Peru, Day 30: All in a Day's Walk

 People, readers, always seem to like pictures. So this post is entirely photos, with some words of explanation. These were taken one morning on my normal walk from my host family's house to the school. They are nothing special, just exactly what I saw every day for over a month.

The orange house on the left is the one in which I lived, this normal middle-class home is in a complex with several other identical houses with a main access gate to the road. It has 3 floors, 2 bathrooms, and 4 bedrooms - perfect for hosting international students.

Huayna Capac, my road. On a normal day the road would be full of motorcycles and dirt bikes for sale. Often businesses of a similar nature grow up next to each other and soon take over whole roads. The gate on the right is my gate. The black awning with the red insignia leads to a Mini Market where you can find anything from avocados to bottled water, you can reload the charge on your phone with either MoviStar or Claro, or just stop in for a bottle of Cusqueño - the local beer, and really, the only beer.

Avenida de la Cultura, one of the busiest and longest roads through Cusco. It's dirty and crowded (normally) and full of both touristy places and local businesses. It runs nearly from the City Center to the outskirts of town, passing the Mall, the University, the Hospital, countless Mini Markets, Pastelerias, Pollerias, Pizzarias, Topicos Tipicos, and Parederos. (Mini Marts, Bakeries, Chicken Restaurants, Pizza places, shops vending typical costumes, and bus stations).

Limac Pampa, one of the many, many, many little squares (circles?) or centers around which Cusco circles in hoards all day every day. Since this photo was taken one of the main roads in town was closed for maintenance and Limac Pampa is always extremely congested, waiting to get through or around this point in Cusco could easily be a 10-20 minute wait even late at night.

Just one block up the road from Limac Pampa is another Limac Pampa, but few spend much time here, and few even consider it a part of Limac Pampa. It's mostly just fountain in front of one of the Luxury, touristy hotels near the Historic Center.

Heading toward the Center from Limac Pampa. You have a choice of many, many roads, this happened to be the one I like...

Not everyone sees these. I got plenty of weird looks photographing the flowers outside one of the upscale shops, but why? Why not stop and notice them?!

By now I think you know me well enough to know that I can't stop myself from capturing the beauty that surrounds me.

The porch is strangely deserted, but then makes the perfect background.

Truly, no one could even guess why I was taking this one, but I think you see now what I saw.

Closing in on the Plaza de Armas, the true Historic Center of the city. The wall on the left is an Incan wall, you can tell by the tilt as it nears the ground. these walls withstand the earthquakes that plague this area of Peru the way we experience tornadoes in Middle Tennessee. This road uncharacteristically does not have a drain running down the middle. Most of the stone roads in Cusco (all the roads not used heavily) have these drains in the middle, most also have two smoother tracks on each side, in the case that a car and rider might wish for a bit of a smoother ride.

THE Cathedral. Yes, folks, this is the famous Cusco Cathedral. I haven't toured it, I don't plan to. I am certain the outside is more beautiful and majestic than the inside, so I'll stick with this view.

And after that view, I leave you with this one. My school. Yes, after walking through all that beauty, history, and majesty, I end up here for hours. Learning Spanish. Only we all know that the real learning happens out in the streets. So excuse me while I turn around and head right back out where I came from. Now you know where I spend my time, and I think you know why I choose to spend it there!

Peru, Day 29: All the Spanish...

YOU WILL EVER NEED IN CUSCO

Believe me, this looks like just a few phrases, but really, what else would you need to say? Take a look...

Don't worry, if you don't want to puke, just substitute "vomitar" for your desired word and add "-ar." Most Spanish-speakers in such a famous tourist location will understand. 

If your goal is falling in love, this is your ultimate guide! And yes, it's a good possibility that he lives with his parents. The Inka Trail really is integral to falling in love. You know, you need those few days apart, alone, cold...to realize how much you really did fall in love with that gorgeous Peruvian you met once. And finally, if the've forgotten about you over those few days (they have, they meet attractive foreigners every single day) just ask about their brother!

Ok. Yes, I'm being sarcastic. But this really does have a lot of useful Spanish on it. And substituting words usually does work. For someone who moved twice in the month before packing for their trip to Peru and forgot their dictionary, this worked quite well.

Joking again.

I actually know a bit more Spanish than this, I've just never seen all the most common phrases grouped so concisely. If you're ever in Peru, just stop by the Choco Museo and pick up your own copy and some free samples! (Heads up, your probably won't say anything about the World Cup...)

Peru, Day 28: One Cloudy Day in Cusco...

This is what a cloudy day in Cusco looks like.

...I dyed my hair purple.

Two years ago, right around this time, I dyed parts of my hair pink. More parts than I'd wanted but that's a bit beside the point by now. I'd thought about it for years, I put temporary dyes in that lasted for a few days, and then one day I just decided that it was time. I bought the dye, put it in my hair, and wha-la. Pink hair!
It lasted for about 6 months, which was perfect.

Almost immediately I started thinking about which color would be next. Purple.

But when? Most businesses in Cookeville won't hire someone with purple hair yet, unfortunately. Further complicating the situation, purple hair dye in middle TN is hard to come by unless you go to a salon and pay upwards of $50. And then there was always the factor that I like my hair the color it is. And furthermore, I was planning a trip to Korea where everyone has black hair. (Or so I thought, it turns out that most people in Korea dye their hair - just not purple.)

And then I kind of forgot about it.

Until this summer.

 I'd thought about cutting my hair for a change, shorter than it's been in years. But I just can't bring myself to do it. So then on Thursday, when I was in the local mall with one of my friends, walking the PlazaVea - the local Wal-Mart equivalent - we wandered into the toiletries section for some shampoo. Then somewhere in my unsuccessful search for shaving cream, I saw the hair dyes. I did the normal quick scan, and what in the world?!? They had purple!! And not the cheap bubble gum or popcorn candy purple. No, the real purple. From Garneir Fructis, a trusted brand. So I bought it. $8.

The Instructions were in Spanish. But like a said, I'd done it before, so...no problems!

 Here are a couple of the results...

Yes, it's a bit subtle. Only seen in certain light. Only seen when I style my hair certain ways. But every time I notice the purple, I just get this happy feeling inside and do a little happy dance. Yes, I think I do the happy dance every time I see the purple. I love it.

Peru, Day 27: When Abroad...

One of the very best parts about travelling in the new people you meet.

And one of the very best parts about meeting new people is all the new things you learn.

Things about them, things about their countries and cultures, things they think about your culture, things that aren't common knowledge about your country, and finally, many things about yourself.

Since I've arrived here I've met too many people to count. My host Mom and sister and the three American girls who've also lived with us. My professors and the staff at Amauta. My classmates who've come and gone. And my friends. Friends from Germany, England, Australia, Switzerland, Holland, America, Brazil, France, and of course, Peru.

It's not easy to describe the influence that these people have had on my experience so far because they have shaped it completely. Without them this would have been a totally different trip.

When I think about how I met each of them, at times it seems straightforward: someone assigned me to this house, or that teacher to our level. But with others it's not so simple. I can't tell you why I happened to be in the same tour group as Nina and why we've seen each other every day since then. Or why I happened to go and talk to the two new people standing together drinking tea during our break one random day. I don't know what prompted me to go and talk to the blond girl sitting on the steps opposite me our very first day in Cusco. Or why we went to that one club instead of any of the others, and why I happened to hit if off perfectly with one of the dance instructors.

These and many more "I can't tell you why's" force me to sit back and smile. I can't help but be thankful for all those "coincidences," or where they choices? Either way, these people have challenged me, hurt me, loved me, taken care of me, fed me, held my hand while I cried, taught me; made me laugh, made me cry, made me try new things, made me grow. New friends force me to see new things and think in new ways. It's a constant challenge, and one that I readily accept.

Peru, Day 26: Er....Dancing Culture...Again.

After writing that whole post about dancing yesterday, I realized that I've not even addressed what kinds of dancing are done!

I think I've mentioned Salsa, yes?

Well this is indeed The Dance of Latin America. It's done in 8/8 timing, as far as I can tell, and is probably the most complex of all the dances I've tried. (Which includes, Israeli Folk Dancing, American Folk Dancing, Square Dancing, English Country Dancing, Swing Dancing, both 20s and 40s Charleston, Lindy Hop, and Blues. Although 40s Charleston is the one exception: I find it a bit more difficult than Salsa.) The music used for Salsa is the kind that makes you want to tap your feet and clap your hands. Salsa is done almost entirely with a partner, and can be either slow, medium-speed, or fast. At first it appears to be a bit more strict when it comes to form and steps, but after a few weeks I've realized that there is no end to the steps and styles that are included under the name "Salsa."

The second most common dance here is Bachata. It's done in 4/4 timing (again, not an expert here, just going off of the music I've been dancing to.) and is quite a bit simpler than Salsa. Bachata can be an extremely sensual type of dance, but can also just be very fun in its simplicity and ease of use. Most music used for Bachata is not as much toe-tapping as it is, well, I've never wanted to move my shoulders more in my life. Weird, I know. But the music, and the dance, is normally very smooth, rhythmic, and catchy. Due to its simplicity and the close proximity normally used in the dance, Bachata is much easier to follow than Salsa - good for both the lead and the follow!

The final kind of dance done here is not one done in dance clubs, but is the traditional dance of Peru: Huayno. Typically done as a festival is coming to an end when most people have already danced plenty of Salsa and Bachata and drunk plenty of Cusqueña (just guess what that is...). Huayno is fast and upbeat, great for people who aren't sober anymore, and almost as fun for those who are, tho I'm fairly certain without alcohol no one has the stamina to dance Huayno for more than a few songs...

So there you have it. An incomplete and unprofessional overview of Peruvian dances.

Peru, Day 25: Dancing Culture

As you all know, dancing has been a big part of my experience here. For good reason.

During lunch today my host Mom and I discussed the various cultural functions, meanings, and etiquette of dancing in Peru and many other Latin American cultures.

At home we tend to see dancing as something talented people do. "White people can't dance" is an idea that has permeated our mindset and crippled many, many light-colored people throughout the last century. The fact is, anyone CAN dance. Just like anyone can walk. Yes, it takes training, and it take time, and it takes practice, but dancing is no longer just for the talented. Dancing here is what you do. If you don't dance, it's like you don't walk. Everyone does it. Yes, some do it more readily than others, some do it more professionally than others, some more seriously, some more vivaciously, some more frequently, and so on. But here it has nothing to do with talent.

Of course, there are professional dancers here. And perhaps they have more "talent" than others, (Ok, let's be real, the professional dancers I've danced with here have a lot more talent, on our scale, than a lot of others...) but people don't view a certain level of talent as either a prerequisite for dancing or an inhibition from dancing. It's quite beautiful!

Dancing is something that's done in clubs, yes, but also in schools, at parties, at home, in the streets, and really anywhere else dancing could be done. It's done with alcohol and without, and I must say it's normally done much better without.

Here a person who might not be considered terribly attractive is given a free pass if they can dance well. And many people who might be considered attractive are passed up readily if they can't (or won't) dance.

This leads to the practice in the clubs of what I'm going to call "circling." On any given night, during the first hour of dancing at a club, you will find several, and sometime quite a few, guys just sitting on the edges watching. Now, at first this made me uncomfortable. I assumed they had just come to watch and that they didn't dance because they couldn't. Wrong. They were watching, waiting, choosing. Many of them rarely dance, some of them are phenomenal dancers and just want to see who will be worth their time. May sound a bit harsh, but it's understandable. Circle the room, pick out the good dancers, wait until the social dancing starts, ask them to dance, see how well you can dance together, if all goes well, ask again. This is how it works.

Now, from the female perspective, we don't get quite as much of a chance to watch. As a foreigner, I can get away with asking a guy to dance, but here, that's really taboo. So I have to wait to either accept or reject. Both are socially normal. If I see a guy I want to dance with, I may need to refuse a few in hopes that he asks. If I accept a dance from someone else before he has the chance, I may just be stuck with the first guy for the rest of the night. I tend to have less problems than others because, well....Let's be blunt here - I am both a foreigner, fairly attractive, and a relatively good dancer. If I accept an offer and find I don't enjoy it, I can walk away. I get a free pass for breaking many social rules because of the 3 affore-mentioned facts. Perks.

I hope now you have a sightly clearer picture of what dancing means here, and how at least one person experiences it. I'd recommend giving it a try if you're ever in the area. (And even if you're not.)

Peru, Day 24: Speaking...English?!

So this week I have a couple new friends. They don't speak any Spanish.

Kudos to them for coming here anyway to learn! But it is SO HARD to remember to talk in English! I'm not saying that I always talk in Spanish, no. I have a few friends with whom I often speak Spanish. But to everyone else, in every other situation, Spanish is now natural. I greet people in Spanish, thank people in Spanish, introduce myself in Spanish, and in other way try to be friendly without even realizing that I'm speaking Spanish. It's great!

But when it come to my new friends, I get a lot of blank looks and clueless nods.

So yea, it's great that I speak Spanish so readily now, but now I have to start being conscious about which language I am speaking. I wonder if this is something that all bilinguals face? Will I always have to think about this for the rest of my life or will choosing become as natural as Spanish is becoming?

Of course I hope the latter. But I won't know until a ways down the road. I'm sure when I figure more out I'll have something to say about it on my blog tho. I just can't seem to keep all these questions, discoveries, experiences, and thoughts to myself...