I Was a Peruvian for 4 Months :)

Hola!! ¿Cómo estás?.. Today is April 26th which means it is my last day here in Lima, Peru. Holy crap right?!? First, I just want to thank everyone that has kept up and read my blogs, and then of course thank my friends and family that have supported me on this crazy adventure! These past couple of weeks have been kinda crazy and I think due to the fact that they were my last weeks here. Our professor, Dr. Miller, said whenever you travel for a long period of time, you go through different phases and the last phase on the curve is you remember and think about all the things you haven't done yet, so you wanna do them all before you leave!! I think this is a good explanation of our last weeks here!! Here we go....

For the last 3-4 weeks, we were able to go and visit a school here in Lima. It was a private catholic school called PO12. I was obviously extremely excited to do this and see how a school system differs than the schools I've seen in NE. This school had all the grades from Kinder- all the way up to their last year, which I think if I remember right their "senior" year was called their Quinto año. The classroom we were able to work in was with the Quinto kiddos aka the seniors. These kids were the best. They were so welcoming to us and spoke very good English. We would come during their english hour so we would talk about the differences between Peru and NE, and other things. On our last day, they threw us a going away/thank you party. It was amazing. They made us all different kinds of Peruvian food and we of course loved it. So after spending the morning with them and eating some different food, we took some pictures and it was then time for our goodbyes. This experience was one of the best I've had in Lima, and I am going to miss this kids.

The going away/thank you party!!

These were my girls I worked with. 

The whole group.

Now to talk about school. I am so unbelievably happy and relieved we are done for school for the semester. Between having 4 finals in one week, a 10 page research paper due, and try to still have fun my last week here, I was stressing out! I have not studied so much in my entire life!! Okay that might be an exaggeration but I am glad my classes are done. Still, Peruvian literature and Conversation might have be the death of us but we got through it! Thank goodness. 

Another great happening this week, is we went over to Nikki's house because her dad (Jaime) kept telling us over and over again how good his lasagna is. He then went in to tell us the whole process of the sauce making!! He's too cute.So we head over to Nikki's after class, are sipping on some wine and hanging out and then DING! Lasagna is ready and Jaime is beaming from ear to ear! The lasagna was probably the best food I've had in Peru, so I will give it to Jaime, he's a good lasagna cook!! 

After our Psychology and Conversation finals, we decided as a group we wanted to take the Miller’s out to dinner for all that they have done for us. We went to Tanta in Larcomar which is strictly a Peruvian restaurant. The food was great, I had my favorite Aji de Gallina. We then treated ourselves to the wonderful La Bonbeirre cheesecake!! It was a great night. We are so lucky to have traveled and met Dr. Miller and Jeanie. They are such nice people and we had so much fun with them. 

Since Tuesday is our free day, we definitely took advantage of it and went to the chocolate museum in Miraflores. This was such a fun amazing experience. We learned all about the cacao beans, and trees and tried different things including some spicy hot chocolate and then some really good hot chocolate. We then got to make our own chocolate and take it home with us! It was so much fun! We all then kinda went a little shopping crazy in their souvenir shop :)

On my last full day in Lima (cannot believe I’m actually saying this), I spent my time packing, packing, and trying to figure out what I can leave behind to not make my bags overweight!! Finally after a couple hours of struggling and getting mostly packed, Missy and I treated ourselves to getting our nails done then some cheesecake. Later that night, Nikki’s wonderful family (I consider to be a part of their family) came and picked me up and we went for a drive/walk along the beach one last time. It was a great way to end the trip and it was absolutely beautiful. 

As time is coming to an end, literally hours before I leave Lima, I really cannot believe it. It has been one of the craziest, fun experiences of my life and as I have said many times, I could not have done it without the other UNKers here.  What do I love about my fellow travelers aka UNKers aka my family?? There’s nothing not to love about them. They are fun, exciting, hilarious, always down for a good time, adventurous, spontaneous, and so much more! That’s pretty hard to find in a person and I found it in all of them. They seriously are the best people I could have met and done this experience with. We are like a family, and we care about each other so much. It's almost scary how much we all know about each other!! We definitely have had the best times, and made every situation a good one even when we thought it wasn't possible. Not only that, we have some of the best stories and I cannot wait to reminisce about them in the future. We have all promised that we will have reunions and stay close, so I'm gonna hold us too that! 

Wow...today is my last day in Lima, Peru. I have lived, breathed, slept, eaten, rode in combis, studied, and survived as a Peruvian. As I woke up this morning, I saw all of my bags (trust me theres about 40 of them!) it became real. I am actually going home. In the past for months, this phrase, going home, meant my apartment with my Peruvian family. Now the phrase home, is my home in Ashton. I am so incredibly excited to see my family, and yes I will probably be one of those sobbing hot messes in the airport but at the same time I am sad and quite frankly a little nervous. I think this is because I have gotten accustomed to this life style here and it’s so weird for me to think I will go back and get accustomed to my lifestyle in NE. What am I going to miss?? I am going to miss my family of course, all of the UNKers, the weather, some of the food (cheesecake mostly), my cute little guards at my apartment, the overwhelming amount of things to do in Lima, the beach, and all in all.this crazy thing called life here in Lima. I leave tonight at 11:50 and cannot believe it. This experience has definitely been one for the books and has changed my life in so many ways!! So that's all I have, thanks for reading and doing this journey with me!! Adios!! Besos!

Of course more crazy Shenanigans I never want to forget!!:

At La Bonbierre for cheescake:
"Quisiera agua con gas."- Missy
"Whoooa she is getting crazy!"- Me
"Missy likes the gas."- Nikki

"Sorry I can't have a conversation right now... I'm pinning."- Missy
"Um...Yeah excuse me, I'm busy!"- Me

Sayings that never got old in our group:
Ya nasty!
That's beast.
This is real life.
Get it girl!
Tots awesome!

That is all!! Love & miss everyone! I'm gonna miss this crazy place where so many memories happened!

Where did the time go??

Hola de Lima, Peru!! I know it's been a little while since I last wrote, but sorry I have been oh so busy with this crazy thing called life here in Lima!! Welll...kinda. Where do I start? Today is day 94 which according to my calculations I only have 13 days left. As I type that out, I am excited, and sad at the same time. Well before I start getting all sappy and emotional, here is another portion of my life here in Lima.

Well last Saturday, we finally got it organized with our literature teacher to go and tour downtown Lima. Our literature teacher is something else. He's probably the most unorganized teacher I have ever met in my whole life. We have been trying to go on this tour for a couple weeks now, and finally we found a time that worked. We all met at UPC in the morning, but as weird as it sounds, our teacher was 30 minutes late! We all weren't too concerned since we kinda knew how he operated. We go to downtown Lima and tour a museum and then a cathedral. It was interesting and shocking all at the same time. Next thing I know, we are going into the Catacombs of the San Francisco Monestary!! I never in a million years would I think I would see so many human bones, let alone in a dungeon atmosphere. This is something I will never forget that is for sure. I wasn't able to take pictures while we were in there but I stole one off of the internet so you could get the full effect.

Catacombs- San Francisco Monastery

Monastery outside

That same night we were going out to eat and celebrate Adam's birthday. In my family, our birthdays are like national holidays and they are a big deal. Well my thought was, it is his birthday, he can’t be with his family and closest friends so we need to make this spectacular! (this may be why they call me mama Jen) So some of us went out to eat at TGI Friday’s. I know you all are thing “HOW AMERICAN” but sometimes here in Peru we like to remind us of home! And they put Applebee’s to shame with their birthday singing! Emily was the best and went and bought Adam his own personal crown because he was el rey of the night! Of course will a lot of good food, cold beverages, and a bill 800 soles later, we definitely had a great night! I think it was a pretty successful birthday for Adam in Lima, Peru.

Happy Birthday Adam!!!

Missy & I... I love her.

Gettin' down with it!! :)

Well the rest of our weeks and time have consisted of school, homework, Dr. Mills psychology research, and that’s about it. School is winding down fast and we are all trying out best to get the best grades possible. Even if a couple of our teachers are making this difficult…cough..cough.. Peruvian Lit & Conversation. Please let’s keep our fingers crossed that we all do great! Aside from our busy lives with school, Missy, Nikki, and I have become pros at laying out at the pool at my apartment. The people here might think we are crazy since it is getting into their winter but we just don’t wanna lose all of our progress before we go back! We have also of course made another stop at the Burrito Bar and were able to take Dr. Mill and Jeanie there. No surprise, they absolutely loved it!! We will definitely be going there again before we leave.

This last Friday, Nikki’s wonderful family wanted to have a fiesta for us! Get a group of 20 year olds and say the word fiesta, and you got a party to plan! And that’s exactly what we did. Her family threw us one of the best fiestas I have ever been too. Not to mention her family is absolutely amazing. They made us all feel right at home and as if we all belong to their family. Also not only was it a fiesta for us, it was Emily's birthday. So like I stated for Adams birthday, we wanted to make her day amazing! We danced, danced, danced, sang, ate, had a few refreshments and that was just the first hour!!!... No no just kidding. But we definitely did all that all night. Jaime & Giselle ( Nikki’s parents) were the life of the party and were even teaching us a few new dance moves. We didn’t party until the sun came up but we did party until the electricity went out! It was a great night with once again the greatest people.

These two have become my best friends for life. 

Love her!

She's the best!!

Missy, Marina, & I

Happy Birthday Emily & Adam!!

Some of the group

Happy Happy Birthday!!!

As you can tell as I have done my blogs, I have experienced some pretty crazy things and I have enjoyed every minute of it. I mean I am in South America for 4 months, not a lot of people can say that. However, as I type this, I know this is one of my last blogs which means my time here is coming to an end. Honestly, it is hard for me to imagine not waking up to the hustle and bustle of the 9 million people outside my window, not waking up in my twin bed (although I am super excited for my queen), not being in my 6th floor apartment with my family, and finally not seeing Lima outside my window. My family has been nothing but great to me and not seeing their faces or saying Buenos dias to them is gonna be rough. I have become so accustomed to this life, that  going back to Nebraska is scary but also so very exciting. I cannot wait to see my family and all of my friends and the familiarness of my little hometown. We only have 13 days left here, and holy crap that is crazy. These people here (aka UNKers) are my family. I wake up everyday, knowing I am going to see or at least talk to one of them. Thinking that in just a few short days, we will be in different parts of NE, is hard for me to imagine. But we have all made a promise to not forget each other and I am going to hold us too that. But that's all for now...Below I'm gonna post some more of our crazy shenanigans I never want to forget!! Choa! Adios!! xoxo see you soon family & friends! besos...

Shenanigans Peru 2014:

(This one is a little old but I forgot to post it earlier)

..Amber walking past Jorge. 

"I just scratched your scratch. Now it's gonna itch"-Jorge

"That was creepy."- Amber

The unluckiness of Jen Glinsmann- In a 3 month time period, walking to school, got pooped on twice on the same arm by a bird...

Walking home...something jumps from the tree scaring the crap out of Jorge and I.

"I thoutht that was a squirrel!!"-Jorge

"Except there aren't squirrels in Peru."-Me.. It was a cat.

From yours truly Jorge Vera Chavez.... Camel shaped hedges are impossible to ride. Yes that includes their tails.... (I definitely saw this whole thing happen.Hilarious!)

Jorge struggling to use his english when translating.

"Okay, so that's like a horse chair right?"-Jorge

"Um.. no like a saddle!"-Me

"Why is she talking?? I Had to go mix another drink to get away!" -Missy

Definition of an awful day here in Lima- Shower shut off mid washing hair, dropped toast on the floor peanut butter side down, get to campus & some Peruvian guys sneezes in the face, and 6 hours of conversation.... Yes I am not kidding that all happened to me in one day! 

Thats all for now! Adios!! Besos