If I had a sound track for my Peace Corps service, one song that would be on it would be "I don´t feel pretty", the classic from West Side Story with a less romantic twist. On the self discovery trip that has been forced upon me since I arrived a year ago, involves an evaluation about how I feel about myself, inside and out. Not just that, it is forcing me to gauge how much I actually care about the way I look.
It goes without saying, joining Peace Corps is not about a glamorous life style or superficial value in ones self. I have always been a very confident person who has never cared and therefore never greatly invested in my appearance. But lately, well honestly I´ve been feeling like this for quite some time, I don´t feel very attractive. There are about 100 reasons for this, may of them are self inflicted. But I´m gonna start at the top and work my way down.
9 months after a horrible peruvian hair cut, my hair is still recovering and I don´t like the length or the style. But I refuse to go back to a "stylist" here and am waiting till I go to the states to get it fixed. I don´t own hair products, a hair dryer, a curler or a straightener. My hair has not been done in over a year. I shower once overy 2-4 days and I have really oily hair so after the first day I look like a grease ball. I don`t wear make up except on occasion in Lima. But I only brought with me a few pieces with me. Again, I don`t shower all that often and my skin is really oily so its always really shinny and scary.
When I packed for Peru I brought along what I deemed to be "Peace Coprs" clothing ie. baggy jeans, tee shirts and sweats. The few nice clothes I did bring have basically been destroyed by the dirt and washing methods. Besides the fact I didn`t bring nice clothes and don´t want to ruin the ones I have, I always try to dress in an unattractive way to divert attention. So many men whistle and yell things at me and I try to take what control I can in the situation and dress in the least provocative way possible. Unfortunately, this does little to deter them. The other day I was wearing old baggy jeans circa 2001, hiking boots, a baseball cap and hooded sweatshirt with the hood pulled over the cap. I got harassed as many times as usual. One might think that having men whistling and hollering might raise my self-esteem, but it actually makes me feel worse.
I`m really just complaining, there are many things I could do to make myself feel more pretty. There are volunteers who wear high heals, travel with curling irons and where make up everyday. But all that stuff takes 10 times the effort it does back home. I could buy cuter clothing and wear it (seeing as the men will whistle no matter what I wear), but I feel like there is no bigger waist of money than that. In a way this falter in self confidence is a good thing. It is letting me see a side of me I´ve never seen before, one where I realize my physical appearance actually means something to me. This is a latin culture which values the way a woman looks on the outside which probably effects me as well. But it also helps me keep things in perspective . I didn´t comes here to look pretty and looking in the mirror is a constant reminder of that.
I suppose I could shower more and that would help probably more than anything else. After all, being attractive is really about how you feel. When you feel dirty, covered in dust, sweat, grease and all the germs the kids cover me in, one is bound to feel icky. Not to mention smell a little funky too. Now that winter is here and it is cold again, I don´t think I will be mustering up the energy to be taking frigid showers more often. I look forward to be able to get dressed up again and not feel insulted to have men look at me. And when I get there, I will be able to appreciate more becaues of my 2 years in Peace Corps.
Thursday, May 29, 2008
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
I Need a Vacation
15 days till my parents arrive
18 days till we go to Cuzco
39 days till my marathon
59 days till Fiestas Patrias (Independence day and one of the few free vacations we recive)
66 days till Amanda arrive
71 days till I fly home
As a Peace Corps volunteer we receive two vacation days a month, 24 days a year. That may seem like a lot to the average American who get a whopping 10 days year, but really we PCV´s get the short end of the stick. We get 2 days a month, period. We don´t get weekends or get Holidays. Yesterday, all of the Peace Corps staff had the day off for the American Memorial day. Earlier this month they had another 3 day weekend for the Peruvian Labor day. I feel very claustrophobic sometimes, not being allowed to leave my site. My favorite past time in the states was taking off on a weekend for a sporadic road trip. Because my parents are coming in June and I am going home in August for two weeks, I have had to save all of my vacation days for these two trips. We also weren´t given any vacation days during training, so it will have been a full year since I have been able to relax and put my feet up. I´d say after everything I´ve been through these past 12 months, I deserve a vacation.
Things have become very mundane at site. I`ve been working very hard, which makes me happy, but also makes me want a break even more. I feel I am looking forward to seeing my parents far more than any 24 year old should. It´s almost romantic how I count down the days and try to contain myself every time I turn a page on the calender.
While I feel very comfortable and even apprecite the down time I have, I spend so much time in my bed reading or at the computer writing friends and blog entries. I´m running a lot getting ready for the marathon and I patiently deal with all the kids on a daily basis. I am so ready for a little excitement, for a change of scenery. With Lima`s weather is changing to endless gray, it is stoking the flame within me to head for the hills, literally. I am very excited to finally be going to Cuzco and Machu Picchu. What I like about my winter plans, is that once my first adventure ends, it´s not long until the next one starts. I am trying to be patient for the first one to start, but after all the patience I have had to muster in my first year in Peru, I don´t know if I can stand it any longer.
18 days till we go to Cuzco
39 days till my marathon
59 days till Fiestas Patrias (Independence day and one of the few free vacations we recive)
66 days till Amanda arrive
71 days till I fly home
As a Peace Corps volunteer we receive two vacation days a month, 24 days a year. That may seem like a lot to the average American who get a whopping 10 days year, but really we PCV´s get the short end of the stick. We get 2 days a month, period. We don´t get weekends or get Holidays. Yesterday, all of the Peace Corps staff had the day off for the American Memorial day. Earlier this month they had another 3 day weekend for the Peruvian Labor day. I feel very claustrophobic sometimes, not being allowed to leave my site. My favorite past time in the states was taking off on a weekend for a sporadic road trip. Because my parents are coming in June and I am going home in August for two weeks, I have had to save all of my vacation days for these two trips. We also weren´t given any vacation days during training, so it will have been a full year since I have been able to relax and put my feet up. I´d say after everything I´ve been through these past 12 months, I deserve a vacation.
Things have become very mundane at site. I`ve been working very hard, which makes me happy, but also makes me want a break even more. I feel I am looking forward to seeing my parents far more than any 24 year old should. It´s almost romantic how I count down the days and try to contain myself every time I turn a page on the calender.
While I feel very comfortable and even apprecite the down time I have, I spend so much time in my bed reading or at the computer writing friends and blog entries. I´m running a lot getting ready for the marathon and I patiently deal with all the kids on a daily basis. I am so ready for a little excitement, for a change of scenery. With Lima`s weather is changing to endless gray, it is stoking the flame within me to head for the hills, literally. I am very excited to finally be going to Cuzco and Machu Picchu. What I like about my winter plans, is that once my first adventure ends, it´s not long until the next one starts. I am trying to be patient for the first one to start, but after all the patience I have had to muster in my first year in Peru, I don´t know if I can stand it any longer.
Thursday, May 22, 2008
A Few Faus Pax
I feel as thought I have been ragging on Peru a lot in my recent blogs. It's easy to gripe about the negative things in any culture. So this time I'm gonna give Peru and it's citizens a break and pick some one my own size. Specifically, me. I've almost completed a year here and I find myself still committing the same cultural errors on a regular basis. Sometimes they are by mistake and sometimes the stubborn american in me just doesn't feel like doing it 'there way'. There are two things in particular that I habitually screw up. Both of which are aspects of the culture I find beautiful, sweet and sometimes very annoying.
The first is the way Peruvians greet and say goodbye to each other. It is considered impolite not to greet every single person individually when you walk into a room. Likewise when saying goodbye when leaving. Both hello and goodbye mandate a kiss on the cheek and a few kind words. I find this practice lovely, except when there are 30 people in the room. I often pull an American move by walking into a crowded room by waving and saying "hey guys" and thinking that is more than appropriate. But in the eyes of Peruvians, it makes me the rude American. I must say it is a lot less annoying than having to give the Spanish double kiss to everyone. Manners are in the eye of the beholder. It is considered less rude not to greet every one formally than it is to arrive late. That means, in the middle of a meeting when some on arrives late, instead of quietly slipping in and briefly apologize for their tardiness, they have to interrupt even more by going around the table and kissing and saying hello to every one.
I really love the kiss hello but sometimes I just forget. Peruvians are so formal and it makes me feel like I was brought up in a barn. Another beautiful cultural norm I am prone to f***ing up, is sharing. In states, I often received Outstandings in the "shares well with others" category. I had no problem sharing my blocks or jump rope. Although some might argue I'm not very good at sharing a blanket, few would consider me to be a possessive or greedy person. But in comparison to the selfless peruvians who give even when there is nothing to give, I feel like the stereo typical American who hoards all her stuff for herself.
For example, if you are eating something, anything, Peruvian norms stipulate that you invite every person in the room to whatever it is you are eating. If you have a small 4 pack of cookies and there are 8 people in the room, than you offer and split up the cookies accordingly. To me, cookies are a prized possession. If I have 4 cookies in a room with 8 people, the idea of offering some to everyone and only getting to eat half a cookie in the end, is frightening. I am always so surprised to see young girls and boys selflessly offer there special snacks to others. It makes my heart smile and simultaneously makes me feel really guilty seeing I just down the entirety of my special snake without so much as thinking about any one else.
On any given day I am likely to screw up at least one of these cultural norms. Sometimes I wonder if I am just a huge burden on my host family and all my peruvian friends. After many many months at the beginning of my service, I got so tired of always trying to the right thing. It is really exhausting trying not to offend any one with language or cultural slip up. So much so, that I've let my manners slip. Perhaps I will set aside some time to try and make some of these things habits. When my parents come I know I will loose all sense of trying to fit in with my surroundings and relax and just be foreign tourist. When my parents leave I may try and channel my inner potato once again and try to be the best Peruvian I can.
The first is the way Peruvians greet and say goodbye to each other. It is considered impolite not to greet every single person individually when you walk into a room. Likewise when saying goodbye when leaving. Both hello and goodbye mandate a kiss on the cheek and a few kind words. I find this practice lovely, except when there are 30 people in the room. I often pull an American move by walking into a crowded room by waving and saying "hey guys" and thinking that is more than appropriate. But in the eyes of Peruvians, it makes me the rude American. I must say it is a lot less annoying than having to give the Spanish double kiss to everyone. Manners are in the eye of the beholder. It is considered less rude not to greet every one formally than it is to arrive late. That means, in the middle of a meeting when some on arrives late, instead of quietly slipping in and briefly apologize for their tardiness, they have to interrupt even more by going around the table and kissing and saying hello to every one.
I really love the kiss hello but sometimes I just forget. Peruvians are so formal and it makes me feel like I was brought up in a barn. Another beautiful cultural norm I am prone to f***ing up, is sharing. In states, I often received Outstandings in the "shares well with others" category. I had no problem sharing my blocks or jump rope. Although some might argue I'm not very good at sharing a blanket, few would consider me to be a possessive or greedy person. But in comparison to the selfless peruvians who give even when there is nothing to give, I feel like the stereo typical American who hoards all her stuff for herself.
For example, if you are eating something, anything, Peruvian norms stipulate that you invite every person in the room to whatever it is you are eating. If you have a small 4 pack of cookies and there are 8 people in the room, than you offer and split up the cookies accordingly. To me, cookies are a prized possession. If I have 4 cookies in a room with 8 people, the idea of offering some to everyone and only getting to eat half a cookie in the end, is frightening. I am always so surprised to see young girls and boys selflessly offer there special snacks to others. It makes my heart smile and simultaneously makes me feel really guilty seeing I just down the entirety of my special snake without so much as thinking about any one else.
On any given day I am likely to screw up at least one of these cultural norms. Sometimes I wonder if I am just a huge burden on my host family and all my peruvian friends. After many many months at the beginning of my service, I got so tired of always trying to the right thing. It is really exhausting trying not to offend any one with language or cultural slip up. So much so, that I've let my manners slip. Perhaps I will set aside some time to try and make some of these things habits. When my parents come I know I will loose all sense of trying to fit in with my surroundings and relax and just be foreign tourist. When my parents leave I may try and channel my inner potato once again and try to be the best Peruvian I can.
Sunday, May 18, 2008
A letter to Peru 11
Dear Peru 11,
It is nearly 2 weeks till you are scheduled to pack your bags and embark on a 27 month Journey. You are feeling nervous and excited and you feel so in the dark about knowing what to expect that you don’t know if you should be scared for your life or saying good riddance USA. I know the feeling. The one thing I would have liked more than anything, would have been for somebody to sit me down and tell me what to expect. So I offer a few words of things I wish some one had told me before I started my Peace Corps Journey.
First off, don’t worry about being ready. Emotionally, mentally and all the stuff you packed in your suitcase will have to suffice regardless. The Peace Corps knows this and has done a really good job of helping you make the transition to readiness. It starts of course with staging. Saying goodbye to all your friends, family and home is hard. But I cannot tell you how wonderful it is you don’t have to go through all that emotion and step off a plane into an unknown land. You will say your goodbyes and travel instead to a big US city and get put up in a nice hotel. Then you meet your group. Its amazing to be around 30+ individuals who are going through exactly what you are going through. When I tried to imagine my Peace Corps life, I never imagined other Americans or Volunteers much, if any, role. I imagined being alone and only having Peruvians as a support network. It makes a world of a difference boarding a plane and traveling to Peru with a group of volunteers as opposed to going alone. These 30 strangers I met almost a year ago in Philadelphia are now my family.
The next step on the Peace Corps road to readiness is training. Arriving in Peru is not like ripping the Band-Aid off. You are eased into cultural assimilation. The staff tries to make this transition as easy as possible. If you are worried about your Spanish or lack of experience with youth or business, you will be given the tools you need over the 3 month training period to get you ready for the real show. Living with a host family may seem like an unbearable idea if you have been living on your own for years, but the families in training have already hosted 2 volunteers and will be broken in. I unfortunately was with the group who had entirely new families and had a really overbearing host mother who told me I wasn’t allowed to go out at night to see my friends. By now, she is used to the idea that young Americans females are self-sufficient and independent. But again, if you have a million questions about host families don’t worry. The last thing you do before meeting your host family is have a 2 hour panel discussion with current volunteers and you can ask every question you can think of. June 8, I will be one of the volunteers sitting on the panel. You can ask me personally.
I was amazed at how easy life was. I was really expecting to live the worst conditions possible. Things are definitely different from what you‘re used to, but modern enough it won’t be too hard of a transition. This, plus getting to spend everyday with some of the coolest people ever (Peru 9 I my case, Peru 11 in yours), made training one of the most fun times of my life. Training can make you feel like a child back in elementary school. Just try and harness the care-free novice inside you, sit back and enjoy the ride. It’s a whirlwind tour.
Also, don’t worry too much about having everything before you leave, especially not first aid or medications. You get absolutely everything you could need, even some stuff you don’t need. Through out your Peace Corps Service you will receive all pills, ointments and even condoms for free. You will have two of the greatest doctors at your beck and call. Getting sick is real concern. You will get sick. Some worse than others, but you will have the best health care you have ever and will ever have in your life. As far as making sure you have other essentials, don’t feel too overwhelmed. You can buy just about everything you need to here. The only really problem I’ve had is shoes. I wear a woman’s size 10 and that is next to impossible to find here. Also, before you come to Peru there is a lot of literature telling you how nice Peruvians dress and you should bring nice clothes. Peruvians wear jeans and tee-shirts (at least on the coast). I got tricked into bringing my actual nice clothes and wish I had a lot more “peace corps-like”-grubby clothes. Your clothes will most likely be destroyed after 2 years of hard living conditions and the washing style.
Lastly I want to say that nothing anybody can say can make the nervousness or the anxiety go away. Just remember that no matter what happens from the moment you say your farewells, you are a part of the Peace Corps family. And in that, I hope you find solace. You joined Peace Corps because you believed that it’s been working for positive change for 50 years, so they’ve got to be doing something right. Your in good hands, welcome to the family.
It is nearly 2 weeks till you are scheduled to pack your bags and embark on a 27 month Journey. You are feeling nervous and excited and you feel so in the dark about knowing what to expect that you don’t know if you should be scared for your life or saying good riddance USA. I know the feeling. The one thing I would have liked more than anything, would have been for somebody to sit me down and tell me what to expect. So I offer a few words of things I wish some one had told me before I started my Peace Corps Journey.
First off, don’t worry about being ready. Emotionally, mentally and all the stuff you packed in your suitcase will have to suffice regardless. The Peace Corps knows this and has done a really good job of helping you make the transition to readiness. It starts of course with staging. Saying goodbye to all your friends, family and home is hard. But I cannot tell you how wonderful it is you don’t have to go through all that emotion and step off a plane into an unknown land. You will say your goodbyes and travel instead to a big US city and get put up in a nice hotel. Then you meet your group. Its amazing to be around 30+ individuals who are going through exactly what you are going through. When I tried to imagine my Peace Corps life, I never imagined other Americans or Volunteers much, if any, role. I imagined being alone and only having Peruvians as a support network. It makes a world of a difference boarding a plane and traveling to Peru with a group of volunteers as opposed to going alone. These 30 strangers I met almost a year ago in Philadelphia are now my family.
The next step on the Peace Corps road to readiness is training. Arriving in Peru is not like ripping the Band-Aid off. You are eased into cultural assimilation. The staff tries to make this transition as easy as possible. If you are worried about your Spanish or lack of experience with youth or business, you will be given the tools you need over the 3 month training period to get you ready for the real show. Living with a host family may seem like an unbearable idea if you have been living on your own for years, but the families in training have already hosted 2 volunteers and will be broken in. I unfortunately was with the group who had entirely new families and had a really overbearing host mother who told me I wasn’t allowed to go out at night to see my friends. By now, she is used to the idea that young Americans females are self-sufficient and independent. But again, if you have a million questions about host families don’t worry. The last thing you do before meeting your host family is have a 2 hour panel discussion with current volunteers and you can ask every question you can think of. June 8, I will be one of the volunteers sitting on the panel. You can ask me personally.
I was amazed at how easy life was. I was really expecting to live the worst conditions possible. Things are definitely different from what you‘re used to, but modern enough it won’t be too hard of a transition. This, plus getting to spend everyday with some of the coolest people ever (Peru 9 I my case, Peru 11 in yours), made training one of the most fun times of my life. Training can make you feel like a child back in elementary school. Just try and harness the care-free novice inside you, sit back and enjoy the ride. It’s a whirlwind tour.
Also, don’t worry too much about having everything before you leave, especially not first aid or medications. You get absolutely everything you could need, even some stuff you don’t need. Through out your Peace Corps Service you will receive all pills, ointments and even condoms for free. You will have two of the greatest doctors at your beck and call. Getting sick is real concern. You will get sick. Some worse than others, but you will have the best health care you have ever and will ever have in your life. As far as making sure you have other essentials, don’t feel too overwhelmed. You can buy just about everything you need to here. The only really problem I’ve had is shoes. I wear a woman’s size 10 and that is next to impossible to find here. Also, before you come to Peru there is a lot of literature telling you how nice Peruvians dress and you should bring nice clothes. Peruvians wear jeans and tee-shirts (at least on the coast). I got tricked into bringing my actual nice clothes and wish I had a lot more “peace corps-like”-grubby clothes. Your clothes will most likely be destroyed after 2 years of hard living conditions and the washing style.
Lastly I want to say that nothing anybody can say can make the nervousness or the anxiety go away. Just remember that no matter what happens from the moment you say your farewells, you are a part of the Peace Corps family. And in that, I hope you find solace. You joined Peace Corps because you believed that it’s been working for positive change for 50 years, so they’ve got to be doing something right. Your in good hands, welcome to the family.
Friday, May 16, 2008
Soy Inteligente
I’ve always surrounded myself with really smart people. As if all their intelligence would rub off on me somehow. Last night I was sitting around with my Lima friends while one of them played Scrabulous with her father back home and the topic of words and the English language came up. My friend playing scrabble online admitted that she had received an 800 on her verbal SAT. This is an amazing feat for most people, but my friend is not a native English speaker and therefore an 800 on her verbal just reconfirmed what I already knew. She is brilliant. I then turned to my other friend and demanded to know her SAT score. She refused at first but finally confessed that she got a 1560 overall. This is not so surprising to me. When I say I hang out with smart people, I mean it.
Maybe I’m a freak, but one of the most attractive things to me in a guy, is intelligence. I think this is another big reason I am not, on the whole, attracted to Peruvians. I am not saying that Peruvians are not intelligent. Far from it. For one thing, where I live the vast majority of people in town do not have a college education. Again, I don’t believe one has to have a college education to be intelligent, but hear me out. The overwhelming majority of Peruvian men I have met, have no idea what’s going on in the world. They probably can’t even pick out Russia on a map. There are different kinds of intelligence. I guess I’m attracted to a specific kind of intelligence though and that kind of intelligence isn’t culturally all that important where I live. A Peruvian man trying to woo me will likely whistle and say “hello baby” as I walk by instead of asking me what I think about the recent US-Peruvian free trade agreement.
This week is a huge international summit in Lima. Heads of states from Europe, Asia and Latin America have taken over the city. A four day holiday was declared and streets and businesses are shut down all over . The Peruvians in my community are thrilled they have four days off of work. But when I tried to talk to them about the economic polices these diplomats will hammering out, they looked at me like I had lobsters crawling out of my ears. I had to go out to dinner with my Lima friends to get my intellectual stimulation on. One of my friends got in to Lima two days ago and was seated next to a diplomat from St. Tropez and told us all about the amazing conversation she had with him
I like having friends that are smarter and better educated than me. I don’t claim to be the brightest crayon in the box and therefore really take advantage of the brain power that’s around me. I like to have things explained to me and I like to have my opinions and thoughts challenged in an academic way.
I look at this as a positive not a negative thing at site. While there are a few people who challenge me in my community, mainly the psychologists at the home where I work, for the more part I am the one who is enlightening others. That’s my job in a way. I challenge the people I live with to think about things in a way they never have. This comes mostly in the form of breaking down stereotypes. One of my favorite things to do is to take out a map or a globe with the kids and just start taking. I’ll quiz them on geography and the questions just start coming. We talk about things like plate tectonics, which they have never heard of even though there are 5 earthquakes a year in Peru. We talk about what kind of food grows in which regions. I explain to them other religions besides Catholicism and which areas of the world pertain to which religion. We talk about our dreams and our fantasies of where we want to go and what we want to do.
I make it a point to be the friend that all my Ivy league, 1600 SAT friends are to me. I try to stimulate them and make intelligent discussion fun. Regardless of the topic, whenever I am talking with kids they always end my explanations with “But, Peru is still the best , right?”.
Maybe I’m a freak, but one of the most attractive things to me in a guy, is intelligence. I think this is another big reason I am not, on the whole, attracted to Peruvians. I am not saying that Peruvians are not intelligent. Far from it. For one thing, where I live the vast majority of people in town do not have a college education. Again, I don’t believe one has to have a college education to be intelligent, but hear me out. The overwhelming majority of Peruvian men I have met, have no idea what’s going on in the world. They probably can’t even pick out Russia on a map. There are different kinds of intelligence. I guess I’m attracted to a specific kind of intelligence though and that kind of intelligence isn’t culturally all that important where I live. A Peruvian man trying to woo me will likely whistle and say “hello baby” as I walk by instead of asking me what I think about the recent US-Peruvian free trade agreement.
This week is a huge international summit in Lima. Heads of states from Europe, Asia and Latin America have taken over the city. A four day holiday was declared and streets and businesses are shut down all over . The Peruvians in my community are thrilled they have four days off of work. But when I tried to talk to them about the economic polices these diplomats will hammering out, they looked at me like I had lobsters crawling out of my ears. I had to go out to dinner with my Lima friends to get my intellectual stimulation on. One of my friends got in to Lima two days ago and was seated next to a diplomat from St. Tropez and told us all about the amazing conversation she had with him
I like having friends that are smarter and better educated than me. I don’t claim to be the brightest crayon in the box and therefore really take advantage of the brain power that’s around me. I like to have things explained to me and I like to have my opinions and thoughts challenged in an academic way.
I look at this as a positive not a negative thing at site. While there are a few people who challenge me in my community, mainly the psychologists at the home where I work, for the more part I am the one who is enlightening others. That’s my job in a way. I challenge the people I live with to think about things in a way they never have. This comes mostly in the form of breaking down stereotypes. One of my favorite things to do is to take out a map or a globe with the kids and just start taking. I’ll quiz them on geography and the questions just start coming. We talk about things like plate tectonics, which they have never heard of even though there are 5 earthquakes a year in Peru. We talk about what kind of food grows in which regions. I explain to them other religions besides Catholicism and which areas of the world pertain to which religion. We talk about our dreams and our fantasies of where we want to go and what we want to do.
I make it a point to be the friend that all my Ivy league, 1600 SAT friends are to me. I try to stimulate them and make intelligent discussion fun. Regardless of the topic, whenever I am talking with kids they always end my explanations with “But, Peru is still the best , right?”.
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
Getting Around in L-Town
Taking taxis in Peru, as opposed to other more developed countries, can be an interesting and an infuriating experience. It all depends on a few factors. This entry will not only allow me to gripe about the system and it's drivers, but serve as a helpful heads up to any one who is planning a visit to Lima.
The second week of training we took a field trip to the heart of Lima where are language instructors gave us the tools we needed to survive when trying to get around the city. The first lesson we learned was how to take a taxi. I though it strange at first that any well traveled adult such as myself had to learn how to take a taxi. I quickly realized the importance of knowing how to handle the situation. For any one coming to Lima, here are the essentials you need to know about taking taxis.
1. Taxi's do not have meters and there are no set prices.
2. You have to Bargain the price with the driver before you get in the taxi. If you do not know any spanish, you are in big trouble.
3. Taxi drivers will look at you and know immediately you are foreign and offer you double what you should be paying. Do not be afraid to bargain or refuse a driver who is charging too much.
4. Ask Peruvians on the street how much they would pay to take a taxi to Point A. Again, if you don't know spanish, you are in trouble.
5. Be prepared to have directions to the place you are going. Even if it is a well known destination, Taxi drivers never know where anything is. Despite the fact it is there job to know, they will still get mad at you if you, the foreigner, don't know where you are going.
6. Only get into a yellow or white taxi. Make sure the taxi has numbers painted on the outside. Lima is a dangerous city and it is not uncommon for a taxi driver to take you some where and rob you.
7. Always lock your door when you get into a taxi. If you have a backpack or bag, do not keep it on your lap but down between your legs. People will run by the car, especially if the window is rolled down, and grab whatever is on your lap.
8. If you are traveling with your luggage or other expensive items you don't want to risk loosing, don't take a taxi off the street. Ask the hotel you are staying in to call you a cab. These cabs do have a non-negotiable fee that is much higher than a taxi you would hail on the street. Luckily if you are a foreigner, the price may still seem cheap to you.
9. Since you bargain for your price at the beginning, you don't need to tip them. They are trying their hardest to rip you off, and it can be so infuriating the last thing you want to do is give them a few extra soles for their trouble
10. If you are unaccustomed to transportation in foreign countries, just remember to relax. All drivers will appear ruthless and disregard all common sense and politeness on the road. It is every man for himself and that is just the way things are. Accept it and try and try not to let it you drive you crazy.
11. Traffic rules are more like guidelines than laws. You will see people driving on shoulders and sidewalk, people making right hand turns from the left lane and people going the wrong way on one way streets.
12. The pedestrian NEVER has the right of way. Be careful when crossing the street.
13. In Peru, you don't hail taxis, they hail you. Especially if you are exiting a touristy area, there will be a slew of men bombarding you for their service. If you are simply walking down the street, taxis will honk as they come up behind you letting you know they are there. Often times they will pull up beside you and creep along with you as you walk saying "Taxi? taxi? taxi?". Even if you completely ignore them, will ask repeatedly until you finally say no.
Taking taxis in Lima can be very daunting for a traveler, especially if you they speak no Spanish. Honestly, I have no idea how people that don't speak a word get around. I know many tourists get suckered into paying extravagant sums. The silver lining is that taxis are incredibly cheap compared to the US and Europe. This is why foreign travelers are willing to pay what seems like so much to locals. A five mile taxi ride should only cost 1-2 USD. A 20 minute taxi ride should never cost more than $10.
The fact that taxi drivers never know where they are going makes me very angry. They drive around the city for a living. While the city is big, it is not THAT big. In my experience in taking taxis in large US and European cities, the drivers always knew even the most obscure locations. On occasion they would need the actual address. But in Peru, if you hand the driver a piece of paper with an address, you better have directions to go along with it.
Drivers always trying to rip me off because I look like I shouldn't know any better, is maddening. But what really infuriates me is the manner in which taxis peruse you trying to get your business. It makes sense to me, that if you are looking for a taxi you face on-coming traffic and hail them as they pass. I cannot understand why, if I am walking on the sidewalk with my back to on-coming traffic, that a driver would think I wanted a cab. As if all the honking and screaming he's doing is suddenly going to make me want to jump in and give him my money. But my favorite is when I come into Lima to do my marathon training. In my running attire, it is clearly obvious I am running for sport or leisure. But taxis still creep up beside me, stick there little finger in the air and say "taxi? taxi? taxi?". I am freaking running! Like I'm all of the sudden going to change my mind and hop in a cab.
I hope this information was useful to those planning or thinking about a trip to Peru. And for those who are not, I hope it was enlightening at least.
The second week of training we took a field trip to the heart of Lima where are language instructors gave us the tools we needed to survive when trying to get around the city. The first lesson we learned was how to take a taxi. I though it strange at first that any well traveled adult such as myself had to learn how to take a taxi. I quickly realized the importance of knowing how to handle the situation. For any one coming to Lima, here are the essentials you need to know about taking taxis.
1. Taxi's do not have meters and there are no set prices.
2. You have to Bargain the price with the driver before you get in the taxi. If you do not know any spanish, you are in big trouble.
3. Taxi drivers will look at you and know immediately you are foreign and offer you double what you should be paying. Do not be afraid to bargain or refuse a driver who is charging too much.
4. Ask Peruvians on the street how much they would pay to take a taxi to Point A. Again, if you don't know spanish, you are in trouble.
5. Be prepared to have directions to the place you are going. Even if it is a well known destination, Taxi drivers never know where anything is. Despite the fact it is there job to know, they will still get mad at you if you, the foreigner, don't know where you are going.
6. Only get into a yellow or white taxi. Make sure the taxi has numbers painted on the outside. Lima is a dangerous city and it is not uncommon for a taxi driver to take you some where and rob you.
7. Always lock your door when you get into a taxi. If you have a backpack or bag, do not keep it on your lap but down between your legs. People will run by the car, especially if the window is rolled down, and grab whatever is on your lap.
8. If you are traveling with your luggage or other expensive items you don't want to risk loosing, don't take a taxi off the street. Ask the hotel you are staying in to call you a cab. These cabs do have a non-negotiable fee that is much higher than a taxi you would hail on the street. Luckily if you are a foreigner, the price may still seem cheap to you.
9. Since you bargain for your price at the beginning, you don't need to tip them. They are trying their hardest to rip you off, and it can be so infuriating the last thing you want to do is give them a few extra soles for their trouble
10. If you are unaccustomed to transportation in foreign countries, just remember to relax. All drivers will appear ruthless and disregard all common sense and politeness on the road. It is every man for himself and that is just the way things are. Accept it and try and try not to let it you drive you crazy.
11. Traffic rules are more like guidelines than laws. You will see people driving on shoulders and sidewalk, people making right hand turns from the left lane and people going the wrong way on one way streets.
12. The pedestrian NEVER has the right of way. Be careful when crossing the street.
13. In Peru, you don't hail taxis, they hail you. Especially if you are exiting a touristy area, there will be a slew of men bombarding you for their service. If you are simply walking down the street, taxis will honk as they come up behind you letting you know they are there. Often times they will pull up beside you and creep along with you as you walk saying "Taxi? taxi? taxi?". Even if you completely ignore them, will ask repeatedly until you finally say no.
Taking taxis in Lima can be very daunting for a traveler, especially if you they speak no Spanish. Honestly, I have no idea how people that don't speak a word get around. I know many tourists get suckered into paying extravagant sums. The silver lining is that taxis are incredibly cheap compared to the US and Europe. This is why foreign travelers are willing to pay what seems like so much to locals. A five mile taxi ride should only cost 1-2 USD. A 20 minute taxi ride should never cost more than $10.
The fact that taxi drivers never know where they are going makes me very angry. They drive around the city for a living. While the city is big, it is not THAT big. In my experience in taking taxis in large US and European cities, the drivers always knew even the most obscure locations. On occasion they would need the actual address. But in Peru, if you hand the driver a piece of paper with an address, you better have directions to go along with it.
Drivers always trying to rip me off because I look like I shouldn't know any better, is maddening. But what really infuriates me is the manner in which taxis peruse you trying to get your business. It makes sense to me, that if you are looking for a taxi you face on-coming traffic and hail them as they pass. I cannot understand why, if I am walking on the sidewalk with my back to on-coming traffic, that a driver would think I wanted a cab. As if all the honking and screaming he's doing is suddenly going to make me want to jump in and give him my money. But my favorite is when I come into Lima to do my marathon training. In my running attire, it is clearly obvious I am running for sport or leisure. But taxis still creep up beside me, stick there little finger in the air and say "taxi? taxi? taxi?". I am freaking running! Like I'm all of the sudden going to change my mind and hop in a cab.
I hope this information was useful to those planning or thinking about a trip to Peru. And for those who are not, I hope it was enlightening at least.
Sunday, May 11, 2008
A New Addition to the Family
My host mother is a 69 year old woman with diabetes and is the primary care giver for her grown children and grand children. She cooks all the meals every day for every member in her family, even those who no longer live in the house. She alone is responsible for maintaining a spotless house and doing all the laundry by hand for every one. It is an around the clock job that is very physically demanding and she is starting to get to the age where she needs some help. Instead of the husband or the live in sons lending a hand, my host mom has been talking about getting some hired help. The only problem she claims, is that it's hard to find good help these days. Meaning, you have to know and trust a person before you let them into your house. The past two helpers my host mom has had, allegedly stole. So she is constantly on the look out for a woman to help relieve some of the burden of cooking and cleaning.
One morning at the beginning of this week, I went down stairs for breakfast and there was a young lady standing in the kitchen. There are always friends and random family members in the house so I wasn't surprised. But as I was sitting at the kitchen table eating my breakfast of bread and avocado, I realized my host mom was explaining the preparation step by step. It became apparent that my host mom was training this girl to help around the house. I studied her face hard trying to get a guestimate on her age. She looked young and I was praying that she be at least 16 (16 is the age they graduate high school).
I struck up a conversation with her and asked how old she was. She was 12. I got a knot in the bottom of my stomach. Child labor is still very common in Peru and is something I am very opposed to. I did not know if I could live in a house that had a 12 year old scrubbing the bathroom and making my lunch. As we continued to talk, I learned that she had moved with her family from Ayacucho (a poor province up in the Andes) to Lurin two years ago. But because there were so many children in the family and her older sister was pregnant and the dad had left to find work, this girl was being neglected. An arrangement had been made that she, Sara, would move into our house and be fed and cared for in exchange for work.
I spent the rest of the day thinking about my values and if this situation was crossing one of my moral lines. In one aspect, our family was being kind and taking in a needy girl in the family, which is a beautiful act of kindness. But to what degree was she going to be made to work? Was she attending school and how much of a priority would her school work be?
The next morning I went into the bathroom to brush my teeth and Sara was cleaning the shower. I was really hating the situation. I worked all day that day and was tutoring until 10 at night. When I came home finally, my 34 year host brother was sitting at the table helping her with her homework. It was a bit of a relief to see the family supporting her school work. I ended up getting in on the study group as we attempted to tackle one of those ridiculous and impossibly hard junior high school assignments. We had to find words that ended with different letter combinations and I challenge any of you to find 5 Spanish words that end in B-L-U.
My host mom has also really embraced Sara. She loves having some one to talk with and adore her. It's also very surprising how happy Sara seems. She is a very sweet girl who always smiles and didn't need any transition time. She likes that I live there and that she is not the odd one out in the family. She is really beloved by all after just one week and I have dealt with the idea of her working around the house. In my old host family, there was 12 year old and a 15 year old. Both the girls helped around the house, cooking and cleaning. It's only natural to help out with chores. As long as she is not treated poorly and her studies stay a priority, I view this as a win win situation
One morning at the beginning of this week, I went down stairs for breakfast and there was a young lady standing in the kitchen. There are always friends and random family members in the house so I wasn't surprised. But as I was sitting at the kitchen table eating my breakfast of bread and avocado, I realized my host mom was explaining the preparation step by step. It became apparent that my host mom was training this girl to help around the house. I studied her face hard trying to get a guestimate on her age. She looked young and I was praying that she be at least 16 (16 is the age they graduate high school).
I struck up a conversation with her and asked how old she was. She was 12. I got a knot in the bottom of my stomach. Child labor is still very common in Peru and is something I am very opposed to. I did not know if I could live in a house that had a 12 year old scrubbing the bathroom and making my lunch. As we continued to talk, I learned that she had moved with her family from Ayacucho (a poor province up in the Andes) to Lurin two years ago. But because there were so many children in the family and her older sister was pregnant and the dad had left to find work, this girl was being neglected. An arrangement had been made that she, Sara, would move into our house and be fed and cared for in exchange for work.
I spent the rest of the day thinking about my values and if this situation was crossing one of my moral lines. In one aspect, our family was being kind and taking in a needy girl in the family, which is a beautiful act of kindness. But to what degree was she going to be made to work? Was she attending school and how much of a priority would her school work be?
The next morning I went into the bathroom to brush my teeth and Sara was cleaning the shower. I was really hating the situation. I worked all day that day and was tutoring until 10 at night. When I came home finally, my 34 year host brother was sitting at the table helping her with her homework. It was a bit of a relief to see the family supporting her school work. I ended up getting in on the study group as we attempted to tackle one of those ridiculous and impossibly hard junior high school assignments. We had to find words that ended with different letter combinations and I challenge any of you to find 5 Spanish words that end in B-L-U.
My host mom has also really embraced Sara. She loves having some one to talk with and adore her. It's also very surprising how happy Sara seems. She is a very sweet girl who always smiles and didn't need any transition time. She likes that I live there and that she is not the odd one out in the family. She is really beloved by all after just one week and I have dealt with the idea of her working around the house. In my old host family, there was 12 year old and a 15 year old. Both the girls helped around the house, cooking and cleaning. It's only natural to help out with chores. As long as she is not treated poorly and her studies stay a priority, I view this as a win win situation
Friday, May 9, 2008
Embassy Games Pics
Since you are not allowed to take private cameras into the US embassy, these are the only pictures I have to post. This is a picture with a scattering of Peace Corps girls with the US Ambassodor and the woman in charge of the Embassy games. This is not the volleyball team mind you, we are excepting the award for girls soccer.
This is the Peace Volley ball team +some of our cheering crowd proudly posing with all our trophies we won in the tournament. You can see even the kid has on his Peace Corps shirt. I can't wait till next year!Tuesday, May 6, 2008
With Every Season, Turn, Turn, Turn
I was beginning to feel like Peruvian Autumn was really more like spring time in California. In April, we had cool mornings and evenings along with sunny, warm days. Because of Peru’s close location to the equator, we don’t experience seasonal changes like those in the US. For starters, the length of day never changes, not noticeably anyway. Whether it’s July or January, it will be dark by 6:30, give or take 10 minutes. Its tropical climate also doesn’t cause a dramatic change in the foods that are eaten. Unlike the states, seasonal foods such as asparagus, squashes and oranges, are available year round and are always fresh and locally grown.
Walking into the produce department of any supermarket in the US, it might not even occur to a person which foods are in and out of season. What this person might not realize is that the grapes she is buying in December are from the southern hemisphere. Americans are used to getting anything they want, whenever they want it. Bananas, for example, are a year round staple for many Americans. A month without bananas is unfathomable to some. But bananas do not grow anywhere on the continental US and must be shipped in.
Peru has a very different food mentality. You eat what is local and when it is in season. Luckily for us, because of its diverse climates, Peru offers an amazing assortment of local produce year round. I consider myself quite lucky for getting posted in a Peace Corps country with this kind of variety. Many PCV`s world wide are not as fortunate. The average Peruvian doesn’t have the money to buy food that is imported from all around the world and out of season. There are some things they don’t grow in Peru and therefore miss out on. Berries would be one of the biggest things I miss. But as I’ve mentioned before, the list of fruit you can get in Peru that you can’t get in the US, trumps the reverse. And at least bananas are always, ALWAYS in season, and local. I walk past banana trees on my way to work everyday. In fact, I walk past banana trees, potatoes and broccoli, all growing side by side. This country is really unique in some aspects.
I was really starting to get used to this timeless, seasonless place where there are always fresh to greens and amazing tomatoes, as if it were always summer. Then yesterday morning I woke up and came face to face with reality. In Peru, there aren’t really 4 seasons so much as 2. In the mountains, they have rainy season and dry season. In Lima, they have the sunny season.....and the gray. Coincidentally, the mountain and the desert seasons are inversed. While the facebook status messages from all the people living in the mountains are praising the end of the rainy season and the on set of beautiful weather, I am cursing the cloudy heavens "it’s not time, I’m not ready. Please, just one more month!!!!". But alas, instead of the gradual change of seasons inching in and out, I went to bed on a summery sunday night and woke up to winter.
This may seem like an over-dramatization, but as I was recounting my disbelief of the overnight seasonal change to a PCV in northern Peru, she said that the exact same thing happened to her on the same sunday night. I look back at my first three months when I arrived at site and remember them being cold, dark and lonely, and I’m not even talking about the weather. The Lima gray just reflected the way I felt inside. Maybe it’s just a coincidence that my spirits and life all seemed to improve with the weather. I cannot believe the clouds have come back so quickly. By my count, we only had 4 months of sun. Looking ahead to 8 months of gray skies, especially with what I associate them with, gives me an unsettled feeling.
But at the same time, I cannot stop aching for the coldest months to arrive. Very cunningly, I planned my biggest escapes and best vacations for the dead of winter. The unsettled feeling that pours over me is quickly washed away when I think that in just one months time, my parents will arrive and we’ll be off to Machu Picchu (up in the sierra where the weather is inversely sunny). Then in July I will go to the northern part of Peru to run my marathon, which I hope will be some where between cool and warm weather. At the end of July I have free vacation for the Peruvian Independence Day and escape from Lima yet again.
August is shaping up to be my most eventful month yet. Right after my independence day vacation, my friend Amanda will be coming to Lima for a few days with some med school friends before they hit up Machu Picchu. Then All of Peru 9 will be coming into Lima for our one year medical checks. After this week of having all my friends in town, I fly home to the states for 2 weeks.
My poor friends are receiving relentless emails about how excited I am and all the things I want to do with them when I get home. Thinking about California in August is the only way I can get a warm smile on my face after looking up at the gray sky here. So to all my friends who are being bombarded with a ton of over zealous emails, I’m sorry. But I beg that you humor me and all my warm weather fantasies. I’m sure as the departure date draws nearer, I’ll not only submit my friends through private emails to the trivial things I am obsessing about going home, and start annoying my blog readers with all the things I want to do in the very short 2 weeks I’ll be home.
Walking into the produce department of any supermarket in the US, it might not even occur to a person which foods are in and out of season. What this person might not realize is that the grapes she is buying in December are from the southern hemisphere. Americans are used to getting anything they want, whenever they want it. Bananas, for example, are a year round staple for many Americans. A month without bananas is unfathomable to some. But bananas do not grow anywhere on the continental US and must be shipped in.
Peru has a very different food mentality. You eat what is local and when it is in season. Luckily for us, because of its diverse climates, Peru offers an amazing assortment of local produce year round. I consider myself quite lucky for getting posted in a Peace Corps country with this kind of variety. Many PCV`s world wide are not as fortunate. The average Peruvian doesn’t have the money to buy food that is imported from all around the world and out of season. There are some things they don’t grow in Peru and therefore miss out on. Berries would be one of the biggest things I miss. But as I’ve mentioned before, the list of fruit you can get in Peru that you can’t get in the US, trumps the reverse. And at least bananas are always, ALWAYS in season, and local. I walk past banana trees on my way to work everyday. In fact, I walk past banana trees, potatoes and broccoli, all growing side by side. This country is really unique in some aspects.
I was really starting to get used to this timeless, seasonless place where there are always fresh to greens and amazing tomatoes, as if it were always summer. Then yesterday morning I woke up and came face to face with reality. In Peru, there aren’t really 4 seasons so much as 2. In the mountains, they have rainy season and dry season. In Lima, they have the sunny season.....and the gray. Coincidentally, the mountain and the desert seasons are inversed. While the facebook status messages from all the people living in the mountains are praising the end of the rainy season and the on set of beautiful weather, I am cursing the cloudy heavens "it’s not time, I’m not ready. Please, just one more month!!!!". But alas, instead of the gradual change of seasons inching in and out, I went to bed on a summery sunday night and woke up to winter.
This may seem like an over-dramatization, but as I was recounting my disbelief of the overnight seasonal change to a PCV in northern Peru, she said that the exact same thing happened to her on the same sunday night. I look back at my first three months when I arrived at site and remember them being cold, dark and lonely, and I’m not even talking about the weather. The Lima gray just reflected the way I felt inside. Maybe it’s just a coincidence that my spirits and life all seemed to improve with the weather. I cannot believe the clouds have come back so quickly. By my count, we only had 4 months of sun. Looking ahead to 8 months of gray skies, especially with what I associate them with, gives me an unsettled feeling.
But at the same time, I cannot stop aching for the coldest months to arrive. Very cunningly, I planned my biggest escapes and best vacations for the dead of winter. The unsettled feeling that pours over me is quickly washed away when I think that in just one months time, my parents will arrive and we’ll be off to Machu Picchu (up in the sierra where the weather is inversely sunny). Then in July I will go to the northern part of Peru to run my marathon, which I hope will be some where between cool and warm weather. At the end of July I have free vacation for the Peruvian Independence Day and escape from Lima yet again.
August is shaping up to be my most eventful month yet. Right after my independence day vacation, my friend Amanda will be coming to Lima for a few days with some med school friends before they hit up Machu Picchu. Then All of Peru 9 will be coming into Lima for our one year medical checks. After this week of having all my friends in town, I fly home to the states for 2 weeks.
My poor friends are receiving relentless emails about how excited I am and all the things I want to do with them when I get home. Thinking about California in August is the only way I can get a warm smile on my face after looking up at the gray sky here. So to all my friends who are being bombarded with a ton of over zealous emails, I’m sorry. But I beg that you humor me and all my warm weather fantasies. I’m sure as the departure date draws nearer, I’ll not only submit my friends through private emails to the trivial things I am obsessing about going home, and start annoying my blog readers with all the things I want to do in the very short 2 weeks I’ll be home.
Sunday, May 4, 2008
Old Habbits Die Hard
This weekend was another intense sporting weekend comparable to those of my teen years. Friday morning I ran 15 miles for my marathon training. Friday night I had volleyball practice followed by a volleyball tournament on Saturday. This sporting combination in one weekend was once considered lethal, at least to some of my coaches. When I was a freshman in high school, I chose a club volleyball tournament over a high school track meet and my track coach called me the morning of and told me if I didn't get to the meet, I was off the team. I can't remember if that was Mr. Jones of Mr. Miles who made me to collapse into tears that morning cause I knew I would never get to the meet on time. I was terrified I would be kicked off the team and still look back at that phone call as completely as unnecessary and inappropriate.
But the scare tactic worked as track ended up wining out on my event calendar for the next 8 years. It is nice to not have sports ruling my life anymore. In college every quarter, I had to schedule all of my classes around a three hour chunk of time in the afternoon for track practice. It killed my social life for indoor and outdoor season every year. There's a reason our conference track party was one of the most well known parties in the whole school. We worked so hard for so long that when it was finally over, we went absolutely nuts (and got absolutely naked to run a mile relay).
Somehow, now that I'm free after years of sport slavery, I have voluntarily gone back to sacrificing nights out on the town for early morning runs and tournaments. Last night I went to a potluck dinner and everybody left to go out dancing. There was no way after 15 miles and all that volleyball, were my legs gonna dance till dawn. So instead I came home and skyped a few friends. I didn't have my phone numbers with me, so I ended up just calling friends who have their phone numbers posted on facebook. It was a random sample of friends because of that, but I couldn’t have been happier than to have talked to these people.
We ended up loosing both our volleyball games on saturday. We got 4th place over all in the tournament, but Peace Corps took home more trophies than any other department. Our assistant country director got first place in Tennis. Two other male staff members got first and second in the chess tournament and we won the girls soccer tournament. The teams we played in volleyball yesterday were really good. We played well in all of our games and if we had been able to practice together more as a team, we would have been a lot better. Regardless of loosing, I still had an amazing time and everybody is already buzzing about next year. I brought along some of my Lima friends this time to join the cheering ranks. They were really impressed with the size an the intensity of the tournament. It's nice to offer my Lima friends something on wow-scale. It's usually the other way around. I come to Lima as a poor Peace Corps Volunteer and they take me to some fancy country club or event which blows me and my life at site out of the water. I never get to take them any place cool and really wow them.
But they had never been the US embassy before and thought the day was really cool. Every one on the Peace Corps staff wanted to know who my friends were and how I had met them. By the end of the day, Peace Corps had signed up my friends to give microfinance talks to the incoming business training group and sit on a panel discussion at the up coming Close of Service conference.
Now that I am an adult and don't have to let coaches who believe the sun and moon rise for high school sports (don't even get me started on high school football), I am able to enjoy sports for what they are. Recreation. There are nights before runs that I have to sacrifice going out, but in turn I get to take my social life to my sports. I really think my Lima friends will remember the day they went to the volleyball tournament at the US embassy in Peru more than they would any random night going out and dancing. I know I will.
But the scare tactic worked as track ended up wining out on my event calendar for the next 8 years. It is nice to not have sports ruling my life anymore. In college every quarter, I had to schedule all of my classes around a three hour chunk of time in the afternoon for track practice. It killed my social life for indoor and outdoor season every year. There's a reason our conference track party was one of the most well known parties in the whole school. We worked so hard for so long that when it was finally over, we went absolutely nuts (and got absolutely naked to run a mile relay).
Somehow, now that I'm free after years of sport slavery, I have voluntarily gone back to sacrificing nights out on the town for early morning runs and tournaments. Last night I went to a potluck dinner and everybody left to go out dancing. There was no way after 15 miles and all that volleyball, were my legs gonna dance till dawn. So instead I came home and skyped a few friends. I didn't have my phone numbers with me, so I ended up just calling friends who have their phone numbers posted on facebook. It was a random sample of friends because of that, but I couldn’t have been happier than to have talked to these people.
We ended up loosing both our volleyball games on saturday. We got 4th place over all in the tournament, but Peace Corps took home more trophies than any other department. Our assistant country director got first place in Tennis. Two other male staff members got first and second in the chess tournament and we won the girls soccer tournament. The teams we played in volleyball yesterday were really good. We played well in all of our games and if we had been able to practice together more as a team, we would have been a lot better. Regardless of loosing, I still had an amazing time and everybody is already buzzing about next year. I brought along some of my Lima friends this time to join the cheering ranks. They were really impressed with the size an the intensity of the tournament. It's nice to offer my Lima friends something on wow-scale. It's usually the other way around. I come to Lima as a poor Peace Corps Volunteer and they take me to some fancy country club or event which blows me and my life at site out of the water. I never get to take them any place cool and really wow them.
But they had never been the US embassy before and thought the day was really cool. Every one on the Peace Corps staff wanted to know who my friends were and how I had met them. By the end of the day, Peace Corps had signed up my friends to give microfinance talks to the incoming business training group and sit on a panel discussion at the up coming Close of Service conference.
Now that I am an adult and don't have to let coaches who believe the sun and moon rise for high school sports (don't even get me started on high school football), I am able to enjoy sports for what they are. Recreation. There are nights before runs that I have to sacrifice going out, but in turn I get to take my social life to my sports. I really think my Lima friends will remember the day they went to the volleyball tournament at the US embassy in Peru more than they would any random night going out and dancing. I know I will.
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