"Yes, my earrings are in my sheep."

This is the past week in a nutshell.

Monday was, obviously, the 4^th of July! We got the day off from training and instead had an American fiesta! We met up with all of the business volunteers (since we live in different towns and go to different training facilities) and basically played soccer, football, volleyball, and other random games all morning. We had hamburgers and hotdogs for lunch, followed by a ridiculously delicious American flag cake. Of course we all sang the National Anthem, and I was surprised at how much it meant to me. It was a fun day- nothing like the 4^th in the states, but we got a little piece of it.

Tuesday my language class and a few others took a trip to Lima to visit a museum and then the PC headquarters where we would have an interview with the country director and meet some other employees. However, I was feeling sick all day long and barely made it through the museum. As soon as we got to the offices the doctor pulled me aside, gave me some meds (apparently I had a bacterial infection and a fairly high fever), and let me sleep for the rest of the day. So I didn’t have my interview or meet anyone, but that’s ok. Wednesday I ended up staying home from training and laid in bed all day long. I’m 100% better now, though! J

Saturday we took a “paseo” in a place about an hour from Santa Eulalia.  A paseo is basically a hike. We hiked (and when I say hiked, I really mean hiked) up a mountain for about an hour (seemed like way longer) and eventually made it to a waterfall. This is the off season so there wasn’t a lot of water, but it was pretty just the same. We spent a couple hours there and ate our lunches, then hiked back down. We got to see some ancient “ruins” on the way down. They were nothing like I expected, but they were interesting. Basically they were tiny little caves dug into rocks that served as houses for the indigenous people known as the “Yao Yaos.” It was cool to see and realize that Peru has more to offer than just Macchu Picchu.

GUESS WHAT! Tomorrow (Wednesday, July 13) all the drivers of public transportation are going to have a strike or protest! They are upset because the Municipality in Lima wants to enforce stricter regulations on the drivers, as well as downsize the amount of taxis, colectivos, moto-taxis and combis (all different forms of public transportation). And since this is the way a lot of Peruvians make their living, they aren´t too happy. So tomorrow is the scheduled protest.  There will be no public transportation, and if there is, they will most likely be stoned (literally).  There is also the possibility that it could get violent.  So, since PC doesn´t exactly know what´s going to happen, they´ve called off all training activities for tomorrow.  We are allowed to leave our houses, but we have to stick close to our neighborhoods.  Our neighborhood, however, is special.  We are literally a 2 minute walk from El Cruce, which is one of the most well-known bus stops in this area.  So we´re thinking that if there is a protest in Santa Eulalia, it´s going to be there.  Obviously we are not allowed to go, nor would I want to, but we might be able to see it from my neighbor´s roof.  So if anything happens, I´ll know!  Most likely it won´t get violent and will just be a peaceful gathering, but I´m not watch from the safety of the roof.  I´ll let you guys know what happens!

So, I’ve realized that my blog is rather…. boring, and I’d like to spruce it up a bit. So I’ll leave you with some fun facts/happenings/quotes that have happened in the past month

·         The first day I arrived at my host family’s house, Amir (8) and Alysa (5) insisted on helping me unpack my suitcase- no big deal, right? (Let me preface this by saying that I brought almost a year’s worth of tampons in tons of Ziploc bags). Well as I’m unpacking, Amir spots a few bags of brightly colored tampons and says, “What are these? Candy? Can I have one?” Picture me trying my hardest not to laugh, as well as interpret what I want to say into Spanish. I snicker and respond with, “Uhh…. They’re tampons.” “But what are they for?” “Um, Amir, they’re only for girls. Hey, can you hand me my socks?” This was not the welcoming I suspected, but I wouldn’t have it any other way!

·         I have over 300 flea bites on my body, and I’m allergic. Cool.

·         “Every bar in Kansas is an 80’s bar.” No explanation necessary.

·         “Every bar in Kansas is a country bar.” I couldn’t dispute this because it’s basically true.

·         “Nobody’s rubbin’ a cuy on me!” (Cuy=guinea pig. We were discussing “magic cures” in Spanish class and this is what it turned into.)

·         “Yes, my earrings are in my sheep.” I confused the word ear for sheep in Spanish. My host family got a huuuuge kick out of this!

·         I can now successfully wash all of my clothes by hand. I can’t say I enjoy it, but I can do it.

·         My host dad called me “Crazy” for the entire first week, and still sometimes does. I’m not sure if he confused Kelsey with Crazy, or if he could just see right through me, but he’s not far off!  ;)

·         “Head, shoulders, knees, and toes” is the soundtrack of my life. I never should have taught it to a 5-year-old.

·         I eat rice and potatoes for every.single.meal.

·         I have a new found love for avocadoes, because they are almost cheaper than dirt here.

·         My favorite Peruvian phrase is “Que pina!” That directly translates to “The pineapple,” but it actually means “Ah shoot” or “Dang it!” I don’t know how they came up with that, but I think it’s hilarious.

·         Ice cold showers are still as bad as they sound. Possibly even worse.

·         They do, in fact, have karaoke in Peru. I knew Thursday night Karaoke would come in handy!

·         My host father keeps trying to set me up with his single nephews. He’s convinced that I’m going to marry a Peruvian. The last one was 17!  :-/

·         Peruvians loooove my tie-dye!

·         My host family loves that my middle name is Hanna because it’s like Hannah Montana. If I get called Hannah Montana one more time I might go crazy.

·         60% of conversations held between Volunteers consist of one topic: poop.

·         There is a festival in Peru in which you dance around in a circle, drink Pisco (very potent alcohol), and try to chop down a present-filled tree with a machete. I have witnessed this first-hand.

·         Practically every day in Peru is a holiday. No complaints here.

I could go on for days, but I’ll limit it to that for now. Thank you guys for all of the emails, letters, and packages; not to mention all the prayers, well wishes, and love. Have I mentioned just how lucky I am?!  I can’t tell you how much I love and appreciate each one of you!