One Month Update

As of August 23, I have been in Peru for ONE MONTH! I don't really know how this has happened, the time has completely flown by. Since I want to remember and incase you missed something here are a few of the amazing things I have done:

1. Met and bonded with my host sisters/family
2. Met so many nice Rotarians
3. Made so many new friendships with people from around the world
4. Went to Ica
5. Explored Ica's dunes at night and at sunset
6. Went on an amazing tour of Ica
7. Met the First Lady/President of Peru
8. Explored the city of Lima
9. Started school and made some friends
10. Tried so much amazing food

And while this is obviously not everything amazing I have done, it is a good little chunk of some of the great things I have experienced here. I want this blog post to talk about my first month here and some of the differences I have found between Indiana and Peru. Somethings I knew and was expecting, others not:

1. We have to wear shoes at all times around the house (even in the shower).
2. We don't use hot water for a lot of things (Ex. laundry, dishes, etc.)
3. All of our clothes usually air dry which means if you wash both pairs of your jeans you will be wearing leggings for 3 days.
4. We eat rice with everything (expected) and we eat chicken a lot (the chicken is usually still on the bone).
5. I am asked to eat food all of the time from my host mom, host aunt, and host grandmother.
6. Here people kiss you on the cheek in greeting (this means at a family gathering you kiss more than 50+ people).
7. Toilet paper goes in the trash can.
8. Not all of the students respect the teachers.
9. In Lima, you can't watch the sunset or rise because the sun isn't usually out (it is winter).
10. In general, things are much cheaper here (excluding some random things, ex. coconut oil).

In terms of the language I can confidently say that my skills have progressed slightly. This by no means says that I am good at speaking Spanish. I usually can't understand anything and the only people that usually understand what I am trying to say are Angye and Naty. It is difficult for me to talk in Spanish around people that speak English (there are more than you think) and people that I don't know very well. I think this honestly boils down to a fear of making mistakes and not being comfortable with people. However, I have promised myself from now on to:

1. Speak less English
2. Study Spanish more

I am going to try and only speak English with Peruvians during my English class in school. This will obviously be difficult, but I know it is something that has to be done if I want to become bilingual. As for studying the Spanish, I have invested in some good old flashcards to help with the verbs and I will not only have extra Spanish classes at school, but I may have Spanish classes provided by Rotary.

In conclusion, during my first month here, I have fallen in love with my new, beautiful country. While not everything here is beautiful and I am forced to see things that are hard to watch, everyday Peru is opening my eyes a bit further to seeing the realities of the world. And for this, I am eternally grateful.