What in the name of god have I gotten myself into?
I only got to Lima on Thursday and already I feel excessively lonely. I'm giving it time, but in the meantime I find it very comforting to write to people, so I've been emailing and messaging like crazy. Getting here was fine, which was a good first step, and the housing situation is looking good, but Lima itself is positively overwhelming. It's gray (pretty much all year round, I'm told), it's smoggy, and its huge. I mean HUGE. And, although the people are very nice, I find so far that I can only bear five or so hours of contact with the outside world because having a conversation takes so much concentration.
It doesn't help that, though I have lived outside the US twice now, I've never done it alone before. I've never been very good at meeting people or making fast friends, and living elsewhere with people more gregarious than myself always made life so much easier. I suppose I have to learn to overcome awkwardness eventually... right? I really did throw myself into the fire here, didn't I? Ha.
My situation is made all the more uncomfortable by the fact that my vocabulary in spanish is so limited. It's funny because I know spanish; the grammar, conjugation, etc., but holy crap can I not remember words for my life! I need practice, but I find not being able to communicate effectively so goddamn frustrating and discouraging. I wasn't planning on it, but I think I'm going to enroll in a language class, just to ensure that I actually get the practice I need and don't just hole up in my room for the whole year (which I can absolutely see myself doing).
This post is totally self-indulgent, and I accept that.
I miss my friends.
It doesn't help that, though I have lived outside the US twice now, I've never done it alone before. I've never been very good at meeting people or making fast friends, and living elsewhere with people more gregarious than myself always made life so much easier. I suppose I have to learn to overcome awkwardness eventually... right? I really did throw myself into the fire here, didn't I? Ha.
My situation is made all the more uncomfortable by the fact that my vocabulary in spanish is so limited. It's funny because I know spanish; the grammar, conjugation, etc., but holy crap can I not remember words for my life! I need practice, but I find not being able to communicate effectively so goddamn frustrating and discouraging. I wasn't planning on it, but I think I'm going to enroll in a language class, just to ensure that I actually get the practice I need and don't just hole up in my room for the whole year (which I can absolutely see myself doing).
This post is totally self-indulgent, and I accept that.
I miss my friends.