Chapter 4: Finding my Stride

I woke up this morning in pain - sunburnt shoulders and legs begging to not be stood on – aches born from the hardest hiking of my life. Three hikes in four days, to be exact.

Despite the fleas, the bucket baths, the roosters that rouse me at 5am, or the kittens that poop on my bed, I have fallen for this place. I have surprised even myself at how much I love it here. There is a different quality of life that has nothing to do with the availability of fine wines or spotless delicious-smelling bathrooms. Things move a bit slower, people are more relaxed. My days are never hectic, my nights never off-the-hook. Tranquilo, they would call it here. I have for the past several years seen myself as a city-girl. I love the availability and convenience a city provides. I love the bustle and energy that fill the streets. I crave the diversity and variety that characterizes the American city. I predicted boredom and loneliness from this small Andean town, but I have discovered something quite different. Boredom is scarce; instead, I long for those two hours before bed to read quietly alone. Television, or at least television in English, is long forgotten and I hardly miss it (hardly…). While I am missing my friends and family (love you guys!), I cannot say that I have yet been lonely. I live in close quarters with my homestay family, and Peruvian mothers never let you stray too far from home. Which reminds me… Familial update! Our dog Loba (meaning female wolf, she’s a husky) had 5 puppies last week!!! They are soooooo cute and still have their eyes shut, but are growing every day!

So, alrighty. Lots lots has happened since I last updated (sorry!). Here are a few highlights:

Awkward Host-Brother Encounter. Two Friday nights ago I was sleeping soundly in my bed when I was awoken by a knock at my door. A look at my cell phone told me it was 2:30am, an ungodly hour here in Ollantaytambo (it’s true what they say, nothing good happens after midnight, at least here…). I answered my door to find an intoxicated Javier grinning sheepishly. Now, it must be known that Javier is very nice, but pretty shy AND has a girlfriend in Cusco, whom I have met. He asked me if I had anyone in my bed with me! I made him ask twice because I thought I had heard wrong. I hadn’t. I told him no, no, no, Javier. It’s not a good idea. Buenas noches! And then shut the door in his face. He knocked twice more a few minutes later, but finally retired to his room to play loud music (which I thought was even more annoying than the mid-night wake-up) when I didn’t answer. Needless to say, our encounters since have been extremely awkward.

New House in a week (which will help with the aforementioned awkwardness)! Awamaki is bursting at the seams in our currently office (right now, there are no less than 6 people sitting in this little room, with an Internet connection that only handles 4). But! We found a house that will be transformed into office and volunteer house. I get one of the three rooms ☺ We move in next week and I couldn’t be more excited! Not that I don’t love my host family, but I can’t wait to cook for myself and run my own schedule.

Weekend in Cusco with new friends Michelle, Keri, and Alison. We found this super cheap, but lush (for Peru) hotel to stay at. We played tourist – ok, who am I kidding, I AM a tourist – all day, had a leisurely, and vegetable-filled, lunch at my new favorite restaurant, went to the local market, got hassled by street vendors, got splashed with water balloons by 13 year olds (when will Carnaval be done?!), went out for a fancy dinner, and danced the night away in techno-playing clubs. Glorious and not at all like Ollanta, which is exactly what we wanted.

Hike to Highland Lake (I forget the Quechua name, something with –cocha). I went on a day-hike to a highland lake with some friends about two weeks ago. The first half of the hike was terrible. Entirely uphill, in high altitude, in the rain, freezing, and I wore only a long sleeved shirt and a thin rain jacket. Arriving at the lake, my hands were frozen, and we were soaking wet. After lunch, however, the sun came out and we headed downhill for a lovely afternoon of hiking.

Overnight hike to Lares. Last week five others, and myself, plus Miguel our guide, did a long hike to a nearby town called Lares. The hike itself was not too difficult, just very long. But we had a reward waiting for us at the end: hot mineral springs! It was like sitting in a very hot bath that never ever cools down. Heaven. Bliss. Euphoria. We stayed in a hostel that night, had some good two-truths-and-a-lie laughs and took a very windy and precariously steep road back the next morning.

Hardest Hike of My Life to Yanacocha. A group of six headed out around 7am for what was thought to be an 8-hour hike to a black lagoon high above Ollantaytambo. We proceeded to climb the mountain for five straight hours, at times side-stepping up a 45-degree angle ridgeline. Following a guide written by previous volunteers, we came to a standstill one hour from the lake and the path was nowhere in sight. After a quick analysis of the situation, and with storm clouds brewing around us (literally, around us. We were in the clouds), we decided to retreat. We stumbled into town around hour 9 of the hike, exhausted, and not exactly thrilled at the fact that we would need to do this hike again in order to publish the guide. More to come on this, I am sure!

On the future-life front, I am still eagerly waiting to hear back from law schools! Hopefully I will have some good news soon ☺