Whirlwind- Insights from Week 1

Whew~ Week 1 has FLOWN by with a whirlwind of activities.  Of course, I suppose it's somewhat normal to feel like you've never accomplished enough, even though every day has been one task after another from 6:30am-12:00am.  I'll try to summarize the highlights of the week pretty quickly...

Nela and Sebastian

Wednesday, July 6th: 

Travel day. No issues. Smooth & easy. Got through customs with no major problems. They were a little leery of all my computer equipment that I had to bring in order to be able to work as a remote employee, but overall... smooth sailing. :) Our adopted Peruvian family surprised us at the airport and was waiting for us with a sign and big smiles. This was SUCH a nice treat! They are the absolute best!!!

Cafe A Bistro... My new home away from home

Thursday, July 7th: 

Met up with our BFF Ashton at his ridiculously delicious restaurant, Cafe A Bistro. Ashton has been the absolute epitome of the word "Godsend"! Seriously. He has stepped up to help in too many ways to list. He's offered to share his office space with me for as long as I need it, has allowed me to install a faster internet speed in his office, chauffeured us around, given countless insights & advice... and the list goes on... and on... and on.  I honestly don't think its humanly possible to ever repay him, so I can only hope that one day we can at least repay his kindness by helping someone else along that is in the beginning of a new adventure such as this. 

We walked around both Miraflores and Barranco looking for places to rent for HOURS. I wish I had my Fitbit on! I would have destroyed everyone in my Fitbit friends list. haha! It was a long, and very fulfilling day.

Friday, July 8th: 

Well, this was an interesting day! We had to go to both the Interpol Office and Migraciones (Immigration Office) in order to get our Carnet de Extranjerias (Peruvian Resident card for Foreigners). At the Interpol they took our finger prints, checked our teeth (?) and questioned us about identifying tattoos, etc. This part was pretty easy breezy. Next up though… Migraciones… This was an entirely different scenario… 

Well, fighting through this crowd was fun. Lol!

Little did we know this was the first day that Peruvians could apply for a Biometric Passport which would allow them to travel to Europe without a Visa. Apparently, a LOT of Peruvians want to travel to Europe, because it was PACKED!!!! There was a line that practically wrapped around the building. And, at the front of the line, everyone was pushing, yelling and raising their fists to the security guards that were guarding the entrance. It was a scene right out of a movie!  Somehow, our attorney's assistant had worked her way up front in the crowd prior to us getting there and was holding our spot in line. She was able to somehow speak to the guards and after waiting in the middle of the screaming, pushing, agitated crowd for about 15 minutes, a guard came out and "corralled" LJ & I through the door. (Yes, I know. We were absolutely the most hated people there).  Once we were inside, it was almost completely empty and we were in & out in 10 minutes. What an incredibly bizarre experience...

Saturday, July 9^th:

This day consisted of a lot of boring logistics that I won’t bother walking through. Dealt with unforeseen challenges around getting my work office set up and working. Boring and time consuming. BUT! All is working great now! J J J

I hate you phone!

I REALLY FREAKING HATE YOU!!!!

Ok, we're all good now.

Sunday, July 10^th: 

LJ’s birthday! YAY! We started the celebration Saturday night in the new Que Chicha with a group birthday song. Then took Sunday off to celebrate with the people that are paving the way for us. Nela and family made a nice big birthday feast of Lomo Saltado, Humitas, Jugo de Pina, Queso Fresco and fresh baked bread. 

Birthday brunch w/ Mama Nela & Family

Humitas

Lomo Saltado

The works

Afterward, we were off to meet Ashton and Yasbeth for dinner and drinks. We started at La Cabrera (Argentine Steakhouse), moved along to Barbarian, and ended up at Nuevo Mundo Draft Bar. The perfect celebration! 

Smiles and Laughs w/ the Birthday Boy

Hello Lover!

Beef! 

WowWowWeeWow

Mon-Thurs:  

My temporary APQC office is up and running. I’m still adjusting to some of the quirks that come with being a remote employee, but I’m starting to get into the flow of it. I'm finding the patience to work through the frustrations, and have come up with some “work-arounds” for the challenges that seem to arise on a consistent basis. I’ll be an IT whiz by the time this is all said and done. Well, maybe not. Haha! The upside is… my temporary office is only 1 block from the beach! Whoops... As LJ reminds me… it’s not a beach… it’s an Overlook of the ocean. Whatevs.

Counting my blessings

We’ve looked at a couple of restaurant spots. One is definitely out of the question. The other will take a little bit of work, but I think we can make it cute. And the price is definitely within what we are looking for. It may have some potential. J  More to look at tomorrow. We struggle to find the balance between "waiting for the right spot" and "just jump on it". I ask for constant guidance. I have no doubt we will make whatever feels right to us work. 

I guess that’s it for now. More soon! :) :)  I’m going to head out and walk down by the Beach / Overlook. J 

Leaving with a small "mish-mash" of pics from our first week:

Packed... to be moved in the future... maybe 

Packed for immediate travel

Alfredo's Que Chicha gets a Facelift

Mama Nela cutting potatoes to order for Salchipapas

Oh H-town. Don't hate me because I'm beautiful

I think these are my favorite trees ever. I love their trunks :)

One of the things I miss most (other than friends and family, of course)... Bottomless pots of coffee. By "cup of coffee" they really mean "cup" aka: 8 oz. By "cup", I mean at least 20 oz. "Keep the coffee refills coming"... Not here... *sigh*