Category Archives: Peru

A Sisterhood Blogger and Expat in Peru

Posted on October 3, 2012 | 18 Comments

Blogging is one of those activities that requires regular time and effort, so I’m especially grateful to all the readers and bloggers who continued to keep in touch even when I was so distant through the whole sponsorship application process. And a very special thanks to Catherine Alexandra, a network marketer I truly look up to, for granting me the Sisterhood of the World Bloggers Award even during my blogging silence. Warm gratitude your way, Catherine!

Premio de Blogueras de Solidaridad Global para una Expatriada en Perú

Excited to be a Sisterhood of the World Blogger!

There are two rules that accompany this award:

  • I need to share the love and the award with 7 other women bloggers I respect and let them know about the nominations.
  • I also need to share 7 things about myself. Let me try to come up with facts that I haven’t already shared in my Kreativ Blogger, Versatile Blogger, and Sunshine Award posts.
Seven More Lovely Women Bloggers You Should Follow
  1. Carolyn at Wonder of Tech — My source for all things tech in an easy-to-understand, straightforward way.
  2. Cathy at Just My Thoughts — I absolutely love Cathy’s creativity and insights into life through anecdotes of her family.
  3. Lalia at Skank Rattle and Roll — Under her pseudonym, I really respect how Lalia is able to be so frank and honest in her posts.
  4. Joy at Catharsis — Inspiring, thoughtful, and beautiful writing on motherhood, love, and life.
  5. Marie at Rock the Kasbah — After living with her family in Africa for a couple years, Marie’s now transitioning back to life in the US.
  6. Kaarina at KaarinaDillabough.com — Kaarina was an Olympic coach and is now a phenomenal and ever-motivating business coach.
  7. Lucy at Life Through Lucylastica’s Lense — Lucy has tons of personality and I especially admire her unceasingly positive outlook on life.
Seven Tidbits About This Sisterhood Blogger
    Expatriada en Perú que Resuelva Problemas

    My dad encouraged me to problem solve and learn things on my own, so I learned to ride a bicycle in my living room and later in my backyard.

  1. I attribute my problem solving skills to how my dad would give me free reign with his DOS computer when I was a child and how he encouraged me to self-learn future computer systems, do my own research into immunology and World War II in Asia, teach myself how to ride a bicycle, you name it.
  2. What I value most about my experiences as an expat in Peru is being forced to learn to live a simple life.
  3. Since central heating is virtually non-existent in Huancayo and our landlord won’t let us use any machine that eats up too much electricity, I keep warm with a hot water bottle that I refill every few hours or so.
  4. The fastest time I’ve been able to solve a Rubik’s cube is 1 minute and 41 seconds.
  5. I’m desperately in need of an ergonomic workplace set-up or a daily massage. My shoulders tend to creep up on their own in the current position I’m in and they hurt more and more each day.
  6. I suffer from severe writer’s blog.
  7. I took a stint of sewing classes for a few months this year and made a full tracksuit set. It didn’t fit properly and there were tons of sewing mistakes that I tried to hide, but I made it all by myself with three different sewing machines. =)
What made your day this week?

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Packing for Peru: My Essentials

Posted on February 27, 2012 | 45 Comments

I’ve traveled from Canada to Peru five times so far and feel like I have the “packing for Peru” bit down now. I try to pack as light as possible when it comes to clothes, the rest of the space goes to gifts, and then there’s the matter of “the hand-carry essentials”…

  1. Phone card. Phoning is the easiest way of contacting family when I’m in Vancouver, during my layover in the US, or in Peru, without needing to worry about switching SIM cards or making sure there’s enough load on my cell phone. I’m in the habit of buying Nobelcom phone cards because they’re so easy to purchase online, use, and recharge online. All you need to note down is the toll-free phone number and PIN. A perk? My family in both Canada and Peru can easily follow the English-Spanish bilingual instructions too, so I can give them my leftover minutes.
  2. Universal electric adapter. In Peru, you’ll find both Type A (flat) and Type C (round) plug types while you only see Type A and Type B (3-prong) in North America. Furthermore, electrical outlets in Peru are set at 220 instead of 120 volts typical of Canada and the US. I’ve already had 120-volt electrical equipment smoke up from imploding after plugging them in directly here!
  3. Kindle Fire (and charger). Whenever I have free time, I like to fill my brain with knowledge. In packing light, the Kindle is now my technology of choice over my iPod — having my ears plugged disconnects me from the airport environment I so love. The Kindle Fire also allows me to connect to free WiFi to check for important emails!
  4. Toilet paper. I don’t just mean Kleenex for sniffles here. This is about survival skills and how toilet paper isn’t usually provided in washrooms in Peru. As a side note, you’re supposed to throw your used toilet paper in the garbage instead of flushing it down the toilet, which can clog the system.

    5. El Sol Fuerte de los Andes

    Watch out for the hot Andean sun and the strong UV radiation in Peru.

  5. Sunblock. Although my skin very rarely burns, the Andean sun was out to teach me a lesson. They say being so high up in the Andes not only puts you physically closer to the sun, but that Peru also has one of the highest UV radiation doses in the world because of a thinner ozone layer at the equator. My first time here when I didn’t use sunblock, I ended up developing a photosensitive skin condition that didn’t disappear until I returned to Canada. Since then, I use SPF 70 sunblock for children and “skin intolerable to light.” I figure this will help me avoid wrinkles in the future too. Win-win!
  6. Debit card. In Peru, it doesn’t cost a thing to withdraw from Scotiabank ATM machines and my bank doesn’t charge me anything from their end based on the level of my chequing account. I’ve found that I get the highest amount by withdrawing in American dollars and exchanging the money into nuevos soles at the local currency exchange, which gives better rates.
  7. Spiral notebook (and pen attached to the spirals). A writer, observer, and wanderer needs her notebook. It reminds me to keep my eyes and ears open to my surroundings and to harbor a heart of reflection, especially during all the waiting time typical of traveling. Observations become blog posts and stories, real or imaginary.

    8. Un Momento Sin Palabras en San Pedro de Saño

    A camera is needed for wordless moments such as this one in San Pedro de Saño.

  8. Camera (with battery, memory card, and charger). Recently, I’ve been trying to take out my camera less often because I find that being in the mindset of photo-taking and visualizing how I want a moment to be remembered can take away from the actual experience. Nevertheless, there are those moments that words can’t describe when a visual reminder can often be more powerful.

Anything you would or wouldn’t pack from my list? What are other essentials you pack for your travels?

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Before the World Ends: The Earthquake in Peru

Posted on August 30, 2011 | 72 Comments

The earth is shaking. As far as documented earthquakes go in Peru, there were 8 earthquakes last year ranging from a magnitude of 5.7 to 6.7. Since the 1500s, there had never been more than 4 noticeable earthquakes in a year here. The last major earthquake in Peru lasted 3 full minutes in August 2007 and measured 7.9 on the Richter scale; more than 300,000 people were affected by it, including destroyed homes, injuries and deaths.

This video clip shows footage during the 2007 earthquake on the Peruvian coast in Pisco and Ica and the chaos that ensues immediately afterward. A man plastered in the front seat of his car and another man buried in debris wait to be saved. “Don’t suffocate,” the reporter tells the buried man as he pulls away rocks. “At least you’re breathing. Others are already dead.”

When the magnitude-7 earthquake hit the Peruvian rainforest at 12:49pm last Wednesday, Roy had just left the apartment minutes ago to buy condiments for lunch. I was using his computer to help with a graphic design project and saw my laptop screen moving back and forth slightly. I thought it was nothing until I heard the picture frames rhythmically clanking against the wall behind me. The epicenter was around 250 miles away from where I live in the Andes and the earthquake’s effects reached Ecuador and Brazil. Nevertheless, it was a deep tremor that hit a sparsely populated area. There was limited damage.

Terremoto en el Perú 2011

The epicenter of the 2011 earthquake in Peru was in the rainforest around 250 miles away from Huancayo.

This is the first time I have ever felt an earthquake that lasted for more than a minute. A minute seems fleeting in the grand scheme of things, but it slows down and lasts an eternity when everything trembles around you. Not only are the objects around you on edge, but so are you.

As I researched for this blog post, I discovered that there were already three other earthquakes earlier this year in March and June ranging from 6.0 to 6.5 in magnitude. I wonder how many more there are to come. I wonder when it’s our turn after the devastating earthquakes in Haiti, Chile and Japan within the last 20 months.

I wonder if it was a warning that a magnitude-5.8 earthquake happened the day before at almost the exact time of day in Virginia on the eastern coast of the United States where earthquakes are rare.

Acrobacias Samantha

This is about the only slightly cool acrobatic-like move I've achieved in the last few months, but I know I can do more if I can sideswipe the fear.

I wonder if this is just the beginning and if Reinaldo Dos Santos, “The Prophet of America,” was right when he predicted that Peru would be subject to major natural disasters within the next eight years.

More importantly, I wonder what I will do before this is all over.

Before my world ends, I want to be more fearless (when I practice acrobatics), I want to let go of life’s little worries and frustrations more often (like if our bus doesn’t arrive on time) and I want to laugh more (especially at myself).

What commitment do you want to make before time runs out?

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Thanking You on Friend’s Day in Peru!

Posted on July 5, 2011 | 75 Comments

Every first Saturday of July is the “Día del Amigo” (Friend’s Day) in Peru. The concept was implemented just two years ago by a national beer company, Pilsen Callao, probably as a gimmick to sell more beer.

Pilsen's Día del Amigo en Perú

A national beer company, Pilsen Callao, started Friend's Day in Peru in 2009.

They’ve been promoting it as a day to celebrate friendship with old buddies you haven’t seen in a while. “We’ll remember the anecdotes, the laughs and the good times that we spent,” they advertise.

The slogan of this year’s Pilsen Friend’s Day commercial is: “True friends are always there for you. That’s why, on Friend’s Day, you need to be there.”

Abrazo de Oso

This bear hug is for you!

Despite the connotation with beer, I appreciate the reminder to value my friendships and in honor of Friend’s Day, I want to thank all of you for your friendship! I can’t thank you enough for reflecting with me, for the conversation, for the support through the tough moments, for caring about me and for just being a part of my life. This bear hug is for you!

I also want to recognize an online friend who has made a difference in my life this past week. Carolyn Nicander Mohr has been a true friend to me in recent days, taking time out of summer fun with her family to check in and see how I was doing after a string of health issues. Check out her blog on everything tech, accessible to everyone from the lovers to haters at Wonder of Tech!

In the spirit of Friend’s Day, I’d love to hear about one friend you’d like to recognize who has positively impacted your life in the past week!

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Fireworks in Peru: On Castles and Crazy Bulls

Posted on June 29, 2011 | 68 Comments

In Peru, big community fiestas celebrating patron saints usually involve castillones, tall pyrotechnic towers. Fireworks and sparks shoot out from these castillos (castles) in a series of spectacular shows as Peruvians often celebrate right underneath the extravaganza. I still have a tiny scar from a projectile firework that landed on my upper back as I danced under the castillon during my very first few days in Peru, celebrating the patron saint, Santiago, for Peru’s Fiestas Patrias (Independence Day).

Castillón in Huancayo

You'll often find castillones at patron saints days all over Peru.

The toro loco (crazy bull) is a variation of the pyrotechnic tradition. A person holds up or carries a bull-shaped structure on his head and runs around through the crowd as sparks and sometimes more propeller fireworks fly out from the “bull.”

There’s a reason the use of fireworks by the public is banned in various places around the world, including Davao City (where I was born in the Philippines), Ireland, Chile and Malaysia.

Get a feel for the grandness of these types of celebrations with castillones and toros locos in the following video.

What kinds of positive or negative memories do you have with fireworks? Are celebration and tradition worth the danger of fireworks?

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