Mathilda's Peruvian Gap Year Adventures

Thursday 22 May 2014

Last Post

Thursday 22nd May

I have now been home for a week exactly today, and time flies when you're having fun! It's been lovely to sleep in my own bed again, see my family and friends and just settle back to the 'real world'.

Best airport pickup

I don't have anymore content or photos from Peru to share with you, but I just wanted to write a last concluding post on my experience with Kiya Survivors. I'm not very good at organising thoughts, so I just thought I would write a list of random points and thoughts that I've reflected on recently:

- Being back at home feels very strange, it's like Peru was all a dream and I am back to my reality now. It's all very strange...

- I think about my experience with Kiya Survivors every single day at the Rainbow Centre. I share anecdotes with everyone around me and memories pop into my mind all the time. I am sure this will keep happening for a long time, if not forever.

- I don't think there is anything more beautiful than making a child smile. The happiness it brought me was unexplainable.

- I loved Peruvian food but cannot eat anymore rice or potato chips for a while.

- One highlight from my trip (and from my whole gap year actually) was the diversity of people that I met. I got to meet and spend time with people that I would didn't have much in common with at all, but made some amazing memories.

- I never thought I would get this attached to everyone at the centre, not only the kids but the teachers too, and I miss them all so much.

- I can now speak properly my favourite language, Spanish!

- I've missed my mum's food so much.

- This experience has made me want to travel the world even more and do more volunteer work. It's like the more places you see and things you do, the more you crave it. My bucket list keeps on getting longer...

- I'm not sure if this experience has really changed or made it into a different person. Some people say I am mother nature now or particularly 'zen'. I just I have a lot more people I care about now and a lot more stories to tell.

- I had never had so much contact with disabled kids (if any), but I have learnt so much about them through first hand experiences. The ones I have met are by far the sweetest and most amazing kids in the world.

- I have always thought Kiya Survivors did an amazing job in Peru, but it wasn't until I was actually there that I realised how incredible their projects are. I found it so inspiring and hope I will keep on supporting their work.

- Although there is nothing I love more than traveling, home is always home and I am so happy I had somewhere to come back to after 3 months.

- I only cried twice during my trip: when I left home and when I left Peru...

- I've always had a theory that I don't have enough time in life to go back to countries I've already visited, as there are just too many places I want to see... But I might have to make an exception for Peru, because I must go back one day.

And lastly, thank you to all of you. I hope you enjoyed reading my posts, sharing the 3 best months of my life with me and following my Peruvian Gap Year Adventures! <3

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Tuesday 20 May 2014

Lima

Tuesday 20th May

This post is a bit late, as I have been back in Copenhagen for almost a week now but I still wanted to share my photos and impressions about Lima. I stayed there for a long weekend, as flew back home on Tuesday.

I must admit that I very negative stories about Lima and no one really seemed to like. People said it was dangerous, confusing, crowded and dirty. Therefore, I arrived with very low expectations, which was probably why I was positively surprised. It isn't my favourite city in the world, but there are some parts that I liked.

It was very different from any city I had ever seen before and extremely different from the rest of Peru that I had visited. For the first time I saw upper class Peruvians, tall skyscrapers, the coastline here and many other things. I had missed art museums and just the feeling of being in a big city. I think it might actually be one of the biggest cities I've ever been to (9 million people!) and it feels huge. Every district feels like its own different little city, which was something I really loved as there was so much diversity.

I won't blabber on for too long but will leave you with some photos so you get an idea of what it is like.

Parque del Amor

Sitting, waiting, wishing

"Please take a photo of me"

Modern Art Museum

Barranco Biblioteca

Barranco Church

Popcorn time :3

Puente de los suspiros

Pretty doorways

Art Museum

MALI Museum

Mother's day art

Lima Cathedral

Monastery of San Francisco

So many pigeons (a.k.a. my worst fear)

San Pedro Church

Circuito Playas - Miraflores

Pretty wall

Circuito Playas - Last sunset :'(

I was very sad to leave on Tuesday as it officially meant my Peruvian gap year adventures had to come to an end;, but afterall, being back home isn't so bad... Last post tomorrow! :)

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Tuesday 13 May 2014

Last day of school!

Tuesday 13^th May

And here comes the post that I’ve dreaded writing the most: my last day of school, which was last Thursday. It was by far my most emotional and saddest day at the Centre and I hated saying goodbye to everyone.

Group photo with all the mums and babies in
physiotherapy

Here in Peru, they always have very big goodbyes that they call ‘despedidos’. I personally am not a big fan of goodbyes since they always make me so sad, so this whole ‘ceremony’ was really sweet but made me even sadder. What they do at the centre when someone leaves is that all the kids come up and tell you something and say thank you, and then all the teachers come and do the same. I also said a few words after to thank everyone. Everyone was so sweet and said such kind words that I couldn’t help but crying a little (too much). The teachers also gave me a certificate, a card and some gifts that I will treasure forever.

Overall, it was a sad but lovely that I will remember forever. Like I said on the day, I don’t have a boyfriend so lots of space for all these people in my heart, and I will try not to be sad that I’m leaving but to be happy to have made all these memories I can take back home with me. And in the wise words of Winnie-the-Pooh, how lucky am I to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard :’)

Jose-Julian

Profe. Hilda (who made me a lovely card that all the
teachers signed)

Erick

Brenda saying some kind words

Gian-Marco <3

Javier giving me the sweetest speech :)

Dani

Lourdes (who actually turned 20 that day!)

Alexander

Kati saying her lovely speech

Lourdes

Already miss these hugs

Next post about my last weekend in Lima!

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Monday 12 May 2014

Las Salineras

Monday 12^th May

Let me admit that I am leaving Peru tomorrow and when I look over my ‘Peru Bucket List’ there are still things that I want to do and places that I wanted to visit. More reasons to come back?

Nevertheless, even if I had a very last week of school, I refused to leave Peru without going to the famous Salineras in Maras, which salt evaporation ponds, in use since the Inca times. On Monday after school, Marina, Miguel and I decided to go see them, and I am so glad we did it because it was so worth it!

Arriving at Las Salineras

Group photo :)

I would have never imagined how salt flats could look so beautiful. They reminded me of a Cubist painting that an artist obsessed with the colour white would have painted. The surrounding nature made the colour stand out even and the whole setting looked very surreal. We wandered around the flats for a while and were blown away by how many there were. I was told that each family owns a pond and collects their own salt but then they all share the profits evenly between all the families. I wish I knew more about the process of how the salt is collected but the sight alone is so beautiful. This place was completely different from anything else I had seen in Peru and well worth a last minute visit. Definitely one of my favourite places in Peru.

We made our mark in the salt

Cubist painting

The ponds from above

Salt flats and Sacred Valley in
the background

Locals working in the flats

We also took a few photos while waiting for the bus back home. Last adventures we did the three of us together :’) Next post about my last day of school!