This is an excerpt from my travel blog, Walking with Inkas, and was originally written on May 25, 2006.
. . . continued from Pearl #16
On Sunday, I had my first
visitor in Peru.
My friend Rotney, who is half Peruvian, was in the country visiting his
relatives, and we had made plans to meet up before leaving the States. The
details were kind of sketchy due to my limited communication mediums here, but
I had his flight time, and figured there couldn't be too many flights coming
from Cusco at the same time. I called my
favorite taxi driver, Carlos (He has a great selection of music that he blares
at top volume as we groove down the Pan-American highway!
He wants to go dancing sometime, so stay tuned for future developments (don't
worry, I'll be safe about it)), and we headed to the airport. I didn't expect
to feel so excited over seeing a familiar face so soon in my trip, but I was!
Rotney and I just became friends about six months ago, through school, but he's
a great guy to hang out with and I would recommend him as an international
travel buddy any day!
We decided to live it up as best we could in the short time we had (made even shorter by me having to go to work), so once we got his stuff dropped off at my house and had relaxed for about a half hour, we headed out on the town. The first order of business was dinner, so Rotney asked the taxi driver (not Carlos) for a recommendation. As he described a restaurant, I thought I recognized it as a place I'd seen on my bike tour the day before. Sure enough, it was this beautiful multi-gazebo like structure built out over the water so that you eat with the waves crashing directly below you. I asked if it was expensive or cheap, and when the driver replied "mas o menos", we took that to mean in-between, so we said we'd try it. I'm still not sure who's standards the driver was basing his assessment on, but I'm glad we went, no matter how much it cost (and it reality, for the amount and quality of food we got, it really wasn't that bad)!
I was enjoying my meal
and the view of the surfers catching the last wave before the sun finally set,
when all of a sudden Rotney's eyes got wide and his jaw dropped as he stared
over my shoulder. I asked what was the matter, and he was barely able to
mutter, "Oh my God, it's Toledo,
el presidente!" I didn't believe him, but I turned around, and sure
enough, there was a group of people entering the room. I vaguely recognized one
of them, but it didn't really hit me until I saw the guy next to him with one
of those Secret Service-style wires attached to his ear: The President of Peru
had entered the building!! As I sat staring in awe, Rotney gathered his wits
enough to ask for "un fototito" (a small picture). The President
looked slightly annoyed (I'm sure he gets that all the time), but conceded by
say "muy rapido" (very quickly). I started blundering around for my
camera, but wasn't fast enough, so we only got one picture. I was still in such
a daze that I think I'm staring off in the wrong direction in the picture, but
that's okay. I'm demanding a copy, just to prove it happened. We finished our
meal, fully aware that the President of Peru was sitting a mere four feet away,
eating his own dinner like a normal person.
We explored some of the
sights a bit more, ending up in Barranco, another neighborhood known for its
nightlife. After such an experience, it seemed only natural that Rotney and I
find a bar and watch the presidential debate (between the two guys that are
fighting for Toledo's
job), so that's just what we did. It was a very multi-culturally political
evening, that continued into the next day.
Rotney, being a political buff
himself, was fascinated with my internship at the Embassy, so I offered to take
him with me in the morning. I was giving him a tour of the building, and had
just finished showing him the door that leads to the section where the
Ambassador works, when the elevator opened and off stepped the Ambassador
himself!! We said hello to him as we scurried to catch the elevator ourselves,
not even realizing who he was until it was too late! I hadn't officially met
him yet (which is strange, according to other employees), and had only seen a
picture online that completely belies his size. I was thrown off by the fact
that he's at least a foot taller than his wife, so I was expecting a much
shorter man! Nevertheless, Rotney and I shared personal space with two of the
most important men in the country, within the span of about 14 hours. I'd say
that was a great start to my second week, which has been another good one so
far! More on that later, time to go home.
Besos a todos, ciao!
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