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Published: February 2nd 2008
Lima Arrival
The traffic in Lima is extremely chaotic, with liberal horn usage and a high rate of collisions.
Much has happened so I will have to cut down some of my long winded decorations and get straight to the point(s).
The airline lost my luggage (it´ll arrive late) and I had to buy some cheap clothes at the local supermarket before my trip to Lima. Thus I feel a little shorthanded walking around the streets, (¿How is one supposed to impress the Latin girls without his gear?) but truly it doesn't matter to me much because a Latin girlfriend isn't exactly what I want right now.
Arriving to Lima was a pleasure. I was humbled and educated in the mathematical shock one receives when they switch currencies and standards in pricing by getting ripped off on my fare to the hostel. Because of this I now negotiate fiercely with every street vendor I deal with and you can be sure that I nickel and dime even the poorest of the poor running the street stalls (just kidding!).
So this is my first hostel experience. Feels kind of like a dorm: bathrooms are kind of dirty, and almost everyone is between 20-30 years old. The language dynamics really teach one about the concept of
Hostel
My bed in a room shared by 12 international communication. Everyone here is on their own journey.
Most things are cheaper in Peru; a few things are comparable in price. Lunch is generally less than two dollars and a medium class dinner is around 5-6 dollars per plate. The 2 Peruvian beers I've tried are quite light in richness. Those who know me well know that I am a fruit fanatic, and there are all kinds of fruits that I've never seen at pretty good prices.
I'm sharpening my math skills almost as much as my language skills because I have to convert currencies, weights, temperatures, and even time (I write this at 00:15 hrs). On the language, my first day was quite tiring and I felt overwhelmed at times. But now I am getting around quite well; I'm chatting, bargaining, ordering, and feel pretty good about the language. It's quite amazing what happens with the brain during immersion, at one point I was so ingrained that I began even thinking in Spanish, and I became reluctant to switch back to English with the other travelers in the hostel.
The language is tiring though, but luckily I can take breaks by speaking English with my
traveling partner whom I met yesterday. Karen is a fellow student at U of M in the same program. Her long blond hair and fair complexion draws attention with the South American "machismo" hombres (they're quick to stare). Her and I are quite different, but for the purposes of this trip I think we'll be fine.
Traffic here is chaotic and the air is quite smoggy. Pick pockets are pretty common and I enjoyed sitting and watching the obvious ones on the prowl in the Plaza de San Martin. We visited colonial style churches and plazas. I was also able to visit some very rustic street markets where I did some very enjoyable wheeling and dealing and also Lima's Chinatown where I confirmed that my Spanish is much better than my Chinese.
I was able to relax tonight, my last night in Lima, by organizing my photos, writing in my blog, and writing home (a real letter).
We leave for Cusco tomorrow via a 30 hour bus ride across Peru.
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Homer Wu
non-member comment
Way To Go
Hi Jason, way to go, take as many photos as you can to share with us and others later on.