Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Today, we drove from Lima to Ica (about four hours) and I slept most of the way. I woke up about an hour and a half before we arrived in Ica. What I observed from the bus was rather interesting. Acres and acres of crops and farmland in what appeared to be desert. How could they cultivate such dry land? One side of the highway would be covered in row after row of lush, green plants being harvested by hardworking groups of about twenty. The other side of the road was dry, rocky, uninhabited desert. Sporadically, along both sides of the highway, there were small, church-like houses, some adorned with flowers and crosses.I asked Henry what they were for and he told me they are in memorial of people who had died while crossing the highway. He said the accidents normally happen at night because the cars don’t see crossing pedestrians until its too late. I found this so interesting. In the states, all highways have lights every few hundred yards and in most places, it’s illegal to walk along or near highways unlessyour car broke down.

We arrived at our hotel around 4:30 and relaxed by the pool. The side of our hotel is covered in paper-thin pink and red flowers. The furniture is made of tree trunks and I want it for my porch!

Since our rooms weren’t ready, we went in groups to hunt down some food. About eight of us went together and got caldo de rez, and chicharron de pollo con arroz y ensalada. The chicharron was so juicy and delicious. Peruvian food agrees with me, for sure! The caldo de rez was made with spaghetti, rice, chicken and corn (the biggest corn kernels I have ever seen… muy rico!!)

caldo de rez

After lunch, we settled into our rooms. I’m rooming with Syeda and Kaitlyn (chicas fantasticas!). The group met outside for some cerveza and vino before heading out to karaoke. We met an adorable turtle that lives at the hotel! I called him "novio" and tried to pet him but everyone laughed at me because apparently turtles cant feel petting. We shall see. That turtle LOVED me.

We went out to karaoke tonight and had an absolute blast! I could barely speak the next day but it was totally worth it. We started our set by serenading Monica with the Celine Dion classic “My Heart Will Go On.” We had such a fun time and I really think we have a great group dynamic! After karaoke, Kris and I got some french fries and sliced hot dogs to share before bed. We went right home after karaoke because Thursday is going to be a BIG day.

…..Stay tuned!