Free Day to Work

Today we had a much needed free day. I slept until about 12, well aware of the fact that I was risking skipping breakfast for some more sleep. Thankfully Rosana knocked on my door and called me down for breakfast. My host dad, James, explained that Peruvians generally have tomales every Sunday as part of their custom. He laid out some bread and butter, cereal, and made one tomale for us to try/share. I wasn't much of a fan but ate a good portion anyway because I was starving at that point.

After we had breakfast, our mom and dad told us that they'd be having a little bbq for lunch and invited us to come down in about an hour. I knew that I was going to go straight to Starbucks or the equivalent, Holly's cafe, to do some work with Tess and Karlayne after so I used the awkward hour in between to pack my computer and notebook. 

I came down around 1pm while they were still preparing lunch. Rosana and I kind of stuck around and talked to them about politics and Peruvian culture. I asked my host mom about the Keiko and Humala Presidential election and brought up the dangers of traveling to Cuzco/Puno around the time of elections. Currently, there is much debate over who will be the new President of the Republic of Peru. Keiko Fujimori is a 26 year old female whose father was President at some point but is now in jail because of corruption and other governmental reasons. The other candidate, Humala is said to have come from a very military background and resembles the personality of Hugo Chavez, Venezuela's harsh dictator. I asked a lot of people, mostly cab drivers and friendly locals, who they prefer but the consensus is that neither candidate is liked. The people, in general, are skeptical and have no real faith in the government. With Keiko, the controversy of her being the first female to run and also her ability to pardon her father if elected make her a bad candidate for Presidency. Also, her young 26 year old mind is believed to not have enough experience to run the country. As for Humala, his dictator ways alone are enough to fear his presidency. If it were not a requirement for Peruvians to vote, I am almost certain most wouldn't. Unfortunately there is a fine of about 85 soles if you do not vote. What I have heard is that most people go to the polls and draw little pictures or scribbles to avoid choosing a candidate.

My host mom, Nicole

Our kitchen

Yummy, fresh salad

Had a bbq for lunch today

My host parents cooking lunch

Our backyard

We will be traveling by plane to Cuzco on election day, June 5. Apparently just a few days ago there was a bomb that was found in the airport that we will be using to fly. I asked my Professor, Monica, if it will be safe and she advised me that perhaps election day will be even safer to travel given that everyone will be at the polls and a kind of silence will be present due to the suspense of elections. My host family said that the problem won't be so much the elections but rather the protests happening in Cuzco and Puno. From what I understand the people are protesting the building of more mines as a means of acquiring capital. They resent having contaminated air and water and are in a very rigorous battle with the government. In Puno, the people have already built road blocks to prevent people from leaving or entering. I won't be traveling with the rest of my group to Puno during the last week because I am going home early for a scholarship program but I am concerned for them and our trip to Puno.

Anyway, the topics were very interesting and I even picked up the newspaper and read a little more on the statistics of the election. Keiko and Humara are pretty much tied when it comes to national percentage so it should be a very suspenseful election. All I can assume is that both candidates are exploiting the mining issue to their benefit. That's politics, anyway.

After lunch I waited on my host dad to finish a design he had been working on. He's an artist so I asked him to design a little something for me to keep and remember my experience in Lima as him as my host dad. I love what he created, it represents the feline that dominates prehispanic culture and the tail is another symbol that represents Caral, the first city in America that was recently found not too far from Lima. He also talked about the strength and ferocity of the puma and how he thought it matched my personality although I've never really showed any side of that to him. I'm actually still quite intimidated around my host family and self-conscious of my Spanish speaking abilities. Anyway, he might make a few alterations on the design but other than that, soon to come..

Went to Holly's after to meet up and do some work. Once again bought the best strawberry smoothie in the world (for 11.50 soles.. sadface). And now, finally caught up on blogs. PS I am in love with the fact that Peruvians always cook their food fresh and visit the supermarket just about every day. Good eats!