I haven't had this much of a nightlife since college! No matter how old you are in Peru, you are expected to hold your own at a party that goes well into the middle of the night. And then you are supposed to remain awake so that your face does not fall into your food when you go out to eat afterward at three in the morning. We didn't have this "problem" back home in Corona, where most restaurants close by 9 or 10pm. And I think the only people I knew who stayed out late were 23 years old (Allie and her friends!)
Kiko and I have been out late for the past six weekends! Way back in mid September, I went to a Meetup Spanish Conversation get-together, where we practiced our Spanish by playing a variation of the game "Taboo". Afterward, we went to the Fiesta casino, where a few of us ate free sandwiches and drank free drinks while playing the slot machines. I don't like to gamble, and really never do, but I had fun at this place, playing with 10 soles (or about $3.75) for nearly four hours! I even came away with 18 soles! Kiko met me in the casino, where he played a bit but didn't win as much as I did (too bad!), and then we joined the rest of the Meetup group in the casino bar to listen to the live band. Home around 2am. The following weekend was the Meetup Mexican dinner, at a restaurant where we ate decent Mexican food, played "Spoons" and Jenga, and then we all piled into two taxis and went to a club near Parque Kennedy where we danced in our own private room ("El cuarto de la abuela" meaning "grandma's room" was painted on the wall - so random) until 3am. Kiko and I had to make a stop at Bembos, the Peruvian fast food burger place, for a snack before going home, which made bedtime about 4am.
The first weekend in October we used our (free, and you know there's nothing like free!) VIP tickets to attend the Expo Vino on two consectutive evenings. The first time we enjoyed the perks of being VIPs - we received two nice wine glasses and hung out in the VIP room, eating piqueos and tasting wine they were only pouring there. Then we tasted a few more wines, ran into a few people we knew, and ended up at Pits, a famous 24 hour restaurant where I had an awesome hamburger that was brought out on a tray to our car. We also bought flowers from a guy who gave us a deal because he wanted to get rid of them before morning! Home around 4am. The second night we went with Kiko's primos. We did some wine tasting and then had dinner at Granja Azul. There were several popular restaurants which had been set up just for the four days of the Vino Expo, and we enjoyed pollo a la brasa, salad & french fries. After that, we joined a group of friends at Cohiba, a Cuban dance club with a small dance floor and a live band that is really loud. There are fans blowing on the dance floor, which is a big plus when you're dancing in a crowded space. Home early, around 2am.
The second weekend we were up late three nights in a row. On Thursday we went to a get-together at Kiko's childhood friend's house. It was a casual reunion of friends from the neighborhood where he lived when he was 13 to 17 years old. They told hilarious stories and laughed at the things they used to do - it was so cool that they could be together after all these years. Friday night we had a soccer-watching party two hours after moving into my sister-in-law's place! Just a small group of 11 to cheer on Peru as "we" beat Paraguay in the first World Cup qualifying game. Saturday night we went out with our Meetup group, with Peruvians who have lived in the states and returned to Peru (like Kiko) and others who are new (like me, and our new friend from Macedonia). We went to this restaurant called Scena, where we had a delicious gourmet meal and saw two performers a la Cirque du Soleil, one who hovered almost directly above us on a highwire! It was a very unique experience! Afterward we walked to Starbucks for coffee, then Kiko & I said goodbye to the young people who were going dancing while we went home "early".
The next weekend we went to the Peruvian version of Oktoberfest. Our Meetup group tried to reserve a table, but the rules of reserving kept changing (this is Peru after all), so we ended up just grabbing a table when we got there. The night started off great when my friend spun the prize wheel and won a t-shirt, and I spun the wheel for a free beer! We quickly learned the German beer drinking song (Ein prosit, ein prosit!!), listened to the oompah band and watched the strength contests on the stage. After the German band left, the DJ spun a few classics, and we all sang "YMCA". But I was the only one in our group to dance on the table singing "I Will Survive". This being Peru, eventually the music changed to salsa, and we danced, and talked, and enjoyed the party. And of course, we went out to eat afterward, to a cafe attached to a store that's open 24 hours, Pharmax, where you can buy snack food, copy paper, cigars, cosmetics, expensive silver jewelry, household decor, Guess purses, Cross pens, and medicine (among other things you might need in the middle of the night). Home at 4am.
Last weekend we went back to Kiko's neighborhood friend's house for her birthday party. This was a larger affair where drinks and piqueos were served to us, after which we ate dinner and cake, then sang and danced to a variety of 70's music (to which the group kept saying, "oh, remember this?"). At some point I was starting to drag, and probably could have fallen asleep were it not for Kiko's friends who made me get up and dance again! More friends from the past, and more crazy stories. I think we left around 3am.
There is always so much going on at night in Lima, and no matter how late it is, there are tons of people walking down the street, taxis waiting outside of the bars and clubs, music blaring out of second floor windows, people eating at all hours. Now that spring is here and summer is coming, I expect things to get worse! I'd better go take a nap, because I don't know how much longer I can keep up this pace!
Friday, October 28, 2011
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Our Homes Away from Home
My, how time flies. I've almost been in Peru seven months, and while some things are getting easier, I still shake my head at other things and think, "At home we would never do that." It's getting more confusing to say the word "home". My home is in California, with a house full of clothes, and furniture, and things I've collected through the years. For the past nearly seven months we've called the family-owned apartment in La Aurora, Miraflores "home", and now, as of this past weekend, we have a new place to call home.
We had been looking for an apartment to rent that, in a perfect world, would meet these qualifications: must allow two dogs; must be furnished (with furniture) and equipped (with appliances); not too far from La Aurora; within close walking distance to shopping and cafes; close to a park; affordable for our budget; peaceful and quiet (not on a main street or cut through, with no construction projects nearby). We looked in the paper, walked around neighborhoods, told family and friends, and had a real estate friend look for us, too. And...nothing. I don't know where all the schnauzers and beagles live because we couldn't find a place that allowed dogs. I guess it's hard to find a place near a park, and more expensive if it's furnished. We just weren't having any luck, and we were (ok, I was) getting discouraged.
And then came an offer we couldn't refuse! My sweet sister-in-law Marcela and her wonderful husband Alfredo offered to rent the second floor of their duplex to us and our dogs! We were so surprised that we packed up our things in grocery bags and moved in over the weekend before they could change their minds! The place has everything we could have asked for, and more! The duplex where they live is on the fourth floor of an apartment building in Surco, just a few miles away from the apartment in Miraflores. The kitchen, their master bedroom, Alfredo's office, the dining room and large living room are on that floor, and our "space" is upstairs on the top floor of the building. We have our bedroom, bathroom, family room with a flat screen and a fireplace, and a huge terrace that wraps around so you can see outside from two different sliding glass doors. There's nice patio furniture covered by an awning, and you can watch the Golden Retrievers in the park right across the quiet residential street (which is one of several parks in the area)! The apartment is beautifully furnished (my sister-in-law has good taste) and even has a clothes dryer so no more mildewy-smelling clothes!
I won't ever have another transportation excuse for not making it to my pilates class because it's now a short 10 minute walk away! The Plaza Vea grocery store is about an eight minute walk, and next to it is a large mall (four floors) with lots of small clothing boutiques, a myriad of shops, salons, cafes, bowling, movie theater, the list goes on! Our building has an elevator, and I wonder what the dogs think when they get into this tiny room and come out to a different place! We have a security guard inside the building, and he opens the door for us whenever we come and go. Marcela's maid, Eva, is terrific. She's works Monday through Friday, and cooks a delicious lunch, which is our big, hot meal of the day around 2 or 2:30. Marcela and Eva have kindly made space for our things in cupboards and closets. My sister-in-law overflows with hospitality, she's such a blessing in my life!
The dogs are doing a good job of adjusting. It's so great to see them outside on the terrace, enjoying the fresh air. We're training them to stay upstairs whenever we go down. Sometimes one or both will sneak down after us and then we just tell them to go back upstairs and they will. They're getting better every day. They also are getting used to the three other people living here, and actually had a lot of new people to deal with on Friday night (two hours after we arrived!) and Tuesday night. Kiko and I love to entertain, and we were finally able to do so. We had some of Kiko's cousins and friends over to watch soccer. South America just began its World Cup qualifying, so we were, of course, rooting for Peru. With snacks on the coffee table, the bar and pizza on a table outside, there was enjoyment either inside watching soccer or out on the terrace talking and laughing. It felt so good, and so comfortable. I feel really blessed with this new living situation, and hope the dogs don't get on our landlords' nerves!
On Monday morning we discovered the only thing that prevents our new place from being perfect. We awoke to the lovely sounds of hammering and sawing - they are constructing an apartment building next door, and are only working on the first floor! Oh well, nothing is perfect, right? The building will be finished eventually, and in the meantime we will gratefully get an early start to our day in our new home.
We had been looking for an apartment to rent that, in a perfect world, would meet these qualifications: must allow two dogs; must be furnished (with furniture) and equipped (with appliances); not too far from La Aurora; within close walking distance to shopping and cafes; close to a park; affordable for our budget; peaceful and quiet (not on a main street or cut through, with no construction projects nearby). We looked in the paper, walked around neighborhoods, told family and friends, and had a real estate friend look for us, too. And...nothing. I don't know where all the schnauzers and beagles live because we couldn't find a place that allowed dogs. I guess it's hard to find a place near a park, and more expensive if it's furnished. We just weren't having any luck, and we were (ok, I was) getting discouraged.
And then came an offer we couldn't refuse! My sweet sister-in-law Marcela and her wonderful husband Alfredo offered to rent the second floor of their duplex to us and our dogs! We were so surprised that we packed up our things in grocery bags and moved in over the weekend before they could change their minds! The place has everything we could have asked for, and more! The duplex where they live is on the fourth floor of an apartment building in Surco, just a few miles away from the apartment in Miraflores. The kitchen, their master bedroom, Alfredo's office, the dining room and large living room are on that floor, and our "space" is upstairs on the top floor of the building. We have our bedroom, bathroom, family room with a flat screen and a fireplace, and a huge terrace that wraps around so you can see outside from two different sliding glass doors. There's nice patio furniture covered by an awning, and you can watch the Golden Retrievers in the park right across the quiet residential street (which is one of several parks in the area)! The apartment is beautifully furnished (my sister-in-law has good taste) and even has a clothes dryer so no more mildewy-smelling clothes!
I won't ever have another transportation excuse for not making it to my pilates class because it's now a short 10 minute walk away! The Plaza Vea grocery store is about an eight minute walk, and next to it is a large mall (four floors) with lots of small clothing boutiques, a myriad of shops, salons, cafes, bowling, movie theater, the list goes on! Our building has an elevator, and I wonder what the dogs think when they get into this tiny room and come out to a different place! We have a security guard inside the building, and he opens the door for us whenever we come and go. Marcela's maid, Eva, is terrific. She's works Monday through Friday, and cooks a delicious lunch, which is our big, hot meal of the day around 2 or 2:30. Marcela and Eva have kindly made space for our things in cupboards and closets. My sister-in-law overflows with hospitality, she's such a blessing in my life!
The dogs are doing a good job of adjusting. It's so great to see them outside on the terrace, enjoying the fresh air. We're training them to stay upstairs whenever we go down. Sometimes one or both will sneak down after us and then we just tell them to go back upstairs and they will. They're getting better every day. They also are getting used to the three other people living here, and actually had a lot of new people to deal with on Friday night (two hours after we arrived!) and Tuesday night. Kiko and I love to entertain, and we were finally able to do so. We had some of Kiko's cousins and friends over to watch soccer. South America just began its World Cup qualifying, so we were, of course, rooting for Peru. With snacks on the coffee table, the bar and pizza on a table outside, there was enjoyment either inside watching soccer or out on the terrace talking and laughing. It felt so good, and so comfortable. I feel really blessed with this new living situation, and hope the dogs don't get on our landlords' nerves!
On Monday morning we discovered the only thing that prevents our new place from being perfect. We awoke to the lovely sounds of hammering and sawing - they are constructing an apartment building next door, and are only working on the first floor! Oh well, nothing is perfect, right? The building will be finished eventually, and in the meantime we will gratefully get an early start to our day in our new home.
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