The last few days have felt like a week. I arrived from Calca to Ollantaytambo last Wednesday. I spent one night to recuperate my strength after my bout of Tourista, and then stayed an extra day because I really liked it here. It all started off well enough meeting Juan Domingo, a local man from Ollantaytambo, with whom I was sandwiched between him and his mother on the collectivo. We talked about where I have been, the Calca project I was working at, and what I was doing in Ollantaytambo.
I must have been so happy to chat to a lovely local man that I forgot all about my guitar, sitting atop the collectivo. While it is for sure a sad loss, in the end I suppose worse things could have gone missing. All I really regret is losing my tuner. It was a great tuner. The guitar...well it was pretty but sounded terrible!
When I arrived, it was mid afternoon. I wanted nothing more than to go get some good food. Which is exactly what I did. The added bonus was that Sara, a girl I had volunteered with at Casita Girasol, was sitting there! Words cannot describe my delight at seeing a friendly, familiar face in such a foreign place. We caught up about life at Casita, how Michael & Mateo were doing, and about our lives in general. She told me about her work here in Ollantaytambo and how it was not quite what she thought, and we talked about family.
I felt really honored to talk to her about family and friends back home. For me, the closer I get to my return date, the more excited I get. Not just to hug all those I love most, but just being somewhere that 22 years of life have been so familiar. At the same time, what I struggle with is returning home different. I know that this trip has changed me in many ways. The things I have seen and experienced have completely changed my opinion on “the small stuff”. And in many ways I think we all worry about returning home and feeling the expectation to fall into the same roles and patterns as before. And I’m not sure that I’m ok with that.
The other thing I learned from our talk is that we both have the same feeling on working somewhere. What I have noticed on my side is that the more time you can commit to a project, the more you can get out of it. The deeper the relationships, the more impressive and complete the work, and the more rewarding. That is what I found in Nicaragua. And in many ways I really wish I had the time to do this here in Peru, but the truth is I still have more to see. And Peru will still be here if & when it is right to return.
We shared stories of our trip and at the end of our conversation, I felt really content with the world that I had run into Sara again. It felt so right to randomly run into her, especially just before she left for a four day trip to learn more about the women weavers for her NGO project. These chance meetings are happening more and more, and are making for such a more rewarding trip.
In my hostel, I met another interesting girl. And while we probably exchanged names, I do not recall it anymore. But equally, I’m less certain it matters. We went for dinner together and shared an engaging conversation about environmental degradation, gender equality, life in Latin America, perceptions on the world around us, vegetarianism/veganism, and more. It was just really wonderful to talk to someone with whom shared similar opinions as me, yet challenged some of my thoughts as well.
Tomorrow though, I head to Aguas Calientes. The jump-off point for Machu Picchu. No big deal.
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