Moving back home!

The time has come for me to say goodbye to Peru. I don't doubt that I'll be back someday to meet all of the incredible people that I'm leaving behind, but for now I can't wait to see everybody that is waiting back in Minnesota! This year has been an incredible experience that allowed me to grow as a person, learn a new language and culture, meet incredible new friends, and do some incredible research in public health.

I'm excited to get back to a land where I can flush the toilet paper in the toilet and drink the water, but I'll miss the easy-going lifestyle and the incredible food. I hope I will never be stuck in Limenian traffic ever again, never hear another car horn, or see another combi swerving in and out of traffic, but I will definitely miss the adventure of traveling around the city. I can't wait to catch up with everybody back home, but I will miss all of the great people that I've met in the past year here.

This will be my last post here. Thank you for reading and your comments. I'm going to say a few (a lot) of thank-you's to those who have helped give me this opportunity, then a photo-recap of my past year in Peru. All of my pictures from the past year should be up on the Picassa site for you to take a look at if you want. The link is on the right side of the page. If you ever are travelling around Peru and are looking for a trip adviser, don't hesitate to ask! 

I'm going to type this next part in Spanish and English to make sure that everyone that I'm thanking are able to appreciate it: 

Estoy muy agradecido a todos los que me han ayudado en el año pasado. Gracias a Los Arámbulo por incluirme en su familia y a Beto por tolerarme por un año! Gracias a Dr. Robert Gilman por la oportunidad a hacer investigaciones con Ud. Gracias a Dr. José Lopez y mis enfermeras increíbles Marilyn, Mayra, y Maribel por ayudarme todo el año en mi proyecto. Gracias a Miguel Barandearan por enseñarme el hospital Almenara y para la pachamanca. 

I am thankful to everyone who has helped me out in the past year. Thank you to the Arámbulo family for including me in their family and to Beto for putting up with me for an entire year! Thank you to Dr. Robert Gilman for the opportunity to research with you. Thank you to Dr. José Lopez and my incredible nurses Marilyn, Mayra, and Maribel for helping me all year on my project. Thank you to Miguel Barandearan for teaching me about the hospital and bringing me to a Peruvian cook-out.

Gracias a mi hermana - la Sra. Catherine Pastorius Benziger - por darme esta oportunidad. Gracias a mis papas por surportarme con su amor, cariño, finanzas! Nunca podría venir acá sin Uds. Gracias a Rob Pletscher, John Pastorius, Kelly Berge, Chris Szczeck, Tom Towle, Anne Pastorius, Katie Divyak, y Kristy Kemp por visitarme. Era cheveré que Uds. vinieron para pasar tiempo conmigo. 

Thank you to my sister - Mrs. Catherine Pastorius Benziger - for giving me this opportunity. Thank you to my parents for supporting me with your love, caring, and financing! I could never have came here without you guys. Thank you to Rob Pletscher, John Pastorius, Kelly Berge, Chris Szczeck, Tom Towle, Anne Pastorius, Katie Divyak, and Kristy Kemp for visiting me. It was great that you guys came to spend time with me.

Gracias a Mari Ferrey por amarme y por siempre estar conmigo - te amo! Te voy a extrañar pero nos veremos pronto! Gracias a Carlos Ferrey por enseñarme a disfrutar fútbol y por no matarme cuando descubriste que yo estaba saliendo con tu hermana! 

Thank you to Mari Ferrey for loving me and for being there for me - love you! I'm going to miss you but we'll see each other soon! Thank you to Carlos Ferrey for teaching me to enjoy soccer and for not killing me when you found out that I was dating your sister! 

Gracias a Luis Montero por enseñarme la vida limeña y por tu polo que siempre me haga sonreír. Gracias a Nohelia Prinz y tus amigos por traerme a Green Day y mostrarme tu ciudad. Gracias a Jesse Maurtua y tus amigos por incluirme en tu grupo. Gracias a Carlita Tarazona y Rocio Galvez por tenerme en el hospital disfrazado como Barney y por ser buena gente.

Thank you to Luis Montery for teaching me the Limenian lifestyle and for your t-shirt that always makes me smile. Thank you to Nohelia Prinz and your friends for bringing me with to Green Day and showing me around your city. Thank you to Jesse Maurtua and your friends for including me in your group of friends. Thank you to Carlita Tarazona and Rocio Galvez for having me at the hospital dressed up as Barney and for being great people.

Gracias a Angie por ser mi amiga perdida. Gracias a Farley por la cerveza en Salkantay y por ser buen amigo. Gracias a Isis y Adam por ser tan amables y todos los Sunday Funday's! Gracias a Kristyn Feldman y Danni Kirwan por ser buenas amigas y siempre estar para hablar. 

Thank you to Angie for being my long-lost friend. Thank you to Farley for the beer on top of Salkantay mountain and for being a good friend. Thank you to Isis and Adam for being so nice and for all of the Sunday Funday's! Thank you to Kristyn Feldman and Danni Kirwan for being great friends and always being there to talk. 

Gracias a todos los amigos que he conocido en el año pasado. Sin Uds. mi año no habría sido lo mismo. Se invito a visitarme dondequiera estoy viviendo para quedar en contacto. 

Thank you to all my other friends that I have met in the past year. Without you guys my year would not have been the same. I invite you to visit me where ever I am living keep in touch.

Without further ado, here is the brief recap of the year!

My first night in Lima - My sister Katie showed me around her town and took me out for anticuchos (cow-heart on a stick... I can't wait to see how long it takes to get that at the MN State Fair!)

Trying octopus for the first time. The food in Peru was incredible and I definitely opened up my culinary horizons!

Katie, Luis, and Miranda teaching me to always smile

Gatorr and me before my first professional soccer game. Arriba Alianza!

One of my three trips to Machu Picchu. I feel blessed to have the ability to say that I don't feel the need to EVER go back there again!

Rob and me overlooking one of the wonders of the world after hiking 5 days to get there!

Wine and Pisco tasting with some friends that were also in Peru doing research

The sunrise from the top of a sand dune. One of my most vivid (and blurry...) memories of the entire year in Peru.

Rafting!

Analyzing stool samples of a small rural town in northern Peru to help out on another student's project.

Taking a break from the paddling and swimming in the Amazon River with all of the piranhas, caymans, electric eels, little tiny fish that swim up your urethra, and all!

Matt, Josh, and DK taking a break during the raft race - one of the most incredible experiences that I have ever done.

At the finish line of the race!

Eating a worm! Tastes like bacon!

At the start of the Inca Trail with my dad

Celebrating my 23rd birthday along the Inca trail with a homemade cake made over a portable stovetop! I have definitely never been in a more incredible place on my birthday and I'm so glad that I got to share the experience with my dad!

My dad overlooking Machu Picchu

At the top of Machu Picchu Mountain (the city is down below us) with the Incan flag

With Beth and Beto - two of my roommates from the past year who were nothing be great to me.

Dressing up as Barney to go visit children in the hospital with Matt, Carlita, and Rocio

Visiting a poor area of Lima to deliver Christmas presents to the kids dressed up as Barney

Dancing on New Years Eve with Mari

Overlooking the Amazon Rainforest from the top of the canopy with Chris Szczeck

Fishing for piranhas!

One of the many sunsets that I got to enjoy in the rainforest. As my dad would say - one can never see too many sunsets in a lifetime.

My sister Anne climbing a giant tree to get to the canopy level

Enjoying another sunset with Mari on the beautiful beach of Máncora!

Dressed up for the red carpet at the first annual Academy Awards Gala

Building fences and planting gardens in a poor area of Lima with Beto and my cousin Tom

One of the many great views in Peru - this one in Máncora

Going to Beto's brother's wedding reception at the Yacht Club of Lima with Mari

Dancing at the reception with my Peruvian dad and brother - Luis and Beto Arámbulo

Mis papas - Charo and Luis Arámbulo

Thank you all for reading. Keep in touch through email, Facebook, Twitter, or through a simple phone call! I hope to hear from you soon!

Nos vemos en el futuro (see you in the future),

Dan

One year in Peru

I can't believe I've been in Peru for a year now! I have been rewriting my personal statement for my medical school application and I can't believe how much this past year has helped me gain far more experience than I could have ever hoped for. I'll post a copy of my final statement once I finish it.

I mentioned last post that I had a suit made just for me. I got a chance to wear it right away and got to see a traditional Peruvian wedding. In traditional Peruvian fashion - it started 20 minutes late because both the bride AND the groom were running on Peruvian time! The groom was an American and the bride was Peruvian - both are friends of Mari's from when she worked at a ski resort in Crested Butte, CO. 

It was interesting to see the differences in the wedding styles back home and here. Not only was the start time different, but the ceremony and reception each had their own unique styles. There as a Canadian priest (he spoke Spanish), a Peruvian chorus, and the reception had a cumbia band playing very loud the entire night. The bride and groom danced with everybody that attended the wedding, and didn't even get a chance to rest and eat until 2 hours after the reception started!

My new suit

Waiting for the bride to show up...

The two families together

Band playing right next to our table

Mari and me at the reception

After the wedding, I flew up to Cusco (again) to meet up with my cousin Tom, sister Anne, and two of her friends. They had just got done with a four-day hike to Machu Picchu and I met up with them at the hostal to spend one night there before flying to Puerto Maldonado (again) to do a four-day jungle adventure expedition. We got a chance to go kayaking and swimming in the river, hike through the jungle, climb a tree that is 120 feet tall (exhausting!), and go zip-lining and through a ropes course that was located over a piraña infested stream! Every night, we also had a chance to enjoy some cervezas while swatting away the swarms of mosquitos!

A family of Capibaras - the world's largest rodent

Another chance to enjoy a sunset in the Amazon Rainforest

A spider that would "make you bleed to death out of your butt and make your toes and fingers explode within four hours" - YIKES!

A very poisonous caterpillar that probably kills you in a similar way to that spider

A bird sleeping!

Ants making a bridge out of themselves to create a path for the other ants to continue working

Sunrise over the river

The five of us with a giant tree

Anne trying to climb up - it took us about 45 minutes each to get to the top!

The view from the top

Our guide caught a baby cayman and was having us play with it

The bigger cayman watching us from the water

Moonlight over the river

After the expedition, we headed back to Lima for one night to do some laundry and shower (Tom and the girls definitely needed it after 8 straight days of expeditions!) before heading up to a beach town on the coast near Ecuador. We rented a bungalow and the five of us along with Mari and Janella got to enjoy a few days taking in the sun and relaxing on the beach!

The view from the bungalow

Mari and me at sunset in Mancora

I didn't write too much here, but I'll have a big wrap-up entry that will be coming soon, as I'm heading back to Minnesota in eight days! In the meantime - everybody please keep my Uncle Tom in your thoughts and prayers as he is back in the hospital awaiting a heart transplant! I'm hoping that by the time I'm home he's recovering with a new heart!