I suppose that my big adventure this week was a trip to the local clinic to receive an IV filled with hydration and medications, but no one really likes being sick (much less reading about it). I will, however, elect to share with you the wonderful details of my new scholastic routine.
WARNING: for my friends in school/working full time, you may want to take a few deep breaths and think happy thoughts before reading this.
This semester I only have three classes: Contemporary Hispanic American Literature, Advanced Spanish, and Peru in Modern Times (History). My courses are generously spread out over four days, leaving me with no classes on Fridays. Every day I walk about two miles to campus and get to enjoy the glorious sights, smells and sounds of living in Lima (*slight sarcasm here people, it's not that glorious). I actually do enjoy having some time to just walk and let my mind wonder a bit before having to focus with 100x the attention a normal (aka English) lecture would require.
My literature course is filled with about 20 international students and 5 Peruvians, which makes for a very one sided class discussion most days. It's very hard to participate in on-the-spot literary analysis in a foreign language! Our professor is extremely articulate and well-educated and easy-to-understand: she is a major asset for us 'gringos'. In this class, we are currently reading the highly acclaimed Cien años de soledad by Gabriel García Márquez. It is a rather tough read (especially in Spanish), and for the first time in my life (honestly) I am using Spark Notes on a daily basis. Hopefully taking this course will pay off with a richer vocabulary and a new appreciation for Hispanic literature!
My Spanish course is (obviously) filled with international students, but it gives us a once-in-a-lifetime chance to chat with multiple nationalities every day. There are students from France, Germany, Poland, Switzerland, and the US. Since we usually have group discussions over policy, economics, religion, politics, morals, education and the like, it's almost like a miniature United Nations...okay well not really, but I can pretend that we are changing the world!
My History course is absolutely fascinating! I haven't taken a history class since my junior year of high school and let me tell you, I'm glad I waited to take one until now. Because I'm living in a country that I know very little about, a history class over the past century sounded logical; however, I hadn't counted on having a professor that is simply FANTASTIC. He is everything that you would imagine a college professor to be: A slightly nerdy man in his later 50s with obviously graying hair and rather astute glasses who strolls into class 15 minutes late sporting his khakis, sweeter-vest and loafers. Every lecture he diverts from the PowerPoint at least 12 times, filling the room with additional facts pulled from the dusty niches of Peru's rich history. While I don't catch every word, the sheer environment of his lectures make me understand what he is talking about. Hopefully I can fish out the important information before test time!
And that's about it. At the most, I'm in class 4 hours a day and the rest of my time is spent... Well I really don't know what I do with the rest of my time. This past week I was sick and didn't do much but sleep and feel miserable, so I will have to get back to you on my 'leisure' activities. I've only been in Peru for a month, and there are plenty more places to see and things to do!
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