In Lima

Right now I am in Lima, the biggest city here in Peru and it is not my favorite city. Everything is damn expensive and everyone is business. haha. I was supposed to be on a bus right now coming to this city but last night, after finishing this amazingly beautiful hike that went all the way up to 4800 meters which was high for me. I could feel the altitude and me and the 2 people from canada I was hiking with all had to take it easy some of the way up.  Anyway, after finishing the hike, we got back and one of the people went to book another trek and he found out that his bus for the trek was leaving like 3 hours early because there were/are protests going on in Huaraz. Him and the gal he was with said they got stuck on a bus for like 14 extra hours because of protests in a different part of the country. This scared the shit out of me because I was going to make it to Lima pretty close to the time I need to be at the airport to catch my flight so I just went and changed my bus to last night, so I got here to lima at 5 oclock this morning and i planned on waiting in the bus station until it got light out. I saw another white girl and I asked if I could sit with her and we started chatting. im so glad Im talkative and friendly with people. Most of the people ive met, weve become friends because i go up to them and say hey where are you from? Anyway, this gal is from Israel and we decided to leave the bus station together because she wanted to get a bus ticket to cusco and we both wanted to get out of the bus station so we took a taxi together and had an adventure with that and then finally got to the bus station and asked directions and walked further downtown and ate breakfast and the breakfast was absolutely delicious and the best coffee ive had in all of peru. its funny, i was expecting there to be amazing coffee everywhere in peru but most of it is instant, powder kind. anyway, i ended up having to pay extra because i misunderstood that a juice was more expensive. haha. its funny how the customer service is different down here. theres things i prefer about the customer service down here and other things i prefer about the customer service in the u.s. anyway, then we kept on venturing and we took a combi (like a small bus) down to the more popular district and now were both using the internet. im going to try to take a combi to the airport because it will be so much more cheaper. i think about my friend stefanie telling me that money is just money and its better to spend money on things like travelling than be too uptight about saving it because sometimes i catch myself in a frenzy about money. i think everyone experiences that though, but i know everything will work out how it needs to. I am still waiting to hear back from a woman at the cna 2 grant program who i emailed a week ago. i applied to pcc and got in and i emailed my boss at the nursing home and she told me i can come back and work. so im starting to get some stuff in order. i know i will find a great place to live in portland. im sad to leave peru, but the only thing i didnt do was take a boat up the amazon and maybe thats a good thing because i didnt get all the jungle shots that they recommend like malaria and yellow fever. the jungle was my favorite place i went in all of peru! haha!!!! and i wasnt even originally planning on going. thats the way it works i guess. anyway, im excited to get my baby moto and see my friends and big b and cocoa!!!!!!!!!!! Now im just trying to book a craigslist rideshare down to portland or eugene from seattle. i get into seattle tomorrow morning. i started drinking a little booze and smoking a few cigarettes since ive been in peru. oh no!!! ive met so many damn cool people who love to travel and have great, hilarious stories to tell and who are super laid back and adventurous and spontaneous and silly. I love it!!!!! but i think it will be good to come home and be back in a different element and come back to myself in a different way and reflect and save money so i can travel again!!!!!! Ha!
Also!!!! Something I keep forgetting to mention. The song El condor pasa by simon and garfunkle, which is such a beautiful song. When i first arrived in peru, ive heard the melody on the radio, from bands in the streets, marching bands, all over the place, over different speakers, everywhere. Its totally from Peru. I think its some sort of native song. And the condor is a giant bird that lives in peru. I saw some and I have some pictures that I will put up when i am in eugene or portland. Something super cool.

Thank you to my parents who have said the nicest things to me whilst this blog was being written. Nothing has made me feel happier and prouder of the things I do besides my own self nurturing.
I love you so much.
Love
Josie