Procrastination... pass the Coffee Extract

This weekend far exceeded all expectations! Friday, I met The Dad in his hotel lobby. After getting the organizational stuff out of the way with our tour guide, we headed out to see Cusco. I showed him the downtown area, where I lived, and introduced him to everyone at Máximo Nível. We ate lunch at a nearby café, which was recommended to me by the chef at my house. It was great!

After the city tour (in which Dad confused the name Saqsaywaman, pronounced ¨Sexy Woman¨, with ¨Sexy Mama¨) we went out for tapas with all of the girls in our group. It was nice to have him meet the people that I am spending most of my life with right now.

Saturday was the big day. We woke up at 4am, and ate a quick breakfast. Though they only had ´coffee extract, ´ which was a bizarre, thick substance with a somewhat coffee-like taste, they did have Equal. I did not realize how much I missed fake, calorie-less sugar until this moment in time. Actually, I do realize it, every morning in fact, but I have buried this pain deep in my chest. There’s no use being depressed over something you can’t change… or buy in a store anywhere on the continent.

From Bus to Train, Train to Bus, Bus to Macchu Picchu, it took about 4 hours. But, oh my goodness, it was all worth it. Macchu Picchu is stunning. It is a city on top of a mountain, very well preserved due to the fact that the Spanish never touched it. I can’t believe that it was discovered only 100 years ago, meaning that it lay a secret for over 400 years!

I honestly can’t think of words to describe this place. It was simply majestic, stunning, and truly unforgettable. And our tour guide, Charles Darwin (I’m 90% positive that’s a pseudonym) was hilarious.

Saturday night, Dad and I went out for a drink with my friends. They really liked him, which made me happy. None of that ¨Oh, your Dad is here, so that’s really awkward and I’m not going to be myself¨ kind of thing. It’s nice to see that sort of acceptance, interest, and amicable relations between two different and important groups of people in life.

Sunday, we woke up early and checked out. Check out in Peru is from 8-9am! That, however, worked out well as it pushed us out of bed and into town. We did a lot of souvenir (which, as a side note, means ´to remember´ in French) shopping and art viewing. We went to church in one of the main Cusqueño churches, and then went to lunch at a nice grill facing a gorgeous fountain. After, we purchased a pretty piece of art (which amounted to 210 dollars total… a real steal!) made by a local Cusqueño painter. All along the way we were hounded by the mobile tourist sales people, pushing woven finger puppets, water color copies, and shoe shining on us.

Though I was tired from the long weekend, I was definitely sad to see him leave. I love my parents!

Today kicks off a long week in school. I teach everyday but Wednesday, and have 2 papers and 2 formal lesson plans due Friday. A little bit stressful, but nothing I can’t handle. If I could just get off blogger and facebook, I’m sure I could finish in no time… but that’s not how I do business. Procrastination is the name of the game… until Friday.