Back in Peru
It´s been a busy 4 days since I arrived back in Iquitos. Mary Isabel and I have been very busy catching up on a lot of things. (We´d only seen each other for 2 days since July when we met at the USA embassy in Lima for her visa interview in November.)
Christmas was great, though I´m still worn out from everything. As you can imagine, Christmas in this Latin American country is all about family. But here things don´t wait until Christmas morning. Indeed, Christmas starts at midnight and so do the festivities.
We began the night by visiting Mary´s family. We stopped by her aunt and uncle´s house first and brought them cakes. They are a wonderful family who are incredibly kind to me. I love playing with her 3-year-old nephew, Christian, who calls me "uncle". She also took me across the street to meet her grandparents for the first time. I really liked them-- especially her grandfather. I don´t think they cared at all that I´m a foreigner. (That will always be an issue with some in her family.)
Next we went to the home of another sister, Lourdes, and her husband Carlos. We drank Inca Cola and talked of the differences in Christmas in our countries.
We were a little late for the big event at midnight -- Christmas dinner at the home of Mary´s best friend, Margarita. Of course, being late is a normal thing here. Though I only know Margarita and her boyfriend, Antonio, they welcomed me with open arms. I was even honored to be given one of the turkey legs -- something usually reserved for the elder men in the family. We ate and ate and ate. They had enough potatoes to make anyone from Idaho proud.
I´ve spent a lot of time at my favorite haunt, the Yellow Rose of Texas restaurant. Here I get to spend a little talking with all the English-speaking ex-pats who live here as well as the constant flow of tourists who pass through on their way to and from the jungle lodges. Yesterday we were fortunate to meet an American, James, who was visiting with his wife, Cecilia, who is from here. They are a very nice couple from Atlanta who gave us a lot of tips on adapting to married life int he states. I think Cecilia helped with many of Mary´s concerns.
Today we´re off to our favorite place, Lago Quistococha, where we first met. I love walking throught he zoo there and it´s fun to swim in the lake together. I expect the crowd will be small since most went over the holiday weekend. Of course, with school out, there could be a ton of children there.
I hope everyone back in the states is doing well and enjoying the holidays. If you get a chance, please send a little cool weather down here. The constant 90 degrees with 99 percent humidity does get a little old!
