Whistle blowing...

Today there was something really interesting about the noise that is always constant in the streets. There were two police officers directing traffic following exactly the turns that the traffic light was giving through its green and red lights. The problem was that they were constantly blowing their whistles to make traffic move and stop. Why? Really why? Why you need to do this whistle blowing even at 9PM sometimes??? or why do cars have to beep their horns all the time even when they know that nothing happens. Yesterday a car kept on beeping it for about 30 seconds because a taxi in front of it was picking up a passenger. Nothing went faster because of his beeping but us pedestrians got a really nice serenade! These are some things that I don't understand, but they go away... I just got a good earful a couple of minutes ago and that is why I remember so clearly.

These weeks have been full of work and I am hoping to have a really nice project by the end of my stay here. The people that I work with are really nice and even though I hope that things will run a little faster, I have to get even more patient. I have been walking still every day to work and on sunday I went to the historic district where Plaza de Armas is located and also to the Art Museum which was really cheap on sundays. The day finished with a great rice with mixed seafood and a large Cusqueña beer that tasted delicious. I just bought my ticket to Cerro de Pasco this friday for a trip to the Stone Forest of Huayllay. They are kind of far, but I have heard that it is worth the trip. I will let you know next week how it goes...

I ran the 10k and other adventures

I did it again yesterday even though my left knee was killing me today the whole day. That is why I had to stay home and read "La fiesta del chivo" from Vargas Llosa. It was a really crowded race with 10,000 people and a chilly weather at almost 8:00PM. Kind of weird to have a race that late, but it was really nice. I had my first week alone at work and it was interesting to experience being my own boss and setting my own schedule. I even got to work from home on wednesday and even though I thought it was going to be difficult to push myself to be on schedule I actually did a lot. I also found out that I had a wonderful street restaurant that sells lunch everyday at a very cheap price and with that home cooking feeling that is priceless (it includes soup, main dish, desert and juice for about U$ 3, great deal!). I am also planning to see a movie during the European film festival at Universidad del Pacifico this tuesday (it is less than 1 block away) and hopefully see some friends of my parents that I was supposed to meet since I arrived. I am also planning to have local trips during the weekends and hoping to hear from anybody that will arrive in Peru before the end of the year to plan the trip to Machu Picchu. Another great discovery was a small little laundry store that charges per weight and did all my clothes including some basic ironing. I will be a loyal customer specially since it is on my daily walk to work. On the food side I have a couple of updates. I finally visited a Chifa, which is a Peruvian style Chinese restaurant. They had good fried rice and a chicken with some sort of nut sauce, which was delicious. I am also a great fun now of the Triple Sandwich, which is two slices of bred cut into triangles in top of each other. They fill it with three ingredients, and so far the best had been the one with chicken, avocado, and cheese and the pineapple, chicken, and ham (just today for dinner :) I am looking forward to a great week meeting with people from local and national health coordination centers and the three largest public hospitals in Lima.

Nazca, Ballestas, and Huacachina

It was an amazing weekend! I started early on saturday morning and took the Soyus bus for 6 hours to Ica. I immediately took the bus to Nazca and arrived there about 5PM. I ate a Lomo Saltado (beef with vegetables that was delicious) and asked for a beer. I didn't know that I was supposed to ask for a small one because they brought a 650ml Cristal that I had to drink. I stayed at the Camiluz hostal where Mr. Fernando was beyond nice. At about 10PM I met with a friend from a friend and went out to dinner and clubbing where I was the only one dancing salsa the Colombian way. I don't know how they dance that here, but I didn't care! At about 2AM I woke up Fernando and went to bed. The next day I struggled for at least 3 hours to catch a plane to see the Nazca lines, but at the end I was able to see them. They were really impressive from the sky, but the ride was quite jumpy too. After I landed I decided to postpone lunch until Huacachina. This is an oasis situated about 4 km away from Ica and accessible by taxi. I arrived there for a late fish at a small store and a very pleasant starry night. At the hostel I saw one of the most unusual things: a guy fell asleep while he was checking his email. I know it sounds sim, but I was trying to get online when I heard him snoring next to me with his Gmail page on the screen (go figure!). Next morning was a very early trip to Paracas and the Ballestas islands where there were Penguins!!! I have probably not seen that many birds at the same time and the pictures in facebook show that I was really amazed by them. It was amazing! After that and a very pleasant lunch with an English guy that had an around-the-world ticket after finishing his helicopter career with the RAF and a Canadian fellow that had been pretty much everywhere in the world.... except Colombia. Last part of the trip was a dune buggy ride and sandboarding around Huacachina, quick packing and a 5 hour bus ride back to Lima. This country has a lot of places to see!!!

How to get lost in Lima

I got lost today, badly! I went out early to fulfill my mission of getting to work by foot, but I ended up at the National Stadium. I was later told that the area was not nice, but I never felt unsafe and there were always lots of people walking too. This incident made me test the Metropolitano, which works in the same way as the Transmilenio in Bogota. It was quite an experience since at 8:30AM it is packed. By packed I mean that there was people pushing more people from the door to fit in and I never saw anybody wait for the next one, so use your imagination! It was very fast though and another checkmark on my things to do in the city. I also went alone for lunch to this restaurant called Susy Wong. For about $4.60 I got an entree with potatoes and chicken, rice, fish with mushroom sauce, vanilla pudding and passion fruit juice... great deal! They even give you a little piece of paper with the things available for next day to plan, which is a good idea. In the afternoon I drew a little map with every street that I needed to take to arrive home and it worked perfectly. It took me about 45 minutes to do it, but with the mildly cold weather it is a pleasure to do it. One of my roommates made some delicious brownies for her boyfriend and just for the price of cleaning the dishes I was able to enjoy one that was just out of the oven (delicious!). I will have another night without covers since they haven't brought them yet, so I am covered from head to toe. I only have one complaint so far... why do people have to beep their horn all the time even in the middle of a huge traffic jam or when there is no traffic like midnight? I am next to a big intersection, so even now I can hear them.

I have a room to stay

I just got a room and I will be spending my first night there tomorrow. It is in the Jesus Maria area on Salaverry Avenue and has a wonderful view from a 14th floor. I have two roommates who are American and working here at least until next year. I also was able to order business cards for the people that I will be meeting at work and even bought a "Cuaderno Norma" (notebook) from the Tottus supermarket. I also decided that since this is a long weekend I will spend it in the south. The person at the hostal gave me some directions and I will go to Nazca, Ica, and Parque Paracas. I just have to get all the details ready by tomorrow or thursday and get the bus on saturday morning (about 7+ hours). I will have plenty of pictures for sure :)

First Day of Work

Today was the first day of work and it went great. I got breakfast in the hostal and waited for my boss to pick me up, but due to traffic I had to work to the office. It was only 12 blocks away and with a cool day it felt perfect. The people were very friendly at the office and things are going well. We had purple chicha with chicken in a restaurant called Caravana and later on in the evening we visited a place called La Gran Fruta where I had a juice made of Chirimoya, Apricot, and Mandarin. It was delicious as well as the egg and avocado sandwich that was made by the owner himself that told us all his 25 year history in the juice business. After that I came back to the hostel and stopped at the supermarket for an iron for all my wrinkly clothes. I am sure that I will have a room setup by tomorrow and will probably move tomorrow night or wednesday morning.

I also benefited from the postponement of the 10k race in Lima and I am signed up already. It will be a week from saturday and during the evening. I am also trying to setup a trip to Ica and Nazca this weekend since it is a holiday on monday.

Today there was a lot of walking! I first went to the supermarket Tottus to get a SIM card for my cell and after a couple of tries it finally worked. I am now able to communicate around the country! After this, it was Miraflores for a long walk along Arequipa Avenue until the "Miraflores oval". At Parque Kennedy next to the oval they had the book fair and I walked along a lot of locals that were really enjoying this after a couple of years of not having it (it definitely helped that Vargas Llosa just won the Nobel prize!). There were also wonderful paintings at the park and even though I had one that was ready to be bought.... I declined :( I am sure that I won't leave without one though! I then went to calle Porta to check an apartment and I ate at a small restaurant were they served traditional chicken with chicha. This was a different chicha than the one we have in Colombia, but a very tasty one. I am sure I will have more in the future specially if it is as cheap as in this place. While walking back to the hostel I also saw the Huaca Huallamarca, which is one of the sites in the city where traditional native artifacts have been found. The Colombian embassy was also on the way and I was vehemently denied pictures of the sign and a huge wall probably due to security concerns. I still got a picture of the huge flag in midair along with those of Colegio privado San Ignacio de Loyola (same name as my high school) and Empresa nacional de la coca. I met with the people in the apartment that I visited yesterday and hopefully they can tell me if they accept me or not since I need to get a definite place. It is very well located, close to the ministry of health, and has a very large cycle route. My boss will pick me up tomorrow around 9AM... so time for bed!

BTW... al pictures on facebook :)