So my adventure in the Philippines is over, I am anxious to start my next journey…but I have no idea where to go! The services on SCOLA.org helped me decide the perfect destination last time, so back online I go!
I log on to People and Places and start flipping through the online photo gallery of over 29,000 original photos. So many amazing places catch my eye and it’s hard to focus on choosing just one country when there are so many to see! I’ve never been to South America, and the beautiful landscape of Peru is drawing me in. I’ve been needing to brush up on my Spanish so I figured Peru would be a great second destination!
Speaking of brushing up on my Spanish, I should figure out how to say a few key phrases like “Do you speak English?” and “I’m lost!”. Although I am busy preparing for my trip in the days leading up to my flight, I conveniently can log on to SCOLA’s mobile applications no matter where I am! I use my phone to practice my Spanish with Insta-Class, ready-to-use multi-media language lessons produced exclusively for SCOLA! I also log on to Spoken Word and chat with native speaker Julye…she lives in Peru and is able to tell me all about her country’s culture, and corrects me when I pronounce hola as hole-a instead of o-la! Julye responded to all of my video posts within 24 hours and most importantly was able to save me from a lot of embarrassment…
I now feel confident in my Spanish skills and knowledge of Peruvian culture, so I was ready to begin my second international adventure with SCOLA On the Street Videos.
My first stop in Peru is to go see my friend Julye that I met on Spoken Word. Today is her birthday! “Hola!” I greet her when she answers her front door and we both laugh. I join along as Julye’s family and friends celebrate her birthday with food, soft drinks, gifts, singing, and cake. She gets many wonderful gifts such as a necklace, picture frames, a teddy bear and flowers.
The birthday celebrations wore me out, so I went to sleep excited and anxious for the rest of adventures Peru had to bring.
The rest of the week proved just as fun as the first days celebrations and included many exciting experiences and discoveries. I was able to visit Senor de los Milagros (The Lord of the Miracles, for those of you who have not been studying your Spanish on scola.org). Senor de los Milagros is an image of Christ painted on an adobe wall at the main altar of the Shrine of The Nazarene of Lima. Many Peruvians visit The Lord of Miracles in during a procession in October and gives blessings to the faithful.
I left Peru with new friends thanks to Julye and new knowledge of Peru and it’s religious culture thanks to Senor de los Milagros, but I can’t forget to mention what else I left Peru with…and that is a very full belly! While in Peru I went on a tour of the largest food fair in Latin America- Mistura. Mistura gave me a profound appreciation of traditional Peruvian products such as quinoa, coffee, maca, cocoa, corn, and so much more…I would go on but my stomach is starting to growl just thinking about it! Mistura also featured folk dances from popular regions of Peru.
I left Peru longing to return someday soon, but also anxious to begin my next international adventure with SCOLA On the Street Videos.
Check back next week to travel along to the third destination on my journey with SCOLA!
The SCOLA Symposium 