goodbye huaraz!

I’m about to leave Huaraz, and I can’t believe how fast time has gone by. I saw, experienced and learned so much, that I don’t know how to summarize it. I can’t even remember how I saw things a couple months ago, because so many things have just gotten natural to me now. For me that’s a fluent process, and so I can’t imagine that most of my friends have no idea of the life that I’ve been living here. Not only the school, in which I was working, but also the culture and the daily routine in Huaraz have influenced my experiences here. I remember how, quite a long time ago, so many things were completely new and weird for me. For example that you buy bread by the price. Or that you “don’t trow of paper on the toilet” (in Julia’s words). There are still things that I don’t understand or that I’m not used to, but sometimes I really feel like I’ve been living in Peru for a while. I know where to buy what, have an overview about the area and also my Spanish is good enough to survive. Only my Salsa-dancing still needs some practicing. And even though I have to get out of Huaraz from time to time, I know I’m gonna miss it.

In a few days I will exchange my house to a life, where I’ll constantly be moving and living out of a backpack. On one hand I really can’t wait to “hit the road” and on the other hand I have to admit that I’m a little nervous about it. I just know that it’s exhausting to be travelling all the time and I guess I also shouldn’t forget that South America isn’t the same as Europe. But I think after being here for a couple months I’m not all that ill-prepared and I’m looking forward to all the things and places I will see and experience.

All I know now though, is that I’ll be heading south, and spend New Year’s in Cusco.