It's On Trips Like This That You Find Yourself

I would like to preface that this post is all over the place and talks about my feelings and thoughts during this journey and life in general.  We have already reached the half-way mark, and I am still wondering if I will every want to go back home.  In the past two months there have been some eye-opening experiences that have made me question what it is that I want to do with my life.  Before coming to Peru I spent each day going to class, studying, going to meetings, working, and trying to keep myself fed like clockwork.  I wasn't unhappy at the time, but now that I have had the chance to live in another country and experience things that I never could have dreamed of, I can see that I wasn't really living.  I know that everything that I was doing was important, but I am not sure if they are as important as I used to think they were.   I allowed classes and the pressure of getting into PT school wear me down to the point of just going through the motions.  I understand that I am happier here due to my lessened load of responsibilities and the excitement of new things, but I also have truly fallen in love with Peru and its laid-back lifestyle.  Having the opportunity to spend less time studying and not having a job or meetings to attend has allowed me to take this time to really focus on myself and live in the present instead of focusing on the future.  It sounds cheesy, I know, but facing little challenges or overcoming fears each day really teaches you about yourself.  When I first got off the airplane in Lima I was terrified.  I didn't know how to speak Spanish really at all.  I didn't know the family who would be taking me in for 4 months.  I didn't know how to set up my phone to work here, how to walk to campus, or how to get around on the buses.  I was nervous when ordering food or getting a taxi.  Little by little I have conquered my fears and grown so much as a person.  I now take taxis by myself, meet up with my own Peruvian friends, and walk confidently in the streets instead of trying to hide from the stares (I am now enjoying being famous and welcome the pictures with strangers).   I have learned that I can roll with the punches really well.  I don't allow myself to dwell on negative things and I bounce back very quickly when something doesn't go as I had hoped.  I have also learned that I can be a super chill and go-with-the-flow kind of person instead of the high-strung girl struggling through life in Kearney.  Now I am struggling through life in Peru, but it is an exciting and adrenaline-filled struggle that I love :)  I don't feel like the person I am in the United States.  I have found that I can live away from all of my family and friends and not be homesick because I am truly happy with my life (although I do miss you all at times).

Before coming here I never knew that I could be so independent, enjoy meeting new people so much, and be spontaneous and carefree.  I feel like a free spirit that could be blown anywhere by the wind.  I have friends in Peru, Ecuador, Argentina, and Spain who would take me in whenever I visit.  I can go anywhere or do anything.  I have been able to break out of the monotony of the past few years and challenge myself to truly make the most of every single day.  I have grown to love this country and the people here.  The plan that I had set in stone for the past 3 years is now in question.  Maybe I won't go to PT school after all, or maybe I will.  It has become difficult for me to justify spending some of the best years of my life studying day and night when I could be traveling and living in another country instead.  Maybe I'll move to South America (hopefully with Zach and Hannah.  Eli you can come too if you want to learn Spanish, it's really fun!).  Maybe I'll become a surf instructor, ice cream vendor, or sell bracelets made from my hair on the beach while I move from country to country (just kidding, this is plan X, Y, and Z if all else fails).  All I know is that there are so many opportunities in the world that are waiting to be taken outside of Nebraska or the United States.

Anyways, moving on from my questions about life, this was another great week spent with Peruvian friends and my Nebraska girls of course.  We got to celebrate Ahnika's birthday at her house with her family on Friday night.  It took me an hour and 10 minutes to walk to her house and I still regret not taking a taxi (I don't know what I was thinking.  I was drenched in sweat when I walked through her door).  Right when I got there her dad grabbed my hand and started salsa dancing with me, which was fun and embarrassing because my hips simply don't move like they are supposed to for salsa dancing.   I am determined to learn though.  We spent the night dancing, drinking chilcanos (I'm going to miss these soooo much), and eating amazing food.

Saturday we went to Playland, which is a small amusement park here in Surco.  I didn't go on any rides because I didn't want to give myself a headache for the rest of the day.  After that we went out together and tried a new place close to our houses.  We were supposed to have our names on the list to get in, but we walked past the bouncer without any questions asked (it is nice to be the only white people around sometimes).  Everyone was wearing white there except for us so I'm assuming that when everyone else put their names on the list a few days before they were told to wear white.  Oh well, you can't win em all.  We then went to Miraflores to Pizza Street and danced at our favorite disco until late in the night.  I practiced my salsa dancing once again and I think I actually got a little bit better!

Today I went to a soccer game with my parents and two men who I assume to be my dad's brothers or cousins, I'm not totally sure.  We took taxis there and it was amazing to put two people in one car and three in another instead of cramming 6-9 people into one taxi like us girls usually do.  We got to the game only 15 minutes before it started so of course the line to get in took 30 minutes to get through.  Once we got through the gate we started running like little kids in order to avoid missing a goal (since they happen so often in soccer).  It was a great atmosphere and felt similar to a husker football game only on a smaller scale.  The "halftime show" was my favorite part.  It consisted of a crazy guy body slamming into the clear plastic wall that kept people from falling off of the balcony.  He threw himself into it headfirst, into his stomach, and against his shoulder at least 7 times before the police came and beat him down.  He singlehandedly knocked down 5 policemen so they then began hitting him until it looked like he himself was knocked out.  They eventually carried him out of the stadium, but it took at least 10 policemen.  He was a wild one.  My mom told me he was crazy.  I told her he was drunk.  We were all laughing and the whole side of our stadium was watching him instead of the poor cheerleaders.  Overall, the soccer game was actually incredible; I didn't think I would enjoy it as much as I did.  I've decided that soccer players are some of the most agile and amazing athletes.  I loved watching them dance around with the soccer ball and psych each other out.  It was a high scoring game, 4-1, which made it more interesting as well.  I would love to go to another game while I am here and maybe I will watch the U on TV with my dad next time they play.

What It's Like To Live In This City Of 20 Million People: The Good And The Bad

As much as I love Lima, I don't think I could ever live here permanently.  Really the only reason for this is the traffic.  When I take a taxi to Miraflores, which is a district connected to mine, it takes 30 minutes minimum and when traffic is bad it can take over an hour.  I would never be able to drive my own car here because I would end up killing myself or someone else so I would spend a ton of money and time on buses and taxis.

I kind of like how you never run into people you know on the streets.  You can avoid awkward encounters with people you kind of know or wish you didn't know (which is impossible in Kearney and even Lincoln).  You can do embarrassing things in public because you know you will never see any of these people again (which is good for me since I embarrass myself at times).  There is always something to do, somewhere to go, new people to meet, and new places to explore.  

However, there are a few things that are a little strange to me here.  For example, toilet paper is a luxury that is seldom provided in public places.  We have grown accustom to stealing napkins from every restaurant we go to and carrying them around in our purses.  They don't flush toilet paper here because the sewer system can't handle it, so it was fun getting used to throwing the toilet paper into the trashcan next to the toilet.  Also there are many times when toilets don't have seats on them and sometimes they don't even flush.  

There is also no air conditioning in the houses, on campus, in most stores and restaurants, or really anywhere except for fancier places.  I have gotten used to waking up covered in sweat and then proceeding to sweat the rest of the day.  I know I'm weird, but I really don't mind sweating that much.  I'd much rather be hot all day instead of cold.  My evening showers are one of my favorite parts of my day though because it is the only 10 minutes of the day in which I feel clean.  I start sweating when I get out of the shower.

There is a lot of trash in Lima and Peru in general.  Like a lot.  Throwing away trash and recycling are not important in this culture as they are in the U.S.  This is something I have really gotten used to for the most part, but I think it takes away from the beauty of this country, especially for those who aren't used to seeing trash everywhere.  All things considered, there is nothing that I miss about the U.S. enough to make me want to come back yet (not even the air conditioning).  I want to stay here forever and dance my life away.

Momma brought me a jersey to wear

My parents are on either side of me.  They are so cute.

Can you spot the gringa? Everyone else sure can

The adults kept making me pose by myself

Gettin ready for Pizza Street!

She's a doll

Happy birthday to Ahnika!!

These girls get me and my new-found love for beer

Couldn't have had a better Sunday afternoon

Paracas and Birthdays

Monday it was back to the "real" world and time to focus on classes again.  I went to campus at 10 in the morning to pre-watch a peruvian movie for one of my classes and to study.  We had class from 4-7, during which our professor named Rob taught 11 girls the words for boxers, thongs, and underwear (among other clothing items).  He was a little embarrassed so of course we gave him a hard time and by the end of the lesson I was laughing uncontrollably.  After class I came home and had a nice dinner with my family.  I love listening to them talk and they are always very good about including me in the conversation (which is easier now that my brother can translate for me).  After dinner I sat in the kitchen with my brother for almost two hours talking about life and making plans for the months I have left in Peru.  He made me laugh the entire time and I have decided that we are going to be best friends.

Tuesday I had class from 10-1 and then we watched the movie I had seen the day before in a classroom with other peruvians.  The main actress from the film is a friend of our professor so she came and we discussed the movie with her after watching it.  The conversation was way over my head because the peruvian students sprinted through their words while they talked, but I got the gist of a few topics.  After the movie I went to Miraflores to meet with one of my peruvian friends at his house.  We bought some pisco and he taught me how to make maracuya chilcanos, which were really good.  We then looked up recipes for pisco sours (which I am proud to say I could understand really well) and tried to make those as well.  He ended up not bothering to follow the recipe and tried to make them on his own.  Needless to say they did not turn out right.  I don't know what he did wrong, but it tasted like pisco and egg whites.  I also got to meet his dad, who tried to practice his English with me, and overall it was a great night.

Wednesday was fairly uneventful, but after class I ate dinner with my parents and my dad was cracking me up the whole time.  He told me he is the king of salsa and then he started doing some disco moves with a huge grin on his face.  I then watched the soccer game between Peru and Brazil with him while I worked on homework until we all went to bed.

Thursday we went to the U.S. Embassy for class and learned about the embassy and all of the different issues and topics that it is involved in.  It was interesting and we were excited to say that we were on American soil!  We then went to Barranco for the afternoon and evening. I went with my friend Emi and we got tacos and margaritas together before going back to El Gringo bar and waiting for our friends to join us. We celebrated Shelby's birthday and I bought her a tequila shot (there is no such thing as a single shot here. Whenever you order a shot you get a double so you have to be ready to go for it.) We stayed there for a few hours and then went home to get some sleep before going to Paracas.

Friday morning we boarded our bus at 7 to drive 4 hours to a town called Paracas. This town is right on the beach and we stayed in an incredible 5 star resort for the weekend. We spent Friday relaxing by the pool and ocean and swimming around like little kids. For dinner we went to the restaurant in the resort and I ordered linguini with calamari, shrimp, octopus, and scallops. It was delicious.  I have really grown to love seafood here.  We also sat in the hot tub that night until our two blondies' hair turned green as could be from the chemical imbalance.  Their hair is still green... We showered and slept in air conditioning for the first time in 2 months and we all slept like babies and soaked in the luxury.

Saturday morning we got up at 6 to eat the best breakfast I've ever had at a hotel.  Or maybe anywhere.  There was every kind of breakfast food you can think of plus mimosas.  I ate fresh pineapple until I couldn't feel my tongue anymore. No regrets. We then got on a boat and went out to an island about 20 minutes out. We saw two groups of about 10 dolphins each feeding by our boat on the way there. It was hard to keep myself from diving in and swimming with them. We also passed a sandy island with a mark engraved on it. Our tour guide said that it has been there since the B.C. era, which I think is amazing. When we got to the islands we saw hundreds of sea lions, thousands of birds, and three penguins!!! The islands were gorgeous and it was fun to listen to the sea lions cry to each other. We were told that around the islands was a great place to catch sea creatures and I really wish I could have gone scuba diving there.  After boating all around the islands we headed back to our resort and laid around until I had sufficiently sunburned my chest (I think I am partly ginger. I lay in the shade most of the day while everyone else is in the sun. And I'm the one who gets fried). We ate at the restaurant and I ordered salmon and gnocchi, which was so delicious I ordered it the next afternoon as well. We went to bed early again and I was out in seconds.

Sunday we got up at 6:30 to go paddleboarding in the ocean while it was calm. It was my first time paddleboarding and it was really fun! We got to watch the birds dive into the water around us and enjoy the early morning air. We then ate so much breakfast that my stomach hurt and I wanted to throw up.  I still have no regrets. After breakfast we rallied and went to play tennis, grass volleyball (it felt so good to touch a volleyball again), did flips on the trampoline, and tried to walk on a tight rope. I have never sweat so much in my life. It was dripping down my shins like it was raining outside. But it was a blast and made me all the more excited to hop in the pool for the rest of the afternoon (after my roomie, Mariah, was willing to touch my sweaty back long enough to apply more sunscreen of course). That afternoon we left at 4 to head back to Lima and begin another week of classes. However, Monday was my brothers 25th birthday, so he had a party Sunday night with his friends and invited me to go celebrate with them.  So when I got home Sunday night at 9:15 my brother told me that I had 30 minutes to get ready.  I ran around my room to get unpacked and look like I hadn't been laying on a bus all evening (I even wore my jeans for the first time so I would look a little more formal than when I wear shorts).  We went to Jockey Plaza where 20 or so of his friends met us.  I had met a few of his friends a few weeks ago, but it was really fun to meet everyone else.   I luckily sat by a guy at dinner who spoke English pretty well, so we talked for a majority of the night.  I also met a girl who goes to UPC so we got each other's information so that we can meet up soon!  It was a really great evening and I got to practice Spanish with people my own age, which was really fun/embarrassing/hilarious at times.  After dinner a few of us went to a karaoke bar and stayed there until 4:30 in the morning.  I sang a few songs in English, but I mostly listened to everyone else singing songs in Spanish.  We eventually crawled our way back home and I fell asleep instantly.  

Today I slept in until 10 and then worked on homework and getting my life back together.  I had class at 4 and then I came home, ate some dinner, and now I am about to work on more homework before going to bed really early.  

It was another amazing week in Peru and I wouldn't trade this experience for the world.

Struggles of the week:
1) Remembering how to spell English words (I had to look up "actress", "gnocchi" and "gist" to write this post)

2) Remembering how to speak English (Sometimes when I talk in English I say things in the way that they would translate into Spanish)

3) Calling a safe taxi.  My host brother had to call a taxi for me because I had no idea what they were asking me.  I was actually stressed out for the first time since I've been in Peru.  He is a life saver.

4) Telling people what my name is.  It has been spelled Cler and Cleerck so far.  I never knew that Claire was a tricky name, but it is difficult for a lot of people to say here.

5) Avoiding sunburns.  It's simply not possible with my skin.  My peruvian friends asked me why I wasn't tan after coming back from the beach this weekend.  I told them that I am in fact tan right now.

Anyway, I love you all and I wish you were all here with me.  Besitos!!

Best chaperones we could have asked for

Out for my brother's birthday!!  He's the one on the right in front of me

 

The huge engraving from the B.C. era

Sea lions were everywhere

Two of the penguins!

This part of the island is where most of the babies are born

Paddleboarding for the first time!

SPRING BREAK 2K16!!!

This post covers the last two weeks, which include midterms and spring break.  A lot has happened lately so I tried to cover the important parts of each day.

Last week we had midterms, which all seemed to go fairly well. I also got to meet my host brother who has returned to Peru after studying in Spain.  My family took me out to dinner the evening he arrived (Wednesday) and it was so great to get to talk to all of them as a family.  I can already tell that I will get along with my host brother really well because he is so nice and kind of a goofball.  I got to hang out with some of his friends that evening, and I did my best to understand what they were talking about.  They were all really funny and I hope to get to hang out with them again.  Later that evening I went out to Miraflores with one of my girl friends and we had an awesome time with two of our peruvian friends.  They had gotten us onto a list at a nice club so we went there and danced for a few hours before returning home.

Thursday we all hoped on a bus for 18 hours to get to Mancora, which is one of the best beaches in Peru.  We stayed there for 8 days and I tried a few things that I have never done before.  The bus ride went really fast since we were in first class and could sleep and watch movies. When we got to Máncora we took motorcycle buggies (moto taxis) to our house about 7 kilometers away. Our house was gorgeous. We were pretty much right on the beach and we had a nice pool to swim in too. I ended up getting incredibly sunburned the very first day even though I put on a lot of sunscreen.  It was painful for about 4 days but it is so much better now.  We spent that evening drinking in our house, playing cards, and dancing on our balcony like a bunch of American girls.

Saturday morning we went out and swam in the ocean and then pool for a few hours. I was the weirdo wearing a T-shirt to avoid burning my sunburn, but it was still amazing. We then relaxed for the afternoon and then got ready to go out in Mancora. The clubs are right on the beach so we walked from club to club and had so much fun dancing and talking to people.  Some of the guys there were really creepy, so I was glad that there were so many of us there to keep an eye out for each other.  Overall it was a really fun night spent with the girls who have become some of my best friends.

Sunday afternoon we went back in to Mancora to eat lunch, buy groceries, and check out prices for surfing, snorkeling, and other day trips. We then came back home and cooked dinner, watched the sunset, and I swam while others watched the Superbowl.  We had great plans to make American Superbowl food like hamburger and cheese chip dip, but we found that Velveeta does not exist here.  So we had tacos, guacamole, and fruit salad instead.  I found that some Peruvians knew more about the Superbowl than me, which wasn't hard because I didn't even know what teams were playing.  But it was surprising that so many people were watching the game here.

Monday we spent the whole day on the beach.  I sat under an umbrella not knowing if it was free or not and was told by a waitress that in order to sit under it we had to buy something. So I split a large beer with one of my friends and enjoyed watching surfers.  We decided to ride a banana boat, which is a floaty that is pulled behind a jet ski. We all piled on and proceeded to be tossed around by the waves and praying that we didn't fall off. It was so fun and so miserable at the same time. On the way back in there were people taking pictures of us as we struggled to stay afloat and gracefully fall off back onto the beach.  We then posed for a few pictures with random people as always and went to walk around and dry off.  Later that evening a few of us ordered a few drinks by the ocean and met a big group of guys from Chile, Argentina, and Ecuador.  They invited us to their hostel to swim in the rain so we joined them.  We swam and tried to play some drinking games, which required us to speak in Spanish and was very difficult since we had to think quickly.  Later we danced next to the pool to every kind of music such as salsa, reggae-tone, bachata, and meringue.  

Tuesday a few of us met up with our friends at the beach to eat lunch and swim in the ocean before they had to leave. Even though we only knew them for a day, it was sad to say goodbye.  I wish they lived in Lima because they were such genuine people and easy to talk to. After they left we went around to the shops and a man told us he loved us and told me my eyes were beautiful in a few different languages, so that was interesting. We then came back home and relaxed for the rest of the evening.

Wednesday we went to Máncora to eat sushi, shop, and walk by the beach.  This was my first time eating Peruvian sushi and I was not disappointed.  I could eat sushi, ceviche, and seafood for every meal.  When we came home we swam in our pool and met a guy who lives in Lima and goes to UPC (our university here)! So we invited him and his brother over to play cards and eat pizza. We then went to bed early so we could get up early the next morning.

Thursday I got up early and went scuba diving for the first time in my life. It was scary and amazing at the same time.  I thought we were going to learn how to dive in a pool before going to the ocean, but we were taken out to an oil rig pretty far out into the ocean right away.  There were sea lions crawling on the oil rig, which was crazy to watch since they are so big and use their fins like hands and legs.  I spent about 15 minutes trying to get my wet suit on and my arms were exhausted by the time I finally got it on right.  My guide then strapped on my flippers, face mask, and air tank and told me to flip backwards into the water.  He told me to put my face in the water and practice breathing while the others got ready.  Even though only my face was in the water my heart was racing and I was breathing so fast.  I eventually got used to it and we all got ready to dive.  We gradually lowered ourselves down a rope, pinching our noses and trying to continually pop our ears.  We dove down about 30 or 40 feet and swam between schools of fish.  My ears hurt a lot of the time because it was hard to equalize the pressure, but it was so worth it.  The current was strong and our guide had to grab my arm a few times to keep me from floating away.  I got scared when we got down to the lowest spot and started hyperventilating a little bit, but I took a few deep slow breaths and calmed myself down.  My guide took my hand and drug me down to see an octopus that was wrapped up on one of the logs from the oil rig. It's eyes stared at me and it was amazing to watch.  After about 25 minutes we headed back up to the boat.  It felt so good to breathe normally again and to take of that wet suit.  When we returned to shore we helped unload the boat before heading back home to shower and eat some cheeseburgers.  That night I went out with two of my friends and we had a great time eating and on the beach even though there were a lot of creepy guys out once again. 

The next morning I got up, ate the 20th PB&J of the trip, and went on an all day tour of different beaches around Máncora. I got a little sunburned of course, but it was a pretty relaxing day.  It wasn't exactly what we had envisioned, but I enjoyed sleeping on the bus and laying by the beach.  We visited an island with a little crocodile zoo on it and then we headed back home, ordered some pizza from a food stand, and went home to sleep after a very long day.

Saturday morning I got up early again and went to Máncora to surf!  I have never surfed before so it was quite the experience.  My instructor made me lay down on a surfboard he had drawn in the sand for about 10 minutes to practice getting up gracefully.  He then made me stretch, strapped my surfboard to my ankle, and took me out into the waves.  The most tiring part of surfing is getting out to the big waves after each ride in to shore.  I would lay on the board and paddle with my arms while my instructor grabbed onto the back of the board and paddled with his flippers.  When we got to a good wave he would yell at me to "paddle paddle paddle!" and then when we were on top of the wave he would yell at me to stand up.  Once I was planted on the board he would let go and let me ride the wave in.  In my hour-long lesson I caught 6 or 7 waves and even got to touch a sea turtle who was swimming next to me.  It was absolutely amazing and I can't wait to have one of my peruvian friends take me surfing with him again.  Later that afternoon we got back on our bus and headed back to Lima.  The ride went very quickly and it is so great to be home now.  I missed my host family and eating my mom's wonderful food.  I am not ready for classes to begin again, but I am excited to see my peruvian friends and focus on Spanish once again.

I hope all is well back in the US!  Sending love and kisses to everyone back home (especially baby Jade who has grown so much in the month and a half I have been gone).

I watched the sun set almost every night

Best of friends

Before the Banana Boat

Struggling to get off without falling

Sea lions by our scuba diving spot 

Ready to flip on in!!

A fish we saw while scuba diving

Argentinian, Chilean, and Ecuadorian friends

Sebastián was really cool

Catching the waves!!

This was not the actual board I used

Cuddling with the girls

Surf instructor.  He was a little creepy

The actual board I used to keep me afloat

One of my favorite meals in Máncora

Fried Calamari for my last meal

Our house in Los Órganos

The view from our house

Roughing it in the Andes

Ready to check out the catacombs

Buckle up folks, it was a crazy week so this post is a doozy.  Classes have been going well, but they are such a minor part of this crazy experience that I won't go into detail.  On Tuesday after class we got to go to Miraflores to ride on a double-decker bus that took us all around central Lima.  We got to see the beautiful parks, Congress Plaza, the National Library, and we got to go inside the Saint Francis Cathedral and Catacombs.  The church was absolutely gorgeous but we weren't allowed to take pictures unfortunately.  When we went down into the catacombs beneath the church I felt like I was in a scary movie.  There were bones that had been organized by type spread throughout the maze of tunnels.  Our guide said that there were 25,000 people buried here of all social and economic classes.  Bodies were laid on top of one another and left to disintegrate.  The anatomy-loving side of me really enjoyed trying to determine what kinds of bones I was looking at, but a part of me was kind of freaked out, especially when looking at all of the skulls.  It was an amazing experience and definitely something that I will never forget.  After the bus tour I went out to eat with a few girls before taking a taxi back home through rush hour.  

Typical traffic in Lima.  There is no such thing as lanes.

Seven of us girls had decided to go to Huaraz to hike in the Andes mountains for the weekend. So Wednesday night at 10:30 we got on a bus that drove us about 9 hours North of Lima to Huaraz. I got a few hours of sleep off and on but we were all really tired and acting crazy by the time we got to our hostel.  Our hostel dad, Amilio, was awesome and took such good care of us. He gave us kisses every time we saw him and told us the best places to go. We got a 3-day hiking package that cost each of us 100 soles (or $30 - so basically it was free) and spent the rest of Thursday naping and walking around the town. It is important to mention that we had very little idea as to where we would be going each day or what the weather would be like on each hike. All we knew was what time the bus picked us up and we went with it.

Freezing at the glacier

Baby llama loved me

Friday was our first hike and we went to Huascarán National Park. We got on a bus at 8:30 and rode for about 3 hours while making a few stops, one of which included holding a baby llama 😊  We finally reached the starting point for our hike and realized how cold it was.  Some vendors offered to rent us coats for 5 soles and it was honestly the best purchase I have made while in Peru.  We decided to ride horses partway up the mountain and then we got off and walked the rest of the way. It was sooo cold at the top. There was sleet pelting our ankles and faces, but we made it and got to look at beautiful  glaciers. It was a fun and horrible hike at the same time, but I'm glad I went. I'm also still very thankful for that ugly coat I rented because it saved my life. 

We can't believe that we made it to Laguna 69

The next morning we woke up at 4:45 and got picked up by our bus at 5:30 for another day of hiking. We went to Laguna 69 in the Andes, which was another 3 hour drive away. We knew that the hike would be challenging, but little did we know that it would be the most difficult hike of our lives.  The landscape was absolutely gorgeous. We were surrounded by waterfalls, streams, green grass, and white-capped mountains.  I have travelled quite a bit, but that has to be one of the most breathtaking places I have ever gone. We started of by hiking up a mountain for 2 hours and then we reached a flat part between mountains so we thought we were getting pretty close to the Lagoon.  Our guide then told us that we had a whole other mountain to climb (and this one was much more difficult than the first).  We told ourselves it would be worth it and kept going, slowing down with every step.  I felt like I was running repeat 400s for track practice. I could hardly breathe because of the altitude, my backpack was dragging me down, and by the time we reached the lagoon my balance was so bad that I was certain I would stumble off the side of the mountain (which I actually almost did).  It was the best feeling in the world when I finally spotted the lagoon, and the clear blue water was gorgeous. Those who had made it before we did congratulated us and offered us a warm tea drink to help with altitude sickness.  We ate a little bit for lunch there and then spent the next 2.5 hours retracing our steps back to the bus.  I felt like I was sleepwalking and my eyes couldn't focus on anything like they were supposed to.  It was one of the strangest physical experiences I've ever gone through.  Overall it was a 10-12 mile hike so I think I'll be ready to run a half marathon when (if) I come home.  My legs have never been so shaky and numb in my life, but I enjoyed ever minute of it and I would hike it again sometime later in life.

Laguna 69 was worth the hike

On the bus ride home I felt tired yet so alive and excited as I looked up at the mountains. There is nothing so humbling as looking up at the top of a mountain and taking a moment to remember how beautiful the world is. I thank God for the opportunity to be experiencing such incredible things every day and to see so many beautiful places and meet people from all over the world.

The ruins built B.C.

Sunday was another amazing day even though we had no idea where we were going and blindly hopped on our bus at 8:30 a.m.  We ended up going to some ruins that were built in the B.C. era (not sure exactly when because the tour was of course in Spanish).  It was a tour instead of a hike, which my legs greatly appreciated.  We got to go down in the labrynth below the ruins and it was fun to look at even though I didn't understand much of the tour. We then ate dinner and drove the 3 hours back to our hostel.  When we got back we packed up our bags, gave our host dad kisses, and caught our bus back to Lima.  I got home at 6 a.m. and dove into bed to sleep for a few hours before going to class in the afternoon.

As I go to bed every night I think about how quickly my time here is going.  On Thursday I will have been here for a month already.  I wish I could make time stop, but I am also missing all of you at home.  Stay warm and enjoy the snow!!  Sending my love.

Poor horse had to carry me up the mountain

Of course we bought llama sweaters

Beautiful buildings in the center of Lima

Hiking back down from the glacier

I'm obsessed with llamas

The Andes and lagoons were incredible

On the way to Laguna 69

Hiked all the way from the bottom of the waterfall

The Andes were so beautiful

Waterfalls were surrounding us on our hike

Laguna 69

Living conditions of those not in cities

The ruins with tunnels below 

Another Lagoon that we drove past

I find puppies and dogs everywhere I go

My hiking group. Love these girls.

These plants take 40-100 years to grow the top part

We struggled through the cold

Modeling our rented coats

Traditional clothing of the women in Huaraz