Iselin's first official day in Peru.
Today was the most fun day I've had in ages.
I woke up at 8 a.m., quickly remembered that Iselin was sleeping in the living room (or the library... depends how you see it). When she woke up, we went to Miraflores in a taxi. Then, decided that we wanted to jump off a cliff. Paragliding. It cost us $45 each, but it was well worth it. Such an AMAZING feeling; soaring 300 metres above the ground; seeing your own reflection in the windows in Hotel Mariott, looking down upon the many tennis courts, having your stomach turn as your spiral from 300 to 100 metres in a matter of a few seconds.
Had breakfast in Larcomar; Mangos. Vanilla milkshake that was out of this world.
Then we went to Polvo Rosado and bought pirated DVDs. Iselin bought 4.5 seasons of "Desperate Housewives", season 5 and 6 of "One Tree Hill" and several movies. I bought "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button", "Seven souls" (with Will Smith... think it's called that? Free translation from Spanish) and "Twilight". It cost me a total of s./15, about £3.
As we were filing through copies of films that are not yet out in the cinema here in Peru, on DVD, Hugo phoned me. He asked where I was, I told him where I was. He said "Oh cool, I'm only three blocks away, at my parents' house! I'll meet you outside the main entrance of Polvo Rosado in 20 minutes!" 10 minutes later, he was there, standing behind me. It was so nice to see him again.
We had lunch; Hugo, Iselin and I, in the seafood restaurant Santo Pez. We introduced Iselin to both cebiche (raw fish marinated in garlic, chili and lemon) and Pisco Sour (alcoholic beverage). Hugo told us about Christmas in Ciudad de los Niños; then we just chatted about everything, everyone and their grandmother. I had a great time.
After a really long lunch, we decided to go to the cinema to see Australia. However, as we wanted to find a cinema in which it was on before 7 p.m. so that Hugo could come with us, we had to trail through half of Lima. The earliest time we could find was in the Multicine in Chacarilla, and it was on at 6:40 p.m., which was still too late for Hugo, who had to go to a dinner meeting with Dani (the German boy who lives in Ciudad de los Niños) and his mother. So Iselin and I had to see "Australia" on our own, which wasn't too bad. Hugo is coming back to Ciudad de los Niños on Sunday, but by that time I'll be far away in Cuzco and Tambopata. It was really nice to catch up with him!
"Australia" was a great film. In some ways, it reminded me about "Cold Mountain". Nicole Kidman does a GREAT job portraying a spoilt, upperclass snob that turns likeable. Hugh Jackman... oh, I'd marry him any day. Even with the beard. All in all, great film. Very sad.
Came home at about 10 p.m., and made homemade guacamole with red peppers and lemon. Chatted with mum and Iselin about today's events. Realised that we have no water (again!). Now the other two (mum and Iselin) have gone to bed, while I'm checking the internet. Peace and quiet, I love you.
So glad to be back in Lima again. I love Lima. It feels like home. Ciudad de los Niños feels like home. Tomorrow we're exploring downtown Lima; the cathedral, the catacombs and other touristy stuff. Should be fun.