Yeah so um... I'm going to the beach tomorrow at 7:00 am... I'll be there for New Years... and then for January... and then for February... then in March I'll come back......
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Love,
Jack
Friday, December 28, 2007
Monday, December 24, 2007
Weekly Report Dec 20-23
Weekly Report Dec 20-23
Thursday December 20
Lazy day because of all the traveling the previous days. Ended up going out at night with some friends. Good time.
Friday December 21
Ally's birthday! Called her at around lunch time but wasn't there. Called later and got a hold of her. In the evening I went to see a play with Lizzie, her boyfriend and a friend of theirs. We went to see Cinderella because one of her friends from highschool was in it. It was... interesting. The girl that was Cinderella had the same expression on her face the entire play, one girl was mouthing the lines of the other characters the whole time, and at the end they accidentally did one scene twice.
After the play we went to this place called "Los Jugos", The Juices, for a smoothie and to grab a bight to eat because I didn't have a chance to eat earlier. This place is pretty cool, they have tons and tons of types of fruit to pick from so you just pick anything and they make a smoothie out of it. Other than that I had a little sandwich with chicken and avacado. I'm starting to like avacado a lot. I'm also trying to get used to fruits cause I was never much of a fruit eater but here they have lots of nice fresh fruit. The have this one that I like, you peal it open and on the inside there is this weird looking mass of seeds that seems to be held together but... well... it
looks like mucus :) you just throw the whole mucusy mass thing in your mouth and swallow. It's very good.
Then we went and watched a movie. Relatively early night, a one-o'clocker.
Saturday December 22
Did absolutely nothing today. I bought a couple of calling cards to call the States tomorrow to talk to the whole fam. But other than that... nothing. Tonight I might go out or something but as of now I have no plans.
Sunday December 23
Merry Christmas Eve! That is of course because my family is celebrating the annual part a day early this year. I called at 8:30 to talk to everyone and to wish them a Merry Christmas. It was nice to talk to them all, but it was also kind of hard listening to all the sounds of people and singing and fun that I so enjoy every year. My Christmas will be much more mellow this year. Most likely no presents, different family speaking in a language that is still hard to understand sometimes, different traditions, and a little fake Christmas tree that doesn't shed even but a tiny scent of Christmasy goodness. We will have family arriving at around 9 o'clock tonight and between then and 12 midnight we will have dinner. Then right at 12 we will open presents. After that I don't think that we do anything. I'll be going to a lunch with Lizzie's family the day of Christmas but other than that my host mother said that we don't do anything. It's gonna be a very weird Christmas and New Years this year.
Earlier in the day I went to the center with the family to see the Cathedral and eat Bunuelos. They are like these donut/fried dough things that we put something like molassas on. They are good. The Cathedral was nice, but there were Christmas Carols being sung and it made me think of home, that at the very moment my family was probably singing the exact same song in English.
I'm actually glad that the weather is the way it is, because for the most part my mind doesn't dwell on thoughts of the family for too long. Tonight when we are "celebrating" it might be a little harder but well just have to see.
I hope that everyone had a nice early Christmas Eve party, has a very Merry Christmas, and has a wonderful New Year.
-Jack
P.S. Photos will now be posted on Myspace.com . I save hours putting up photos there instead of on here.
Thursday December 20
Lazy day because of all the traveling the previous days. Ended up going out at night with some friends. Good time.
Friday December 21
Ally's birthday! Called her at around lunch time but wasn't there. Called later and got a hold of her. In the evening I went to see a play with Lizzie, her boyfriend and a friend of theirs. We went to see Cinderella because one of her friends from highschool was in it. It was... interesting. The girl that was Cinderella had the same expression on her face the entire play, one girl was mouthing the lines of the other characters the whole time, and at the end they accidentally did one scene twice.
After the play we went to this place called "Los Jugos", The Juices, for a smoothie and to grab a bight to eat because I didn't have a chance to eat earlier. This place is pretty cool, they have tons and tons of types of fruit to pick from so you just pick anything and they make a smoothie out of it. Other than that I had a little sandwich with chicken and avacado. I'm starting to like avacado a lot. I'm also trying to get used to fruits cause I was never much of a fruit eater but here they have lots of nice fresh fruit. The have this one that I like, you peal it open and on the inside there is this weird looking mass of seeds that seems to be held together but... well... it
looks like mucus :) you just throw the whole mucusy mass thing in your mouth and swallow. It's very good.
Then we went and watched a movie. Relatively early night, a one-o'clocker.
Saturday December 22
Did absolutely nothing today. I bought a couple of calling cards to call the States tomorrow to talk to the whole fam. But other than that... nothing. Tonight I might go out or something but as of now I have no plans.
Sunday December 23
Merry Christmas Eve! That is of course because my family is celebrating the annual part a day early this year. I called at 8:30 to talk to everyone and to wish them a Merry Christmas. It was nice to talk to them all, but it was also kind of hard listening to all the sounds of people and singing and fun that I so enjoy every year. My Christmas will be much more mellow this year. Most likely no presents, different family speaking in a language that is still hard to understand sometimes, different traditions, and a little fake Christmas tree that doesn't shed even but a tiny scent of Christmasy goodness. We will have family arriving at around 9 o'clock tonight and between then and 12 midnight we will have dinner. Then right at 12 we will open presents. After that I don't think that we do anything. I'll be going to a lunch with Lizzie's family the day of Christmas but other than that my host mother said that we don't do anything. It's gonna be a very weird Christmas and New Years this year.
Earlier in the day I went to the center with the family to see the Cathedral and eat Bunuelos. They are like these donut/fried dough things that we put something like molassas on. They are good. The Cathedral was nice, but there were Christmas Carols being sung and it made me think of home, that at the very moment my family was probably singing the exact same song in English.
I'm actually glad that the weather is the way it is, because for the most part my mind doesn't dwell on thoughts of the family for too long. Tonight when we are "celebrating" it might be a little harder but well just have to see.
I hope that everyone had a nice early Christmas Eve party, has a very Merry Christmas, and has a wonderful New Year.
-Jack
P.S. Photos will now be posted on Myspace.com . I save hours putting up photos there instead of on here.
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
woops!
Haha sorry Mike I wrote this past report at the end of the week and accidentally put your bday on the 10th. Sorry! Did you end up going out to Chinese food?
Weekly Report Dec 10-19
Monday December 10
Mike's birthday! Called in the evening to wish him a good one. Volunteered at a different hospital today. Went pretty smoothly. Today was apparantly a slow day, but it was still
alright. It was nicer than the other hospital because there were kids there to play with and costed me twenty US cents to get there... as opposed to the two US dollars that it takes me to get to the other hospital. Went to the Plaza with another exchange student to do a little shopping but didn't end up getting much. Overall good day I guess.
Tuesday December 11
Went to class today. I decided that I want to finish at the University with my friends and then continue with volunteering. It is only this week and maybe a day or two the next so I won't miss much volunteering. Went to class and gym. Pretty boring day.
Wednesday December 12
Thought that I had class today. Went to a friends house where we always meet then head to class, but when I sat at the table her parents said that she was still sleeping and that she didn't have class today. She ended up being awake and came out to tell me that she had forgotten to tell me. I ended up staying there for a while and helping set up their (fake) Christmas tree. While we were setting up the tree I was invited to stay for lunch. It was still early and my friend had to study for her exam that was the next day so I went to the gym for a couple
of hours. After I ate with them and talked for a bit then went home. I didn't sleep well last night and my cough came back to I'm not feeling to great today. I really hope that I get better before the weekend though because Lizzie comes Friday and Saturday we made plans to go out with a bunch of friends. Went to the mall for a bit with a friend. Planning on going to bed relatively early tonight, feeling pretty tired.
Thursday December 13
Class. Gym.
Friday December 14
Lizzie arrived today. Didn't get to talk to her but we had already made plans for Saturday so it's all good. Nothing else... Normal day.
Saturday December 15
Found out today that I would be going to Tacna, a city even further south than Arequipa, and for a day that I might even go to Chile. Sounds very cool can't wait. Went and say Lizzie today. It was really nice to see her again. I went over to her house and hung out for a bit and met some of her family. A little while later her boyfriend came, we all ate a bit, and left for a party with some friends. After that we went to a club in the center until around two o'clock in the morning. Went to bed not looking forward to waking up at five the next day.
Sunday December 16
To Tacna we go! Left at six in the morning hoping to arrive in Tacna within five hours. We arrived and found our hotel then headed out to see a bit of Tacna. Went for ice cream that was pretty amazing I must say. The reason that we went to Tacna in the first place is because there was a soccer game that was for the I believe the National title. We were rooting for Bolognesi and the competition was Melgar. It was a pretty exciting game that ended in a 2-0 win for Bolognesi. Before the game I had gotten to meet and shake hands with the goalie of Bolognesi, that was pretty cool. After the game we went to the hotel then back out again for some festivities. Went to bed relatively early.
Monday December 17
To Chile we go! We were headed to the city of Arica, Arica the city just across the border where one can find lots of nice cheap contraband, a beauty beach, and where most exchangers who don't go to school and can't get the proper papers go to get their Visa renewed for another three months. We looked around for a bit at the beach and at a few places along the way then headed for shopping. I bought a swim suit because my host mom said that I would want at least two for the beach in February. Went into several other places and then went out to eat at a pizza place. Walked around for a while after that and ended up getting ice cream. Back to Tacna for the night.
Tuesday December 18
First we went to a couple of markets that are always really cheap and have decent stuff. The only things that I was looking for were sunglasses and plain white shirts, but unfortunately I didn't find anything. Back to the house, and then to the beach! We went to a place called Boca del Rio, the Mouth of the River. The little town was completely deserted. We and a couple of other people were the only ones on the beach. There were lots of rocks where we were so the water has lots of yellowish foam on top but it was still nice be at the beach. There for a couple of hours, out to eat, then headed to Ilo to find a place to sleep. We didn't end up finding anywhere there in Ilo to sleep so we headed out to Moquegua. There we found a hotel and relaxed for the night.
Wednesday December 19
Left very early this morning. My host brother wanted to get to his school as soon as possible because there was something going on. It was a two and a half or three hour drive back to Arequipa. We arrived at nine due to some traffic. Shower, breakfast, and making some plans for today.
It was a pretty boring week until Saturday when I finally got to hang out with Lizzie and I found out that I would be going on vacation with my family for a few days. Now I can say that I have been to Chile too! I still want to go down and visit Giorgio though. Homesickness hasn't been much of a factor at all yet. When I happen to think of family for some reason yes, all of
the memories do come back and it pains a little to know what I am missing back home, but with the weather being so different here my body and mind just don't feel like it is Christmas. And my host parents already gave me my gift, just to make this Christmas just a little weirder. They gave me the equivalent of about 35 dollars, enough to get two pairs of jeans and help with new shoes, all of which I was in dire need of. So this is going to be a very odd Christmas. No party, real family, Xmas food, carols, presents, brunch, all of that stuff I love about Christmas.
Sorry about this report being late. I didn't find out till Saturday that I would be leaving at six in the morning Sunday for vacation. The next one will be short, and then the one after that will include... Christmas. That is so weird to say. Christmas is next week. My body and mind are so screwed up because of the weather here. When I do leave Peru by body will just feel like I've had a very very long summer and now everything is back to normal. I left on the first of September and haven't a clue when I'll get back, but it will be sometime during the summer,
and the weather here is just like summer everyday. So basically, it is just one long summer.
Anywho, I hope that everyone is doing well.
Love,
Jack
Mike's birthday! Called in the evening to wish him a good one. Volunteered at a different hospital today. Went pretty smoothly. Today was apparantly a slow day, but it was still
alright. It was nicer than the other hospital because there were kids there to play with and costed me twenty US cents to get there... as opposed to the two US dollars that it takes me to get to the other hospital. Went to the Plaza with another exchange student to do a little shopping but didn't end up getting much. Overall good day I guess.
Tuesday December 11
Went to class today. I decided that I want to finish at the University with my friends and then continue with volunteering. It is only this week and maybe a day or two the next so I won't miss much volunteering. Went to class and gym. Pretty boring day.
Wednesday December 12
Thought that I had class today. Went to a friends house where we always meet then head to class, but when I sat at the table her parents said that she was still sleeping and that she didn't have class today. She ended up being awake and came out to tell me that she had forgotten to tell me. I ended up staying there for a while and helping set up their (fake) Christmas tree. While we were setting up the tree I was invited to stay for lunch. It was still early and my friend had to study for her exam that was the next day so I went to the gym for a couple
of hours. After I ate with them and talked for a bit then went home. I didn't sleep well last night and my cough came back to I'm not feeling to great today. I really hope that I get better before the weekend though because Lizzie comes Friday and Saturday we made plans to go out with a bunch of friends. Went to the mall for a bit with a friend. Planning on going to bed relatively early tonight, feeling pretty tired.
Thursday December 13
Class. Gym.
Friday December 14
Lizzie arrived today. Didn't get to talk to her but we had already made plans for Saturday so it's all good. Nothing else... Normal day.
Saturday December 15
Found out today that I would be going to Tacna, a city even further south than Arequipa, and for a day that I might even go to Chile. Sounds very cool can't wait. Went and say Lizzie today. It was really nice to see her again. I went over to her house and hung out for a bit and met some of her family. A little while later her boyfriend came, we all ate a bit, and left for a party with some friends. After that we went to a club in the center until around two o'clock in the morning. Went to bed not looking forward to waking up at five the next day.
Sunday December 16
To Tacna we go! Left at six in the morning hoping to arrive in Tacna within five hours. We arrived and found our hotel then headed out to see a bit of Tacna. Went for ice cream that was pretty amazing I must say. The reason that we went to Tacna in the first place is because there was a soccer game that was for the I believe the National title. We were rooting for Bolognesi and the competition was Melgar. It was a pretty exciting game that ended in a 2-0 win for Bolognesi. Before the game I had gotten to meet and shake hands with the goalie of Bolognesi, that was pretty cool. After the game we went to the hotel then back out again for some festivities. Went to bed relatively early.
Monday December 17
To Chile we go! We were headed to the city of Arica, Arica the city just across the border where one can find lots of nice cheap contraband, a beauty beach, and where most exchangers who don't go to school and can't get the proper papers go to get their Visa renewed for another three months. We looked around for a bit at the beach and at a few places along the way then headed for shopping. I bought a swim suit because my host mom said that I would want at least two for the beach in February. Went into several other places and then went out to eat at a pizza place. Walked around for a while after that and ended up getting ice cream. Back to Tacna for the night.
Tuesday December 18
First we went to a couple of markets that are always really cheap and have decent stuff. The only things that I was looking for were sunglasses and plain white shirts, but unfortunately I didn't find anything. Back to the house, and then to the beach! We went to a place called Boca del Rio, the Mouth of the River. The little town was completely deserted. We and a couple of other people were the only ones on the beach. There were lots of rocks where we were so the water has lots of yellowish foam on top but it was still nice be at the beach. There for a couple of hours, out to eat, then headed to Ilo to find a place to sleep. We didn't end up finding anywhere there in Ilo to sleep so we headed out to Moquegua. There we found a hotel and relaxed for the night.
Wednesday December 19
Left very early this morning. My host brother wanted to get to his school as soon as possible because there was something going on. It was a two and a half or three hour drive back to Arequipa. We arrived at nine due to some traffic. Shower, breakfast, and making some plans for today.
It was a pretty boring week until Saturday when I finally got to hang out with Lizzie and I found out that I would be going on vacation with my family for a few days. Now I can say that I have been to Chile too! I still want to go down and visit Giorgio though. Homesickness hasn't been much of a factor at all yet. When I happen to think of family for some reason yes, all of
the memories do come back and it pains a little to know what I am missing back home, but with the weather being so different here my body and mind just don't feel like it is Christmas. And my host parents already gave me my gift, just to make this Christmas just a little weirder. They gave me the equivalent of about 35 dollars, enough to get two pairs of jeans and help with new shoes, all of which I was in dire need of. So this is going to be a very odd Christmas. No party, real family, Xmas food, carols, presents, brunch, all of that stuff I love about Christmas.
Sorry about this report being late. I didn't find out till Saturday that I would be leaving at six in the morning Sunday for vacation. The next one will be short, and then the one after that will include... Christmas. That is so weird to say. Christmas is next week. My body and mind are so screwed up because of the weather here. When I do leave Peru by body will just feel like I've had a very very long summer and now everything is back to normal. I left on the first of September and haven't a clue when I'll get back, but it will be sometime during the summer,
and the weather here is just like summer everyday. So basically, it is just one long summer.
Anywho, I hope that everyone is doing well.
Love,
Jack
Sunday, December 9, 2007
Weekly Report Dec. 3-10
Monday Dec. 3
Found out last night that I will be volunteering at a hospital for the next month. I heard Sunday that we would be volunteering. I thought it was just going to be for a day. As the rotary officials that brought us to thehospital were talking to the head doctor I overheard them saying that "these students are at your disposal everyday for the month of December." It isn't a bad thing, but it would have been nice to know beforehand. Plus theplace that we are volunteering at is really far away, a two US dollar taxi ride which is crazy for here. I needto talk to Rotary about this because I don't have that money to spare. Things at the hospital went alright. It was a bit unnerving at first. It is located in the outskirts of the city.As we walked into the office I didn't notice that many of the peopel that we saw had something in common. As wecame to the first doctors office I noticed that the sign on the door said "Gynocologist"... I then noticed what most of the people around me had in common. They were either pregnant or holding their newborn babies. Commentary:
Me: (In my head) WHAT THE **** ARE WE GONNA BE DOING HERE?!?!?!
That day we ended up just going to this other place where we distributed packets of food and milk to people on the hospital's welfare plan. It was nice but they really didn't need our help so it was boring. Oh yeah and I learnedthat we would be doing this volunteering from 7:30 to 1:30 every day for all of December.
Tuesday Dec. 4
Hospital again today. Got a tour of the place. First we walked into a room where they were reading off reportsof the status of the births that had taken just the night before. Then we went to several other rooms. We basically just walked around for a while seeing all of the rooms of the hospital so that we would have an idea of where everything was. That was about all we did. They really don't have much for us to do there, but since Rotary "Knows the people who run it we have to go there". I am going to ask about working somewhere closer because there is a place where I could volunteer. The taxi ride costs me two dollars a day just to go there,which sounds like very little but when I could spend 20 cents to get to the place that is closer it puts it morein perspective. A two dollar taxi ride here is a half an hour, and a half an hour in a city is a lot. That isone thing that I have gotten used to a bit here. If I have to ride in a taxi for more than 10 minutes somethingis "really far away". In the states 15 minutes to anywhere was a regular thing. Anywho, normal day.
Wednesday Dec. 5
Boring. Hospital, didn't have anything for us to do so we were assigned to be with a doctor for a few hours beforeheading off to get to know some of the area around the hospital. I went into my doctors office, she told me towait there for a minute, and came back half an hour later. Then she left again for about ten minutes. After she had a couple of patients, nothing serious because she deals with minor illness, and after that it was over. We walked around Mariano Melgar, the area that the hospital is located in, up to a white statue of Christ on the top of a small hill. From there we had a nice view of the city. It was a different kind of view though. From where we were we saw much more of the poor community. Houses without a roof or water, some with limited electricity,all walls made from random rocks.
Thursday Dec. 6
Lame day, except for that I got to go to the gym again. With volunteering at the hospital it's hard to get to thegym now.
Friday Dec. 7
Volunteering at the hospital, did an event with lots of kids today to promote brushing their teeth. Went with some friends from the University to eat and chill. Ended up being a really good time. Bday BBQ of another exchanger.Didn't stay out too late because I was tired, and I knew that I would be going out Saturday too.
Saturday Dec. 8
Lazy day. I'm going to go to a BBQ type thing tonight at around five o'clock. I bet that will be a good time. Other than that just a normal Saturday. While I was writing this a friend called and reminded me that his family had invited me to lunch! So guess what... I finally ate guinnea pig. It was... an experience to say the least. So we pull into this place and start walkingup to the eating area. It's really full because it is Saturday, the day when the guinnea pigs are fresh. So wewalk to a different eating area, and we pass this wire line where about 8 or 9 skinned guinnea pics are hanging.That was a little weird. So then we go in and order, and the food comes just about right after we order. You really can't prepare yourself for it all. I had heard that the head was still on and all of the feet and all, butit was still a little weird to see. I was thinking that it would be pretty thick, between 4 and 6 inches, but no...it's pretty flat. Literally everything is there minus the fur. Head, teeth, claws, everything. Including the inside. All of the organs are still there. It's really difficult to eat with a fork and knife so you've got to just grab it and eat. It tasted good, but there isn't that much meat on it and it's difficult to get off, so there is a lot of work involved and after you really aren't that satisfied. However, my appetite wasn't quiteas large throughout so it wasn't too much of a problem. Anyway after that little experience I went to a BBQ. That ended up being really fun. Me and some friends all pitched in a few bucks for a bunch of meat, potatoes, and drinks. We invited a whole bunch of girls from this oneschool and all had a really good time. Once they arrived we threw on the meat and potatoes and made some amazingfood. We talked, ate, and played a bunch of games. Then at around eleven o'clockwe went to the center. There I met some other friends from the University. We made a few different groups and parted. I went to this club that I hadn't been to yet. It was great, definately the best one that I have been to in Peru. Lizzie arrives in about a week so I'm sure that I will be back there before too long.
Sunday Dec. 9
Very lazy Sunday. Didn't really do anything all day but rest and get caught up with a few things on the puter. I went to the mall to buy mouthwash but that was about it.
Pretty good week. Uneventful but still a very good week. Saturday and a couple hours in the wee hours of Sunday morning really made the week. Friday too. The fact that friends called me to go out to eat and invited me to a BBQ really meant a lot. I told them that we should do things like that more often. It costed me three dollarsand thirty cents for the BBQ, which was an amazing time and the food was incredible, and going to the center costedme five dollars. A crazy and amazing night for less than ten dollars? That's pretty good I'd say. I'm hopingthat I'm really busy for the next few weeks especially so I can't think about what I'm missing in the US. Sure, I'm doing things for the first time and shouldn't think too much about home, but it's not that easy.
Hope everyone is doing well.
Love,
Jack
Found out last night that I will be volunteering at a hospital for the next month. I heard Sunday that we would be volunteering. I thought it was just going to be for a day. As the rotary officials that brought us to thehospital were talking to the head doctor I overheard them saying that "these students are at your disposal everyday for the month of December." It isn't a bad thing, but it would have been nice to know beforehand. Plus theplace that we are volunteering at is really far away, a two US dollar taxi ride which is crazy for here. I needto talk to Rotary about this because I don't have that money to spare. Things at the hospital went alright. It was a bit unnerving at first. It is located in the outskirts of the city.As we walked into the office I didn't notice that many of the peopel that we saw had something in common. As wecame to the first doctors office I noticed that the sign on the door said "Gynocologist"... I then noticed what most of the people around me had in common. They were either pregnant or holding their newborn babies. Commentary:
Me: (In my head) WHAT THE **** ARE WE GONNA BE DOING HERE?!?!?!
That day we ended up just going to this other place where we distributed packets of food and milk to people on the hospital's welfare plan. It was nice but they really didn't need our help so it was boring. Oh yeah and I learnedthat we would be doing this volunteering from 7:30 to 1:30 every day for all of December.
Tuesday Dec. 4
Hospital again today. Got a tour of the place. First we walked into a room where they were reading off reportsof the status of the births that had taken just the night before. Then we went to several other rooms. We basically just walked around for a while seeing all of the rooms of the hospital so that we would have an idea of where everything was. That was about all we did. They really don't have much for us to do there, but since Rotary "Knows the people who run it we have to go there". I am going to ask about working somewhere closer because there is a place where I could volunteer. The taxi ride costs me two dollars a day just to go there,which sounds like very little but when I could spend 20 cents to get to the place that is closer it puts it morein perspective. A two dollar taxi ride here is a half an hour, and a half an hour in a city is a lot. That isone thing that I have gotten used to a bit here. If I have to ride in a taxi for more than 10 minutes somethingis "really far away". In the states 15 minutes to anywhere was a regular thing. Anywho, normal day.
Wednesday Dec. 5
Boring. Hospital, didn't have anything for us to do so we were assigned to be with a doctor for a few hours beforeheading off to get to know some of the area around the hospital. I went into my doctors office, she told me towait there for a minute, and came back half an hour later. Then she left again for about ten minutes. After she had a couple of patients, nothing serious because she deals with minor illness, and after that it was over. We walked around Mariano Melgar, the area that the hospital is located in, up to a white statue of Christ on the top of a small hill. From there we had a nice view of the city. It was a different kind of view though. From where we were we saw much more of the poor community. Houses without a roof or water, some with limited electricity,all walls made from random rocks.
Thursday Dec. 6
Lame day, except for that I got to go to the gym again. With volunteering at the hospital it's hard to get to thegym now.
Friday Dec. 7
Volunteering at the hospital, did an event with lots of kids today to promote brushing their teeth. Went with some friends from the University to eat and chill. Ended up being a really good time. Bday BBQ of another exchanger.Didn't stay out too late because I was tired, and I knew that I would be going out Saturday too.
Saturday Dec. 8
Lazy day. I'm going to go to a BBQ type thing tonight at around five o'clock. I bet that will be a good time. Other than that just a normal Saturday. While I was writing this a friend called and reminded me that his family had invited me to lunch! So guess what... I finally ate guinnea pig. It was... an experience to say the least. So we pull into this place and start walkingup to the eating area. It's really full because it is Saturday, the day when the guinnea pigs are fresh. So wewalk to a different eating area, and we pass this wire line where about 8 or 9 skinned guinnea pics are hanging.That was a little weird. So then we go in and order, and the food comes just about right after we order. You really can't prepare yourself for it all. I had heard that the head was still on and all of the feet and all, butit was still a little weird to see. I was thinking that it would be pretty thick, between 4 and 6 inches, but no...it's pretty flat. Literally everything is there minus the fur. Head, teeth, claws, everything. Including the inside. All of the organs are still there. It's really difficult to eat with a fork and knife so you've got to just grab it and eat. It tasted good, but there isn't that much meat on it and it's difficult to get off, so there is a lot of work involved and after you really aren't that satisfied. However, my appetite wasn't quiteas large throughout so it wasn't too much of a problem. Anyway after that little experience I went to a BBQ. That ended up being really fun. Me and some friends all pitched in a few bucks for a bunch of meat, potatoes, and drinks. We invited a whole bunch of girls from this oneschool and all had a really good time. Once they arrived we threw on the meat and potatoes and made some amazingfood. We talked, ate, and played a bunch of games. Then at around eleven o'clockwe went to the center. There I met some other friends from the University. We made a few different groups and parted. I went to this club that I hadn't been to yet. It was great, definately the best one that I have been to in Peru. Lizzie arrives in about a week so I'm sure that I will be back there before too long.
Sunday Dec. 9
Very lazy Sunday. Didn't really do anything all day but rest and get caught up with a few things on the puter. I went to the mall to buy mouthwash but that was about it.
Pretty good week. Uneventful but still a very good week. Saturday and a couple hours in the wee hours of Sunday morning really made the week. Friday too. The fact that friends called me to go out to eat and invited me to a BBQ really meant a lot. I told them that we should do things like that more often. It costed me three dollarsand thirty cents for the BBQ, which was an amazing time and the food was incredible, and going to the center costedme five dollars. A crazy and amazing night for less than ten dollars? That's pretty good I'd say. I'm hopingthat I'm really busy for the next few weeks especially so I can't think about what I'm missing in the US. Sure, I'm doing things for the first time and shouldn't think too much about home, but it's not that easy.
Hope everyone is doing well.
Love,
Jack
Sunday, December 2, 2007
Weekly Report Nov. 29- Dec. 2 (Half week)
Thursday Nov. 29
Now that I have actually had some interesting things to write about just the normal days seem so boring. Today I went to class till about 10:30 then went to the gym. Started doing "superseries". Meaning I do two exercises rightafter each other. Today I did back and chest. It felt good to go to the gym again. After lunch and a nap I met a friend at their house then went to Saga, the small mall about ten minutes from myhouse. We just walked around for a bit before they were going to eat pizza and play cards at a friends house. Ididn't want to go to pizza, but I ended up going to play cards with them and eating their leftovers. Home, dinner,getting tired and ready for bed.
Friday Nov. 30
No classes today because of the... I don't really know, some holiday at the college. I didn't do much until about ten when I went to the gym. Bi's and Tri's today.
Saturday Dec. 1
Three months. What? Three months? Where did that come from? Overall this was a good month. The Cusco trip was...amazing. It was nice to be busy for those ten days. Still here in Arequipa I don't have enough things to do. Finally Rotary has said that we can start volunteering. The place that I had started volunteering at they vetoedbecause they didn't know personally who ran the place. Anywho...Interesting thing happened today. As I was writing this entry my host mother called up the stairs and said thatwe are going to cook. "Cook?" I said to myself? It was just kind of a random thing. So I went downstairs and Me,my brother and my mother cooked this really simple stirfry-ish dish that came out really well. It was pretty fun too, and after doing just that 15 mintue thing with a couple members of the family I felt a little more of a partof the family as a whole. I still have a ways to go to really being comfortable and feeling as if I am part of thefamily, but it was still nice to spend some time with them. At about four o'clock I went downstairs for some water and saw that my host mother, sister, and cousin were settingup Christmas stuff in the living room. Living Room as in the room that we only use for lunch and guests. The fancyone that always looks perfect and makes it seem like you have money. So I helped them set up the tree and put on all of the ornaments and change the table cloth. The Christmas tree is fake by the way... my first Christmas without the nice smell of a pine tree in the house, and all of the little pine needles all over the floor. Nowas I am writing this I can imagine the smell of pine, and it makes me think so much of Christmas. As we were setting up I was reminded of all of our traditions and how all of those traditions will be changed this year; replacedwith all new ones. This year on the 24th we will stay up and at 12:00 we will open presents. We will have a latedinner with the family. This year only the family on my mothers side will be here. No Murphy's, Duffy's, Judges,Smith-Murphy's or any other relation that happens to find it's way to our festivaties. No spinach balls or CherryJubilee, no Secret Santa or Yankee Peddlar, Christmas Carrols, Pinata, Dance Dance Revolution Wars or Guitar Heroe battles. All of that will change this year. At least I know that next year I'll be able to experience that once again, but my appreciation for what we have will have doubled from the absence of just one year from Christmas at home. I should probably finish this because the more I write the harder it becomes to stop. Christmas carols are playing in my head all along, and I hear them being sung by all of the voices of the family and the sound of the Murphy's piano. "ooooohhh OOOOHHHH Star of wonder star of might, star of wonderous beauty bright, westward leading still proceedingguide us to..." and so on, and so on.
Sunday Dec. 2
Boring but relaxing day. Did nothing until six. Had a rotary meeting where I received my monthly allowance. Afterwent to a movie with some exchange students. The new Ben Stiller movie. Can't remember the name in English, in Spanish it's "La Mujer de mis Pesadillas" (The woman of my nightmares) but it doesn't translate directly, the namein English is completely different.
Besides the Christmas setup really nothing happened this week. It was actually nice to have a relaxing week afterthe Cusco trip. Tomorrow I'll be volunteering somewhere. I found out today about volunteering and still don't knowwhere it is... just one small taste of the ridiculously unorganized rotary program that I am a part of here in Peru. Some big decisions are to be made about traveling in the weeks to come. I would love to visit Giorgio in Chile,it would be great to see Mike Epchook in Argentina, the one month trip for Rotary is coming up, many possibilitiesbut limited funds. I recently found out that the one month trip is now scheduled for February instead of January,and my family goes to the beach for the whole month of February, so I might opt to stick with the family at the beachand save the money from that trip and put it towards other travels. We'll just have to see how everything works out.I send good tidings, health and safety to everyone during this holiday season. I'll be thinking of you more and moreas my favorite family holiday approaches.
Love,
Jack
Now that I have actually had some interesting things to write about just the normal days seem so boring. Today I went to class till about 10:30 then went to the gym. Started doing "superseries". Meaning I do two exercises rightafter each other. Today I did back and chest. It felt good to go to the gym again. After lunch and a nap I met a friend at their house then went to Saga, the small mall about ten minutes from myhouse. We just walked around for a bit before they were going to eat pizza and play cards at a friends house. Ididn't want to go to pizza, but I ended up going to play cards with them and eating their leftovers. Home, dinner,getting tired and ready for bed.
Friday Nov. 30
No classes today because of the... I don't really know, some holiday at the college. I didn't do much until about ten when I went to the gym. Bi's and Tri's today.
Saturday Dec. 1
Three months. What? Three months? Where did that come from? Overall this was a good month. The Cusco trip was...amazing. It was nice to be busy for those ten days. Still here in Arequipa I don't have enough things to do. Finally Rotary has said that we can start volunteering. The place that I had started volunteering at they vetoedbecause they didn't know personally who ran the place. Anywho...Interesting thing happened today. As I was writing this entry my host mother called up the stairs and said thatwe are going to cook. "Cook?" I said to myself? It was just kind of a random thing. So I went downstairs and Me,my brother and my mother cooked this really simple stirfry-ish dish that came out really well. It was pretty fun too, and after doing just that 15 mintue thing with a couple members of the family I felt a little more of a partof the family as a whole. I still have a ways to go to really being comfortable and feeling as if I am part of thefamily, but it was still nice to spend some time with them. At about four o'clock I went downstairs for some water and saw that my host mother, sister, and cousin were settingup Christmas stuff in the living room. Living Room as in the room that we only use for lunch and guests. The fancyone that always looks perfect and makes it seem like you have money. So I helped them set up the tree and put on all of the ornaments and change the table cloth. The Christmas tree is fake by the way... my first Christmas without the nice smell of a pine tree in the house, and all of the little pine needles all over the floor. Nowas I am writing this I can imagine the smell of pine, and it makes me think so much of Christmas. As we were setting up I was reminded of all of our traditions and how all of those traditions will be changed this year; replacedwith all new ones. This year on the 24th we will stay up and at 12:00 we will open presents. We will have a latedinner with the family. This year only the family on my mothers side will be here. No Murphy's, Duffy's, Judges,Smith-Murphy's or any other relation that happens to find it's way to our festivaties. No spinach balls or CherryJubilee, no Secret Santa or Yankee Peddlar, Christmas Carrols, Pinata, Dance Dance Revolution Wars or Guitar Heroe battles. All of that will change this year. At least I know that next year I'll be able to experience that once again, but my appreciation for what we have will have doubled from the absence of just one year from Christmas at home. I should probably finish this because the more I write the harder it becomes to stop. Christmas carols are playing in my head all along, and I hear them being sung by all of the voices of the family and the sound of the Murphy's piano. "ooooohhh OOOOHHHH Star of wonder star of might, star of wonderous beauty bright, westward leading still proceedingguide us to..." and so on, and so on.
Sunday Dec. 2
Boring but relaxing day. Did nothing until six. Had a rotary meeting where I received my monthly allowance. Afterwent to a movie with some exchange students. The new Ben Stiller movie. Can't remember the name in English, in Spanish it's "La Mujer de mis Pesadillas" (The woman of my nightmares) but it doesn't translate directly, the namein English is completely different.
Besides the Christmas setup really nothing happened this week. It was actually nice to have a relaxing week afterthe Cusco trip. Tomorrow I'll be volunteering somewhere. I found out today about volunteering and still don't knowwhere it is... just one small taste of the ridiculously unorganized rotary program that I am a part of here in Peru. Some big decisions are to be made about traveling in the weeks to come. I would love to visit Giorgio in Chile,it would be great to see Mike Epchook in Argentina, the one month trip for Rotary is coming up, many possibilitiesbut limited funds. I recently found out that the one month trip is now scheduled for February instead of January,and my family goes to the beach for the whole month of February, so I might opt to stick with the family at the beachand save the money from that trip and put it towards other travels. We'll just have to see how everything works out.I send good tidings, health and safety to everyone during this holiday season. I'll be thinking of you more and moreas my favorite family holiday approaches.
Love,
Jack
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