Life continues in Lima, Peru. It’s good. The latest Flickr photo gallery is here. Plenty more pictures in the gallery than are included here.

So what have I been up to?

My work as a dentist continues in the schools. I even received my first free anti-inflammatory and analgesic mouthwash sample from a visiting drug company rep!

I have found a path down to the beach from my apartment. It’s only a 10-minute walk and is perfect on a sunny day.

I will be heading to Bogota, Colombia in the second week of August. It think it’s going to feel strange to move away from what has definitely started to feel like home here in Lima.

Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg Teach English

When Gaby and I converse, she usually speaks in English and I usually speak in Spanish. We try to correct each other and ask language questions as they arise. It works pretty well. Gaby says one of the best ways she learns is by reading and translating the lyrics to memorable songs.

With this in mind, I have introduced her to a new song to help her learn some more colloquial and informal English, West Coast style:

Ain’t Nothin’ But an English Lesson, Baby from Nathan Shipley on Vimeo.

Parades You Wouldn’t See in the States

As July is Peru’s independence month, there are a ton of parades, fireworks, concerts, shows, and other special events all over Lima. My apartment in Miraflores is conveniently located right next to some of the biggest ones. I have been enjoying them. The biggest was an all-day and night event put on by the two largest grocery store chains in Lima: Metro and Wong.

The most surprising-to-an-American part of the parade was the “Negritas”: African caricatures lead by a few white caricatures. See below:

I also enjoyed what was probably one of the best fireworks shows I’ve seen in my life. Here’s some video — I was standing about 5 minutes down the street from the door to my apartment for this:

Fireworks in Parque Kennedy from Nathan Shipley on Vimeo.

Breaking News: Peruvian National Health Center Actually Peruvian National Rumor Mill!

I discovered this week while at my work as a visiting dentist that mad rumors are flying around the hallowed halls of the health center. The quick summary of what people think is as follows:

• I am Gaby’s foreigner boyfriend and/or fiancee
• Cesar is Gaby’s lover on the side
• She is playing both of us
• I am coming to work at the health center so often because I want to “check up” on Gaby and Cesar because I suspect a relationship between them
• Gaby is pregnant – possibly with my baby

It’s all like a poorly executed and really funny game of telephone for soap opera lovers. Someone tells a joke, it is accepted as truth, it gets repeated and everyone embellishes a little bit on what they heard. Let’s break it down:

A month ago, before I was here, Gaby refused breakfast one morning. Cesar jokingly said, “Oh, it’s morning sickness.” This was taken as fact and has percolated for the last month.

Several days ago, the doorman asked Cesar to confirm the rumor that I was Gaby’s boyfriend. Rather than helping settle things down, Cesar said, “Of course!” Also taken as fact.

The dental assistant nurse who works in our office was asked if Cesar is Gaby’s lover on the side. She said, “Yes.” Delight ensues as the story gets juicier.

Various people that work at the health center see the three of us having lunch, laughing and smiling together and are both impressed and shocked at Gaby’s brazenness as she spends time with both of her men at the same table.

Of course, no one bothers to ask Gaby if any of this is true. Cesar likes the anarchy of it all and perpetuates the rumors. I find the whole thing to be quite delightful. The three of us have found much amusement in our Soap Opera. I wonder what they’ll all say when I travel on to Colombia? Our conjecture at this point is that everyone will think I’ve left the country because I’ve either found out about about Gaby and Cesar or I’ve discovered she is preggers.

Adventures in Home Cyst Lancing

I have what is either a cyst or a boil on my back. I think it’s a cyst. (That would be my professional medical opinion.) It hurts.

Why should I bother with going to a doctor’s office to lance that pesky intrusion when I can enjoy the experience from the comfort and privacy of my own home!

Short version of a gross story: Last week, Gaby performed the cyst-lancing surgery. It hurt. A lot. Her family apparently has a surgical instrument sterilizing oven at their house (really, who doesn’t in this post 9-11 world?), so she readied various tools of pain and brought them to my apartment to do her work. She even brought some amoxicillin to set the mood!

There was about a half-hour or so of prodding, poking, and pushing with a needle to make various channels for the juice to come out of. I got to the point where my right hand wouldn’t stop shaking from pain when she applied pressure. I actually took it pretty well.

Unfortunately, after all that, the cyst persists. We’re going to have to do the surgery again. Round two will be with the scalpel instead of just the needle. Ay.

How To Ensure a Good Haircut with a Language Barrier:

I needed a haircut, but I wasn’t quite confident in my ability to explain what I wanted in case the barber needed more detail than, “Just a little bit shorter all over.” Solution? Take pictures of pictures on my computer screen and bring the camera to the salon. Worked like a charm.

That’s all for now, folks! I’m off to Polvos Azules (the black market buidling which is home to the Pirate DVD Mother Ship) again to have another look around.

Again, here’s the Flickr set for this post. Stay tuned!

Trackback URI | Comments RSS