By Jamie F., Guestblogger from Cusco, Peru SALUD program
So on Saturday I finally slept for more than 3-4 hours at a time
and actually slept for close to 10 hours!! Woohoo! It felt so good to not have
to get up for anything and just be able to lay in bed and relax. Sadly I had to
start packing up all my stuff and tried to get a little organized. It was hard
packing everything up because if it wasn’t enough to have all my friends leave
the day before it was even tougher to see my room be emptied.
I made my way
over to meet my parents in front of the Cathedral which was jam packed with
people because there was a huge parade going on. We watched the parade for a
bit before wandering the streets trying to find a cheap place to wash my towel.
I finally found one that only asked for 1 sole versus the other places that wanted
4 each. Then we continued wandering the streets trying to decide where to eat.
We didn’t want somewhere too touristy and we finally decided on a place that
had been recommended to me by one of my Spanish teachers, Las
Candilies. It was delicious and not too overpriced and plus there were
plenty of locals there in addition to a few tourists. We got 4 different types
of dishes and absolutely loved them all!
Afterward I took the family to the central souvenir shopping area closer to my
house. This place is huge and has all the souvenirs you could hope for in one
central place so we were able to shop around before deciding on exactly what we
wanted and we knew what a good price was so we could bargain more efficiently.
The trick to bargaining is to ask a little less than you think they’ll take or
offer lower and if they won’t go to a price you like just say you’re going to
return (vamos a regresar) and they know you probably won’t so they’ll offer you
lower and then you choose if that’s a price you like. Sometimes I did actually
return after shopping around for the best price and object. And typically it is
best not to buy something the first time you see it that way you can price it
out and make sure it has the best design for you, etc…
We wanted to buy some
coca tea bags before we left since supposedly that is the only way you are
allowed to bring them back into the states and I love coca tea! We walked over
to the big supermarket by my house and there was a big street fair and festival
going on with live music and traditional dance and costume. It was great! The
family loved seeing a little more of the local side to Cusco instead of all the
touristy stuff they had seen so far. We bought plenty of boxes of coca
tea along with some other Cusco specialties. We grabbed a taxi back to
the hotel to drop off all our stuff, which was a lot of stuff and then walked
around a bit before grabbing dinner and drinks at some bars. Yes, me and my
family went to the bars together, probably one of the first times that has happened!
I took a taxi back to my house and had to finish my packing.
My Peruvian dad and I went to pick up our tour guide for the morning and then
my parents and we were on our way to the 4 ruins right outside of
Cusco. We spent as much time as we wanted in the places and got to enjoy
it without a huge tour group, which was really great. We even went to the
Alpaca factory and my mom got a real baby alpaca sweater. We picked up the rest
of my family at home and we all went to this great local restaurant with
delicious, huge dishes for great prices. It was clearly a local place and
even though I had to do much translating of the menu and subsequently of
conversion everyone had a great time and I know both my families enjoyed
getting to meet the others. I really loved being there with both my
families and will certainly miss my Peruvian family.
I wanted to do a little
more shopping but the more local shops were all closed since it was Sunday but
I think I have enough memories and don’t really need to spend much more money
on tacky souvenirs. We grabbed a lightish dinner and while we were at dinner
overheard people next to us talking about the rainforest and the humongous
animals and insects. My mom just about died hearing about that from people who
had just been there! And I found out our room only has 3 walls!!! ahhh
Well I guess we’ll see tomorrow. We’re going to the Amazon until Thursday and
then have a day long travel back to the States. I’ll write once we’re back in
the states about the rainforest.
Click for information on AmeriSpan’s language programs in Cusco.
Click for information on AmeriSpan’s SALUD program in Cusco.
ShareThis
