Getting to know Lima, one district at a time

We headed out to Help! on Thursday night with a group of ISA kids. It was a great time again. At around 3, we got our chorizo's and headed out to find a taxi. It was 4 of us, and I was the only sober one. The other girls were clearly inebriated, so the driver turned to me (I was in the front) and asked how long we were staying in Lima. When I told him we'd be here for the rest of the semester, he got very father-like and started telling me about how you can't take just any taxi when you're coming home late at night, because some taxi drivers will assault you, etc. He gave me his card, so that when we're out and need a safe taxi home, we can call him. I think he was thinking "Oh jeez, these girls are just asking to get robbed and left in a ditch somewhere."
So now we have a safe ride, so I feel good about that. Raquel and I were the second people to get dropped off, and there was one girl left that would be taken alone to her house. As we were getting out, Raquel told her "Just stay in the seat behind him so that he can't pull a gun on you, and text me when you get home so we know he didn't kill you." The taxi driver laughed and said in English, "I can understand everything you're saying." :)


After 3 1/2 hours of sleep, my alarm went off. I debated hopping in the cold shower to get the smell of cigarette smoke out of my hair, but then I decided hairspray would do the trick. When I went downstairs for breakfast, grandma offered me a glass of water with my orange juice, which she usually doesn't do. :)


That morning at school was a little rough, and I was really looking forward to going home and napping. While the kids were outside at P.E., the teacher was telling me about some of their situations at home. It was pretty sad. One of them got molested by his uncle when he was 6, and his family never pressed charges. Another got molested and beaten by her father, who told her that if she said anything to anybody he would kill her and her mother, but when her mother (who he also used to beat) found out about it she pressed charges and now he's in jail. Another of the kids is basically on his own all day because his parents are separated and his mother works until late at night. It kind of breaks your heart that 10-year-olds have to deal with all that. 


I went home and took a nap, then went for a run. When I got to the beach, I saw a guy in a go-cart looking thing with a parachute attached to it drive off the cliff and then parachute around the beach. It looked awesome, and I really wanna do it.
I came back and showered, then Raquel and I started getting ready for the party we were throwing. We decided it would be fun to make gluehwein (mulled wine - I'd been craving it with all the cold weather) and brownies and have some people over. We invited all the ISA kids in our area and about 6 people showed up. It was a lot of fun. The mulled wine went over well, and the brownies ended up being super mushy and delicious. 


Side note: When we went to the store to get the ingredients for the mulled wine, we went into the liquor section (we were in a fancy Wong - one of the grocery chains) and immediately these really well-dressed ladies come up to you and ask you what you're looking for. When we told her we needed red wine, she took us over and asked whether we wanted Argentinian or Chilean. I tried to make up answers to her questions, while simultaneously scanning the shelves for the cheapest price. But she wouldn't go away! I kept trying to dart around the liquor store to lose her, and finally we found the boxed wine. We got 3 1-liter cartons of Chilean red wine for 11 soles each (about 13 bucks all together) and we got a few snobbish looks from the liquor ladies.


The party was really fun. We sat in the living room and talked. It was me, Raquel, Hannah, Carlin, Nichole, Mary, Zach, and Andrew (who's names mean nothing to you all, but I'm mentioning them so I'll remember when I go back and read this). We were going to watch a movie, but we were kept occupied mulling over some of life's toughest questions. Among them, what is the difference between evaporated milk and condensed milk, and why do people here drink so much evaporated milk? Also, what is the name of the guy from Forgetting Sarah Marshall and How I Met Your Mother? After about 30 minutes of frustration over this question, we finally came up with Jason Segal. Which means the conversation had to shift to a new topic, that being Harry Potter. With horcruxes and deathly hallows on our minds, the night finally came to a close. 

Me and Zach: "But why would you evaporate milk if you're just going to revaporate it and drink it??"

Today, the sun came out all day. ALL DAY! We slept in, so we missed most of the morning, but in the afternoon we decided today was the day to go surfing. We invited Dawn to go with us and at 3 we headed out and took the bus to Miraflores. We hadn't had lunch, so the first stop was Parque Kennedy for our turkey sandwiches. I decided to be different this week and get pork. Deliiiicious. 
Let me take a minute to explain what is so good about these turkey sandwiches. The guy has a grill and he puts the turkey on it in this special sauce and heats it up. Then he puts a piece of lettuce on top, and some really thinly sliced onions that have been marinated in lime juice. Meanwhile he's also grilling the bun. Then he throws on some mayo and mustard and takes another special sauce and throws it on the grill til it sizzles. He scoops it up with his spatula and throws that on the turkey too, then he soaks up the leftovers on the bun, and serves it. It is pure goodness, for 8 soles (3 bucks). 
We broke with tradition and got churros instead of Pinkberry for dessert. Then we walked over to the beach and went to Parque del Amor. It was gorgeous. It was such a nice day, and everyone was out paragliding or surfing or just hanging out in the park. 

Parque del Amor

By this time it had gotten chilly so we just skipped surfing and walked over to Larcomar, which is a shopping center, but it's outdoor and really pretty. It's got a ton of stuff, and of course, the American stuff like TGI Friday's and Starbucks. But it also has really nice restaurants on the edge that look out over the ocean.

Larcomar

This was the first time I'd been to Larcomar and I looved it. I'm not trying to be too "touristy" or "American" but Larcomar sparkles, and it's nice just knowing that there's a place in Lima that's not too far away that isn't dirty. 


The beach was absolutely gorgeous. Gooooorgeous. 

 We grabbed some gelato and hung out until we were too cold to stand it anymore (it was pretty chilly by the ocean, and I of course didn't bring a jacket) and then we caught a micro back home.