Pictures and Stuffs

I haven't posted anything in a week or so, so I figured I should get back to it. I get busy doing other stuff and don't really pay attention sometimes. I'll try to do better.

When I first came to Huanchaco, Peru everything was so new and exciting and all I wanted to do was to walk around town, look in stores, buy food from the street vendors, and soak in my new surroundings. I would say to myself, "Holy cow, I am in Peru and it is awesome!" But now that I have been here for a little over two weeks and have a bit of a daily routine I tend to forget where I am. On my walk to the beach in the morning I see the same elderly man tending to the flowers in the park. I see the same security guard outside of the bank. And I buy empanadas from the same clerk at the same bodega. Everything seems so......normal. Though when I think about it, everything is not normal. I have lived for 30 years in one country and have spend the better part of those years living in one state (which is dear to my heart). Now, I live in a totally different country, on a totally different continent, in a different hemisphere, and beside a different ocean. And, I live in the desert! I think I need to be more proactive with taking in my surroundings. Although now I am looking to stay in Peru for a while, one day I will most likely move back to the U.S. and away from all that makes this place so wonderful. I don't think it makes a difference if I am riding the bus to El Tropico like I do every week or climbing up Machu Pichu. I need to stop and smell the geraniums (Peruvians seem to love geraniums).

**I do not want anyone to think that I do not think that my home country, the good old U.S. of A, is not full of awesome sights and people. I know it is. But the fact is, Peru is a place that is so totally different and at the moment totally different is what I am looking for.**

Below are a few of the photos I took this past week. I have more to put up and I promise I will tomorrow.

The Polleria: La Barra serves one dish; rotisserie style chicken with salad, fries, and a glass of Inca Kola (I'll talk about that later). You can have 1/8, 1/4, 1/2, or the whole bird, but the sides never change. I could care less about the sides because the chicken is outstanding. In the picture I ordered 1/4 and had trouble finishing everything. I have eaten here four times since I came to Haunchaco. The best part of it is, besides the taste, this plate costs 10soles. At the moment, that equals $3.68us. Give me a break.

This is a photo of Huanchaco Beach last Sunday afternoon. The tall objects are Caballitos de Totoras. They are a boats made from reeds that local fishermen have been using for hundreds of years and still use them to this day. In the mornings you can go down to the beach and watch the men prepare their boats and nets for the days work. In the afternoons you can go back and buy their catch right off the beach.

My favorite animal is a......

From left to right: Mika, Yudi, Nelson, Jason, Maycol, Marco Antonio, Antonia (spelling?)

This past week, for a vocabulary lesson, we learned about animals and I asked to kids to draw me a picture of their favorite. I got some pretty awesome pictures.