First Day

I survived my first day of TEFL training and trekking the crazy hills of Cusco!

Up at 7:00am to leave the house at 8:30 for the 20 minute walk to Maximo Nivel (from now on referred to as MN). Andrea gave us a nice introduction to the program and the city, and then we did your typical ice breaker interviews & presentations. There are 12 people in my class; 8 girls and 4 guys. We're from all over: Georgia, Texas, Ohio, Colorado, Switzerland, London. Our instructor gave us a brief introduction to ESL techniques we'll be using and a tour of the facility. Around 12 my housemate and I walked around a little bit and had lunch in a pretty little park across from MN, down the hill from a Cathedral.

The Cathedral from where I was eating

Another part of the Cathedral

Naturally, as soon as we finished our lunch a groundskeeper came over and told us that eating in the park was strictly prohibited...oops! At least we got to do it once?

At 1:30 we were scheduled to go on a tour of the city with 2 MN staff members. My housemate, Maggie, and I were the only ones to go on the tour which was actually kind of nice because we could ask all the questions we wanted. The girls showed us all the different plazas and markets, where to buy things, good places to eat, etc. The artisan district, San Blas, was beautiful and there was so much to see I can't wait to explore later this week. Becky, if you read this, you would LOVE it here---the most beautiful local art and ancient buildings and stones. They also showed us some sweet bars, a few with rooftop terraces that overlook the whole city. I can't wait until I've fully adjusted to the altitude and can go out for some Peruvian cocktails! We also went to El Molino, which is the "black market" of Cusco...aka a huge flea market. It was enormous and we actually got a little lost inside. I can't wait to go back and actually buy stuff. Hello Christmas presents!

In other cool news, I saw my first alpaca today. A woman dressed in traditional Peruvian clothing was walking him down the cobblestone street. The alpaca was adorable, but I've already made plans to eat one for Thanksgiving so I won't get too attached (sorry Aunt Deb!). I also saw "cuy" which is roasted guinea pig, a local delicacy. It honestly looks foul (like a tiny pig roast), and it's going to take me a while before I convince myself to eat it! I also booked a trip today to a place called Lake Titicaca this weekend where we visit 3 different islands and do all kinds of touristy things. So many fun things going on I could write all day, but this is a long enough post as it is. Thanks for anyone who's reading these! I promise I'll start putting up more pictures :)

Love & miss everyone<3