It all started at Atlanta’s Hartsfield Jackson International Airport (which I do not have pictured here because, in all honesty. it seemed too boring on the grand scale of the biggest adventure I was about to pursue).
I got to the airport at approximately 2:33 p.m. My flight was at 5:53 p.m. 6 hours later (more or less), I landed in Lima, Peru.
It was around 1 a.m. when my friend and I finished checking in and going through security again (because we had a connecting flight) – not knowing spanish and having it be your first time going through the connecting flight process was difficult, but we made it through. We waited at some random seats in a random gate section but decided to head to the bottom floor to look for unattended plugs to charge our dying phones.
The floor was completely empty when we got there- except for the three workers who we noticed were taking naps in the corner. We followed suit and took our own naps. I woke up first and when I did I was surprised by the faces and moving bodies of numerous of other travelers.
Trust me, I almost had a panic attack because I thought we had missed our flight. I’m pretty sure I was also drooling a little bit too which was a little awkward to publicly acknoweldge. I woke up my friend and we both packed our things and headed to find our actual gate.
You know how celebrities usually get on their own personal planes by going up the stairs themselves? Well, if I’m speaking honestly, I felt a little famous here. But before I get too far into the start of my adventure, let me tell you that we had to take a bus to get to this specific plane. I never did that before but it was an interesting experience I’ll always remember. People were standing but my friend and I sat down on some flat surfaces that I’m sure are supposed to be used for placing bags, not bodies. Okay, back to the present…
We took a connecting flight to Arequipa. Not pictured here are the two cute boys standing less than 3 feet away from us. Unfortunate, right? No, not really. The two boys ended up sitting in front of me on the plane and one of them pushed his chair back to take a nap. Hello? I’m sitting behind you though? It was truly incredible because I was trying to read my book but I had to stop to take my own nap, because in the moment of being stuck in-between two seats and behind a pushed back one, it was the only thing I could really enjoy to do.
It all worked out in the end though, because after being picked up from the airport by some people of our volunteer team, I headed to one of the volunteers’s house and was blessed with this view.
Arequipa is literally settled in the concave middle of both mountains and volcanoes. And I’m here, living in it. To make it even better, apparently the famous volcano in Arequipa goes off every 500 years, and 2017 is the lucky year! (I say as my fingers tremble to finish typing this sentece). Just kidding. But, if it actually erupts, then at least those of you who are currently reading this will know I wasn’t surprised.
Two hours after arriving at one of the volunteers’s house, I was taken to my actual host family. I first met my host sister and tried to make it as comfortable for both her and me. Keep in mind, I don’t speak spanish. How do we communicate, you ask? Through my basic knowledge of spanish, her above basic level of English, and a whole lot of Google Translate.
I finished my first night in Arequipa with a car tour (thanks to my host dad) around the city. We visited a HUGE mall where I bought shampoo and conditioner, and ended up at the Plasa de Armas which is breathtakingly beautiful. And, as I sat on the bench I took this picture from and reflected on my 48 hour day, with all its struggles, awkward moments, and uncomfortable situations, I knew, that in this particular moment, there was honestly no place I would rather be.
Thanks for reading (As I type this up at midnight with a 7 a.m. wake up call, watching soccer in a rooftop room, wondering what tomorrow is going to be like, and surrounded by the sounds of spanish and barking dogs).
Goodnight,
Roseann
