The shoes on my feet, I bought 'em

In the home stretch of the trip, I'm still fighting between the the excitement of coming home and the sadness of leaving my new home away from home. The last couple of weeks have been full of fun, but a different kind of fun. It hasn't been as exhilarating as taking a trip to the beach, to the andes, or to Machu Picchu. It's been more of the everyday, simpler, kind of fun. 

I did, however, get to check going white water rafting off of my bucket list! Last Friday, some friends from the gym and I traveled about three hours away from Lima and white water rafted. It was a lot harder than I expected, and I was actually really sore in my shoulders the next day! We also got to try some local honey, wine and pisco. The trip was definitely worth it.

Most of the other fun has consisted of hanging out at the gym and running around with some of my new friends. We've created all sorts of fun, whether it's come from super painful pedicures, going to the movies, making a cooking show video, or my really really terrible attempts at trying to salsa. I've always claimed that the best nights of my life have been spent dancing, so I'm still in love with the fact that Lima is full of discotecas. 

On another note, the Nebraska girls (and our wonderful professors) have planned a trip to the Amazon, which I'm super pumped for. I'm just praying that my underlying fear of piranhas (instilled in me by my brothers, thanks guys) doesn't get the best of me. Maybe I'll stay in the jungle with my monkey cousins forever or maybe I'll come back and see my parents when they come to visit two weeks after! :) 

We've also found a sushi restaurant across the street from our school, and have made several trips back. It's literally the best, and I still can't believe the first time I tried sushi I gagged... ha. ha ....

*Although I absolutely love it here, I found myself with a list of complaints the other day while texting some of my friends back home. I've found myself missing the freedom of having a car, not having to depend on ANYONE to get anywhere, and being able to get across town in 15 minutes. Everyday here is taxis taxis taxis, and traffic traffic traffic. I also miss being able to put on solo concerts in my car, those ease the soul. I miss the independence of being able to cook for myself. I miss not having to ring the doorbell every time I come home. I miss not having to wake up anyone to let me out of the house if I want to get up at 5:30 AM to workout.  Basically, the theme is that I'm missing my independence. While spiritually, I've become so much more independent, physically there's no possible way of being independent. 

     *this section of the post was written while listening to Miss Independent by Kelly Clarkson and Independent Women by Destiny's Child.... in case you were wondering ;) 

I really am having a hard time writing my blogs lately, probably because the excitement and newness is wearing down, and everything is becoming less and less foreign. My everyday life is becoming more routine and I've cut back on the traveling. Although I still have a lot of Peru to see, I'm enjoying spending more weekends in Lima, getting to know my host city a little better. 

Until the next post... abrazos y besos XOXO

Abby 

Our group white water rafting. 

My gym ladies!

Batman vs. Superman premiere

Bus rides with these goons! 

Cooking show :)

Noche de salsa :) 

Just a Nurse

And yet another blog that has nothing to do with Peru, but as travels wind down I'm being brought back to a bit of a routine that I'm completely okay with. As many of you have already seen, Friday I found out that I have been accepted into UNMC's Traditional Nursing Program on Omaha's campus. I immediately FaceTimed my parents, new roommates (shout out to Jory, Shayna and Trae!) and texted my otha brotha Loran who couldn't FaceTime because he is living la vida nightshift. 

Within this excitement was a pinch of sadness, as I realized I now HAVE to come back to the states and basically back to the real world. But more important than the sadness, I realized how much support I have behind me in making this dream become a reality. I'd like to share with you guys my personal statement I wrote on why exactly I want to become a nurse:

Throughout my life I was confident that I was going to go to medical school, until I had a change of heart. After taking some time to think it over, I decided to switch and pursue a career in nursing. When deciding to make the switch, I realized that a career in nursing would provide flexibility and diversity in the workplace. Many close friends and relatives of mine are nurses, and through them I have seen what a wonderful field I’m going into. I saw so much potential and excellence in choosing this career, but time and time again people would question me, “What happened to wanting to be a doctor? Now you’re JUST going to be a nurse?”

I am motivated to become more than just a nurse. The natural human tendency is to be selfish, and I want to be the person who steps outside of this tendency and helps people when they are suffering and in pain. I want to be the nurse that studied Spanish so that I can reach out to a vulnerable population who may be scared or intimidated because of a language barrier.  I want to be there with my patients and their families in times of happiness and grief. I want to be the physician’s eyes and ears. I strive to be not just a nurse, rather I strive to be the nurse that goes above and beyond the expectations for my patients and coworkers.

I want to leave a mark on healthcare that is significant to my patients and their families during their times of need. I may not even think of it as anything more than doing my job but I want to do it in a way that is profound to those who I come into contact with. Knowing I can come into work and make a difference in someone’s life really pushes me to become a nurse.  

Nursing will also provide a learning environment in the field, even after schooling is done. Whether it’s a disease I have yet to deal with, or a piece of history a patient tells me, I want to continue learning after nursing school. Ultimately, I envision myself furthering my career by going to graduate school to become a certified nurse anesthetist, maybe after I take some time to do some travel nursing. 

I also envision myself speaking fluent Spanish. Since the first day of Spanish class my freshman year of high school, I have made it a goal to become fluent. Studying Spanish has taught me that communication skills are vital to having good relationships with others. Going abroad this spring will really improve my ability to communicate with the Spanish speaking population, which will translate well to my nursing career. (I wrote this before I came to Peru, I am *almost* speaking fluent Spanish, yeeee!)

A goal without a plan is just a wish. I’m not wishing to become a nurse. This is my goal, and being accepted into nursing school is the first step to reaching my goal.  

F is for Friends

This past week has been one for the books, that's for sure. The underlying lesson of the week is that there is absolutely nothing like friendship. It's important folks.

Sticking to my promises of not wasting my days sitting around, I kept myself super busy this week. Starting with Thursday, Marki and I did a little shopping and found ourselves to be very successful... we love dat Jockey Plaza. Later that night I went to the gym to watch the announcement for the next Open workout! We all had a great time cheering each other on. Thursday nights will always have a special place in my heart, and I can't express enough how grateful I am for CrossFit. It's led me to some great people. Later that night, I "learned" how to salsa, and went out with a couple of friends from my gym. The salsa is a very sexy dance, and needless to say I haven't quite mastered it yet. For that matter, I don't think I ever will.

Friday morning, I got lost. I was supposed to meet one of my new Peruvian friends at her house, and all was going to be well. Except there were no Uber's out at the time, leading me to make the trek by walking. It really wasn't too far of a walk, but the whole time I was looking for the wrong house number (imagine that). I stopped and asked a security guard at a neighboring school for help, and we eventually called a cab to meet with another friend of mine. My security guard friend took such good care of me, he made sure I had a good price for the cab, and even sent pictures of my cab to my friend that was waiting for me. He had places to be but he ensured that this lost gringa found her way, and I'm so grateful for that!

Friday night was one of the best nights of my life. A couple weeks ago, a couple of us girls saw billboards for a Skrillex concert in Lima and we flew with that idea. Before this I had never been to an electronic music concert but I now know it's a whole new experience. Although we waited until about 1 am for Skrillex to preform, I will never forget this night. It's like I felt the music in my soul. It was awesome. I can't even explain it. We didn't get home until about 4:30 (not an uncommon thing here), but I'm chalking this night up as a win!

Saturday, after about four hours of sleep, our class went to central Lima to watch a show called Las Brisas del Titicaca. The show was full of all different types of dancing, and as tired as I was I still really enjoyed it. Between each type of dance, they had the band play and people from the crowd flocked to the stage to dance. We got pulled on to dance with a couple of ladies, and although it was blatantly obvious some of us didn't know how to dance, these ladies were having a blast with us!

Sunday I met some friends at an allllllllllll you can eat sushi bar. It was so cool! I tried so many different types of sushi and tried to keep up with the rapid conversation of my Peruvian friends. We ended up hanging out there for about four hours, trying to take advantage of our nonstop sushi service. Later Sunday night, I went to see Kung Fu Panda with my friend Clara. It was a challenge to watch the movie only in Spanish, but I'm glad I did it.

Our class also went to a local school, where the children live in a community that came to Lima from the jungle. A few of the kids knew how to speak Shipibo (a native language of the jungle) and we spent some time reading some stories and playing games. Then, we went outside to play some games and next thing you know the whole school is on recess, flocking to each of the girls to give piggyback rides, spin in circles and play tag. It was so fun to run around with the kids and see the joy on their faces. 

The rest of the week was spent going to class, going to the gym, and hanging around. One night I went to Claire's house, where we spent most of the evening chit chatting beside her rooftop pool. We talked about how crazy it was that only a few months ago we were all sitting in a room, awkward, because we didn't know a single thing about each other, and now we're each others support system.

Which brings me to the moral of the story, everything I've done this past week was in good company. It's so so important to fill your time with positive people that support you through and through. I'm so thankful for all of my friends, here and in Nebraska. As they say, you are who you hang out with! So make sure you hang out with super attractive and cool people... ;)

Hasta la proxima, abrazos y besos.

XOXO
Abigail Cristina Gasparin Crunchy Boyer


p.s. that is my new Peruvian name ^ .... Gasparin signifying casper the ghost...

my slump, my revival

They say that during a study abroad trip, you follow a certain pathway of feelings. You start in honeymoon, regress to homesickness, and then right before you leave you're on cloud nine and don't want to go home. This theory in my case is definitely holding true.

The past couple of weeks (excluding this weekend, you'll find out) have been part of the "regression stage". I sat in my room a lot wishing I was back home. I know, what a waste of time but hey sh*t happens. I watched a movie one weeknight here, called How To Be Single (for $1.50... step up USA). It was super cute and actually took me out of my funk, and also made me want to go to the Grand Canyon to see a sunrise on New Years Day. If you're a single 20 something female, put this movie on your to-do list.

AND THEN... something incredible happened. We spent this past weekend in Cusco, and let me tell you, it was absolutely breathtaking. Literally breathtaking too, as we found ourselves once again at about 12,000 feet above sea level and gasping for air after climbing two flights of stairs. We started the weekend super early Friday morning, finally arrived in Cusco, and checked into our hotel. We had a quick lunch and took a brief tour of some ruins and of the city. At one of the ruin stops, we went into a little tunnel, where it was pitch black and I honestly got a little anxious as I couldn't see at all where I was going. We finally, literally, saw the light and escaped this little tunnel. It was interesting to say the least. We also slid down some natural rock "slides" but we couldn't go full speed as our guide told us we would probably break our ankles. Taking into consideration my following day, I decided he was right, and "braked" the whole way down the slide. Afterwards, we stopped in a beautiful church where, unfortunately, we couldn't take any pictures.

Natural rock slides! So cool

These little guys were everywhere, they were so photogenic

The center plaza

If I had a list of the top ten days of my life, the following day would definitely make the cut. We started the day with an interesting hotel breakfast, consisting of pasta, bread and the best apples I've ever had. I was also sure to load up on coffee. We took a scenic two hour bus ride to a train station in a neighboring city. While we waited, I enjoyed another cup of coffee and then we boarded the train. There's no way to describe the train ride other than magical. I felt like I was on the Hogwarts express, waiting to arrive at my first day of wizard school. We rode alongside a gushing, brown, sediment filled river the entire way, passing through tunnels and approaching the more jungle-like scenery of Machu Picchu. We passed some trekkers, who were making a four day hike on the Inka Trail to Machu Picchu. This is another thing on my bucket list, as I can't even imagine the reward of coming over the top of the mountain and seeing the famous, ancient ruins after four days of trekking. When we arrived, we stepped foot into the small town of Machu Picchu. The girls were in awe, and said it reminded them of Estes Park (I couldn't make the connection, as Estes is waiting patiently on my bucket list). The town was cute, and filled with little shops, but we had to skip over roaming the city as we had to catch another bus that took us up to the entrance of Machu Picchu. *MOM SKIP THIS PART* The bus ride was super sketchy, (not a new sensation, unfortunately), as we passed oncoming busses with full speed, and no guard rails. *MOM START READING AGAIN* When we got to the top, we started our tour of the ruins. It was absolutely breathtaking. We were sure to load up with tons of pictures, and were guided through the ruins learning about each room, and what probably went on there. It was amazing, the architecture, the beautiful day we had, the llamas roaming freely, the general atmosphere... Everything was picture perfect and I soaked in everything I could. I'm ecstatic to go back with my parents in May (hopefully without a guide this time, as I wanted to roam and sit and take it all in, but we were rushed from stop to stop).

The little town underneath Machu Picchu

The Famous

The rest of the day was enjoyed by a little souvenir shopping, eating at a buffet with the best Alfajores (aka cookies filled with some sort of good frosting stuff AKA my new addiction), and a sleepy bus/train ride home. That night we hung around the hotel, had some girl talk outside our rooms that ended abruptly by a hotel worker yelling "SILENCIO" at the three of us giggling girls. We ran into our room like real adults and it made my heart super happy. Another happy heart moment was the blissful, chilled sleep I got while in Cusco. It got pretty cold at night and we had the heaviest, coziest blankets.

Our last full day in Cusco, we spent mostly getting bussed around to different archaeological sites and different markets. One of the archaeological sites was a big terrace, where I literally felt my spirits lift. It was nice and cool and breezy, and we were in a giant grass field and I felt like I was back home. We later spent some time buying homemade bracelets and other goodies from the local women. They were all so genuine, kind, and smiley. It's amazing how even with such a different life, working for maybe, maybe ten dollars a day, these women were genuinely happy. It really made me reevaluate the material aspect of my life, as I'm realizing day by day I'm enjoying more the money I spend on adventures and experiences, rather than the money spent on stuff, and most importantly I'm enjoying the free experience of the presence of others. We enjoyed another buffet that had a scenic view of the river beneath a giant garden filled with a couple of llamas. I took it upon myself to mount a swing and swing next to the river. I felt my energy rise and my spirits lift once more.

Looking back at the restaurant from the garden 

Our view from the restaurant

Full of joy :)

Upon arrival back to home base in Cusco, we put on our jeans and sweaters (insert heart eye emoji here) and headed to the main plaza. We enjoyed the best chica morada and an amazing meal served by our new Syrian friend that could speak Arabic, Spanish and English... impressive. We had a great view of the plaza from the restaurant and did our highs and lows, and by this time my glass was back to being half full, actually more like overflowing. We also came across a couple guys in Husker shirts (more like chased after them, but that's besides the point), and got to share a quick "GO BIG RED" why are you here? chat.

On our way back to the hotel this night, we all vowed that we're done sitting around. Our free time will now be spent exploring the unknowns of Lima together. I'm so grateful for the girls here, they know exactly what to say, how to cheer you up, and are straight up adventure enthusiasts. They make me want to stay here forever.

Another reason I don't think I have it in me to leave is my CrossFit family here. They are so sweet, welcoming and I love them so much. I am so glad I have something like CrossFit in my life, because it always brings me to the best people, and has connected me with so many locals here. As you can tell, they love to blow up my Facebook, and I'm enjoying competing in the Open with them here.

Mi familia <3

To tie back into the rhythm of a study abroad trip, I'm back to being in love with this country and the people here. I don't want to think about the short time I have left here, however I've already decided I will definitely be coming back in the near future. Thanks for sticking with this long, wordy blog.
XOXO Abrazos y Besos,

Abby