A few minutes into our flight, we were asked to fill out the customs and immigration forms. I remember watching my dad fill the same forms out when I was younger and being astounded that he knew all of the information. When I received my forms I realized everything was in Spanish and I thought that was pretty normal. As I looked over to Erin's copies, I saw that hers were in English! I figured the flight attendant thought I was a native Spanish speaker and then wondered if I'd be mistaken for being a native throughout my time in Peru.
We landed and the second I stepped out of the gate, I turned my wifi on so I could contact my parents. I called my dad and let him know I had landed in Lima and he sounded incredibly relieved. I never really thought about how terrifying it must be to let your child out into the world to fend for themselves in another country. I've never felt as if my parents were unsupportive of me going. They've always said that I should seize every opportunity I can and to learn as much as possible so that I can teach those around me. Dad always reminds me that to whom much is given, much is expected. I can already sense that this will be a main focus of our trip.
As we walked through customs after grabbing all of our bags and getting through immigration, we looked for signs that held our name in the hopes of getting to the hostel we'd be staying at for the night. Within seconds, Grace spotted her name and we were being led by a man named Teófilo. He led us out of the airport and to his vehicle. As we walked out, I couldn't help but realize how similar Lima looked to the placed I've seen in India. As we drove through the city I looked around at felt somewhat at ease as crazy as that sounds. I felt like even though I didn't really know my surroundings and I wasn't very comfortable with the language, I would be able to get by because I has experienced a similar city before. I made sure to take note of how far we had traveled and certain landmarks I could remember should we need it but we arrived safe and sound at the hostel. We were received and welcomed and everything was well.
The six of us girls who traveled together from Miami settled in when we heard the loud laugh of Kate and the exclamations of Kerry. They had experienced a long day of getting lost in the city but had an incredible time. I felt somewhat envious of all of their stories but realized I would be making some of my own in just a few hours if not days. We all swapped stories of the stressors of the day and had a few laughs. As we got on the topic of exploring the city tomorrow we talked about what clothes we had brought and I suddenly realized that I never got the memo about having to wear short sleeved shirts. I didn't pack any shirts besides regular t shirts to work out in or to climb Machu Picchu in. We aren't allowed to wear shirts with writing on them either so I got a little nervous but the girls banded together and Catherine offered to let me borrow her clothes and we figured I could buy a few shirts at market places tomorrow at a bargain deal.
I'm very much looking forward to seeing what our team dynamic will be like these next few weeks. If it's anything like tonight was, I'm sure it will be full of laughs and incredible team work and support.
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