A Couple of Days Out

So, I was finally able to go on a few adventures. Wednesday, we went to the market. It was the feast day of Sts. Peter and Paul, so some businesses and all schools were closed. We got to see a procession in honor of the saints near the market.

We also went to Museo Larco, which had some absolutely beautiful textiles, among other things, including erotic pottery. Here are just a couple of pictures. The rest are in a FaceBook album. I will move them over to a public Google album at some point.

This morning we went back to the market for some breakfast.

Then on to MALI, Lima's art museum. Again, here are just a few pictures.

We went back to the market where I treated myself to a "club" shirt, as I've lost 10 lbs since I've been here. I also got some long pajama pants as the shorts are just too cold for the morning.

Tomorrow it's off to the salon for Sarath, and I think I may have something done with my hair as well. Other than that, this weekend is still a mystery. Happy July!

Back in the Saddle...Mostly

Sorry for the long delayed update, but, as I mentioned, I've been very sick the last several days. So, to catch you all up:

Friday, after several communication debacles, I met the gang in Miraflores. We went to this quaint little bar for a couple of drinks, then I went back to the hotel to sleep.

Saturday, the group when to a huaca (ruin), and I stayed at the hotel to nap (sensing a theme yet?). This is when my cough really started to get noticeable. Alfonso and I went to see "Dejames que te cuente...", a musical inspired by Chabuca Granda, Peru's premier female composer.

Afterward, we went to Larco in Miraflores to see the beach at night.

Sunday Alfonso took me to lunch at a cevicheria "for Peruvians," where he was either trying to kill me or fatten me up for some nefarious purpose.

I was really not feeling well at all on Sunday, so I went to bed early.

Monday, Seri, Sarath, and Christina had presentations in the morning and hair appointments in the afternoon. I stayed home and spent most of the day in bed. From the time they got back in the evening until after dinner, my cough worsened to a sore throat, chills, and I spiked a fever. Reluctantly, I agreed to go to the clinic, which closed just as we got there, so I ended up in the emergency room. Diagnosis: throat infection and 102F (39C) fever. I got an injection to lower the fever and five days worth of antibiotics to take. 

Tuesday I spent most of the day in bed recovering. I'm at about 70% right now, but I can tell I'm getting better because I've been hungry all day.

I think that's a long enough post for now. I'll update you on today's adventures tomorrow. Hasta mañana!

Sick

I haven't forgotten about you all, but I've been sick. Hopefully I'll feel up to a longer post in a day or two.

Watching Other People Work

Yesterday, as promised, I had lunch with Alfonso. For the first time since I've been here, I had what would probably be considered the consummate Peruvian lunch: pollo a la brasa, pappas fritas, y chicha morada. I ended up sticking around the Coliseo Eduardo Dibós while he worked on the production design for a dance contest that takes place tonight. I got to watch some of the groups rehearse. I went with him to pick up a few things (banners, zip ties), and while we were waiting for the banners to be completed, he treated me to pastel de acelga (chard pie). It was passable. I'm sure it would be much better homemade and fresh.

Amada and I talked northern Peruvian food for several hours last night. I didn't eat dinner as I was still full from the pastel, but I had some Chilean wine while we talked. I also managed to finish half a dish cloth (I made another one the night before). They should have three before I leave.

Today I was (am) in a foul mood. One of the dogs started in at about 7:00 this morning and kept going until about 1:00 p.m. I couldn't let her in because it had rained and her paws were wet. I got some work done on the book chapter. I'm going to try to rough in the rest of it tomorrow and give it to Seri to look at and make suggestions on. I'm also trying to track down what is happening with my Fellowship disbursement for summer term. Everything is showing up in Financial Aid, but nothing has moved on my student account yet. Normally I'd call the Student Finances office, but not at $1.00/minute. I'll have to rely on email.

I've been freezing the last couple of days, so I went to Ripley and M .bo today to get a few pullovers, a cardigan, and a scarf. 

By the time I got back, Amada had lunch ready. Quinoa soup and caihua stew with fish. Delicious, as always. She is promising arroz con leche tonight.

Tomorrow the group gets back from the jungle and I'll be meeting them in Miraflores. Unless the dryer gets fixed by then, I'll be wearing week-old jeans since my other two pairs are still soaking wet. 

I seem to have developed a cough and the beginnings of a sore throat. I'm hoping it's just from walking around in smoggy Lima Centro yesterday, but we'll see.

Until tomorrow, here's a picture of Alfonso's stage design in-progress.

Recovering

After I posted on Sunday, I helped in the kitchen by peeling aguaymantos. They taste a bit like sour cherries.

After that I had chupe de leche and arroz con pollo for dinner, then promptly went to bed. I spent most of Monday in bed or in the bathroom. I did manage to make and eat some bland chicken and rice soup. Luckily, things are getting better today. I made a bit more flavorful version of the soup today for lunch (my rendition of sopa de dieta). I'm going to attempt a regular meal tonight to see how things go.

Alfonso had invited me to meet him at his job site tomorrow to have lunch. I just have to figure out how to get there. It seems that taxi will be the easiest, as long as I can communicate where I need to go.

I did manage to finish my lab report today and get it turned in. Tomorrow I need to work on the book chapter. I'm hoping to get the first draft in by the end of Friday. I'd like it off my plate, or mostly so, so I can enjoy the rest of my stay in Peru without worrying about it.

On a side note, I have decided to refrain from commenting on Orlando. Far too many people are getting self-righteous and indignant because they think the Second Amendment gives them the right to own military-grade weapons. Thank whomever you'd like that those people are not in charge of interpreting the Constitution. That is all I will say on the matter. 

OK...I'll say one more thing. Canada is looking more and more tempting every day...

A Wonderful Saturday

I had an absolutely wonderful time yesterday with Alfonso. He took me to Lima Centro where we had lunch, then to Jiron de la Union and La Merced. We went to San Francisco and toured the museum and catacombs.

We also visited Santo Domingo and San Pedro, where we saw the beginning of a wedding. He then took me to Parque de la Reserva, which has beautiful fountains and a fantasia (laser/water) show nightly. Here are some pics and I'll post videos at the end of this entry.

Afterward, we went to Milaflores where I bought a very touristy backpack, then went to dinner where I had tacu tacu for the first time. I wasn't overly impressed, but I guess I can't like everything.

Today, Amada and I went to the organic market

where I got to try a Peruvian fruit, called pacai

and had my first ride in a tuk tuk on the way back.

It also seems that Peruvian food has finally caught up with my digestive system, so I'll be sticking close to home today, probably helping Amada cook.

Oh, by the way, for the duration of my stay in Peru, Alfonso and I are dating (novios temporales) :)

Second Friday

Yesterday I spent most of the day recovering from La Molina and letting my finger heal. Amada made a great salad for lunch, finished off by mazamorra morada.

For dinner she made sopa wantán (there is a lot of Peruvian fusion food here).

I was exhausted yesterday, so I went to bed fairly early and slept until almost 8:00. I did a little work on my lab report, and Amada and I went to Wong (one of the big supermarkets here) to have the buffet for lunch. Tonight I am meeting someone for...not exactly a date, but we are meeting at the mall to explore and talk.

I have my laptop setup at the dining room table, which looks out onto the back patio. On the patio is a fig tree,

And whatever this plant is.

I did laundry last night, but the dryer is broken so I hung up everything outside. As of 5:30 p.m. today, it's all still just about as wet as it was when I hung it up LOL. Ah, well. I'll have to get some more foundation garments while I'm at the mall tonight.

No specific plans for tomorrow. I should really get my lab report done so I can finish the book chapter I'm working on next week.It's just hard to work when I'd rather be out exploring. Discipline...focus....squirrel!

¡Hasta mañana!

End of the First Week

I have now been in Lima for one full week. Tuesday we had a couple of lectures on softwoods and tropical hardwoods in the morning, then a coffee break in the dean's conference room. 

We continued with slide work in the afternoon. Tuesday night I had another dinner date (same guy). Wednesday we spent all day doing slide work. Here is what the entrances to the lab at UNALM looks like.

The slide work went relatively well. At least I got everything done that I needed to in the lab. I just have to finish writing up the report. Only one minor snafu on Wednesday.

One of the hazards of using bare razor blades to cut wood samples.

For those of you wondering, yes, I heard about Orlando. It was all over the news here as well. I'm still having trouble processing the whole thing, but I may have comments later.

On a happier note, after OSU's systems finally came back up, I received an A in my last ever stats class. I also received notice that I have had another paper accepted for publication. That's number seven, I believe.

I'll leave you with a pretty picture of a flower. This grows on shrubs and a single cluster contains five different colors of flowers.

Dias Quatro, Cinqo, y Seis

Sorry I've been absent. There's been lots of activity going on. Saturday we didn't do much, just some more shopping for the most part. However Sarath and I snuck out for anitcuchos Saturday nigh. My first real Peruvian street food!

Sunday we picked up the undergrads from the airport and traveled to La Molina. We went out to dinner for roasted chicken (of course) and pappas fritas. I had my first pisco sour in Peru. I also had a date Sunday night. If you want to know more about that, you'll have to ask me privately ;)

Today we started and the Universidad Nacional Agraria La Molina. We got a tour of campus (I need to figure out a way to insert a slide show) and...had cuy for lunch. Cuy, my friends, is guinea pig. Yes, I ate guinea pig. Not something I will ever be ordering on my own. 

We started tropical wood identification today. It's a bit frustrating due to lack of lab amenities that I'm used to, but I'll adjust. I am going to have to work my butt off tomorrow and Wednesday since I'm not going to Puerto Maldonado and I won't have access to a microscope after Wednesday afternoon.

Tomorrow we hear two lectures in the morning then more microscopy work in the afternoon. In the meantime, I have another dinner date tonight. I'll leave you with a bit of microscopy and a picture of the group at lunch. Chao!

Dia Tres

Second full day here. We had to get up early to pick up Seri from the airport. We made it just in time. Sarath and I came back and had papaya, sandia (watermelon), drinkable yogurt, and coffee (for me) for breakfast. We rested up a bit then picked up Seri and headed to downtown Lima via bus to pick up some things for the field. Sarath treated me to a chicharron (fried pork sandwich). After we got back, we went to have Peruvian fusion sushi, then headed to the Magdalena market to get a few more things. After that, it was back here to rest for a bit, then back to pick up Seri and some french fries for lomo saltado. I helped Amada make the lomo saltado and arroz con leche. Delicious!

The market was interesting. I couldn't have done it without Sarath since my Spanish is awful and you have to ask for everything! It was also a bit odd to pay for things at one counter and pick them up at another. I can't wait to go back to explore a bit more.

I apologize for the lack of pictures. Apparently, cell phone thefts have been on the rise so I haven't been taking mine with me. I will take it tomorrow when we go to explore Plaza San Miguel a little more so I have something to show you. I should have more pictures next week.

I have been told, if you listen carefully, you can hear the ocean at night. I haven't managed to yet, but we'll see what happens.

It sounds like the neighbor's party has died down, so I'm heading to bed. Hopefully I'll have some more for you tomorrow.

Dia Dos

Well, I made it. By the time I got through immigration, got my bags, got through customs, and collected everyone, it was very late. We had some tea and then went to bed. Amada came to pick us up at the airport. I met Ilaria, the lady who helps around the house last night, and Theresa, the aunt, this morning. I had coffee by myself in the kitchen while Sarath and Amada slept. Well, I was alone until these three showed up:

From the left, that's Aretha (Franklin), Chaska , and Carol (King) (below). They were mis compañeros, or more like mis sombras, this morning. After everyone got up and ready, we went to exchange money, get some groceries, and I got a high-tech, thief-proof local phone:

It's thief-proof because no one would actually want to steal it (jejeje)! We also went to a local polleria where I had chicken gizzard anticuchos and pappas fritas. Amada and Sarath have been teaching me Spanish, and I have been helping Amada with her English. Both Amada and Sarath will be having a conversation, then say something to me in rapid-fire Spanish, and wait expectantly. After a bit of staring at each other, either they will realize what they said was not in English, or I'll say, "I have no idea what you just said." Hopefully this will improve over the next five weeks.

If you ever want a thrill ride to rival any roller coaster, take a ride in a taxi in Lima.

Tonight is tuna quesadillas. Tomorrow, we pick up Seri, do some shopping for the class, and go to the market for a few more things (vino! pisco!). Until the, hasta luego.