Time to go...

The 6th of October ended my stay in Cusco. My last days and weeks there were filled with highs and lows. Finishing up my stove project kept me busier then I ever I expected I would be before coming to Peru, but then again, it was also a more fulfilling experience than I expected to get while here. I had the excitement of seeing my parents and sister again for the first time in over 4 months and then the pain to say goodbye to my host family who I had grown so close to over my time there.

The days leading up to the day my family arrived to Cusco were very anxious. The mood in my house was relatively happy as usual, but the fact that I was leaving in a few days seemed to be on everyone’s' mind. After spending 4 months with my 8 member host family, I have to admit that I became pretty attached to them. I truly could not have a better host family. Throughout my stay they were incredibly warm and inviting in all aspects of their lives. I came into their home as a stranger, but felt I left as a member of the family. It was especially touching for me when Juseph, the 10 year old cousin living in the house, gave me his favorite hot wheels car so I would always remember him.

On the 6th, I met my family at the airport and the sadness of saying goodbye turned to happiness of being with my family again and excitement to begin a month long trip around Peru with my parents. While in Cusco a good part of my time was spent translating between English and Spanish and my ¨two families.¨ We had a lot of laughs, most of which at my expense :-/ All the stories from my childhood that I had tried to forget along with the recent language mess ups and other embarrassing stories from my stay in Cusco came out and had everyone laughing. After getting to know the city for a few days, it was finally time for me to go and start on my next adventure with my parents. The first destination of our trip was to Machu Picchu. More on that in my next post.

Until next time, keep livin' the dream!