Water Park in Lima

This week marks my second full week in Peru as well as my first week of classes. While I am primarily in Peru for studying and learning Spanish, I also love the added fun of learning about Peru’s culture and visiting interesting sites in Peru. Yesterday we were able to walk through a lovely set of exhibits at the Circuito Magico del Agua, which is a large park with beautiful fountains, a lighted water show, and other artistic pieces.

Going back to the roots of this blog I wanted to infuse my blog today with a few more photos than normal just to show a little more of the artsy side of what I have been looking at. I hope you enjoy the added photos! Which photo do you enjoy the most from today’s blog?

When we first entered the waterpark there was a beautiful teacup fountain that was very appealing, but unfortunately for me the marvel of the image was tattered with my childhood fear of the movie Alice and Wonder Land. That being said, it was a pretty!

Further on in the park I really enjoyed the statue of Optimus Prime because not only was it a cool looking sculpture, but also in a way it was a transformer because it was made out of all recycled bricks.

This image is actually a close up of one of the fountains where I used an extended shutter and twisted the camera during the shot to get a curvy look to the photo.

As it started to get late at the park things went from beautiful to absolutely breathtaking. The added lights shining through the fountains and the new highlights on other exhibits really added a rich look to the artistry! The flowerpot and house was a flattering image that highlights the important use of angles when shooting photos. This particular photo would not have been near as pleasing to the eye if it weren’t for a view looking up from the path that followed along the house.

The final three pictures were a lovely example of the enhancement the lights had on the fountains. The fountains in this picture were part of a music and light show presentation with elaborate color schemes and dancing lights! I am hoping to put together a short video of the park so stay tuned for an update letting you know when that video is posted.

Overall the whole park provided for a very enjoyable Friday afternoon with my new friends from my ISA program and my many new Peruvian friends!

National Museum in Lima

Golden Octopus (I believe this is a God)

Llamas

I believe this is a musician

Makeshift weapons

Machete wound

Yesterday our ISA group went on an interesting cultural tour through the National Museum (Museo de la Nacion) of Lima, Peru. While I am not always super excited to see a bunch of ceramics and textiles, this museum presented a lot of history about the Peruvian culture, which I enjoyed very much. Overall the museum presented an in-depth depiction of the Peruvian lifestyles from the pre-Incan socialization up through modern Peru.

At the beginning of our tour we were able to see artifacts highlighting the types of weapons and culinary tools used by the Peruvian people during 2000 BC. It was pretty amazing to see the extreme detail in the designs that was used in the ceramics, my favorites I have posted above. The tour was in Spanish so I may not have understood all that was said but I do know that many of the ceramics were modeled after prominent figures in the Peruvian culture. The God’s have always been a large part of the ancient civilization and it was fascinating to see the intricate designs that they made out of gold. Other important figures included hunters, musicians, and animals like the llama.

Llamas in general have played a big role in Peru’s history because they have been used for transporting goods, making clothing, and many other things. Here I must digress a little bit…the day before I left for Peru I was out eating with friends at TGI Fridays and one of my friends, Kaitlyn, decided to show me a video about llamas and so I couldn’t help but include the link to the video. It is bizarre video and I don’t in any way condone the llama’s actions but I told her I would mention it at some point on my trip. Now I just need to find live llamas that I can try to put hats on for a quick picture. Check out the video here, be aware that Carl is a malicious llama and I suggest not trying any stunts Carl does.

For me the most fascinating exhibit had to be the one on the terrorism movement in Peru. The exhibit included hundreds of photos that documented the extreme sadness of this time period in Peru, which lasted from the 1960’s through the last 1990’s. In light of sparing readers from some of the graphic imagery I am only adding two photos from the gallery and giving just a small bit of background. The Shining Path terrorist organization was the main group that caused the increase in terrorism in Peru. In reaction to the growing movement of terrorism President Fujimori lead the government into taking extreme actions against the Shining Path and anyone thought to be involved in terrorism. While his methods may have been unethical at times, many people in Peru still praise him for pulling them out of that dark period in their history. The Shining Path had grown from being in rural areas to having a strong presence in Lima, which caused many people to flee the country and still many of them have not returned. Today Peru is a very safe place and the tourism industry is starting to greatly increase, much thanks to the suppression of terrorism. The first of the two photos is of a group of villagers who were given makeshift guns in order to protect their community from the devastating attacks from the Shining Path and other terrorism units. The other photo is a very famous photo that is of a peasant who was attacked with machetes by the Shining Path. To read more about the terrorism movement in Peru click here.

All in all the museum was a great experience and I look forward to learning more about Peruvian culture and art through my Popular Art and Culture of Peru class!

Hitting the surf in Lima, Peru

ISA Students 2012

My first surfing experience

Pukana Escuela Peruana de Surfing

There’s nothing like starting off the morning with the potent smell of the salty sea and the anticipation of jumping in the water for your first-ever surfing lesson. Today I joined a group of 7 other new surfers in an excursion in Lima, Peru to test our luck at surfing. Although a few of us had experience with snowboarding, boogy boarding, or other balanced-focused sports, we were all excited to hit the surf and get out on the ocean (océano)!

To start off our adventure we picked up by the awesome staff of the Pukana Escuela Peruana de Surfing (a local Peruvian business that offers quality surfing lessons for individuals and groups) and taken to the beach. After suiting up in our wetsuits we began promptly with some running, stretching, and a technique orientation on land (tierra). After roasting in the hot sun, while learning the basics of surfing, we were able to start (empezar) our lesson in the water and test our listening skills as we put our training to the test. The whole time we had three amazing guides that were with us on the water with keeping us safe and making sure we were all enjoying ourselves.

After just about 30 minutes we were all able to catch a wave and experience the thrill of surfing. I personally got the hang of things pretty quick and realized that the limiting factor when learning to surf is your arm strength. While I find myself to be fit, I would definitely warn everyone going out for their first surfing lesson to be prepared with a good nights sleep and a healthy breakfast!

During out time at the beach I know we all caught the surfing bug so now it is time for me to schedule my next class and start doing a little research on surfing. Feel free to take a look at a few of the links I have found about surfing in Peru and maybe you will decide to come hit the surf for your first time as well!

Check out these sites:

• http://www.perusurfguides.com/
• http://www.wavehunters.com/peru-surfing/Nperu.asp
• http://www.expatperu.com/surfing-in-lima-surfing.php

This is why I'm hot!!!

My lobster red face

Ceviche!

Amazing fish dish with rice and french fries

Shells with sauces. Can you guess what the three sauces are?

After one week in Lima, Peru I have finally experienced the reality of the extreme intensity of the sun. While living in Alaska we get a lot of sun during the summer but Alaska is not located very close to the equator. That being said, Lima is a whole different story, and this past weekend I experienced the full intensity of the sun's UV rays.

Friday evening my host family and I packed up and headed to the beach (playa) for a weekend at the club where we were able to play tennis, play pool, frolic in the pool, and enjoy the beach. On Saturday morning after breakfast my host dad, Luis, asked if I wanted to go play tennis; since it was morning and I was still waking up I forgot that even though it was cloudy I still needed to put on sunscreen. That being said, after about two hours of tennis it was time to get in the pool and cool down so I went back to our room, applied a copious amount of sunscreen, and headed to the pool. It didn't take long to realize that the added sunscreen was not able to protect me from the time I spent soaking up the harmful UV rays in the morning, so as you can see I now have a nice red (rojo) color added to my body. My host mom, Elena, said I looked like a lobster (langosta).

Now that I have a sunburn I would love to get suggestions for good remedies to overcome the pain and discomfort of my burn. If you have any suggestions please comment on this post so I can start trying them out. I am scheduled to go to the beach to take a surfing lesson tomorrow so I am definitely needing to sooth my aching burn.

While getting sunburned hurt a bit, the pain I am in has been overcome largely in part due to the amazing food that is present at the beach. Since the club is right on the ocean front there were plenty of fish (pescado) options on the menu. Saturday afternoon I had my first ceviche, one of Peru's classical dishes. The ceviche was very flavorful, but without growing up eating sushi the raw fish was a bit much for my taste buds. Today, however, I had an amazing fish filete that was accompanied by french fries (papas fritas) and rice (arroz) and it was fantastic. Besides the hot sun, salty air, and plethora of people walking around in bathing suits, one additional identifier that you were at the beach was that all the sauces came in sea shells.

Overall it was very relaxing to go to the beach and experience some more fine Peruvian cuisine, now I just have to learn how to protect myself from the sun! Please do comment with some of your favorite sunburn remedies!

Lima's Shanty Towns

A little boy picking out his candy.

A shy little girl and the motor taxi.

I can rock out to music, be a diva, and paint at the same time!

(Picture credit to Kelly)

Our group at the end of the day

(Picture credit to motor taxi driver)

Today was a magnificent day spent giving back to the local Peruvian society! Often times when students go abroad they really enjoy learning about the culture of their host country through experiencing the food, social atmosphere, school, visiting museums, and a variety of other things, but today our group from ISA Lima, Peru 2012 got to go into one of the many shanty towns (pueblos jóvenes) in Lima and help fix up a school for young (jóvenes) children (niños). While at the school we were able to help paint the outer walls of the facility along with prepare food for the children and locals that live in the area of the school.

To give a little more perspective on about what the life in a shanty town look like take a look at this video. From my understanding Lima has been continuing to grow as Peru's largest city in numbers that far outweigh the available infrustructure which has caused people to build their homes on the outskirts of Lima out of whatever materials they could afford to use. For many families their homes are made of bricks and still others have mud homes with metal roofs to hold off the heat of the sun and the occasional rains. Overall the economic status of the families living in these towns is very low so in the area we were in the school had women working there who would come during the day and cook meals for upwards of 100 people and sell the food at 1.50 soles per meal (the equivalence of about 60 cents or so US per person). The ladies (mujeres) that work in these kitchens switch off from day to day and from what I gathered they cooked the food in order to get free meals for their families as well.

Despite the hard times financially for the people living in these areas it was very comforting to see the comrodery that was present amongst the people. As we were working we were able to ride motor taxis which were motorcycles turned into small taxis for the purpose of getting around the town. After giving all of our group a ride one of the drivers went and got a paint roller from his house and helped us to reach higher areas on the walls. Also another driver pulled up and pumped some music so that we could all sing and dance as we worked! This voluntary involvement by members of the community reminded me a lot of the kids at the Hanbury Home for Kids in Jamaica, where I traveled last March on a missions trip.

All in all it was very humbling to see how these children and families were living in an impoverished area, but they were still more than willing to give of their time and efforts to help support the young people in the community through improving their educational facilities. During the day we were also able to give out candy to the kids and it was thrilling to see their faces light up as we told them to come get some free candy (gratis dulces).

As the day comes to a close I am editing my photos from the day and then headed off to the beach (playa) with my host family for the weekend! I hope that all of you take a moment today to think of something or someone you are thankful for and let that individual know. William Arthur Ward once said, “God gave you a gift of 86,400 seconds today. Have you used one to say thank you?”

Please do add a comment below and say something that you are thankful for today!

Comida muy rico!

In general the Peruvians continue to amaze me in all the different foods they have and the rich (rico) tastes that they all contain. The last two days have been full many new experiences when it comes to food and I have enjoyed them all very much! Growing up in the United States I don’t think I ever realized how sheltered I was to what happened outside of Alaska and the United States, so being liberated to learning a new culture and new cuisine is very exciting to me! The one food group that astounds me more than any other in Peru is the massive variety of fruits they have here. In the United States you can buy really delicious fruits in markets and other places that are very sweet (dulce) and fresh, but in Peru they have so many more types of fruit. Above you will see just one more example of a fruit that was foreign to me when I arrived and now is a normal ingredient in many juices (jugos).

Also on the food scene there is a trend to eat spicy foods. At my host family’s house we have a house keeper named Lucy who a very good cook and definitely knows how to pack a punch in the spices she mixes together for our meals! So far my favorite spice I have had is ají, which is a combination of peppers, garlic, oregano, onion, and probably a few other things that I didn’t pick up when she was describing the recipe (receta). Above you will see a magnificent dish the Lucy prepared that consisted of meat (carne), french fries (papas fritas), onions (cebollas), rice (arroz), and the delicious ají sauce!

The final thing I want to point out about my Peruvian diet is that everyone really likes ice cream (helado)! At my host family’s house we have a 5 liter container of ice cream sitting in the freezer waiting to be eaten at any time of the day! Also whenever you go to a mall or supermarket or other highly populated area there seems to be a gelato stand that has many sweet and rich ice cream choices, above is just one example of what one of these stands would look like!

Outside of eating some amazing food during the last two days I have been walking around my neighborhood (barrio) a lot with my host family as well as visiting other cites in Lima. Last night marked the first time I went on my first solo taxi ride without a Peruvian and my driver was so awesome that he told me he knew our address and then ended up trying to take us to some random clinic rather than taking us to the one in our neighborhood, luckily I knew enough Spanish to tell him off and let him know that I wanted to go home, not be fooled into being dropped off in the middle of nowhere. I had a similar experience on my first solo bus ride when riding to my university, University San Ignacio de Loyola, when the driver decided to cut their route short and turn around in order to get more passengers, thus telling us we needed to get off before the destination we paid for. Needless to say we did make it to our university today and we were introduced to some of the staff that works with international students as well as learn our way around the campus a little bit! I have a feeling that I am going to like the university a lot, it has a very warm feel and is very welcoming to internationals, as seen in my photo of all the flags (banderas) when entering the school.

One last thing before I call it a night for my blog… I LOVE how calm the life is around here and I very much enjoy the nap time (siesta) that seems to be very widely accepted after meal times! Everyday I am reminded how this trip was really ordained by God because in all circumstances I am learning new things about myself, the people around me, and how truly blessed I am!

¡Estoy en Peru!

All I can say is Peru is awesome! After about 20 hours of traveling and talking with different people while in route to Peru I finally made it to Peru at about 9 AM Sunday morning. After the long wait for staff to check me through customs I finally made it into the main part of the airport to meet up with my program staff. Unfortunately the person picking me up thought I was coming into Lima at 9 PM so she wasn't actually there...luckily I was able to easily exchange some money and call my program director who was able to iron things out and connect me with Kelly, an amazing and bubbly member of the ISA staff who was able to take me to my house and introduce me to my family. While waiting for Kelly I was also able to drink my first coca-cola in Peru and enjoy the taste of a true sugar cane based soda that tasted very delicious!

After meeting my family and talking a bit I took a quick siesta (nap) and then we headed off to get lunch (almuerzo) as a family. Since I could only remember one Peruvian food that I had had in the past I asked if we could get anticuchos (cow heart). After requesting antichuchos they were really excited because I had tasted Peruvian food before so we all went to a nice restaurant and got food. The anticuchos were very good as well as all the other foods I tried. I was able to try a local Peruvian drink that was made of a purple cord as well as try a few different typical Peruvian meats like a blood sausage and pork. Once we returned home I was then gladly welcomed back to the house by ice cream (helado) that my host mom, Elena, prepared for all of us. If you have spent much time at all around me you will know that ice cream is top on my list of favorite deserts, so it was great to find out that my host family also really enjoyed ice cream! Later in the evening I also went on a walk with my host mom and she showed me around the neighborhood and then one of my brothers, Felipe, and my dad, Luis, took me on a car ride and showed me some of the main sites in Lima.

After all the excitement of the first day I was very tired so I was happy to get some much needed sleep before really getting into the swing of things. Today, the first full day being in Peru was a very laid back and informative day. I started off the day with breakfast (desayuno) with my host family and fellow student from the US, Jhavid, and we both were able to try a new fruit called granadillas. Granadillas look similar to an orange but the inside is filled with a jello like substance that has a bunch of tiny seeds. To me they looked like the insides of a brain, but it was very good! Later I found out that granadillas are the first fruit that babies have in Peru because they are easy to digest and have lots of vitamins, at that point I felt like it was the proper fruit for me to be eating because I feel like a baby when it comes to my knowledge of Spanish and the Peruvian culture.

For the rest of the day I was with my fellow students from my program going through an informational session in the morning about our program followed by an afternoon out on the town seeing some of the sites around town. We first met at our local ISA headquarters and I was pleasantly surprised to see a small rock climbing wall that was in the same building as the office, luckily Chris Burgess convinced me to bring my rock climbing shoes at the last moment so I will be able to enjoy climbing now and again! One place we went in the afternoon was called Huaca, which is a pre-Incan ruin that was constructed about 1000 years before the Incan Machu Pichu. Above you will see a picture of the ruins we saw, they were constructed with spaces between the bricks in order to allow for the flexing of the structure due to the high frequency of earthquakes in Lima. After seeing the ruins we finished up our activities by going to the beach and seeing the sunset while eating ice cream!

Now I am finishing up my blog after arriving back home and eating dinner (cenar) with my host family. Tomorrow is a free day so I look forward to doing some more fun things around Lima!

On my way!!!

Wow this thing is really happening!!! Right now I on my first of three flights in route to Lima, Peru. After loading up the last few things in my bags this morning I went to the airport with my family and officially started on my journey to South America!

In the last few days I have been running around getting the last few things purchased for my trip as well as saying the last few goodbyes before I left to Peru (although while running around I had a friendly reminder by a moose that the speed limit in the neighborhood was 25 mph). The outpouring of love that people have given me over the last few days has blown me away! From songs, to emails, to phone calls, to hugs goodbye every last farewell wish has really meant a lot to me!

As I head off to Peru I figured I should take a few more quick pictures of the beautiful Alaskan home so above you will see a picture of my igloo, a moose that was chilling outside my house, a picture of me and my cougar banner outside the airport, and finally a nice view out my window on my first flight..

On the note of the cougar banner…I have to say I love being a WSU Coug because no matter where I am it seems like there is a fellow Coug around me. Today at the airport I was going through security and the guy behind me says, “GO COUGS!!!” I love the deep bond of all the Cougs out there and I am excited to spread that energy to Peru!

In just about 16 hours I will be touching down in Peru and meeting up with my program staff and host family. Please continue to pray for me as I am abroad and be sure to continue checking in on my blog to see what I am up to. As I said before I really do appreciate the support and I look forward to reading your comments as I share about my adventures.

Time to start packing...

I don't know about you, but when I am about to go on a big trip I always save packing till the very last minute possible. While some people like to pack weeks early and be prepared to leave at a minutes notice, I always am the guy who puts the last thing in the bag while running out the door. Yes this may cause a little extra stress to those around me, but it helps me to focus on the here and now and not revel on what I am about to do. For me putting off packing helps me to stay calm and keep focused on the tasks at hand. If I were to start putting things together too far in advance it would be like waiting for Santa Clause on Christmas Eve...it would be impossible to sleep!

Today I finally started to put everything together and get a start on my packing. That being said, I haven't put a single things into my bags yet. As the day draws to a close I still have a number of laundry baskets full of clothes and other "essential" items to take with me set aside, but none of it has been packed away. While it may look like a "hot mess," I feel at ease and tomorrow I will finish up the last few errands before finally packing my bags for Peru.

Besides packing I have been getting an unprecedented amount of emails, phone calls, texts, facebook messages, and even a beautiful serenading! I don't know what it is about going away that makes everyone so excited to contact me, but I am definitely feeling the love poured out over my life right now! I would again just like to thank everyone for reaching out and giving me words of encouragement as I head off to Peru! Your prayers and well wishes are greatly appreciated! I hope that through reading my blog you will be able to get a glimpse of what I am up to in Peru and be able to hear the many stories of the amazing things that I am being blessed with through my travels!

Thanks again for reading and subscribing to my blog!