn't last too much longer, but it was definitely a memorable night by any means.

After a brief nap (I only slept about 4 hours) I woke up and met Whitney and Dan. Thanks to the panaderia across the street from her house, we were able to have a delicious breakfast of fresh bread products (pan de coco, anyone?) and enjoy the morning. After hanging out with Whitney for a few hours, I made it back to the hostel, where I took one last nap in the hammock outside my door before waking Diego. We got ready and headed out on an adventure, to be detailed later since I am about to start moving!