I´m Here!!!

Well I made it here! My baggage didn´t :( but I did at least so I´m thankful for that. The airline will deliver my bag to the hostel that I´m staying at tomorrow morning though so don´t worry too much...

I have sighed so many times in the last 12 hours. I´m just trying to soak it all in. This still feels somewhat surreal. The first thing I learned is that I can not understand or speak Spanish as well as I thought I could. I think also I´m hesitant to say anything because I lack the confidence that I understand the person correctly and the confidence that I won´t sound like an idiot should I try to respond.

But its a cloudy chilly day here in Miraflores, Lima, Peru. It smells like gas, like when you´re behind a dump truck at a stop light and he takes off and blows all the black exhaust into your face. My hostel is blocks from the Pacific, its amazing how there are mountains just protruding out of the ocean all along the coast...like little mini-islands in the making. I just had an empanada for breakfast (a mini pie type pastry filled with minced meat and onions, but the dough is mildly sweet and its topped with powdered sugar). It wasn´t bad but I don´t think I could eat one everyday. I learned at breakfast that when I ask for water I must ask for agua sin gas or I will get seltzer water. And now I´m back at the hostel waiting on 10:00 so I can check into my room and go to sleep! I´m exhausted, needless to say I didn´t get much sleep on the three seperate planes I was on last night. I will be in Lima until the 21st at which point Lauren, Dillon and I will fly to Arequipa. I met up with Lauren at the airport and noticed that Dillon signed into the hostel last night so we´re all here safely, that´s a blessing.

Also, I am renting a cell phone here in Peru. It costs me $1.49/minute to call back home but I get free incoming calls. If you´re interested the number is 51 1 9957-18493. 51 is Peru´s country code and 1 is Lima´s area code. If you´re going to make an international call from the U.S. you must dial 011 first. Supposedly the phone works everywhere in Peru but I guess we´ll just have to see once I´m at 16,500 feet how true that statement is.

All is well on my end, I´m in a very touristy part of Lima so its very safe I´m told (by Pedro, the hostel owner). Feel free to call me or comment on a blog post or e-mail me. I should be able to access the internet daily at least until the 21st. This is the very beginning of something big and exciting, but right now I feel a little overwhelmed, to the point where I´m not thinking about it...just praying to God for strength. A specific prayer need I have right now is that I can really start to pick up this language and have the confidence to trust my comphrehension and ability to speak it.

Until next time, Hasta Luego.