Stephanie Metzger

Since I have to turn in my last blog to be graded by tomorrow, I didn’t know how I was supposed to describe all my great memories into one blog…. SOO I summed it up by making a list of just a few of the memories that helped make my experience in Perú complete.

Here it goes:

1.       Watching the dark scary waves in the middle of the night and talking to Ashley about how scary the ocean is.

2.       Hiking to the sungate in Machu Picchu. It was by far the most amazing view.

3.       Teaming up with Marshall to make smores at the bonfire, and getting nutella all over my arm.

4.       Arriving in Cuzco and Mary panicking that her suitcase won’t come around the conveyer belt, and screaming in panic mode so that everybody could stare at us.

5.       Ashley’s birthday night. Enough said.

6.       Yo también also.

7.       My host mom dancing and “dropping it down low” and not being able to come back up, and us having to help her up. Never laughed so hard.

8.       José photobombing EVERY. SINGLE. PHOTO. (effortlessly)

9.       Adriana and Ashley getting swallowed up by a massive wave on the beach.

10.   The Drink, Stephily, that Emily and I created together.

11.   Sleeping under the stars on the beach.

12.   The little puppy(we named her Jasper) following us home from Punta Roca.

13.   Burning Deep Rivers, the book that we had to read for class the following week…. in order to survive.

14.   Learning how to salsa dance

15.   The bets that we made in Arequipa about how many times Mary will complain about the food she eats. (Ashley won)

16.   Getting ready at Ashley’s place with Amelia, Rachel, Adriana, Sarah, Kathy, and Jessica to head out to the discotecas.

17.   Over bartering with the man at the Indian Market, and him getting really angry at me.

18.   First time trying a random Peruvian dish before knowing the content (Arequipa).

19.   Goons be Lurkin’!

20.   My host sister, Claudia and I, eating all the chips at her friend’s house, then later making a Bembos run.

21.   Amy and I watching the Friends seasons, as an excuse to “learn Spanish.”

22.   Dune buggying in the desert.

23.   Mototaxi ride with Emily, and getting lost on our way back to our resort in Ica.

24.   Marshall doing the worm on karaoke night.

25.   Sneaking photos in the Cathedral in Cuzco when it was strictly prohibited.

26.   Playing “how many people can fit in a taxi/combi?”

27.   White water rafting in El Rio Chile, and being the only person who didn’t fall out of the raft.

28.   Chelsie explaining to me how to get to UPC over and over a thousand times, when it was really two blocks away.

29.   Making Peruvian friends

30.   Playing Dr. Seuss for a day and arguing with Oprah and Leonardo DiCaprio about why I am better than them.

31.   Eating the fanciest meal with “perfect etiquette” with Kathy, Chelsie, and Jessica. Pinkies up ladies!

32.   Chasing the transparent butterflies at Machu Picchu, and Ashley hurrying to get a picture.

33.   High fives all around for getting questions wrong on our grammar exam. The world’s most ridiculous test.

34.   Befriending my host family’s dog Spike with goldfish crackers

35.   Adriana getting lost on our hike alongside the Colca Canyon.

That is only the gist of it, but I am truly going to miss Perú and will never forget the unforgettable experience that I have had… especially with the friends that I have made within the group. They were the ones that made this trip complete!