Happenings

A while ago, our Interact club went to 'La Maternidad' which was like a clinic for young mothers to go to to have their babies.  We handed out packages with baby clothes and blankets for each of the mothers' babies.  The youngest girl there was 13 and she had a baby girl.  One girl had twins.  Most of the girls we saw there were 16 or 17 I would say.  Abortion is illegal here in Peru so that's why there were so many young mothers. 

Hmm what else have I been up to...I've been doing a lot of gift shopping for souvenirs to take back to the United States.  I actually have like 4 grocery bags of gifts to give away for when I get back!  Tons of cool Peruvian stuff; little stuff like bracelets and key chains, and a few bigger items for my close family.  I am really excited to give my family their gifts :)

Yesterday I went through my suitcase and threw away any garbage/useless things, and separated some old shoes/clothes that I won't be taking with me.  I have bought a second large suitcase to haul back my accumulated clothing and gifts that I've bought here so I'll be packing that up in just a few days.

I have one week left as of tomorrow.  I leave Friday night, the 27th.  Well, technically I leave Saturday the 28th at 1:00 AM so I'll be heading to the airport late Friday night.  I am really looking forward to the following things:

• Being with my family 
• Hanging out with my siblings
• Having my own room
• Being in a known, comforting environment
• Trust and support from my family (I miss them a lot <3)
• My big bed
• Familiarity
• Foods/restaurants I actually like
• Being able to participate in my old hobbies/sports
• Not being sunburned after 5 minutes of sun exposure in the summer
• A weird/small part of me is looking forward to going back to school and seeing people

I will miss:

• Independence to go places and do things (feeling like I am taking care of myself)
• ^ Being able to go pretty much wherever
• Every store/brand available, big malls, abundant places to shop
• Public transportation (cheap buses, taxis at every turn)
• A few foods (Choripan, salchipapa (I can make that one at home), aji (I'm going to bring some back with me))
• Kioskos (little stands on most streets that sell very cheap snacks and drinks)
• The big city life of Lima
•  Mild winters that don't last more than 6 months (why wisconsin why)

I am both very happy to be going back and very sad to be going back.  That's the weird thing about exchange, it really messes with your head.  On one level you are excited to get back to your old life, to do the things you used to do, and to be with your family and friends, but at the very same time you dread going back because you don't want to leave the new life you made here, your new friends, it's almost like it's a new YOU that you have to leave behind.  All the memories that you've made here, all the places you visited and people you met and interacted with, you have to leave it all behind and from what every exchange student I've ever known has told me is that going back is like waking up from a dream, that it's like you dreamed your whole exchange year.  Being back in the United States will be a difficult adjustment, and it's hard for people to understand.  Luckily my family is awesome and they understand that it will not all be sunshine and roses. 

I've loved my time here, it has not always been fun and happy times, but it's all been a learning experience, and that's the point of exchange. 

Peace out
-Ginga

Earthquake!

I was sitting in Spanish class at University two days ago, just being a diligent and well behaved student (lol) when all of a sudden, everything began to shake!  It went on for about 5 seconds!  For the first couple seconds I didn't have enough time to comprehend what was happening, then I was like "Oh my god! EARTHQUAKE!"  We all jumped out of our chairs and rushed towards the door (someone actually knocked over a table which just increased the panic) but by the time we reached the door, it was already over!  I looked online just now and supposedly the magnitude was 5.2, and the epicenter somewhere on the central coast but I'm not sure.  It didn't seem terribly strong to me, but was strong enough to scare everyone!  I wasn't scared, just had a lot of adrenaline, and for me it was more exciting than anything!  In all my 10 months here, there have been tons of little earthquakes but I had never felt any of them until now!  I would always get home and my host mom would be like "Did you feel the earthquake??" and I'd be like "There was an earthquake?".  And I was actually quite disappointed every time one occured but I didn't feel it!  So, I'm glad I finally had the chance to experience an earthquake haha.  However most people here dread earthquakes and are very afraid of them, and with good reason--in 2007 there was an earthquake here that was 8.0 magnitude!  So everyone here thinks I'm crazy when my response to the earthquake was "That was awesome!"