There is an expression in Perú that goes, “Papelito manda” or “The little paper leads.” Peruvians say this because you cannot do much of anything in this country without some sort of documentation. I found that to be especially true this weekend.
I awoke early Thursday morning to get ready for the group’s departure to Ica and Paracas. The taxi was waiting at Rachel’s house by the time I walked over there, so we quickly loaded our things, and took off for the bus station. Upon our arrival at the station, Rachel and I took our time buying coffee and chatting until I realized that I had left my bus ticket, sitting on my desk at home. Panic struck. If I could not go on the trip that weekend because I had forgotten my bus ticket, what was I going to do? My mom and brother were out of town, and I was not sure I would even be able to get back into the house until Claudia woke up later in the day. Lucky for me, I was able to purchase a replacement ticket. The rest of the weekend was much more relaxing than that time in the bus station had led me to believe it would be.
We had the privilege of staying in a resort for the weekend. Each of the rooms were large and clean, the restaurant served delicious food, and as if one pool would not have been enough, there were five different pools to choose from. There was also a spa that was offering discounted massages to our group, daily classes for dancing, making cocktails, and anything else you could possibly want to do during a weekend getaway. On Thursday, our group decided that it would be fun to try the sand boarding activity. Because of our group’s lack of experience in the sand boarding field, our guide suggested that we sit on our boards to cruise down the side of the giant dune that we had hiked up. The experience was nothing short of what I had expected. After hiking up the side of a dune and sliding back down that same dune, I had started to look like a dune myself. My shoes were weighed down with sand, and half of the dune was stuck to my body. A quick shower fixed my problem, and I was able to go out later that night looking more presentable.
Friday morning the group left our little section of paradise to travel to the Isla de Ballestas, an island in Paracas famous for its variety of wildlife. Our visit to the island was wonderful. We took a two-hour boat tour around the island, during which many sea lions modeled for our pictures, and the birds chatted with us as they flew overhead. We even saw a few penguins! The tour did not last very long, but it was long enough to thoroughly enjoy such a beautiful place.
Friday night I had my first experience in a Peruvian discoteca. I technically went to a discoteca during my stay in Máncora, but the atmosphere was completely different. In Máncora, there were a bunch of small clubs next to one another. All of them were playing reggaeton, and half of the dancing was happening on the beach outside of the disco. The club that we went to in Ica was huge. There were two levels, one of which was playing reggaeton and electronic music, and the other that was playing American popular music. Our group spent most of the night upstairs, but we slowly made our way downstairs as the top floor became more and more crowded. As fun as the disco was, I could not help but feel a little uncomfortable at the number of male eyes watching our group dance. We were all there to have a good time, yet I felt like I had to be alert and conscious of outsiders approaching our group. Also, the music and dancing were fun at the beginning, but after a while I could not ever hear my own thoughts because the music was so loud, and I eventually got bored of dancing. Discos are a great place to go for a good time, but definitely not something that I would prioritize going to during the rest of this study abroad trip.
We spent most of the day Saturday traveling home. I am actually looking forward to not having trips the next couple of weeks. I feel like I can finally get to know the city around me instead! I can finally spend the time with my family that I have wanted to spend with them. I only have eight weeks left here, and I want to make sure that I make the most of them! I cannot be sure that this is the only time in my life I will ever find myself in Lima, but I want to treat it like it is. I want to go home and tell people about all of the rich, cultural experiences I had, and about all of the tasty Peruvian foods that I was able to try, and also about all of the wonderful Peruvian friends that I made while I was here. So far, I think I am doing a pretty good job of making that story possible, and I cannot wait to add to it in the next couple of weeks!
I awoke early Thursday morning to get ready for the group’s departure to Ica and Paracas. The taxi was waiting at Rachel’s house by the time I walked over there, so we quickly loaded our things, and took off for the bus station. Upon our arrival at the station, Rachel and I took our time buying coffee and chatting until I realized that I had left my bus ticket, sitting on my desk at home. Panic struck. If I could not go on the trip that weekend because I had forgotten my bus ticket, what was I going to do? My mom and brother were out of town, and I was not sure I would even be able to get back into the house until Claudia woke up later in the day. Lucky for me, I was able to purchase a replacement ticket. The rest of the weekend was much more relaxing than that time in the bus station had led me to believe it would be.
We had the privilege of staying in a resort for the weekend. Each of the rooms were large and clean, the restaurant served delicious food, and as if one pool would not have been enough, there were five different pools to choose from. There was also a spa that was offering discounted massages to our group, daily classes for dancing, making cocktails, and anything else you could possibly want to do during a weekend getaway. On Thursday, our group decided that it would be fun to try the sand boarding activity. Because of our group’s lack of experience in the sand boarding field, our guide suggested that we sit on our boards to cruise down the side of the giant dune that we had hiked up. The experience was nothing short of what I had expected. After hiking up the side of a dune and sliding back down that same dune, I had started to look like a dune myself. My shoes were weighed down with sand, and half of the dune was stuck to my body. A quick shower fixed my problem, and I was able to go out later that night looking more presentable.
Friday morning the group left our little section of paradise to travel to the Isla de Ballestas, an island in Paracas famous for its variety of wildlife. Our visit to the island was wonderful. We took a two-hour boat tour around the island, during which many sea lions modeled for our pictures, and the birds chatted with us as they flew overhead. We even saw a few penguins! The tour did not last very long, but it was long enough to thoroughly enjoy such a beautiful place.
Friday night I had my first experience in a Peruvian discoteca. I technically went to a discoteca during my stay in Máncora, but the atmosphere was completely different. In Máncora, there were a bunch of small clubs next to one another. All of them were playing reggaeton, and half of the dancing was happening on the beach outside of the disco. The club that we went to in Ica was huge. There were two levels, one of which was playing reggaeton and electronic music, and the other that was playing American popular music. Our group spent most of the night upstairs, but we slowly made our way downstairs as the top floor became more and more crowded. As fun as the disco was, I could not help but feel a little uncomfortable at the number of male eyes watching our group dance. We were all there to have a good time, yet I felt like I had to be alert and conscious of outsiders approaching our group. Also, the music and dancing were fun at the beginning, but after a while I could not ever hear my own thoughts because the music was so loud, and I eventually got bored of dancing. Discos are a great place to go for a good time, but definitely not something that I would prioritize going to during the rest of this study abroad trip.
We spent most of the day Saturday traveling home. I am actually looking forward to not having trips the next couple of weeks. I feel like I can finally get to know the city around me instead! I can finally spend the time with my family that I have wanted to spend with them. I only have eight weeks left here, and I want to make sure that I make the most of them! I cannot be sure that this is the only time in my life I will ever find myself in Lima, but I want to treat it like it is. I want to go home and tell people about all of the rich, cultural experiences I had, and about all of the tasty Peruvian foods that I was able to try, and also about all of the wonderful Peruvian friends that I made while I was here. So far, I think I am doing a pretty good job of making that story possible, and I cannot wait to add to it in the next couple of weeks!