ChChChChanges!

To take the subject line from an email from my friend, Angela, yes, changes are afloat. Granted, when she wrote me she was talking about the entire past year, but so much has changed just this past week that it almost seems like a new year.

First, the house has changed -- dramatically. Gab and Jess are out of the house for good, Gab going back to the U.S. and Jess in the U.S. for a visit and then returning to Cusco at the end of January but probably not to the house. And Niki is also in the states for a holiday visit. So, for the first few days that just left me and Alvaro and Luna, Jess' puppy, who Alvaro is watching while Jess is away.

And with Gab and Jess gone, I moved into their old room. It's closer to my studio and gets much more light. I upgraded my bed (bigger and less crappy), added some new decorative pieces and settled right in. It's gorgeous and light-filled and warm (thanks to all the light!). I love it.

Before...



And after!



Then Szymon moved in. He's Australian and awesome. He also knows how to cook and has been showing me what to do with seaweed, a pressure cooker and various other kitchen items that I am sadly not familiar with. He's also spent a lot of time working with Ayahuasca, something I still harbor a healthy fear of, but am working through it (even though I think it's good to maintain a little fear of it). I think we're going to set up an exchange with massage for a little Ayahuasca help (not big doses like in ceremony, just small ones for a little more insight). We'll see how it goes.

Sooooo the house that was once full of women and beautiful, intense female energy has now shifted to one that is mostly male (and me). It's so strange. But good, too! Change is always good :)

And we also had two puppies in the house all week. Yes, two. We're watching Luna for Jess, but we've also had Flor here, too. Flor is the last of the litter and absolutely beautiful. She looks like a yellow lab puppy, but since her mom is Chi Chi, we have absolutely no idea what she's going to look like when she grows up. However, when Humberto came over last week and sat down on my bean bag chair, Flor crawled right up into his lap and made herself at home. I wouldn't say it was necessarily love at first sight, but when I mentioned that she might make a good Christmas gift for his family he agreed. So, with no family of my own in sight, I accepted an invitation to join him and his family in Sicuani for Christmas and to bring Flor as a gift.

Two puppies in the house was fun. There's this light energy that comes from them. They played with each other a lot, which was so much fun to watch. They made a few guest appearances in my studio while I was with clients, which was initially cute but moreso to me than the client. I had to then learn how to barricade the door.

The night before Christmas Eve was interesting. On Christmas Eve day, the main square turns into the biggest market in Cusco with vendors coming from EVERYWHERE to sell their wares, including lots of natural greenery and items for natvitiy-scene making. The vendors and their entire families camp out the night before in the square which, on that night, was cold and rainy.

One of Shaina's friends, Sally, is the owner of The Real McCoy, a British pub/restaurant off the main square and, with our help, brought out two big vats of hot chocolate and cookies to pass out to the masses. We ran out quickly, but most of the kids got a hot cup from us.

And then on Christmas Eve day we spent the morning/afternoon in the main square at the market. It was interesting -- there were a lot of interesting items for sale that you don't normally see at the regular markets. More unique handicrafts and a lot of illegal fireworks. Police were doing their best to snuff them out and we saw a few crackdowns, but since fireworks seem to be a big part of every holiday here, I think the authorities generally look the other way.

We eventually made it to Sicuani by 6pm, with a frozen turkey and Flor in tow. Hum's mother was estatic over both (I think a little more for Flor) and after a dinner of meat and rice and potatoes, Hum and I went out to meet his friend to buy some fireworks. In the rain.

In case I haven't mentioned this before, it's summer here in Peru, which means it's the rainy season. And for Cusco, we don't really get what most people think of as summer. It's never hot here. Sure, when the sun is out it can get a little toasty for a couple of hours, but then the clouds roll back in, the rain starts again and it's fucking cold. That's right, it's fucking cold.

Christmas Eve was no exception. It was cold and wet. And we were on the hunt for fireworks. We didn't have to go far. Once we got out of the neighborhood and up to the main part of town, we found Sicuani's Christmas market (I guess every town has one), which was pretty much selling fireworks, alcohol and cheap plastic toys. Ah, Christmas.

Fireworks and alcohol purchased (I declined the offer of a plastic doll), we headed back to his parents' house to watch the end of a Christmas special on TV and set off the fireworks at midnight. The whole neighborhood was ablaze with fuegos artificiales and we made it back to our hotel with all limbs intact by about 2am.

Christmas Day was pretty quiet. Lots of rain, movie watching (his sister has an addicition to these horrible "Crow" movies, so we were subjected to that most of the day), and cuddling of Flor. Flor adapted well to her new environment and settled in to napping with the occasional romp on a pair of shoes the whole weekend. She was a good fit for his family.

Flor and Hum


Post bath...


There was also turkey! Man, I love turkey. Even though it didn't have the mouth-watering trimmings that I'm used to in the states, the white rice, potatoes and beet salad that accompanied it were sufficient. His mom is a good cook and the turkey was perfect. Flor even got a few bones to gnaw on later (which made her incredibly gassy -- lesson learned).

All in all the weekend was enjoyable. Hum and I argued a bit though (something we rarely do) and I think a lot of it has to do with the pressure we all feel around family. His sisters haven't been living up to their potential (to put it nicely) and his parents expect him to whip them into shape whenever he's home. This puts so much stress on a person! Note to all parents: Don't make your most responsible child do the dirty work of cleaning up the acts of his/her siblings -- especially during the holidays. It makes the invited guests feel a little uncomfortable. Thanks.

Got back to Cusco on Monday morning and began preparing for our little viaje starting the next day...

Tantra Workshops, Shabbat and Saying Goodbye

I know I say this a lot, but I'm still amazed by how fast the weeks go and how much actually happens during those 7 days. Last week was no exception. I made new friends, got in touch with my inner goddess and said goodbye (for now) to a dear, dear friend.

Last Wednesday our house was invited to a Tantra workshop run by Bridget, a woman Niki met while I was away. Bridget is British and now lives in Cusco (I think). The workshop was a beautiful lesson in getting in touch with the goddess within -- which also includes our sexuality. We did a lot of paired activities, switching partners every time. It was a wonderful way to connect with the women in the class and really appreciate how different we all are -- but at the same time bonded together as beautiful, strong women.

The exercises were incredibly interesting to me, especially as I get more introspective. For example, we spent 15-20 minutes lying on the floor with our hands on our breasts, breathing and sensing the energy inside of us, and I was surprised by how disconnected I felt to my breasts. I think I'm pretty aware of my sexuality and generally confident, but was shocked by how little I felt when I consciously touched such an important body part so connected with it.

After the workshop, we all felt the need for chocolate (typical women, eh?) and so we invited the other women to our house for good conversation, hot chocolate (I made from scratch -- turned out OK, not great), and quality time getting to know each other better. Almost everyone came and it was a wonderful way to end the afternoon.

As our workshop women started to leave, our friends Selena and Whitney came over to cook for Gab's last dinner. She was leaving the next day and since we had a can of coconut milk sitting in our kitchen for the past 5 months with Selena's promise to cook something with it, we finally got her to do so! She made the most delicious vegetable curry and we inhaled it. I will post the recipe as soon as I get it from Selena -- I promise.

Selena's amazing curry

And then on Thursday Gab left. I gave her a massage in the morning and then we all went out for a final lunch (a few puppies included) at our favorite Japanese restaurant, Kintaro. Gab said her goodbyes to all our friends and then she, Niki, Jess and I taxied back up to our house to help her gather her bags, put her in a cab and send her home. I held it together (barely) until she left, but I can definitely feel a loss here now that she's gone. I'm sure it will get filled soon with a new arrival, but no one can replace Gabs.

The group at Gab's goodbye lunch

Selena, Me and Heather with some of the pups




One last picture (for now) of the brujas.

And then on Friday, something completely unexpected happened. Kind of one of those "only in Peru" things, but I guess it could happen anywhere there are open minds and hearts. Lea and I were having lunch at Prasada, a vegetarian shack around the corner from my house, when three guys came in and asked (in painfully bad Spanish) if all the food was vegetarian. I told them it was and translated a little between them and the cook/owner. We all got to talking and turns out they were Orthodox Jews traveling through Peru and they invited us to their Shabbat dinner that night. Unfortunately, they didn't really have a place to hold a Shabbat dinner let alone cook one, so I offered our house for the occasion and to do most of the cooking.

I take any opportunity to cook here in Peru as a challenge -- especially when it's a feast. Remember, I have no fridge, my oven/2-burner stove combo looks like an Easy-bake contraption and there's almost no counterspace. And after what I created in that kitchen, I think I'm ready for my Iron Chef appearance.

Sooooo, I took the boys to Mega, our big grocery store, and they bought all the necessary items I selected to make our feast. Then I had less than 2 hours to prepare it all because everything needs to be cooked before sundown. But I'm a pro, right? You betcha.

The menu:
Sweet potato latkes with homemade apple sauce and tzaziki (yogurt/dill sauce)
Lentils with risotto
Potato salad (one of the guys made this -- so much mayo!)
Tuna salad (again, one of the guys made this -- still not sure why)
Fruit salad w/mango, strawberries and banana
Garden salad w/homemade dressing
Rum (ok, I didn't "make" that, but it was still served)
Ginger honey tea

We laid out a blanket on the floor of my room and enjoyed picnic-style -- after saying all the prayers and lighting the Shabbat candles (which I did, as the lady of the house). Conversation was lively and entertaining and lasted until about midnight. A good time was had by all and we made enough food for leftovers for the boys the next day (they can't cook anything until sundown on Saturday).

The gang of Jews

So now the house is even quieter. Jess and Niki have both gone back to the U.S. for the holidays, so it's just me and Alvaro (Niki's boyfriend who lives upstairs). It's kind of nice but at the same time a little lonely. Fortunately, Humberto gets back from his job in Lima on Friday and Lea returns from her weeklong Ayahuasca retreat on Saturday, so I just have to hold out a few days more...

Feather Fans, Good Food and PUPPIES!!

Niki decided to cancel our regularly scheduled Sunday yoga and replace it with an arts and crafts day. Specifically, she wanted to make feather fans for smudging and we were all on board. So on Saturday after an uneventful (read: nothing stolen) but productive trip to the Barrotio market, we bought a variety of bird feathers (and food) at Mercado San Pedro for our gathering the next day.

It's funny how things change but don't change when you've been away for a few weeks. While I was in the U.S., some new friends entered our circle here in Cusco and, just like everyone here, when I met them I felt like I already knew them. The people who come through our doors are just beautiful. Leah is from Canada and is spending a good chunk of time here in Cusco taking Spanish lessons, practicing yoga and just living life. Kathleen is from Germany and is just traveling through for a while, also just enjoying life before heading back to med school. I can't even remember how Gab said they found us, but they're now part of the family and joined us for arts and crafts day.

It was the perfect rainy day for crafts. Our friend Selena came and so did Shaina and Heather (Shaina's housemate), bringing a couple of Chichi's puppies (now 6 weeks old) to play with. We made a lunch of chick pea tacos, mango salsa, guacamole and a few other goodies. Delish. We settled in to make our fans with the feathers we bought and a bunch of other beads, stones, leather and hot glue generously shared by Shaina. Each fan turned out so beautifully different and distinctive to each of us and they were so much fun to make!

Lunch.

Making fans!

The final products!

And...the puppies!

Oh, the puppies...
Damn they are cute. But they also need homes. Shaina is starting to feel the stress of having these 5 little munchkins and we're all doing our part to help get them adopted. Two (possibly 3) have new owners, so I took one of the other two out with me for the day to see if I could spark some interest. We went to the San Blas market for a glass of juice, wandered around the neighborhood for a bit and then went back to my house for a nap. When I picked him up that morning, Heather asked me if I wanted the girl or the boy. I said girl and thought nothing more of it after she handed her to me. I probably should've double checked before I named her Sasha for the day. Later back at the house, Jess said to me, "Uh, you know he has a penis, right?" Totally hadn't looked. Good thing Sasha can also be a boy's name!

Whiskey Got a Bath
I met Whitney at my old school on Monday morning after her classes and we walked up to her boyfriend's family's house to pick up Whiskey, her dog. I've watched him before and he is one of the most amusing puppies (at 5 or 6 months old) to observe -- short with shaggy hair and really, really long. He had no idea what we had in store for him -- a big, juicy bath.

Other than our shower, we have no hot water except for the electric kettle. And we kind of forgot about that, so Whiskey was none too pleased with the cold buckets of agua we were dumping on him. Jess, after hearing the raucous, came out of her room and brought over the kettle, adding the hot water to our cold buckets. Whiskey squirmed a little less, but was still not digging the bath. He got dirty again within minutes of getting toweled off, but thankfully behaved himself at the restaurant during lunch (yes, you can bring your dog with you wherever you go here).

Whiskey after his bath.

Meditation Monday
We practiced an Osho meditation this week in our gathering. It was an hourlong active meditation of movement and stillness. So very moving and beautiful. Our group of people changes week to week and it makes the dynamics and energy incredibly interesting. After the women left, Gab, Jess, Niki and I spent some quiet time together, as this would be Gab's last Meditation Monday before heading back to the U.S. for an undetermined amount of time (read: She won't be back anytime soon). Gab got us each a beautiful stone pendant and while we had known that this week would eventually come, we had all been ignoring her impending departure. Sigh.

A Little Recap

Ok, so I've been a little bad about posting, but as one of my students (who checks the blog regularly) said to me the other week, "If I don't see a new post from you in a while I'm just assuming you're having too good a time to write!" True, true, Michelle. But I really do promise to get better about posting.

A couple of fun things to recap on. First, there was a car race that took place throughout all of Peru called Caminos del Inca. A bunch of stock cars decked out like they just drove off the tracks of the Peruvian Indy 500 race through all of Peru and have pitstops in various cities. Now, keep in mind that Peru is the third largest country in South America so the race takes about 2 weeks to complete as most of the journey goes through the Andes Mountains. We got to see them arrive in Cusco and the crowd went wild. As the drivers pulled into the main square they were showered with champagne by busty girls outfitted in one of the sponsor's (rather tight-fitting) unifroms. Ah, race cars and busty girls. My favorite.

The first car on this leg of the race coming round the bend...



Halloween also came and went. It was a fun night of parties, fashion shows and general merriment. Jess painted a cool spiderweb on my neck in addition to the funky make-up she applied so effortlessly (that kind of creativity is unfathomable to me, but it's great having someone so talented in the house). And with my little black dress, fishnet stockings, some fangs and a cheap vampire cape I bought on the street earlier that day, my costume turned out quite nice. Torrential rains kind of washed us out later that night, but it was fun nonetheless.



And then Gab turned 22! While I wasn't there on her birthday (I was already in transit to go back to the U.S.), we celebrated with a big party on the Sunday before I left. My gift to her was to cook whatever she wanted -- and she requested eggplant parmesean and cheesecake. I enlisted our other friend, Selena (an amazing baker), to do the cake and she and I spent the Saturday before the party cooking. The meal turned out fabulous and Gab let Jess dress her up (crazy make-up and all) for the big day. She looked beautiful and stuffed herself silly (as did the rest of us!)

The ladies of the house on Gab's birthday

Meditation Mondays at the house have really taken off and it's grown to be quite a large group. We practice a different meditation each time and then sing, chant or do whatever calls us. What started as a small group a couple of months ago has grown into something bigger that we all look forward to every week. The Monday before I left for my trip to the U.S., Amber brought her didgeridoo and performed some sound healing on each of us and Denise continued to lead us in song at the end. You never know what the night will bring, which is part of the fun.

And just before flying to the U.S., I spent a couple of days soaking in Lima. I'd heard such horror stories about visiting there, but our stay was beautiful. We were in Barranco, the bohemian-style neighborhood next to Miraflores (a very upscale 'hood) and it was gorgeous. Good restaurants, beautiful views of the ocean and an overall sense of "I could live here if I had to live in Lima." Our hotel was actually the mansion of Victor Delfin, a local sculptor and artist still living on the grounds. The house has 5 guest rooms and the entire property is laid out like his personal gallery (and every piece is for sale). It was pretty damn cool.

The sculpture garden at our "hotel"

Out on the town in Lima


Our neighborhood in Lima (Barranco)

We found some cool bars and restaurants (Hum had his first Starbucks), ate some delicious sushi and took in a movie (there are no movie theaters in Cusco so this was a rare treat). Yes, I might have dragged Hum to see "Eat, Pray, Love," and yes, he might have compared my life to that of Liz Gilbert, which I vehemently denied. Aside from that, it was a great send off before traveling back to the U.S.

Ok, I think we're all caught up. Stay tuned for more punctual postings!

Time To Go Back Home

I spent the past 3 weeks in the U.S. visiting friends and family, taking clients, seeing students, celebrating Thanksgiving and remembering the life I used to have before I upped and moved to Peru. It was an amazing life and I did my best to live every moment to the fullest. What I didn’t realize until my first trip to Peru last February was that I wasn’t really happy. But I wasn’t UNhappy either – I was just sort of going through life enjoying what I could enjoy and ignoring what I couldn’t. It was working just fine until I stepped off the plane for the first time in Cusco. I really had no idea what was in store for me other than some volunteer work and Spanish lessons, but my life got turned upside down and when I left Peru at the end of the month I felt like a new part of me had been awakened and now wanted attention – and it wasn’t going to be satisfied until I came back to Cusco.

I was confused. I was depressed. I didn’t know what to do with myself other than work. I took on more clients than I should have and tried to ignore the nagging feeling that I didn’t belong in Washington anymore. Thanks to some amazing energy work and self realization, I made the decision to make a more permanent move back to Peru. I told everyone that it would only be for a few months – I’d be back before they knew it – but those who knew me well suspected that my trip might last a little longer. And they were right.

This posed a major problem. I was married. And while I won’t air any details here, I was married to an amazing man but had a feeling that our relationship (as husband and wife) was coming to an end. I left for Peru separated but with his full support to follow my soul and we agreed to divorce a few months later. This was one of the hardest things I’ve done in my entire life, mostly because I still love him. We are just not meant to be married anymore. But thankfully, we are meant to remain friends – and good ones at that. Thank you, Universe.

So, my first visit back to the U.S. was great. There were some awkward moments with someone who is no longer a friend and seeing my soon-to-be-ex in his new life dating and being single, but I was able to get through it without too many breakdowns (really just one). I spent time with former students of mine, took clients a couple of days and then spent Thanksgiving with my mother. It was a cleansing, re-energizing experience.

And now, back in Peru. Because I was willing to give up my seat on my flight back to Lima on an over-sold plane, I was upgraded to Business Class and still got on the flight! That gave me a few restful hours in a very comfortable, reclining seat and I arrived in Lima with just a few hours to wait for my flight to Cusco. I landed around 7:30 and Humberto met me at the airport with a big smile, a huge hug and kiss. He hadn’t slept much the night before either, so we crashed at my house for almost the entire day and night. I think reacclimatizing makes me tired, but thankfully no altitude sickness.

It’s day two and I’m slowly readjusting. It’s good to be home.