I realized that I hadn't finished off my blog, so I'll let you know what went down until I arrived home (almost a week ago now). I took my last test, and apparently it went just fine because I recently received my grades, and I passed all my classes! On that Wednesday night, the whole group including the professors met at a restaurant to celebrate the end of classes. Esther and I already had plans to eat at an Argentine restaurant with our host mom, so we didn't eat. We left to eat at that restaurant, called "El Gaucho", and I had THE best steak I've ever had in my entire life. I maybe eat steak once or twice a year, so I haven't eaten too much, but still it topped them all. It was so tender and there was not a single fatty part that I had to spit out. I will never forget that steak!
The next day was a free day, and I spent it being sick (surprise surprise) and packing. I left a bunch of stuff behind. Esther and I also went to a market with tons of different kinds of fruits and vegetables and meats. There were stands with dried llama fetuses that people buy to pay homage to "Pacha Mama" or "Mother Earth". It was disgusting.
The next morning, Friday, we had to meet the whole group at a nearby park to set out to Nazca on bus (a 10 hour ride). We had to be there by 7:45 AM, and our host mom hadn't waken up yet by 7:35. Her older son came in saying that he was going to take us to the park because his mom had gone to bed late and wanted to sleep in. I have to admit, I was a little offended. I said, "Ummm...well, I'd really like to say goodbye if I can." So he woke her up, and she hugged us goodbye. I thought that it was a tiny bit strange because we felt so close to her, and she seemed to love us. I just need to keep in mind that it's a different culture. Anyway, the bus ride actually wasn't that bad. They always timed our stops perfectly, plus we got to watch a movie.
We stayed at a pretty sweet hotel in Nazca with a pool! The rooms even had ancient weavings from thousands of years ago, which kind of surprised me because they would be pretty easy to steal. That next day was free. Nazca is known for the lines that were traced in the land supposedly over 1,000 years ago. The best way to see these lines is to do a flight in a tiny plane. There have been a few recent crashes within the last couple of years with all on board dying, so many of us decided not to go. Plus, it cost over $100 for a 30-min. flight. I'll just look at pictures online, thank you. Here are some pics: http://www.unmuseum.org/nazca.htm . It's a mystery where they came from and why they were made. Very interesting. Many who chose to do the flight got very sick and threw up. I guess that's pretty common on these flights. The next day on our way to Lima (another all-day bus ride) we were able to stop at a look-out tower to see two of the glyphs: a tree and two hands. I have the pics on Facebook.
Before arriving to Lima, we made a stop at Huacachina, an oasis in the middle of the desert. It's literally a mini lake with palm trees surrounded by huge sand dunes. It was pretty cool. Most of the group did a dune buggy ride and then did "sand-boarding". It looked like fun, but I was nervous about being sick from the dune buggy ride, which apparently was just like a roller coaster. If I hadn't had to ride a bus for 4 more hours after that, I probably would have done it.
In Lima we were upgraded to an awesome hotel. It was awesome! We went to a traditional show that night, which was very entertaining. The next morning, I was off to Costa Rica first, then to Los Angeles! When I arrived to LA, my luggage didn't come. It was already 11:30 PM, and I was soooo tired and frustrated. How could my luggage not get on the plane in Costa Rica when I had a 4 1/2 hr layover? I filled out the paperwork and requested that my luggage be sent to Mexico, which is where I was flying to in 9 hours. I stopped in the bathroom quickly before leaving, and I thought I'd check the baggage claim one more time, and what do ya know, my luggage was just sitting there! It had arrived on a flight that came in shortly after mine from El Salvador! I have no idea how it got there, but I didn't really care.
It was so good to be home for a couple of hours to see Jordan and the kids. I packed for Mexico, slept for 2 hours, then we headed back to the airport to go to Cabo! Cabo was very very nice. It's a great place to go and just relax. The heat and humidity were unbearable, but at least we weren't doing anything active. We just laid out every day. Unfortunately the pool water was warm, and it even hurt our sunburns a little, so that wasn't too refreshing. The one activity we did was swim with a dolphin. I recommend that you swim with a dolphin at least once in your life. They are AMAZING creatures. So intelligent and so cute! We bought a CD with a bunch of pictures (which costs waaaaay too much money, but they know that people will want to have pictures of the experience since you aren't allowed to bring in your own cameras), and I'm smiling like a crazy person in almost all of them. My face hurt afterwards. Jordan and I were like little kids.
Anyway, go to Cabo for a relaxing vacation. Don't worry about language barrier because everybody speaks amazing English there.
Last night here in Glendale, Jordan and I went to a Peruvian restaurant that we hadn't tried before because it's a only a year old. It...was....amazing! I actually know the Peruvian menu so much better now, so I'd like to go back to the other two Peruvian restaurants that we've tried. We were the only other people in there besides a big birthday party for someone from the family of the owner. The owner was our server, and we talked to him a lot. He started speaking to me in Spanish when he served us our drinks, and I don't know how he even knew I spoke Spanish. I had mentioned to him that I was just in Peru, but that doesn't necessarily mean I speak Spanish. He was extremely nice and excited that I was in Peru. He even gave us free wine. We met some of his family there too. When I asked where they bought a few of the foods specific to Peru (like choclo, purple corn, lucuma), he said that they have to import them. He said that if I want any of those foods to let him know and he can order extra. I really hope the restaurant does alright because it wasn't too busy. We will definitely return. Besides the food being great, hospitality goes a long way for me. We want to bring our families there when they come for Thanksgiving week!
Ok, so to sum my grad experience all up, I'd say it was pretty amazing. My favorite year was Spain. The country is awesome, and it was my first year, so everything was new and exciting. Guatemala was beautiful, and my friends made it very fun, but I don't think I'd return honestly. There are too many other countries I'd like to visit. Peru is an incredible country to which I'd REALLY like to return. I was closest to my host family on this trip compared to the others. A few tears fell upon arriving to Machu Picchu, and I fell in love with the Islas Uros. I had so much fun, but this was also the hardest year. I just wanted to be done with the program and be back home. It will be nice to return with no pressures of studying, and to be with Jordan! I'm pretty lucky to have experienced these countries with some wonderful people. I hope to know many more countries in my lifetime. I'm lucky to be married to someone who loves to travel too!
To finalize my Master's I have to fly up to Sacramento in November to take my 4 huge exams. I will basically have no life from now until then because I have to read over 20 books I think. But 3 months of no fun in my life will be worth it to have this degree I think! Thank you all for your prayers and for reading about my adventures. I will probably periodically update this, especially every time I travel. Hasta luego!
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