Home Sweet Airport

The airport woes... continue...

When I arrived in Miami on Sunday night, I expected to reunite with Michelle and effortlessly make my way to Lima. But her flight was cancelled and so I was forced to make the journey solo. Arriving at 4:30am in downtown Peru without a buddy did not appeal to me, so Michelle kindly coordinated a taxi to pick me up. So although:

1.) I lost an unopened smoothie in security (my fault anyways) and

2.) I arrived at Starbucks right when they closed, unable to replace my lost smoothie

I thought the worst was behind me... Wrong. The adventures were just beginning.

When I arrived in Lima, I waited and waited (and waited) but my suitcase never appeared on the baggage claim. My rusty Spanish was immediately put to the test while I explained to Giancarlo que se falta mi maleta. After filling out paperwork for an hour and learning that I would have to return the next day to pick it up, I missed my so carefully coordinated taxi ride. Somehow among the multitude of Peruvian faces aggressively asking TAXI? TAXI? I managed to find a trustworthy driver to take me to the hostel. The ride should have cost $30. I only paid $18. (I think I bonded with the driver over the fact that he had a daughter named Nicole and plus he pitied me, the sad little gringa who had lost her luggage.)

So at 6am I reunited with Emily and Barbara who were fast asleep... And I crashed.

The next day Leo and Silvana met us at Inka Lodge.

Prakhar and Tom joined us all in the afternoon. We all went exploring through Lima. Off to exchange money, buy SIM cards, get lunch.

Our first meal was chifa! (Peruvian Chinese food)

The waiters looked on amused as many of us had our first taste of Inca Kola, a fluorescent yellow soda that tastes like carbonated liquid bubble gum. (This is my opinion, sorry Barbara.) Tom was very excited to try it and he documented all these new experiences with lots of photos (which also amused the waiters).

First Inca Kola experiences

Afterwards, everyone relaxed at the hostel. Prakhar, Emily, Barbara, and Tom played an intense round of Euchre and then we had a workout session, complete with planks, push-ups, and wall-sits. We all revealed our competitive Princetonian nature (especially Prakhar) as we all tried to outdo each other. At one point I had everyone doing ballet. It was great. Huamanzana training will be put to shame this year, I feel. My abs still hurt. (We miss you Hank.)

How many Princeton engineers does it take to screw a lightbulb in Peru? Three.

• 1 to communicate to the lady at the front desk, climb the bunk, and screw it in (Barbara)
• 1 to watch and pose, pretending to help (Prakhar)
• And 1 to take the photo (me)

At 9pm Barbara and I had to fetch Michelle (and my bag) from the airport. Michelle arrived, safe and sound. But my bag did not. We made a friend in the LAN lost and found, Cristobal, who although genuinely appeared concerned, was unable to do anything. LAN said they didn't have it, call American Airlines. I woke my poor parents at 2am their time and they found that American Airlines didn't have it, we should talk to LAN. It seemed to have disappeared from the face of the earth.

So we waited... after each flight from Miami, we checked with Cristobal to see if it had turned up. 10:30pm no. 1:30am no. After an executive decision we decided to wait till 5am for the next flight. After a few near breakdowns and treating ourselves to snacks, I had my first experience sleeping in a public place. The booths at the 4d restaurant were surprisingly comfortable.

When we left once again at 5am, I felt too familiar with the Lima airport. Workers who had just started their second shift recognized me from the previous day. We got some strange looks. But at this point I didn't care. All that mattered was I FOUND MY BAG and WE COULD LEAVE THE AIRPORT. Finally! The shower I took when we returned at 6:30am was glorious.

And so I think I've already had my fill of adventures and we haven't even arrived in Samne yet...