So, on Tuesday I received an email from Daniel asking me what i thought of traveling this week. Eh... no se. But seriously, I have so much work to do that anything sounded better than schoolwork. Besides, I really wanted to be spontaneous for once in my life and just , well, leave. So, Wednesday night, Daniel and i hopped on a bus for Huancayo. If you think the name sounds familiar, I think you're awesome; cause that means you've been reading. :) I have been to Huancayo before with ISA. This time, however, was sooooo much better! Ok... starting at the beginning.

Daniel and i had absolutely no idea where we were going until about 4:30 PM on Wednesday. (keep in mind we're leaving Wednesday night and planning on an overnight bus trip). We bought tickets to Huancayo around 7 with the bus leaving at 10:30. Not bad at all... we got to the bus station early and just chilled, waiting for departure. I think i lasted about a half hour on the bus before i was sleeping. Can't say that i slept well, but i slept.

We arrived in Huancayo at 5:45 am. Wandering around the city in the freezing cold when nothing is open yet isn't exactly what i was expecting, but it was pretty sweet! We stopped in at some hostels, trying to find a cheap place to stay for the one night that we will be here. At one hostel, we asked for information on some tours. We/I really wanted to go to Huaytapallana. Well, basically, Daniel got sick. combination of the altitude and the fact that he was in the hospital not long ago, so we ended up getting a room in a hostel owned by the cousin of the tour guy. long story... Anyway, we both slept for a few hours after all of the rush this morning. Daniel woke up feeling much better, so we decided to find something to do. We roamed around the city(and found the Abraham Lincoln school lol), bought some bread for lunch, then decided to do something exciting. We were recommended to go to La Laguna de Paca, so we went. Why not?

To get there we took a combi to Chupaca, then a taxi to la laguna. The taxi driver was awesome. His name was brian and he offered to come back to get us later if we wanted. I took his cell number and Daniel and i set off across the field to see la laguna. eh... not impressed. Not quite the excitement we were looking for, we decided to make our own. We were in a valley and looking to the left decided it would be pretty sweet to climb the hill and look down on the laguna. So we did. It was all super except that our hill ended up going on forever. (about dead center in this picture is where we wanted to get to the top...)

Here are a few pics from the climb... i took a million. it was all beautiful! I'll try to post them all on facebook.

It took us a good two/three hours to get to what we thought was the top. lol. we were wrong. As we came to the crest, we realized that we had alot to go. We both wanted to get to the top, so we kept going. We reached the top... again. Only to find... again, that we were still quite far from our goal. Unfortunately, we couldn't go on. We had to get back down... but not before we were captivated by the sunset. Now, if you know me, you know i love sunsets just as much as the sunrise. Well, i happened to be with a boy who likes the sunset just as much as me, so we therefore stopped to take pictures. Now those of you who have more experience in climbing mountains than i do, would realize right away that stopping on top of a mountain to watch the sunset is a bad plan because after the sun sets... you have no light in order to get off the mountain.

Yeah, so, we started back down. Quickly. well, as quickly as you can go when you're climbing among rocks and it's continously getting darker and darker and you're sliding as much as you're walking. We finally did make if down, but it was quite the adventure let me tell you! Being in the middle of nowhere, there were like, zero lights anywhere. It was some serious dark!!!

Luckily, we had Brian's number cause there was no one left at la laguna. We would have been stuck for a while. After getting back to Huancayo, we searched around for ice cream... but got distracted by the picarrones. Then back to the hostel for a semi-early night before Huaytapallana tomorrow!!!

bailaton

Dance off... chevere! So every Thursday, classes are suspended from noon until 3. (Luis finally provided the answer to the mystery of why there are always a million people meandering on Thursday afternoons) During those hours there are always activities going on and things to do. Well, yesterday, there was a dance off... It was sweet! Of course, it happened to be a ridiculously hot day with the sun beating down... poor dancers. Would have been easier to dance for two hours strait if it had been colder. Anyway, i met Sara there early and we actually got seats on the bleachers. :) Unfortunately, the pairs that we liked best were eliminated after three or four rounds. Although we had to admit that the pair that won, was pretty darn incredible. they deserved their award. Even though fairly close, the songs were all soo upbeat that it was hard to snap good pictures. (not to mention that i forgot to charge my camera as i haven't used it in a while and only had a quarter of a battery). I also took a few videos, but the quality is b.a.d. Either my camera has been dropping one too many times or something got messed up... it kept refocusing...so upsetting.

new foods...!!!

So, I went out with a friend and tried some new stuff. jeje :) This one, i'm really proud of, although it wasn't my favorite. I definitely couldn't eat very much. I tried to find a picture of it online, but failed... and i can't remember exactly what it's called in Spanish. But, since only a few of you would understand that anyway, i'll just describe it in English.... basically we were walking around the streets of Barranco and there is this place where they sell anticucho. Yay! I love that, so we were going to eat... and Luis asked me if i had tried this other thing. No... but i'll try it now. BAD DECISION... this "other thing" happened to be random pieces of cow that no one else eats. lol. No, the stomach, intestines, and liver were basically cooked on a grill, piled high on a plate, and served with choclo and potato. Bon apetit... :) Liver... i liked. intestine was a little chewy, but not bad (although i did have trouble with the whole circular shape of it... strange!), stomach. eww. Weirdest texture of anything i've ever eaten.

Earthcakes and chocolate quake.

:) A day apart, but still. Does life get better? On Sunday, we had a 'tremor' in Lima. It only lasted fifteen seconds or so, but it was totally chevere! I was unfortunately in the least exciting place ever... my desk. Very upsetting, but it was much better than sleeping through it like the last two tremors.

Then on Monday, i went to a friends house (Sara, she's awesome!) for chocolate cake. Celebrating birthdays is so much fun, especially when it isn't really anyone's birthday. lol. First time i've actually had an "american" style dessert since i've been here. Cake here is just different... good, but different. (ok, i did attempt sugar cookies...)

Then had a fun adventure on the way home. haha... not sure where my mind was exactly, but i paniced on the combi and thought i had passed my 'paradero' (stop). That basically means that i'm in Callao, another district of Peru that is much more dangerous than San Miguel. (Callao is only about a block past my house...) So, i frantically, baja-ed as soon as I could.... only to find that i was still seven blocks from my house. lol. Being cheap, i weighed my chances and decided to freak myself out and watch for robbers for seven blocks at 9:30 PM instead of paying the 50 centimos to get on another combi. lol. I survived though. ;) Than stayed up till 3:30 reading for my control the next day...

El Bosque

So, last Sunday before i was dying, my family took Becca and I to El Bosque. It's a private club... beautiful! And warm! :) There was sunshine! Anyway, there was a pool, a lake... you know, club stuff. So we had a blast just hanging out and all... my favorite part had to be Danielito. :) My 'nephew' is basically the most adorable thing that speaks Spanish. He's been coming with his parents to our house almost every day and he loves to visit my room. I wish i had toys or books or anything, but he seems to find things that amuse him. He loves my alarm clock (that for some reason, not sure if it's merely the battery or the fact that whatever black stuff is used to make the numbers started spreading all over the little screen, but it doesn't work anymore) anyway... he uses it as a cell phone. I think he gets the greatest pleasure from hanging up on people though. jaja. He's three though, so i've been loving the playtime!

Also was able to see my brothers play soccer for the first time. I was pretty excited to see Daniel play since that is his job. Granted, he was playing against normal people so he wasn't going all out, and his team won every time anyway... but it was still sweet! Very very nice footwork! Reminded me of Nate's team though, a little bit unbalanced. My brothers were on the same team, but Danny had half the goals and Ernie had half the goals... I'm not sure where the other people were. I think i remember there being other people on the team... maybe i dreamed them. Not sure. :)

Prayer Please!

Many of you know that i have come to Peru with a few friends from GCC. Well, if you don't know Daniel, guarenteed, you've heard me talk about him and his brother Austin. Anyway, I found out today that Daniel went to the hospital here in Lima this past week and stayed for a few days. He, obviously, was really sick. A few doctors wanted to operate and he even made it into the OR before the surgeon told him that he didn't need the operation. Daniel was in class this morning, and is feeling a bit better, but is still sick and has little strength since he didn't eat for a week. Please, please keep him in your prayers! It's tough enough just being sick in a different country, but being really sick....just pray that he continues to heal quickly and that he has the strength to continue with his studies and daily life here in Lima. Thanks all!

from visits to chillin to scrapes and bruises

With the end of Lunahuana, traveling with ISA is finished. I'm definitely not through with traveling... i still want to see alot of places, but i'm fine with not traveling for a few weeks. I really just don't want to pack/unpack again, i've done that soo many times in the past few months.

Alright, so... blog posts will either become exciting as i write more about daily life... or more boring. I guess you all can choose. I'm going to try to catch up to my present state of near-death sickness, but we'll start back a few weeks... with the visit from the boy.

So, as many/some of you know, Harry came to visit Lima. aka, to see me. Since he came, i wasn't going to tell him i wouldn't see him, so we spent at least a few hours together basically every day for a week. If nothing else came of it, i practiced my Spanish alot! He's a gentleman, no doubt about it. His mother did a wonderful job at raising him (she also, seems really really nice! I talked to her on the phone for a while one night. She told me that she had been waiting to talk to me since harry told her about me. It sort of cracked me up, but she asked me what i had done that changed her son? I didn't do anything... but she assured me that he son did not always smile all the time and definitely did not walk around the house singing before he met me. lol) Anyway, he made his feelings clear, but then said he would respect whatever decision i make...implying that he would wait however long it takes for me to know what i want. jaja, as if i have any idea.

After the boy, we had midterms week... yuck! The only good thing was that we had no classes... so life was looking up. Since i am only taking three courses, I didn't have that much work to do... and my history of peru class didn't have a midterm. :) So basically, i had an entire week to study/do whatever i wanted. So i studied some, went to a bbq with a Peruvian friend Luis... met a really cool guy from Germany who lives less than 10 km from Kandern (where i was last winter), hung out with Rita (whom i haven't seen in ages!), went shopping, talked with family from home, watched a movie (ahh exciting!), wasted time, listened to muic, slept.... the list goes on. It was a chill week more or less... and definitely needed!

(here i have to insert our family trip to El Bosque, but since i have lots of pics and stuff, i'll do that in a different post.)

Now that i had two wonderful weeks, i guess balance was working against my favor cause the next two weeks were not so fun. Run-ins with guys have to be my least favorite part of Peru...and this one was the worst by far. See, i meet these wonderful guys in Lima (like Luis) who i can joke with and have a good time with. Then there are those other guys... so, Tuesdays i have history of Peru with Becca, the other girl who lives with the Maldonado family. After class we typically just go home, but today, she asked if i minded chilling for a while. She had a friend that wanted to meet up with her after class and she asked if i would come along. Sure, i'll come meet Alfonso. :) No prob. Alfonso, although a little sketchy, was quite nice compared to his friend... whose name i can't remember. Richy maybe... oh well, we'll call him that anyway. So, Alfonso has a car, a very nice car in fact... and we were chilling listening to a CD that he bought and talking. So far, so good... then Richy shows up. And we went for a drive.... Let's just say that in the backseat of a car, there isn't very far you can go to get away from someone. Thank goodness we don't live very far away, cause the looks i was getting were not "i want to be your friend" sort of looks and he already had his arm around my shoulders.

To top that... the past four days, i've been dying. Literally. Starting Tuesday night with a slight headache, i've been exponentially getting worse. Everyone blames it on the climate change which could very well be, but I don't get sick like this very often. My head felt like it would explode for two days straight, my throat swelled up, i couldn't breathe, my ears were killing me. I was basically a mess. The girl who hates pills made it a total of four hours... at 2 am wednesday morning, i couldn't take it any longer. I feel like a druggie cause i've taken been taking pills to keep me sane. And, to make it worse, I can't sleep. I fall asleep for an hour or an hour and a half max, and i wake up. I much prefer my ability to sleep through anything! I am, finally, on the mend today. I woke up and feel so much better. Now, it's like a normal cold/cough, nothing i can't handle. Well, that and i don't have much of a voice. But it's coming back... and today is Friday so i don't have classes. yay! I slept until 10:30 today... the latest i've slept since coming to Lima in February!