Peru #3: El autobús y más

For my second day of school, it was time for my roommates and I to learn how to ride the bus.  For the route that runs by our house, we have to ride the El Zorro bus.  The buses here have unique names and often cartoon figures on the windows to help distinguish one bus route from another.  Some of the other names I recall seeing are Batman, Chaska (star), Arco Iris (rainbow.)

El Zorro! 

 

Off to school we go.

First bus ride.

There are tons of different buses on the same route.  After one week, I think I've only rode the same bus (or same looking bus) once. 

The graffiti here seems to be mostly positive and lovey-dovey. 

Like I said, the buses have different cartoon logos, some of which are very strange.  I have seen the Playboy bunny, the Roadrunner, and this friendly looking guy on the bus below.

The buses are not automated.  In addition to the driver (who you do not interact with), each bus has a runner.  (Or at least that's what I call them.)  Most of the runners I've seen seem to be between the age of 14 and 25, and they wear normal clothes, not uniforms.  The yell out the bus name at each stop and say "arriba, arriba!" to get people to board quickly.  They also yell out the next stop, but I usually cannot hear what they are saying.  When you get off, or shortly before, you pay your fare to them.  The fare on my route is 70 cents (about 25-30 cents US.)  So obviously, riding the bus is super cheap!

The girl in the green coat is the runner.  Notice the Transformer and Nike logos on the bus. 

The buses generally seem to come pretty quick...maybe every 10 to 15 minutes.  To hail a bus that is coming (in case it is not stopping to let anyone off), you put your arm out straight.  To get off, you need to walk to the door in advance or yell "baja" so that the runner and driver know that the bus needs to stop.  My ride to school is usually 25 minutes.

The bus stop I wait at when going home.

I have no idea what this is all about.  I have only seen it on the very first bus I rode.

After arriving at school on Tuesday, I had several hours before my class my began.  I bought a notebook, since I wasn't smart enough to think to bring one with me.  (It has been 14 years since I last was in school.)  I also helped my roommate with her homework since she is an absolute beginner with Spanish.

When the others got out of class at 1pm, we all walked into town to get lunch.  We went to a small restaurant that my Brazilian housemate recommended because it was good, cheap, and the portions were large.  Many restaurants here offer "menus," which are fixed price meals of 2 to 3 courses.  The menu at this restaurant was 7 soles (around $2.50), which is ridiculously cheap.  Typically there are several items to choose from for each course.  For the first course (soup), I chose vegetable cream.  (The other option was potato.)  For the main course I picked grilled trout.  (The other options were liver, eggs, some type of chicken, or pasta.)

 Trout, rice, and mashed potatoes.  (Side note: I forgot to take a picture before I started eating.  Also, it is very common here for side dishes to be two starches.)

Once again, I was in a rush since I had to be in class at 1pm.  The food came out a little slow.  By the time I received my main dish, I was only able to take a few bites before having to leave, but I was starting to feel full anyway.  It tasted really good.  The other girls were nice enough to finish my meal for me.  There was even a third course at this restaurant, which was a "refresco" (fresh juice.)  I missed out on that too.

During the middle of class, out of nowhere it started to pour rain outside for 10 to 15 minutes.  Then, my instructor realized it was hailing too.  This is when I learned that the weather in Cusco is completley unpredictable.  It can be cloudy and cold one minute, then the next minute it is hot with the sun shining brighter than you've ever experienced.

Tip: Dress in layers and always have a rain coat or umbrella with you.

After class I stayed at the school because at 6pm, they were offering a free Salsa dancing class.  I have learned to Salsa dance a few times before, but I have never been any good at it.  It was more of the same for me in this class, but it was a lot of fun, though the spinning made me feel dizzy.  During the middle of class, they offered a free snack, which was guacamole and chips.  The bowl of guacamole was HUGE.  Also, the tortilla chips here generally seem to be made of flour rather than corn tortillas.  We all enjoyed the snack a lot.

View from the upstairs classroom.

Back at home, dinner was served at 8:30pm.  All of the internationals in the house were there, so 9 of us ate together.  It was quite crowded at the table but fun to chat with everyone.  For dinner, Patricia made meat balls in some sort of sauce, served with mashed potatoes.  I was surprised to see that she made me my own special plate with soy meat instead.  Once again, the food was good.

Yes, mashed potatoes for the second time today.

Fun fact: The potato originated from Peru, and there are more than 4000 types.  Not all are edible though.