estás seguro?

Just about every Sunday I spend part of my afternoon in a park. It's always nice to enjoy the sun and fresh air for a while. It was an enjoyable and relaxing time til some dude and and a woman came up to my friend and I (not always that strange in Abby world....) As some of you know, I've been known to attract various people here who think they want to talk to me.

It wasn't an odd situation until the dude knelt down next to my friend and the woman went and stood behind me. The dude started talking with us really fast in a kind of whiny voice. All we understood was: dinero (the exchange was more like: can you give me you're money please?). Then it got a bit strange when my friend saw the knife in the dude's sleeve. After my friend (who has been blessed with common sense and height) stood up, started talking loudly, and told the dude all she had with her was her homework(actually true...) and that she had nothing else, the woman standing behind me said: Tienes un celular?(do you have a cell phone?). Seriously, are y'all for real? You're asking or are you trying to rob me? A moment later they started to get upset and told us there was no need for us to get worked up or yell. Then they asked us to calm down and sit back down. Then they just walked away, got into a cab, and went their merry way. So strange...kind of felt like I was in a movie or something. Maybe we were their trial run??

I've never been in an attempted robbery where the robbers ASKED if they could have my things. I did have my book bag right next to me with all kinds of stuff in it. I guess it didn't appeal to them because I still have it. Maybe their laid back style creates a stress free working environment?

The whole thing was very calm and it wasn't til afterwords that I fully realized what had happened. It was at least a little bit funny to me, but thinking back, I'm thankful for God's protection in the situation and that nothing worse happened. It's probably a good reminder for me to be aware of my surroundings and the people around me at all times. In reality, this could have happened to me at home in Baltimore walking from the parking garage to the hospital, but he robbers probably wouldn't have been so kind and non confrontational...

Looks like I'll have to find somewhere else to sit Sunday afternoons... Any creative ideas for new locations would be appreciated.

Hasta Luego

Almost Home

When I left Arequipa last week, I wondered what might be in store for me in Cuzco As I've been in school the past four months I've had many questions floating around my brain about what God's plans for me in Cuzco might look like.

The 10 hour bus ride there was quite interesting. It was quite comfortable except for the confused woman behind be grabbing at my head and then getting up and trying to walk around the bus pretty much all night long with her son every now and then saying: “cállate , sientate (shut up/be quiet and sit down). It was a great night. Needless to say, I was very excited to get off that bus in Cuzco. I'd forgotten how much colder it is in Cuzco than Arequipa. That will be a fun adjustment.... I'd also forgotten about all of the beautiful Mountains everywhere you look. Absolutely breath taking!!

My second day was great. I had an opportunity to drive about two or three hours outside of Cuzco with my team leader and his family. It was my first time into the countryside around Cuzco It was different from other parts of Peru I've been to. It was beautiful!!

Sadly, the next day my body decided it didn't like Cuzco and I ended up sick for the next two days or so. As I returned to the land of the living, I enjoyed some time of fellowship with my new team and get to know them a bit. I had the opportunity to worship at the Presbyterian Church on Sunday. It was great and I'm looking forward to worshiping there in the future.

I also got to spend some time at the orphanage that my team runs. There's nothing like walking into a room and having five new best friends for life hugging and crawling all over you. The kids always love attention, so I got to be a big kid for a while (so much fun!!)

I also had some adult time and was able to start ironing out some details about my upcoming move to Cuzco (which is quickly approaching in October...). For now, I'm trying to squeeze in as much Spanish as possible in the next couple of months, but am looking forward to finishing school and moving. It should be an exciting next couple of months....

Oh yeah, the trip back was much smoother than the way there (everyone on the bus was quiet and well behaved...)

Yes, I know it's random, but this is the only picture I took in Cuzco this time. I just thought it was so cute... I was so excited to find out my team leader has a kitten!! For those of you who don't know, I have just a small obsession with cats.

A Breath of Fresh Air

To celebrate my break from school I took a weekend trip to see Colca Canyon and the condors it's known for. I went went on a tour with a tour group. It was a bit of a long ride, but was worth it. Right now is the dry season in Peru, so I was told it wouldn't be all that green. It was true... it was rather yellow, but it was still beautiful in a different way. It was a good to take a short pause from everyday life, enjoy being out in the country for a bit, and take in the beauty of God's creation.

Here are a few pics of the trip.

Ultimo dia...

The next couple of weeks here in Peru will be filled with plenty of fun, fiestas, parades, and lots more. It's an interesting time of the year here in Peru and Arequipa as well. July 28th was dia de independencia for Peru and dia de Arequipa is the 15th of August.

Today's classes were a bit different than normal(this is a bit late in being sent...I'm in the process of catching up a bit....). We had a Peruvian culture day in which heard a bit about Peru and South America's history, prepared a typical for Arequipa, and also had the opportunity to see a little parade with some cute kids to celebrate Peru. It was fun to see the little kids all dressed up(some of them happy and some of them not so happy...) I really enjoyed hearing about Peru's history as it was much richer than any information I've been able to find in my research of Peru. As I'm here learning the language, I've found that it's just as important for me to become acquainted with Peru's people and history. It was a nice day at school. It was also a good day because it was the last day of school before the school's vacation.

This probably doesn't mean that I'll have a nice long break from Spanish, probably just from the classroom setting. I'll be using the time to go to Cuzco for a while. I'm looking forward to meeting some new people on the Cuzco team and reconnecting with some of the people I already know. It will be my first bus ride in South America. Should be fun... I'm told the buses here are more comfortable than the Greyhound buses in the U.S. and more comfortable than planes too. We'll see when I'm done with the 10 hour trip...

Hasta Luego.