a good friday...

Today marks a week of travel. I left early Saturday morning, and here it is early Saturday morning that I am posting! Today was the end of a great week of classes. I kind of wish I had homework for the weekend because it helps me to study. Because students come for varying lengths of time, each week begins with orientation and ends with "graduation", though not many showed up tonight for their certificate. Gratefully, Jason and Manuela continue on, so the three of us and one new student have classes together next week with Magda and Nuri (our profesoras). We will stay in the morning, too, which means I will still have afternoons to tool around. Locke and Molly check out tomorrow and into a convent/hostel. We will go to the Sacred Valley on Sunday, but then they leave early on Monday to hike the Inca Trail. I will feel a bit lost without them, but after tonight I feel more confident in going solo. Class was a riot, again. I must sound like a broken record, but really, my class couldn't be any more amusing. I realized this morning that one reason I really like Jakeline, our first teacher, is that she reminds me of Dr. G, a significant teacher in my life. I think it is mostly her hair style, but there is such an encouraging energy in the room with her, that I think it is more than just cabello. Carla came in after Jakeline and started laughing at us and giving us the cultural lesson. Again we learned many phrases, such as "mas claro no canta un gallo" (more clear a rooster wouldn't sing - literally). It means something is very well understood. I think maybe because when the light is brightest at midday, all is so clearly visible - and roosters cock-a-doodle-do in the early morning dimness...just my theory! So after school I came home for an exceptionally delicious lunch. I don't wake up from naps well, so I got online - when I should have been writing this. I tooled around until I received a phone call from Erik. It was such a treat to hear his voice on the other end of the line. I think there was a bit of confusion between him and Freddie when he called, but at least they figured it out. I could have talked much longer, but I wanted to (1) pay for a tour with Locke and Molly of the Sacred Valley. I will go again with Erik,but I thought it a fun way to see them before they leave for the trail. And (2) the "graduation" was at 6:30 pm. Locke was already there, but Molly stayed home in bed sick. There were free pisco sours and a Peruvian corn-nut, but the salsa dance lessons did not happen. I think people were supposed to sign up, and maybe there were not enough names. We talked for a long while on the terrace until it got too cold. Manuela and I headed to Jason's house for a pequena fiesta with mojitos. I enjoyed practicing Spanish with her, as well as talking about skiing with Brad and Heather from Calgary. I am a bit psyched to ski, though I have a long time to wait while the snow falls and Oren makes tracks. The fiesta went on for a while and eventually champagne was being passed around. Some of the students are quite young and like to party. I mostly feel like an old lady. I walked on to the bar KM 0 - kilometer zero. There was live music and popcorn, but I wasn't drinking. It was neat to meet other students who have class in the afternoon. They have all been around for a few weeks at least, so they are pretty chummy. Jonathan is 29, from San Francisco, learning Spanish and volunteering in an afterschool program, and in study mode after a vacation with his girlfriend in Central America. Jocelyn is from Worchester and likes music. Michelle is Korean-American and taking a break from NYU to learn Spanish and talk philosophy in other parts of the world - we had a great convesation about culture and America and what it can mean to be an American woman despite heritage. I really enjoyed talking with her. The scene got old, and I could feel it getting late, so we pressed on to Seites Angelitos for funk night. It was awesome. And for all the complaining that i do about the cold, I was down to a tank top! Crazy! I just love the funk and dancing. They closed with "Mustang Sally" and an invitation to come back next Friday. I just might! So I have been nervous about being out alone, partly because I need sleep and don't want to ditch out on hanging out with the family here. The other part is that if I don't know when and where to find friends, I fear I will end up in a dark alley in a tough situation. It was really quite well-lit and crowded. The drawback is the smoke, which makes me happy that Denver is smoke free. And while some may disagree with me, the smoke is much worse than we perceive. It was only really after leaving that I could smell iton myself that I realized how smoky it had been. The Nora girls will appreciate that I left my clothes in a pile in the outer room because they ar stinky. Even more reassuring is that I had no problem with the taxi home; can you imagine a taxi ride that costs only $1. You can't ride the bus in Denver for that much, unless you're disabled or much older than I! And so...my pumpkin has expired. I am going to be tired tomorrow. But I just couldn't go to bed without logging in. Buenos suenos! victoria