No + No = Peru.

I have always been the type of daughter never wanted to disappoint her parents. They never really had strict rules for me, but I always made sure I did well in school, came home by my curfew (mostly) and was polite and charming wherever we went. 

When I told my parents that I wanted to go overseas to Europe with my friends, the list of reasons why not to was never ending; "You’ve already been." "You’re wasting your money." "You are a group of girls..." You’ve heard the spiel. With my uni course starting earlier than most, and not wanting to disappoint my parents, I listened to them and didn’t go.

Semester 2 really got me down in the dumps; I was unmotivated and I needed to have something to look forward to. So what did I do? I decided I wanted to book a 3 and a half week volunteer trip to a place that is considered to be more dangerous than Europe - Peru (with a short stop over in LA, of course). 

But this did not come easy, oh no! There were tears, lots of tears and screaming matches too. Every time I brought it up, it was like World War 3 was about to begin. It took me until 2 months before the trip to actually book it. When I told my parents the night that I finally decided to book it, they stormed off and I thought they would never talk to me ever again. Their “baby” girl was growing up there was nothing they could do about it.

And do you want to know what happened when I returned, nothing. The world did not end, I returned home in one piece and it felt like I had never really left and it was all a dream. The only tangible way I knew that I had gone, was the fact that I had my typical touristy woven bracelets from the markets, an abundance of alpaca and llama printed souvenirs and that breathing and walking everywhere was 100% easier. 

But I knew that once I came back, that "barrier" was gone. That ball and chain which I thought was attached me is no longer there, I am a free woman!!! (not really haha).  I no longer feel the need  to always do what is expected of me by others. This is something I have always really struggled with; doing what I want vs. doing what others expect me to do. This trip made me realise that I can do things on my own, and I need to trust my gut and stop the self doubt. 

I would also like to thank anyone who gave me the courage to take this leap of faith, you know exactly who you are. Without you I would not have seen what I have seen, met the wonderful people I have met and experienced a whole new way of life.

So here is a peak of my trip. Peru, is a truly amazing place! I didn’t even get to see half of the country and I'm in love. Invaded by the Spanish, most of Peru and definitely Cusco reminds me of Europe, with the cobble stone roads and beautiful architecture. The landscape itself is absolutely breath taking. Once you leave Cusco, there are mountains at every glance and untouched greenery. They are very in touch with the land and preserving the ruins they have.

The culture is amazing, from their food to their music and everything in between. Their textiles are what got me. Everything was bursting with colour and intricacy; from their hand woven tapestries, to the natural dying of yarns and the colours of the Cusco flag.

It is so gratifying to think that in the short time we spent volunteering, we enabled the last two households in the village of Misminay to have a greenhouse. They are now able to grow and eat food, that they otherwise couldn't because of the cold weather and high altitude in the Sacred Valley. We could only speak a few words of Quechua and they spoke not a word of English, but we somehow made this house. It was so heartwarming to see them happy and smiling even when they had all but nothing. It was even more heartbreaking when we had to leave them. But a piece of me will always remain in Peru. For as long as it stands, the green house we built for our families will always be there.

I miss wearing my hiking boots everyday and not caring about what I looked like. I miss being called Sara (because it was too hard for the Peruvian’s to say Sarah) and being haggled every time we entered a market. I wish I could still be eating the delicious quinoa cereal mix for breakfast, drinking Pisco Sours and Inka Cola and continuing  to try every meal on the Paddy’s Pub menu.

The Peruvian’s use the world “ciao” instead of “adios: to say goodbye. “Adios” is a final goodbye, instead, “ciao” means see you soon, because we never really do say our final goodbyes.
So until next time Peru, ciao!

- Sarah