Back in the good old US of A
Trip Start
Jun 16, 2007
1
18
Trip End
Aug 11, 2007
Buffalo Grove, Illinois
Tuesday, August 14, 2007
But first, a little more about the last week of my life in Peru. I continued to take salsa lessons at the place called "Son de Cuba," which, as you might have guessed, meant that the type of salsa we were learning was the same that they dance in Cuba, called Casino de Ruedas. It is called that because, as you can see on this video on YouTube, the dancers are situated in a circle, and the men are constantly changing their partners, just passing them around for everyone to dance with. I did not dance in the circles because that is a more advanced part of the Cuban salsa style, but I did learn the basics and also a good collection of spins and turns and other steps that make the dancing a lot of fun! I am more than willing to show anyone who would like to learn how to dance!
That was what the bulk of my last week consisted of, as I went out dancing just about every night that week.
I also made it a point to go to the casino, as I do in every country in which I travel. This casino got the best of me, but at least there was a grumpy old lady at our table, so it was almost like paying for an evening of entertainment! I don't know if she liked that there were a few Americans and Israelis at the table. I think she was a regular. Oh well... I thanked her, when I left, for being so entertaining.
I also met up with Jacque, my host from Couchsurfing, on his last night in Peru. He was sad, as he had been in Peru for 7 months, I believe. That is a long time, that's for sure!
Then it takes us to my last night and the day of travel.
For my last night, the guys in my hostel (the guys that work there) went out and bought a few beverages and we celebrated. They are a great group of guys. We talked for a bit and just had a general good time. Then, I went to bed early because I had to get up at 3:30am to catch my taxi. I woke up, got some eggs made by one of the guys at the hostel, then headed out. My flight was scheduled to land in Miami at 1:10pm, and then I had to go through customs AND catch my 2:30 flight. I think I would have been able to do that if our plane actually arrived in Miami at 1:10. Unfortunately, it didn't arrive in Miami until about 1:40, 30 minutes later than scheduled.
Needless to say, I missed my one flight, which was supposed to take me to Tampa Bay, then I would hop on another flight to Chicago. I was supposed to arrive in Chicago at around 7:35pm. However, I went to the ticket counter and asked them if they had any direct flights from Miami to Chicago, and they did! I ended up in Chicago about one hour before I was supposed to be here!
That was a pleasant surprise!
Since I have been back, people have been asking me, "So... tell me about your trip... How was it?!" My response has always been, "Fabulous!" Every aspect of my trip was simply outstanding. I could never ask for anything more from these trips that I take, because I met some really wonderful people, got to spend some quality time with my sister, and got to improve my Spanish. What more can anyone ask for?!
I hope you have enjoyed reading these journal entries. I sure have loved writing them! Thanks, again, for all the support and love that was sent my way while I was out of the country. It meant a lot to me to hear from you all.
Hope to see you soon!
Saludes,
Bryan
