First Impressions

Hey everyone,
I just arrived in Lima this morning at a little past seven. When we flew in, I looked down and saw all the poverty that people told me about. The partially constructed houses with second stories that don't have roofs, the lack of paved roads, and the trash outside. I still didn't feel deterred though. I obviously took note, but I wasn't surprised at it though. I started imagining that most of Lima looked that way and that I would live in one of thos homes. I got off the plane after an uneventful flight and went through customs and found Michelle the ISA director waiting for me with a big grin and holding an ISA sign. We greeted each other in the way that Americans are unfamiliar and unaccustomed to (Picture: I reach out my hand for a shake and the Hispanic is already coming in for the hug and realizes that your hand is stretched and both switch to the other's greeting only to be more mixed up then the lean in for the kiss on the cheek. Is it actually a kiss though? I don't think I have ever laid a lip on the other person's cheek, rather I just touch my cheek to theirs. I have never been sure about the proper way to do that.). We talked got in the taxi and she drove me to my homestay family. I arrived around eight. The house is so nice and is clearly in the wealthier areas of town. There is a wall that separates the house from the road with an automated garage door that leads into a nice patio. To the right once you walk in is a set of stairs that leads up to my room on the second floor. We entered the house through the front entrance that leads into the living room, then the dining room and kitchen. The rooms are nicely decorated and the floors are hardwood. My host sister, Gaby, gave me a tour. She showed me the restroom, the bedrooms, the backward that connects with my host grandparent's house. Then we ate some breakfast. I was dead tired during it so I was halfway listening to everything and they asked me if I was going to take a nap. So I did. I went to bed around 8:30 AM and got up again around 11:30. I was still really tired. My room is ten times better than my Lovett room. I have a huge window that lets in a nice breeze, a nice tv with DVD player, a desk, a bed, a nightstand, and a closet. I also really like that I can access my room through the outside so that I don't have to always come through the house and around everyone else's rooms. My host family also bought me all these candies that they left waiting for me by my desk. I also have internet connection. I think I am going to take another nap and then i have to meet the ISA director again in two hours. I know that this was terribly written, but just get ready for an even greater decrease in my English skills. I figure the more I learn of Spanish, the more my English will suffer. Oh! some other things that I found interesting: the cars I rode in today were both automatic (I thought it was rare to see automatic cars outside of the US) and Lima (the part that I am in at least) has some of the best roads I have ever seen- complete with proper traffic signs that people, for the most part, seem to obey- and people wear their seatbelts and I think it is illegal to talk on the cell phone and drive.