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My trip in Peru&Bolivia
  • Iris van Rijnbach
  • Iris van Rijnbach

My trip in Peru&Bolivia

A 50-day adventure by Iris Read more
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  • Trip start
    October 6, 2017
  • Iris van RijnbachMy trip in Peru&BoliviaTraveler
    1

    Cusco

    October 8, 2017 in Peru ⋅ ⛅ 9 °C

    The coffee and cake place is my favourite place on Avenida del Sol. Next to my volunteer office Maximo nivel. They make great Cappuccinos for 1 euro and look those cakes... The picture of the street is made in el Barrio San BlasRead more

  • Iris van RijnbachMy trip in Peru&BoliviaTraveler

    Primero día por el trabajo

    October 9, 2017 in Peru ⋅ ⛅ 20 °C

    This was a really intense day. I was letterly shocked. Even though I knew that healthcare here was simple. I never expected this. I letterly need an evening alone to recover from this. It is a healthcare clinic up in the mountains. Over 5km to be precise. The town is small and called Chincheron. People don't speak Spanish but Quechua. You can see the top of the Andes with snow (that is beautiful though). Today for example, I had a patient with an infected foot and she needed antibiotics. The nurse tried to put an IV in her arm but failed. Then she dropped the needle on the (dirty) floor and tried again in the other arm!!! I was shocked. In the clinic they also provide a lot of education for women about safe sex, care for baby's and they check up on kids. That is quite nice, cause the kids are cute :) Anyway an experience as you can see.

    Though, cause it is so high up in the mountains, it is 1,5 hour travelling. First 45 mins walking, and with this altitude, that is hard. Then 45 min in a dirty bumpy bus. I was not so happy about this cause I don't wanna loose 3 hours of my day. Also travelling in Peru is not really 'relaxed'. You need to be alert every second, if nobody steels from you, if people don't fool you with the price. If a taxi is actually a real taxi. Etcetera etcetera. So I went to 'Maximo nivel' my organisation and asked for a new place. More close to Cusco. They told me they will help me for next week, but this week I stay in Chincheron.    Read more

  • Iris van RijnbachMy trip in Peru&BoliviaTraveler

    Survival snacks&Lunch@Valeriana

    October 9, 2017 in Peru ⋅ ⛅ 14 °C

    My host family provides breakfast and dinner. So lunch is on my own. The last two days I took lunch in a coffee place called: Valeriana. For 3 euros you get a nice sandwich and for 6 euros a real lunch like lasagna. The quality is so good, nice fresh juices and good coffees for 1 euro.
    The first picture is my snacks that I bring to work (banana, coconut cookies, water and energy bar) and the next picture is the Vegetarian lasagna and piña juice from Valeriana    Read more

  • Iris van RijnbachMy trip in Peru&BoliviaTraveler
    12

    Un paseo muy bueno :)

    October 10, 2017 in Peru ⋅ ⛅ 21 °C

    Update work:

    Last night, I came home and I was quite sad. I didn't like my clinic, mainly because of the 3 hours travel time and the fact that I was totally alone. I spoke yesterday with Maximo Nivel and told them, that for next week, I want a place in Cusco - and not in a small town up in the mountains. Though I was gonna continue this week, I was so unhappy about it and then I thought: I am here to have a great experience, not to fulfill obligations. So I called this morning and told them that I will not come this week. They were disappointed, but understood me. Today I went again to their office and told them my requirements! :) Happy after all.

    So! Today I went for an amazing walk to see this view over Cusco. And there are so many other things that I wanna do this week, make walks, visit museums.
    And I signed up for a meeting with a local, to practice my Spanish!

    Oh... And look that baby goat.. only one week old!    Read more

  • Iris van RijnbachMy trip in Peru&BoliviaTraveler

    Colombia - Peru !!!!

    October 10, 2017 in Peru ⋅ 🌙 10 °C

    After my Spanish class (yup, every day from 5-6) I went to Paddy's! An Irish pub on the main square. I already noticed last Thursday when Argentina played against Peru, that Peruvians are totally INTO football. The entire city was full with people in their red/white t-shirt and people were so excited.

    Directly after I ordered a beer, I met this Australian couple, they both quit their job and just travelled. Super nice people! After that, I met some Dutch, some Brazilian and 1 from USA, but then I went home to receive my dinner from Carmela and be able to get a safe taxi home! :D Great night! By the way, Peru - Colombia ended 1-1. Which was quite a good surprise for the Peruvians :)    Read more

  • Iris van RijnbachMy trip in Peru&BoliviaTraveler

    Laundry

    October 11, 2017 in Peru ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    Laundry is first next Sunday, a friend of Carmela will pick up the clothes and wash them for some soles. Though I needed some clean t-shirts, so I just washed them by hand this morning.

  • Iris van RijnbachMy trip in Peru&BoliviaTraveler
    2

    Travelling alone

    October 11, 2017 in Peru ⋅ ⛅ 19 °C

    Has always been a dream of me.

    I think you learn a lot, you get independent and need to face issues alone.

    Although it can also be confronting. It can be hard, when you need a hug from someone you love but you can't get it. Or when you need to make activities alone and in one moment your inspiration is kind of finished. Or when you don't know where you are and feel unsafe. Or when you loose something or get in a difficult situation.

    Although I also get proud of myself, that I fixed so many things myself. And I haven't lost anything yet and that I have been responsible when it was dark outside or in crowded or as well empty places.

    I am a really social person and being alone can be a challenge. I prefer being around people. This can be an advantage and a disadvantage. It is an advantage in a way, that I am definitely not afraid to approach people. If I feel like a coffee or a beer, I go for it. If I find someone to chat with, nice, if not, I read, enjoy the view or write here on FindPenguin. It is a disadvantage in a way that I would feel lonely if I would be too long without people around me.

    I also realize how much I always depended on Nacho when I travel. He knows some things that I don't know and vice versa, but you work as a team. Also, I feel more safe having him around me, but that you guys can understand haha ;)

    I am sure this experience will also make me more open-minded - I think I already am really open-minded - but I mean even more. Living with a Peruvian family (which for sure, I wouldn't have done if I was with friends or Nacho) makes you realize things. Offcourse I have seen in magazines and on television how they live, but it is not the same as being in there. You need to respect their beliefs (that to me sometimes seems weird), you need to respect their limitations (you cannot let your mouth fall open if they say they never left Cusco) and in general respect their way of living. It is an eye opener.    Read more

  • Iris van RijnbachMy trip in Peru&BoliviaTraveler

    Green Point

    October 11, 2017 in Peru ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    According to the Lonely Planet and Tripadvisor one of the places you must go. So I checked it out today. The food is amazing, luxurious served, super tasty and the menu has great variety. Really healthy, which can difficult to find in Peru, cause things consist mainly rice, corn, dough and potatoes. Though, not cheap. But hey, I am a backpacker that has a job back home ;) So sometimes you can treat yourself.Read more

  • Iris van RijnbachMy trip in Peru&BoliviaTraveler

    Marco

    October 11, 2017 in Peru ⋅ ⛅ 16 °C

    This is Marco. He wants to learn English and I want to learn Spanish, so Maximo Nivel set us up a meeting where we need to speak 30 min of Spanish and 30 min of English.

    He is 18 years old en lives in Cusco. He was really nervous as I could see, cause his hands were shaky and he also told me that he is a shy person. He likes metal music and watching movies and he hates doing sports. He is in his first year of architecture studies. He knows everything about Europe, even though he never been there.

    It was a funny experience :)    Read more

  • Iris van RijnbachMy trip in Peru&BoliviaTraveler
    1

    Jueves

    October 12, 2017 in Peru ⋅ ⛅ 19 °C

    Today I went for a walk, first stop: Valeriana. I still need to make breaks sometimes, with the altitude it gets difficult to breath when you walk for a while.

    There I met two Dutch couples around 50 years old and they were so interested in my story that they joined me for the coffee (I like that kind of people! ) , afterwards I went to Plaza Regocijo (the fountain) and afterwards to the museum of the Incas. I finished my afternoon with a cold beer (Cusqueña) and a falafel wrap!Read more

  • Iris van RijnbachMy trip in Peru&BoliviaTraveler

    The phone issue!!!

    October 12, 2017 in Peru ⋅ ⛅ 12 °C

    Alrighty, I never used so much time on a phone. Never.

    Anyway last Saturday I went to buy a simcard and didn't succeeded. After one hour in the line, they told me that the system didn't work.. haha no I am not joking.

    Then I went monday again and succeeded! Then I went wednesday to charge the card with 50 soles (aprox 13 euro).

    Yup everything does not go that fast in Peru.

    Then I tried it yesterday evening and it didn't work. When I turned my phone on, it said: no SIM card. Even though it is inside!

    Sooooo.. today I went again (they almost get to know me in Movilstar). After half an hour someone helped me. Well, apparently the SIM card cannot be used in this phone. Movilstar and Nokia couldn't go together or I needed to call the shop of the phone to 'unblock' Movilstar simcards. That is not possible cause it is Ricardo's phone. Anyway I have 3 options:

    1. First option is that I buy a new SIM card and put again 50 soles on it. Though I will loose 57 soles (7 for simcard) and I don't want that, also risking that the simcard does not work again could be quite big.
    Here I basically loose 57+57 soles cause I need to buy it twice.

    2. Buy a new phone in Movilstar store for 79 soles and let the shop make it work. (See picture)

    3. Just let it go :) (So far I have not needed it that much yet.. )

    What would you do? Please give me advice! :)    Read more

  • Iris van RijnbachMy trip in Peru&BoliviaTraveler

    Mi casa

    October 12, 2017 in Peru ⋅ ⛅ 12 °C

    Dinner at home. Every day I arrive home around 18:30 from my Spanish class. I need to take a taxi because of safety (it is dark at 17:30). Then I arrive home, unpack, read a bit, tidy stuff, relax. At 20:00 we always eat. Normally I go downstairs around 19:30 to help Carmela cooking and speak a bit.

    My family is really friendly and I am really happy with them. Especially with Yolanda I have a good relationship, we chat, speak about our day, painted our nails together, that kind of things haha. Today she asked me if I want to go for a beer with her next week and I would really like to go with a local into Cusco.
    Yolanda is a dentist and has a boyfriend, but only since half a year so she does not want to move together yet.

    Carmela likes to speak, she speaks, a lot, really a lot (yup, more than me). She told me during dinner today that she got divorced 12 years ago (her husband found another) and had difficulties paying the house, taking care of Yolanda and Luis (her kids). So during 2 years her family helped out. Then Maximo nivel came to her. They could let some students sleeping in her house and pay her for it. Since the last 10 years she has done that and she enjoys it.

    Also here lives Luis, who is a bit quiet, but really friendly. He likes to speak about football.
    Then there is James, from the USA, Colorado. He is only 18, but seems way older in his way of speaking. He has interesting conversation material and we discuss a lot about politics, culture etc. He is not really funny though and he never does something with friends. He is always studying and studying. But both Luis and James are nice people!

    After I chat and take dinner with the family, around 9-10pm I go towards my room, write a bit on FindPenguin and then go to sleep.

    Oh, by the way, all of this in Spanish!    Read more

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