This week I have been mostly eating Guinee-pig! Well actually that´s a lie just the once still! I hope you all like the picture as much as I liked the cuy! Cheers for everybody´s comments they do make me laugh!
Well this past 2 weeks I´ve been getting into a bit of routine, which seem strange since I only have 2 more weeks to go in Cusco! "Working" in the morning, home for a huge home cooked lunch, then either some site seeing or spanish classes. I´ve also started seeing a young Brittish woman who had a stroke in November. She has been seeing one of the physiotherapy students almost daily and is now ready to begin working on upper limb and hand function. So I see her a couple of times per week.
What I´m struggling to deal with just now is how physically close people get to you! I´ve adjusted very well to the whole kiss on the cheek thing when you meet someone or say goodbye, in fact us foreign lot at the centre do it automatically with each other now! Although I think there might be some sort of etiquette that no-one has told me yet as on a few occassion I´ve gone in for the handshake and kiss/"como estas" and the other person has looked ever so slightly shocked!
Peruvians are very touchy feely people, after they´ve kissed you they like to get very close whilst talking to you and some of them like to sit with their hand on your back or leg. And before anyone says anything it´s not just with me, I´ve noticed them doing it with other people! Some days its ok and others I want my personal space and at least half a meter when I´m talking to someone!
Oh yeah and machismo is going strong in Peru! Cusco is not as bad as Lima, men don´t tend to shout things at you as you walk by, but the men that I work with do think they can say what they like to female co-workers and patients! Although having said that there does seem to be a mutual respect for one another in the work place even if there are many "inappropriate" comments!
My Spanish is driving me mad! Now that I know how to say things in different tenses and I´m picking up new words people seem to be talking faster and seem to think that I can suddenly understand everything! How infuriating! Although I will now keep that in mind when talking with people at home who are learning English!
I think this must the frustration stage of culture shock! But I think that might be my rant over with for now! Looking forward to the weekend when I´m going to visit a local market town, some ruins there and then go horse riding at saqsaywamán with a couple of people from work.
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3 comments:
"inappropriate" comments! Something like come on you jambos i guess. I dont think you should be subjected to such things. Now, come on you "spurs" is much better.
Seeing your mum and dad in a couple of weeks for a bit of fifers grub so please send that guinea pig recipe i think we have a couple of cats running around our garden that I am sure can be substituted.
Andrea & Gary
ps better off in peru, courtney had her first driving lesson today.
Well Kirsty doll you are a better person than me!!! despite my physio roots I really do not like to be touched and I think by now may have smacked whoever was unfortunate enough to be touching my leg!!!
Sounds like you are getting into the swing of things tho...a week in Spain and all I could say was waigo!!
Anyway you take care and be careful of all those touchy feely folk!!
Kerry x
well the dewars hit fife for a bit of posh nosh today. they must be getting on a bit as they kept talking about wee kirsty when she was at school. has a great day so happy easter from the wilkinsons, the hills and the old yins from Pennycook (is that how you spell it)
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