Halloween, El Día de Los Muertos, Earthquakes, etc.

Greetings,

Yesterday marks two months that I have been in Lima and today marks the final day of campaigning for Barack Obama and John McCain! That means, for most of the readers of this blog, that you won’t have to suffer through any more campaign TV ads! Personally, I miss seeing those ads and feeling the intensity from the campaigns as we near the close tomorrow. Being so far removed from the States means that I have to be proactive and search out news about the candidates, the polls, their slogans, ads, strategies, etc. Anyway, I am very excited to see how things turn out tomorrow!

Friday was Halloween and I missed it. However, I got to see the way that the Limeñas do Halloween. The kids dress up in costumes just like in the U.S. only instead of going door to door the parents take their kids to the malls where the stores give out candy. It’s really a win-win because it is safer and the stores get a lot people coming to shop there while their kids take candy (plus it creates a party atmosphere at the mall which was fun).

This weekend Perú celebrated El Día de Los Muertos (The Day of the Dead). The actual day was Saturday, and is marked by people going out of their homes to visit their dead loved ones in the cemetery. Because the holiday fell on Saturday, it provided us with a true (American style) two day weekend (in Perú the only day of rest is Sunday). So the family and I travelled to Chosica to celebrate this event with Eliza´s extended family. We left early Saturday morning to arrive in time for breakfast in Chosica (they prepared tamales that were so good that I now like tamales). In the afternoon Nelson, Tía Adela, my Abuelita (Grandmother) and I went to the cemetery to visit the grave site of my Abuelita´s brother. I noticed by the dates that he had died when he was only seven years old. The cemetery was unlike any cemetery I’ve ever visited. The tombs were vertical and made of cement. They appeared like walls marked with uniform indentations where the names of the dead are written and where flowers are left each year on this day. We too purchased flowers to place on the ledge of the tomb where Gregorio lies.

We returned to the house to eat lunch (cabrito, baby goat, again) and about half way through the meal the house started to shake a little bit. I thought it must have been a large truck passing by on the street in front of the house. Nelsito, my host brother, knew better and was the first one up from the table ready to take action (though I´m still not sure exactly what are the procedures for earthquake safety. I understand that door frames are safer places). The earthquake (more of a strong tremor really) was pretty much over before it began. It lasted only a few seconds but was string enough to rattle the chandelier above the table which was what clued me into this event being more than just a large truck passing by. Everyone began talking about earthquakes after this. They were asking me if it was the first I had ever experienced (it was) and whether or not I was afraid (not really). One of my many Tías called someone back in Lima to ask if they had felt it. They said that in Lima it was felt much stronger but that it still was not quite strong enough to cause people to leave the house. We turned on the news which confirmed that the epicenter had been in Lima. The earthquake might have been the best part of the whole weekend really (and it was a super fun weekend)! The reason is because, according to Peruvians, an earthquake like that signals the end of one season and the start of another (in our case, the end of winter/spring and the beginning of summer). I have to admit that at first I thought that was completely unscientific and therefore not at all a valid statement. However, the very next day in Chosica (we spent the night there Saturday and then headed back to Lima Sunday afternoon) the weather changed. About one in the afternoon a little bit of fog rolled in to the city and it became cold (the kind of cold that has been Lima these past two months). Then, to my great pleasure, I woke up this morning around six with the brightest sunshine coming through my windows. I wanted to sleep more and it was difficult with this morning light that had been foreign to me for quite awhile. So, thank God for that earthquake because according to my family (who I now believe on these sorts of issues) the days will be like this or even stronger from now until May or early June! I love the sun.

A few other highlights of my weekend include: getting to play tennis with my brother, sister and Aunt, Swimming with my brother, cousin, and his parents ( one set of my aunt and uncle), entering our dog (Legolas) into a dog contest on Sunday afternoon and getting to see (and pet) a wide variety of cute dogs, and just having some really funny and interesting conversations with members of the family who treat me really well.

I´m going to post more pictures of some of these events described. Until my next entry take care!