i absolutely positively love peru! south america is amazing! its not clean like europe (not a surprise) but it isnt dirty and gross either. the architecture is amazing and so colorful. all the buildings are yellow and red and blue and green and it has colonial style balconies and arches and the like. today we went on a double decker bus tour around the historical districts of lima. we saw lots of plazas and cathedrals and statues. we stoped at one cathedral, la catedral de san francisco, and went inside to see the church and the catacombs. in the 18th and 19th centuries they used the area underneath the church as a public cemetery. we got to go underneath and walk through the catacombs! our tour guide spoke in spanish half the time and english the other half while she explained all the history and interesting facts about the church and the tombs. i could only understand her part of the time because she spoke at a rate of 1000 words in 30 seconds. there were dusty bones stacked up in little rectangles in the stone ground and categorized in sections by femurs, skulls, and other major bones. it was crazy! we werent allowed to take any pictures though so i was sad. then we walked down to the coast in the miraflores district to see the ocean over the cliffs. there were actually surfers out in the freezing ocean waiting for waves to come! the beach was rocky and there is a mist here they call garua that blows in off the water. it envelopes everything and is very eerie yet beautiful at the same time. we went to this neat shopping mall called larco mar that is built right into the cliffs that looks out onto the ocean. i had a big cone of delicious gelato while we walked along the paved sidewalk overlooking the beach. one man at a fruit stand kept calling me barbie while my friend bought some of his fruit- something i found just hilarious (please note the sarcasm).

later we took a bus down to the district called barranco. this is one of the rougher districts but it is also one of the most historical. there are beautiful old buildings and neat little cafes where you can sit by the coast and have a real peruvian meal and something to drink. all the streets are cobblestone and lined with bright yellow/blue/red casitas (little houses). we climbed to the top of a big cliff along the street to get a view of the entire area below. the area is known as a pueblo joven (literally, a young town). these are shanty districts within the city and also surrounding towns. the poverty was depressing but the people here are so friendly and positive. i even made a new friend- a little stray dog! he was so precious. i was talking with one of the little boys playing soccer in the street and he said the dog's name was bimbo lol. im so proud of myself! i can speak and have conversations in spanish with the locals- but only if i ask them to slow down when they speak. i dont know how but i managed to get sunburned even though it was chilly, overcast, and extremely misty. i guess my curse follows me everywhere i go. tomorrow we are flying to cusco!!!! i cannot wait i just want to get settled in and start my life as a cusquena (someone who lives in cusco). the altitude there is 11,000 feet so they are preparing us majorly for altitude sickness. in the morning before we leave we have to drink mate de coca, a drink made from hot water and coca leaves that helps you adjust to the extreme altitude. we leave for the airport at 630 am and arrive in cusco around 11 am. after that i have no idea whats in store but i am ready for anything. i am so happy being here and im having the time of my life! im so glad i decided to do this- it is worth all the essays i had to write for scholarship applications.

love to all and buenas nochas queridos!!!!