Wednesday, June 15, 2011

Back to where it all began.

About a week ago I had the opportunity to go back to Lima for a training.  I had missed a previous one because my community partner didn't show up, so my boss insisted I attend the same training but with the environment program, and their training was being hosted in Lima.  So I was able to convince my host sister, without little persuasion to go with me so we headed off to Lima on our 16 hour bus ride.  The first day was a free day and we stayed in miraflores, the really trendy and rich part of Lima.  It was so nice to be amongst all the things that made me feel like I was in the US.  As soon as we arrived I packed my computer and raced for starbucks for a few hours. Then, I just spent the rest of the day walking around the city enjoying it.
Early the next morning, we all had to meet at the peace corps office to head to the location of the training.  Turned out it was in Chaclacayo.  If you remember, Chaclacayo was the area in Lima where I spent my first 10 weeks in country with my first host family.  So the trip out there was a little nostalgic.  Then, along the way, I discovered not only were we going back to that town, we were going back to the same place they took us when we arrived in Peru.  It was a sort of resort kind of, and we called it our retreat because they kept us there for a day or two to get acclimated.  Being back there was a crazy experience. 
I remember that night back in September when we arrived in Lima and they drove us out there.  I remember being incredibly scared, my stomach was hurting, and I was with 70 something other people I didn't know. It was really funny to be doing it all over again, however 9 months into my service at this point.  We ended up staying in the exact same room that I stayed in the first time.  And all I remember from that stay was getting absolutely no sleep because I stayed up all night wondering what I got myself into!  Since we arrived at night, I really had no clue what Peru really looked like, and I remember that first morning walking out the door of our room and looking at the dirt mountains and little shanty towns of houses built all over them and being in awe.  And now, after 9 months, I look at those houses and think...wow...those are actually really nice houses compared to where to I live.  And the food, I remember sitting down for our meals there and thinking if this is how they eat in Peru I am in big trouble, because it was a lot of food I never tried or wasn't used too.  Then, this time at the training we had pretty much the same menu and I was so excited, it was all my favorites now, which is still shocking to me!  
It just takes me back to those first weeks here in Peru.  I just can't believe how far I have come.  I went from being so scared all the time, unable to communicate, and really questioning the decision I made for coming into the peace corps.   And now I feel like a completely different person, it's amazing what 9 months can do in a place like this and how much it is possible to grow as a person.  I am always thankful.