More Adventures

Holas mis amigos..I know this isn’t correct Spanish but when ever my housemate Anna and I return home from school our little two year old host sister greets us by saying “Holas Chicas” I think it is very cute.
I’m sorry so much time has passed since I wrote you last. I have been meaning to write for quite awhile, but it is kind of hard to find internet access because the only place that I have it is when I am at school and we only have a 30 minute break in the middle of classes and there isn’t enough time to write then.
Anyway, since the last time that I wrote we have been quite busy with life here. We have classes everyday from 8:30am till 1 pm. During that time I take two classes~one is a grammar class and the other is a Peruvian History class. The history class is pretty interesting because we are learning about the Pre Inca cultures. We have gotten to take field trips to the museum and down to the plaza to see the dancing competitions that have been taking place. After class Anna and I make our way back to the house for lunch. It is about a 35-40 walk to our house so we are always ready for lunch when we return. I am always excited to eat what my host mom has prepared because she is an excellent cook. Anna and I joke that the food looks so good that Mara our mom could be on the Food Channel  It really is that good! The way she prepares the food looks like art. When she brings it to the table it has an olive on top. The way she places it on the plate looks like something that you would order in a fancy restaurant! For example, today for lunch we had one of my favorite meals.. It was an avocado cut in half filled with a tuna salad stuffing. It was so good. Que rica! Our lunch meal is the biggest of the day. We usually have a two course meal and sometimes dessert. For dinner it is usually a light meal with pan and sopa. Tonight for dinner Mara made Flan, which was really good and also panqueques (pancakes) They were really good. We put jam and condensed milk on them. One night for dinner we had two desserts. Earlier in the day Mara made an apple pie and a fruit cake. We thought for dinner that we would be having one of them. After we finished the pie she asked us if we were ready for the cake. They were both so good! I am really going to miss her cooking.
In the afternoons we fill out time with a variety of activities. Sometimes we have planned activities by the school and other times we make up our own fun. During the week with the school they plan Salsa Lessons, ceramics, futbol (really soccer). The Salsa lessons are my favorite. So far we have only learned the basic steps, but I am getting the hang of it. I can come back and teach you all how to salsa. It will be fun. 1,2,3…5.6.7 That is the way our instructor counts.
Last week we had out first lesson of ceramics. We each were given a hunk of clay and had to start working with it to get all of the bubbles out. After we had to flatten it and then cut the shape for our glasses. It was an interesting experience because none of us were very good at it and they all came out looking different. It was a fun experience!
Last weekend we went on an excursion to the Sacred Valley which is an area close to Cusco that has a lot of ruins from the time of the Incas. I won’t bore you with all of the names, but we spend the day touring different places like El Templo del Sol and various other ruinas. It was a fun day. Our last stop of the day was Chinchero which is a small weaving pueblo that has managed to still maintain their traditional dress. They run a project there in the pueblo that we visited and had the cutest girl who told us about what they do. She told us about the process of preparing the llama hair so that it can be made into sweaters and blankets. First, they have to wash the fur then they use plants to dye it and then spin it into a thread. She was so cute and so spunky. She was only 15 or 16 years old and spoke really good English. During her presentation she kept making these jokes like (holding up the hair of the llama) “Here is the hair of Fidel Castro” and then she would say “Just kidding” in case we thought she was serious. She was a hoot and had all of us laughing.
We picked a great month to come to Cusco because there are so many festivals going on all month. Last week they had dancing competitions between the entire primary, secondary and university students about 500 schools in all. Each year the students prepare a dance that they perform in the Plaza de Armas. They are graded on their style of dance their unison and the creativeness of the dance. They are also graded on their costumes. The entire week last week the Plaza was crowded with people watching the dances. It was quite a sight to see. In the street even after dark there would be schools lined up in the street making their way to the Plaza to compete practicing the whole way.
On top of the dancing it is also the celebration of Cusco this month so they have had all kinds of festivities. Also, the people from the campos, the country had a protest last Thursday about the gas prices. They were protesting because their gas prices are extremely high like over $5 a gallon. The country is also exporting the gas to other countries for cheaper prices. We walked to school last Thursday because none of the taxies were running It was the weirdest sight walking down the side walk and there were no cars on the street. We walked across all of the streets with ease which was very unusual because we are usually running for our life across the street before the cars speed by. It gets to be kind of dangerous. I have learned how to be a defensive pedestrian. The whole plaza was filled with people holding signs and burning things. My host mom told me that there are protests quite frequently about once a month on different issues because they are pretty affective in getting the governments attention.
Another festival that is coming up is called Inti Rayimi it is their biggest celebration of the year. It is the 24th of June and is the Inca celebration of the Sun god. The people have been preparing dances for the celebration that they will perform in the plaza. They will also all be wearing traditional costumes. I am really excited to see it!
This weekend I am going on the adventure to the Amazon! That’s right the real Amazon like the jungle. We are leaving on Thursday after the festival and are riding a bus for 11 hours. It should be fun! I hope I can sleep. I am excited to see monkeys and butterflies and all of the animals that the jungle has. It should be an unforgettable experience and a good last big excursion of my adventures in Peru!
I think I have updated you with all of my happenings here in Peru. In a short week and a half I will be back in the U.S. It is so strange to think about.
I miss you all! See you soon!