What Goes Up...
3.29.2016 Tuesday
Promise I'll keep this one short, seeing as I really don't have much to say!
After two weeks of exploring southern Peru (read all about those adventures in my last blog post: Call Me Dora the Explorer), returning to a quiet life in Callao has been a tad difficult. More than anything, I think about home now more than ever... only 44 days, 22 minutes, and 18 seconds until I'll be landing at Denver International Airport!
So, naturally, I was excited for a bit of excitement and distraction, something I thought that Holy Week and Easter would bring.
Boy, was I wrong.
Coming back from vacation meant that it was finally time to head back to a regular teaching schedule as students had begun a new academic year while we were away.
Reminder: seasons are reversed in the southern hemisphere so we just finished summer and started fall. No, fall does not mean boots and sweaters and pumpkin spice everything in Peru. It's too warm and we don't have enough white girls here for that.
Having a teaching schedule has definitely helped pass the days by and left me less excess free time in which I can obsess over all of the awesome things I'm going to do when I get home. Frankly, I can't fathom that it's practically April. Time is flying by.
But. while the weeks breeze by, the days feel long, even with 4-6 daily classes. I can't help but pine for home. To help me stay busy and distracted I've continued to maintain a workout routine (daily runs and yoga videos) and have been trying to fill my time with more than just Netflix. I'd say I'm semi-successful. Though, I did breeze through two seasons of Orphan Black... Soooooo worth it. Like seriously, watch it.
When I first found out that there would be no classes on Thursday and Friday of Holy Week, I was pretty excited. Since I flew home for Christmas, I hadn't really experienced a big religious holiday in Peru. I expected music in the streets and fireworks until the wee hours of the morning, common celebratory practices for Peruvians. Instead, things were relatively quiet, at least in our part of Lima. I assume that downtown Lima and other city centers put on quite the celebration. Kelsey and I had looked into traveling north to Huaraz for the long weekend, but searching for places to stay and transportation to get there only a week and a half before we would have left meant there was little available. We opted to stay in Callao and see what an Easter celebration would be like with our Peruvian family.
We did nothing.
I'm really not being that melodramatic in that statement.
Thursday morning we attended a morning worship service at the ELS church we go to every Sunday. We spent the majority of what was left of the day in the apartment. Doing nothing.
Friday was spent at Daniel's Aunt and Uncle's home in Cieneguilla. The Peruvian fam picked us up nearly two and a half hours later than they said they would so we didn't arrive to the home until around noon. The rest of the day we spentdoing nothing watching movies; and I don't mean with the family. Just me and Kelsey (and Daniel sometimes) by ourselves watched movies upstairs, something we could have done at our apartment. At least we were able to say hi to the animals.
Pro: one of the aunt and uncle's rottweilers gave birth to puppies a few weeks ago.
Con: we weren't allowed to touch them because they haven't been vaccinated yet.
Saturday was like any other Saturday. Doing nothing.
Sunday morning, we returned to church for a worship service identical to our Sunday services. We spent the afternoon sitting in our apartment. Doing nothing.
I love Easter and the joy that I as a Christian have in Christ's victory, but it sure did not feel like a special occasion to me at all this year. If anything, this made me miss home more than ever.
Needless to say, the hours are slowly ticking by and nearly all of my thoughts revolve around home, summer, friends, and family. I'm doing my best to take one day at a time, to enjoy the small things, to appreciate the time I have left teaching, and to live in the moment. It's hard, but I'm almost finished!
43 days, 23 hours, 42 minutes, and 42 seconds until home!
Ciao!
"Keep your face to the sunshine and you cannot see a shadow."
- Helen Keller
Sonrie. Rie. Sea feliz.
Promise I'll keep this one short, seeing as I really don't have much to say!
After two weeks of exploring southern Peru (read all about those adventures in my last blog post: Call Me Dora the Explorer), returning to a quiet life in Callao has been a tad difficult. More than anything, I think about home now more than ever... only 44 days, 22 minutes, and 18 seconds until I'll be landing at Denver International Airport!
So, naturally, I was excited for a bit of excitement and distraction, something I thought that Holy Week and Easter would bring.
Boy, was I wrong.
Coming back from vacation meant that it was finally time to head back to a regular teaching schedule as students had begun a new academic year while we were away.
Reminder: seasons are reversed in the southern hemisphere so we just finished summer and started fall. No, fall does not mean boots and sweaters and pumpkin spice everything in Peru. It's too warm and we don't have enough white girls here for that.
Sometimes the kids give me stickers, cause who doesn't like stickers?
Having a teaching schedule has definitely helped pass the days by and left me less excess free time in which I can obsess over all of the awesome things I'm going to do when I get home. Frankly, I can't fathom that it's practically April. Time is flying by.
But. while the weeks breeze by, the days feel long, even with 4-6 daily classes. I can't help but pine for home. To help me stay busy and distracted I've continued to maintain a workout routine (daily runs and yoga videos) and have been trying to fill my time with more than just Netflix. I'd say I'm semi-successful. Though, I did breeze through two seasons of Orphan Black... Soooooo worth it. Like seriously, watch it.
When I first found out that there would be no classes on Thursday and Friday of Holy Week, I was pretty excited. Since I flew home for Christmas, I hadn't really experienced a big religious holiday in Peru. I expected music in the streets and fireworks until the wee hours of the morning, common celebratory practices for Peruvians. Instead, things were relatively quiet, at least in our part of Lima. I assume that downtown Lima and other city centers put on quite the celebration. Kelsey and I had looked into traveling north to Huaraz for the long weekend, but searching for places to stay and transportation to get there only a week and a half before we would have left meant there was little available. We opted to stay in Callao and see what an Easter celebration would be like with our Peruvian family.
We did nothing.
I'm really not being that melodramatic in that statement.
Thursday morning we attended a morning worship service at the ELS church we go to every Sunday. We spent the majority of what was left of the day in the apartment. Doing nothing.
Friday was spent at Daniel's Aunt and Uncle's home in Cieneguilla. The Peruvian fam picked us up nearly two and a half hours later than they said they would so we didn't arrive to the home until around noon. The rest of the day we spent
Con: we weren't allowed to touch them because they haven't been vaccinated yet.
At least somebody enjoyed the pool while we sat inside. Doing nothing.
Saturday was like any other Saturday. Doing nothing.
Sunday morning, we returned to church for a worship service identical to our Sunday services. We spent the afternoon sitting in our apartment. Doing nothing.
I love Easter and the joy that I as a Christian have in Christ's victory, but it sure did not feel like a special occasion to me at all this year. If anything, this made me miss home more than ever.
Needless to say, the hours are slowly ticking by and nearly all of my thoughts revolve around home, summer, friends, and family. I'm doing my best to take one day at a time, to enjoy the small things, to appreciate the time I have left teaching, and to live in the moment. It's hard, but I'm almost finished!
43 days, 23 hours, 42 minutes, and 42 seconds until home!
Ciao!
"Keep your face to the sunshine and you cannot see a shadow."
- Helen Keller
Sonrie. Rie. Sea feliz.
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