Team Awesome

The Point Hostel offers several different kind of rooms for accommodation. We offer rooms with 9 beds down to rooms with only 2 and prices range from 27 Soles up to 50 (2.65 Soles for every $1). I have been living in an 8 person dorm for nearly 3 months as the cheapest accommodation is provided for staff living at The Point. Except for Di, the supervisor in reception who has been working at The Point for over 2 years. She manages to fill her room last so she can keep her room quiet with very few intruders. Rob and I compare horror stories of living in high occupancy rooms like the conversations we overhear, the same stories about missing buses, visiting Machu Picchu, and backpacker romances. Guests often times have absolutely no respect for people staying in their room and give us funny looks when we crawl out of bed at 2pm after working a long night keeping our guests happy at the bar. Rob and I hit a final straw when there were 4 Aussies sleeping in my room who would stomp around, turn on the lights, and speak at full volume at 4am when they returned from a night of heavy partying. Rob decided it was time to ask Tamir, the owner if we could please move into a staff room for professionalism rather than sleeping with the customers (in their rooms, not actually with them)! We got approval from the stingy Israeli hostel owner and we patiently awaited for the deaprture of the 2 Englishmen from Team Awesome, the name of a 4 bed dorm; 2 singles and 1 bunk bed. Move in day finally arrived on Wednesday and I lugged my luggage the 80 meters to my new, semi-private room with the 2 other bartenders. Peace at last! No more messes, noisy passer-bys or misplaced belongings spread amongst my things. So speaking of 2 other bartenders; one is Rob, my Irish BFF and the other is Phil- a tall, dark and handsome Australian who plans on staying with us through New Years. He is super funny, nice, and chivalrous. I could not have asked for a better buddy to serve the thirsty backpackers who frequent our bar on a nightly basis.

On a separate note, The Point is looking for a bar manager for their locations in both Arequipa and Mancora. Rob approached me earlier in the week shortly after I had awakened from my much needed beauty sleep to tell me that Tamir wanted to speak with me regarding the managerial position in Arequipa. I was nothing short of shocked and flattered and instantly became anxious. I met Tamir in his office Tuesday afternoon and was greeted with a smile (per usual as smiles are contagious). I sat down in the comfy brown leather chair opposite of Tamir in his office and was all ears. I listened to Tamir tell me that Arequipa was lacking a bar manager with professionalism and someone who takes initiative in showing the guests a good time. The bar manager would have to order supplies, stock, arrange events in the bar, and hire bar tenders. I inquired about having to pay for transportation as it's a 1 hour flight vs an 18 hour bus ride. Although Tamir would pay for whichever method was cheaper, I offered to pay the difference for a flight in case a bus was the lesser expensive of the two- i'm all about negotiations! I would have a (small) salary and make a commission on alcohol sales. I accepted the position without much hesitation, returned to the hostel and began informing my close friends that I would be leaving this coming Tuesday. Soon after saying the shocking words out loud, I broke into tears, realizing i'd be leaving the place I have called home for 3 months and the people I have come to call my family. I walked over to Señora Tina, one of the lovely women who keeps our hostel clean giving it the reputation it has for being the cleanest hostel in Lima and informed her that I would be going. I started crying again! Then Tina broke down into tears and simply broke my heart. We carefully wiped the tears from each other's wet cheeks and proceeded to hug. I started to realize that I would dreadfully miss The Point and my family so much it would make my heart melt. Maybe I was jumping into this decision too quickly without thinking about it enough and i hadn't even told Robbie yet who was nowhere to be found. I then began to realize that I had made a huge mistake and that I didn't really want to leave Lima. It's really important to me to celebrate my birthday and New Years with my family in Lima. Within 24 hours I set a meeting with Tamir to inform him of my change of heart and boy was I nervous. Two days later when Tamir could finally make room for me in his busy schedule, I sat back down in that wonderfully comfortable chair in his office and proceeded to tell him of my change of heart. Tamir's response was so terrific and understanding, I could not have asked for a better situation. Tamir is still looking for new bar managers and even told Rob that if I make one teeny mistake to fire me so that I can go to Arequipa! Tamir loves me, my smile, and the way I talk to EVERYONE who comes into the bar. Who can blame him?

Lastly, I have conjunctivitis- could have been a good day

=)

Blast from the Past

Today I went into Larcomar with my friend Asia Power (yes, that's her real name) from Australia. Asia has been back and forth to The Point twice which is very common for backpackers, especially the ones leaving from the Lima airport, only 30 minutes from the hostel. We went into this uppity area for bikini waxes which only cost 25 Soles (about $9.50) and tip is not customary. After our pampering we walked over to Vivanda, the gourmet super market to buy some goodies and to find some gluten-free bread for Asia who has an allergy. I bought some Gouda, wheat crackers, and fruit bars made without preservatives and Asia bought cheese and gluten-free bread, crackers, and wafers; success! We then ventured over to La Lucha, a sandwich shop to buy 2 frozen drinks as it was rather humid outside and I was getting shvitzy. I got a refreshingly delicious passion fruit smoothie and Asia got strawberry- they really hit the spot! We bussed back to the general vicinity of the hostel and Asia pointed to a small boutique she had spotted a few days prior and asked if we could check it out. Little did Asia know, the boutique she wanted to visit is Floam, the store of the woman, Jennifer who I met when I first arrived in Lima and had some technical difficulties at the supermarket. Jennifer and I were supposed to get together so I could help her learn English but she's been preoccupied planning her Fall clothing line. Asia studied fashion in college and spent a while chatting it up with Jennifer in her store about materials, workshops, inspiration, and sewing. Asia ended up buying a really eclectic necklace and is going to return to Floam on Friday to chat it up more about textiles. I'm glad we went into the store to see Jennifer because it reminded her to get in touch with me for some English lessons! Maybe to thank me she'll custom-make (of course i'll pay) me a shirt that isn't the equivalent of a size 6 in the U.S.

We returned to the hostel around 3:45pm which couldn't have been more on point as it turns out I was scheduled to work at 4pm, not 8:30pm- oops! I had been sitting in the bar for no more than 15 minutes when 2 cute (but short) Swiss guys came in and said 'guess who we met today!?' I searched my memory of random friends I make on a daily basis and nervously asked who. They said Roberto! Such a blast from the past! Roberto was the short Peruvian with curly hair who took me surfing and ripped me off by 100 Soles. How precious. He recognized the orange wristbands that the hostel-stayers are required to wear at all times, except for staff who stay more semi-permanently. The Swiss boys claimed that they wanted to go long boarding but Roberto only had short boards. Small world!

Lastly, I received some sad news on Monday; Bruno, my loving guinea pig passed away in the loving home of the Carnageys, good friends of mine. Bruno was a wonderful (and my first) pet and he will be missed a lot. I'm sure he's in guinea pig heaven chowing down on carrots and lettuce. Love you little man!

Miss America

When the bar is busy, it can sometimes take a few tries to get my attention especially when I am making 2 screwdrivers, serving 4 shots of tequila, getting limes for the shots, and changing a 50. I've been called by my name, señorita, 'hey you' and have been whistled at. The other night I was summoned by a name so original and wonderful that I couldn't do anything but stop and giggle. The bar was nearly empty except for 2 youngins playing pool and another 2 sitting at the bar drinking beers. I was watching the pool-players, as I always do, trying to learn new tricks. Sidenote: I beat Rob for the first time ever last week!! Lauren: 1 Rob 187. While focusing on this particular pair play pool, I was distracted by the trick moves they were continuously pulling out of their sleeves and failed to notice the Canadian and the Swiss backpackers attempting to summon me for a cold beverage. I finally responded when I heard the Swiss shout, 'Miss America!' How unique and attention-grabbing! I was flattered to say the least. 

Last Thursday I went to Miraflores to Vivanda, a gourmet, higher-end market with as many different kinds of cheese as varieties of potatoes in Peru. I was in heaven being surrounded by the abundance of fresh ingredients, and pleased with the free samples scattered throughout the store. This supermarket has a booth where they sell concert tickets. Some of the artists performing in Lima in the next few months are Britney Spears, Elton John, and Pearl Jam who was here on Friday. I walked up to the kiosk in the ritzy supermarket, bought my ticket for 150 Soles and a 5 Sole convenience charge and proceeded to browse around Miraflores for a coffee. On my way to a coffee shop a young Peruvian gentleman asked me if I was American and proceeded to ask me questions about why I was in Peru. He asked if he could accompany me to get a cup of coffee and because I was alone and always looking to make a new friend, I said sure! After my strong coffee in a Cuban café with my new friend Yosi, he asked if I had time to go to a park before I was scheduled to work. I think with my level of friendliness (the same level I give everyone) Yosi decided he was going to try to make a move! He took me to Parque de Amores and bought me a red rose. Oy vey. I was very clear with Yosi that I needed to be back at the hostel on time for work and I was pleased that he respected my urgency. I maintained some distance which only made Yosi want to hold my hand. Oy vey x2. I need to learn to be more forward with people but I hate hurting people's feelings and or disappointing them. We grabbed a bus back to the hostel and Yosi paid my way. He walked me to the door, went in for a kiss and I went in quickly for a kiss goodbye on the cheek and said chao and quickly escaped behind the gate that locks the outsiders out from the hostel! The next day I woke up, went to the beach for a bit, returned around 6pm to find a gift waiting for me in the bar: 1/2 dozen red roses accented with baby's breath. Oy vey x3. This was too much for knowing this boy for less than 24 hours. Yosi then proceeded to show up to the hostel and call twice over the course of 2 days. I was officially getting overwhelmed. The final time he stopped by the hostel to see me, I was in gym shorts and a tshirt with no bra on so I had reception tell him I was still sleeping! He left his phone number on Saturday for me to call him but I was preoccupied with preparing for Creamfields; a South American tour of DJs who specialize in electronic music which was the ticket I purchased before meeting Yosi. Creamfields began at 6pm on Saturday and went until 10am on Sunday. I made sure I had the day off 2 weeks in advance. I rode to Creamfields in a cab with 5 attractive Aussies. Ay carumba! David Guetta, a famous DJ headlined the show and I danced for the full 2 hours of his performance. We left the festival at 6am, got back to the hostel around 7am and I finally made it to bed around 8am. I slept until 6pm, worked at 8:30 on Sunday and served the same 4 people beers all night, downloaded and watched the first episode of The Wire, and discussed the events of the show with Rob who's the one who convinced me to start watching this epic show. It takes place in Baltimore City, only about 45 minutes from where I grew up so I feel somewhat connected to the crack whores and corrupt police and lawyers that this show is based around haha! I get giggly every time I see a Maryland flag or a sign on a door that says 'Baltimore Police.' 

Yesterday I called Yosi to get together for coffee so I could let him down easily. He's a nice guy, I am just not interested in having anyone in my life right now who is more than a friend, especially someone who overwhelms me as much as Yosi does. I met him by the McDonalds in Miraflores. I was on time (of course) and he was 20 minutes late. I hate waiting for people- I must get that from Stanley! We walked to Café Café where I got a cappuccino, Yosi got a beer, and we shared cebiche. Yosi let me have the third piece of sweet potato (which always accompanies cebiche) and we split what I thought was a slice of red bell pepper only to find out it was actually a chili when my mouth started burning, stinging, and tingling all at the same time! Yosi then announced that he had a gift for me...uh oh. He was frustrated with not being able to get in touch with me at the hostel so he gave me something I had avoided since I arrived in Lima 80 days ago; a cell phone. His sister got a new phone and Yosi asked her for it so he could give it to me! It's nothing fancy but it makes phone calls! I decided to accept his gift and we walked to a department store to buy me a SIM card for 15 Soles so I could have a new phone number. The way phones work down here is I can buy credit to give me minutes on my phone. I don't have a contract with anyone and the minutes I buy don't expire. The minimum amount of minutes I can buy is 6 and I'm not sure what the maximum is. To be honest- I never planned on getting a phone, but free is always good. But now I have a dilemma; when I tell Yosi (gently) to leave me alone, do I have to give the phone back? Technically it was a gift and I feel like he would tell me I can keep it, but I would still feel guilty. I sure am in a pickle! I wonder if there's a 'dear Abby' down here. 

Bruno

Welcome to Jamrock

Last Wednesday I went to the Damien Marley concert in Lima with about 4000 other reggae fans. I went with Omar, the hairy Venezuelan who was just as eager as me to see the son of such a famous musician and to listen to his well-known jams, his most famous being 'Welcome to Jamrock.' We hadn't purchased tickets ahead of time as the cheapest tickets were 110 Soles and we hoped to find one on the street, having it checked by staff first to ensure it's legitimacy. We arrived at the hotel where Damien was scheduled to perform around 7:45 and shortly after arriving I ran into Kristofer, one of the dreadlocked-hippies I spent 6.5 hours with just the day before bonding over jewelry, music, and Peruvian culture! Kristofer brought his handicrafts with him in an across the shoulder handmade bag hoping to sell rasta-colored hand made bracelets to the fans waiting patiently in line to enter the hotel where the concert was taking place. We kindly asked Kristofer to inquire about the prices of tickets on the streets because a scalper would easily and gladly mark up his price if he's asked by a gringa or a Venezuelan for tickets. It's interesting that no matter where I was with Omar; the taxi, buying a sandwich or asking a question, the local Peruvian could pick up on Omar's accent and immediately tell that he is 'not from around here.' The scalpers were asking for 125 Soles for each ticket so we decided to wait until the concert was supposed to start at 8pm for the prices to go down. We didn't even know who the opening act was so we didn't mind getting in by 9. Well just like Jewish time, there is such a thing called Peruvian time. If a Peruvian is throwing a party and wants it to start at 10pm. He'll tell his friends to come at 8pm so his party starts when he wants it to. So essentially, the music didn't start until 9:30pm. We bought tickets for 110 Soles each (about $41) and entered the banquet hall at 10:30. Omar and I took turns buying beers from the staff walking around with trays of cold beer and danced our butts off to the rasta music coming from the stage of dreadlocks (Damien's are down to the back of his shins)and waving Jamaican flags. As I watched over the audience towards the stage, I could see puffs of smoke lifting from the crowd every 2 seconds or so. Overall the concert was terrific, I knew most of the songs, and Damien even performed a song originally written by his father, Bob Marley. I am thrilled that I went!

Quick update on Blondie: He came into the bar the other night wasted with his friends. He walked right up to me, gave me a kiss hello on the cheek (the customary greeting with someone in Peru) and was super friendly and chatty the whole night. Obviously he was loosey goosey and super friendly as a result of the alcohol, but it was a nice change.

Lastly, the Dutch owner of the kitchen, Mark is always grumpy. He is usually in a bad mood and it's rare to catch a smile on his face. I, on the other hand am the complete opposite. I am known as the 'chica fantastica' here because when people ask me how I am, I respond with fantastic. Why not fantastic? Life is too short to be anything other than a positive adjective! Mark got a little tipsy a few nights ago and the effects of the truth serum kicked in. Mark told me that when I first began working here over 2 months ago, he thought I was too happy and friendly and that he thought he would get sick of me after two weeks. He then proceeded to tell me that he couldn't find one thing about me that he didn't like- but that that bothers him! It's such a shame to be so negative but I suppose I'll take the back-handed compliment.

Today is my day off. I was planning on checking out a yoga studio about 8 blocks away because their hours of operation are only 4-8pm but Peru is playing Ecuador in futbol today so places are going to be shut down. This makes things difficult for me as I work during the only open hours of this studio! I'm sure I'll figure it out! Anywho- the futbol match is starting so I better go cheer on my team! Adios!

Ouch.

Yesterday morning I was feeling a bit hungover so I decided to take a walk down to the beach at 11am to sit in the cool breeze under the partly sunny sky and sip cold water. I left the hostel and walked the 4 minutes to the Puente de Suspiros (Bridge of Sighs) to walk down restaurant way through the swamp of people advertising the tasty Peruvian dishes offered at the restaurant in which they're promoting. I was eating a banana so I replied 'no gracias, tengo mi desayuno.' As I walked down the steep cobble stone walkway towards the ocean I stopped in front of a young man with a blanket spread out on the ground which hosted nearly 50 different handmade artisan crafts! I curiously looked at the jewelry and bracelets and inquired about the origin of some of the stones. Eventually I sat down next to Augustine- the Argentinian 24 year old with dreadlocks down to the middle of his back who travels around South America selling his work. Augustine knows about 7 phrases in English mostly related to selling his precious stones crafted into necklaces using wire to create a handmade pendant so we obviously spoke entirely in Spanish. within an hour I was chatting it up using Peruvian slang with 4 of Augustine's other hippie friends with trinkets and jewelry just as beautiful and made with their brilliant hands. Six hours later the sun was setting, I never made it to the sand, and I had spent the afternoon learning new words in Spanish which I frustratingly had to explain using charades, sounds and lots of patience! I bought 4 pieces of gorgeous, one-of-a-kind necklaces. I definitely think Augustine gave me a little price break but I still spent 120 Soles (about $44) for such precious stones that I absolutely fell in love with I had to jump on the opportunity to purchase something with such a fantastic story that I'll remember for the rest of my life. You can't put a price on memories, life experience and new friends. The other day I had purchased a necklace for my sister at a market and when I showed a fellow American, Will from Chicago, he kindly asked me to assist him in buying jewelry for his twin sister and mom. Duh! Not only can I shop but I can bargain! About an hour before sunset (5pm) I saw Will and Ashley- a male backpacker from England, coming down the cobblestone. What a perfect opportunity for Augustine to get more business! I am always open to supporting a local business, especially one of a friend. Will bought 3 necklaces; one for himself and 2 with precious stones which I think the ladies in his life will love! As the sun set in the west over the South Pacific, I watched the full moon rise higher and higher in the sky and Augustine put a dreadlock in my hair. Yes mom, a dreadlock! It's a small, non-messy looking  bundle of hair underneath my mop of a head and I think it's quite tasteful and I love it! It even has a metal flower wrapped around the bottom that Augustine crafted! I walked back to the hostel to meet Rob to go get some soup and a coffee for dinner. That doesn't sound like a nutritious dinner but this soup quite hearty and delicious. At dinner I noticed that the skin on my back where I was exposed from my racerback tank top was feeling warm. I turned around and asked Rob to check it out and I was sunburned! Like so incredibly sunburned. Ouch. It turns out when I sat with Augustine on the steps by the beach, my back was under the sun which was blocked by clouds. I didn't think twice and now I'm paying for it. Luckily it hurts a lot less than it should considering what I look like but I have 2 blonde Austrians staying in my room who travel with aloe and offered to let me have some.

Let me preface my night last night with the fact that I am going to a concert tonight. I am seeing Damien Marley, one of Bob's many sons. Last night after work I went to OM with the crew from the hostel, a higher end nightclub with a great DJ and expensive drinks. While I was dancing the night away with my friends and a beer in my hand, Liam from the hostel (a half Jamaican, half Irish cutie with the longest eyelashes I have seen in a while) approached me to tell me that Damien Marley was at the club! He was sitting in VIP with some of his friends. This all made sense because I saw 2 large Rasta men with long dreadlocks on the dance floor just 30 minutes prior. I walked over to VIP and proceeded to head in to go chat it up with the famous musician until my entrance was denied by the large Peruvian bouncer who I wasn't going to argue with. I returned to my group of friends informing one of them, Danny Soto, who happens to be a local musician in Lima, telling him about Damien Marley's presence. Well Danny knows the owner of the nightclub who told the bouncer to let Danny in to VIP who got a picture with Damien! I'm thinking with Danny's connections, theres a medium possibility that I could get very close to Damien tonight when I travel with Danny and his posse to the concert. This afternoon I am going back to the beach to take a look at a tapestry made by one of the artisans's friends from the jungle. Were meeting at 3pm. Gonna be a great day with lots of sun screen!

Blondie

The owner of The Point Hostel, where I work owns 5 chains within Peru. We have locations in Lima, Puno, Mancora, Cusco, and Arequipa. The multi multimillionaire owner is Tamir, an Israeli who opened up The Point, Lima 9 years ago and is clearly a successful business man. Tamir is pretty well known in this area as he brings in a lot of business so when someone comes into the bar and says they know Tamir, we obviously have to be extra nice to them. About 2 weeks ago a blonde man from Germany who has been living in Peru for 7 years came into the bar with some of his friends whom I gladly served with a smile- just as I do with everyone else I serve. I know these specific details about Blondie (I really don't even care to know his real name) because Rob warned me about his tendencies to be a particularly difficult customer. At 1:15am Blondie had come into the bar requesting a beer when the bar had closed at 1am and a 'last call' was announced at 12:45. I kindly responded that the bar was closed and I had locked all of our refrigerators. I was then criticized for being rude and Blondie demanded that I get him a beer. I consulted with Rob who said that if Blondie had exact change (Rob had already cashed out), I could serve him a beer. I delivered the message to Blondie who rolled his eyes, muttered some words in Spanish and proceeded to fish into his pockets for some coins. I walked over to the fridge, unlocked the padlock on my first try (which is amazing considering there are 20 something unlabeled keys on our set of bar keys) and grabbed a cold one. Blondie handed me 10 Soles for his 7 Soles beer. I took a deep breath and calmly told him that I did not have any change. Blondie then scolded me, telling me I was a terrible bartender for not having change and attempted to walk away without paying for his beer. All this time I kept a smile on my face but I was a tad bit heated. Blondie went to fetch some Soles from his amigos in the garden and returned with exact change. This all happened 2 weeks ago and things were fine until Blondie decided to come into the bar Friday night. I smelled trouble as soon as he entered my territory. Right off the bat he ordered 2 beers, 2 extra glasses and 3 shots. No problem, clean cut. Let me preface this situation by explaining that guests staying at the hostel have the option of paying in cash right away or putting their drinks on their tab which they pay when they check out. Because Blondie is not a paying guest, he is required to cash out right away. We do not accept credit cards or begin tabs for outsiders. Fifteen minutes after Blondie's initial drink order, he came back  to order another shot. I gladly poured him his baby Guinness which is a shot glass filled 5/6 with Kahlua and topped off with Baileys so that it resembles a Guinness. I politely asked for 6 Soles so that I could complete the transaction. Blondie then said to me in Spanish that it's a pain in the ass to have to pay for a drink every time he wants something and told me to start a tab for him. I smiled back, took a deep breath, and explained that I needed him to pay right away. Blondie proceeded to tell me that he used to work in this bar, everything is ok, and that I should just start a tab for him. I was unimpressed. I then explained that I need to collect his cash right away because I may forget what he ordered and how much he owes me considering all the other people I am serving. Blondie then said that he would remember. Yea right! Again, I said no. Blondie then said 'stop effing around and start me an effing tab.' I took a step back, breathed again, wiped the smile off my face and said I didn't appreciate being spoken to that way and that I wasn't going to start him an effing tab. I looked him straight in the eye and told him that no one else has ever had an issue with our policy and that he was being the most difficult person I have ever had to serve. Ever. Suddenly Blondie's mood changed and he stood straight up, apologized for being difficult and admitted that not many people have the courage to stand up to him. It was as if he was impressed that I had the balls to not take his attitude. After admitting how obnoxious he was, I told him I'd start him a tab  and that I'd have my eye on him. He took my hand, kissed it like I was a princess and said he'd be outside in the garden with his friends and that he was sorry for cursing at me. Blondie came back in about 20 minutes later to get some drinks from Rob and at 1:05am when I went to use the bathroom, I noticed Blondie was still outside with his friends. I let them know that we were making a last call and asked if I could get them anything else to drink. Blondie thanked me, turned down my offer and asked me to fetch his tab of 20.50 Soles. Blondie gave me 25 Soles and told me to keep the change. Apparently when people stand up to him, he gains huge amounts of respect and becomes their bff. I don't exactly like Blondie's method but at least I didn't break down and cry like the 2 female bartenders at The Point before I arrived. I felt somewhat accomplished for not letting him get to me!

Today I went shopping for some essentials in Parque Kennedy. I went into Ripley, a major department store where I figured I'd see the best variety of options. Whilst browsing, I heard on the loud speaker Ceelo Green's song 'Forget You' except it was the unedited version. It made me think of my mom because she loves tat song! I was surprised to hear that playing in a department store. After the department store I went to grab a taxi on the way home since the public bus I needed doesn't run on Sundays. I passed a woman holding a teeny puppy so I walked up to her to pet it and to ask her questions about this little creature. It turns out it was only 4 weeks old (I always thought puppies needed to be at least 8 weeks before they left their mothers so this somewhat concerned me)! As I pet the precious puppy the man behind the newspaper stand where the woman with the animal was standing asked me where I was from. After I told him, he smiled and asked if I wanted to buy the puppy for 50 Soles. I laughed back and bargained for 40 Soles. Turns out he was actually serious and really wanted me to buy the puppy for 50 Soles! I wish!! I really thought it belonged to that woman. I can't have a puppy at the hostel. That would have been nice.

Feliz Halloween

On Halloween day I had no idea what I costume I was going to wear. Rob (my bar manager and now good friend/partner in crime) and I knew we wanted go in together on some kind of team costume but were having a difficult time deciding as the stone age costumes in storage in the back of our bar were designed for people half our size (Rob and I are the same height and nearly the same weight) and we weren't sure if we could pull off the whole toga costume thing as a Greek god and goddess because the bed sheets were a bit skimpy. At 7:15pm when we realized that we could make due with the twin-size sheets from the hostel, I ran to a store with ribbon and fabric that I noticed a week ago when I was sending out some postcards with crossed fingers hoping that they sold some kind of rope that I could fashion into a tie for my Greek goddess look. Success! I bought gold rope to tie around our waists- 3 meters for 12 Soles. I power walked back to the hostel so I could then run to the park across the street to tear some vines from a tree so that Rob and I could complete our look with a fashionable crown of leaves. We finished putting our costumes together in a jiffy and I strolled into the bar at 8:30 to begin setting up plastic shot glasses in which to hand out free shots of strawberry daiquiri I had prepared earlier in the kitchen- we called them 'blood shots'. To sum things up: Halloween in the bar was absolutely insane. Because everyone planned on a big night out and brought their hundreds and fifties for big spending, we had some technical difficulties with having enough change which caused a little bit of stress and frustration in the beginning but eventually there was nothing we could do about it. It also didn't help that the owner of the hostel feels he can do whatever he wants and likes to stand behind the bar flirting with girls and was in our way, demanding shots from us when we were clearly serving the other 7482 people getting drunk in our bar. To top things off, after a disgusting cleaning session of collecting the hundreds of empty beer bottles and cocktail glasses until nearly 3am, 7 of us (including the 2 main bar staff) headed to Toro Bar for the after party with the rest of the hostel. We arrived at the disco at 3:20am only to be denied entrance by an obese Peruvian bouncer with an obvious power trip claiming that they don't let anyone in after 3am like he was a broken record. When Jimmy, the 6 ft 6 English man told the bouncer that we were with Tamir, the owner of The Point Hostels, Mr. Bouncer's mind changed and he passed the buck to another obese bouncer to go fetch Tamir. Well Tamir was more than slightly intoxicated and couldn't manage making his way to the door to let us in. We were officially SOL and headed to a different bar. Wahios bar was starting to slowly empty as we headed in for a few beers. At this point we were 5 people determined to carry on with the Halloween celebrations. We talked and laughed for about an hour and half until we decided to head to Walters- a bar/restaurant open 24 hours. We sat down in this busy restaurant where al the drunkards were ordering made-to-order sandwiches. We were back to 7 people in our group which then turned into 8 when Javier, the 1.95 meter  Peruvian man who didn't speak a word of English could have passed for a professional basketball player but really was a bouncer at a disco sat down with us. He chatted with Alexander who was sitting across from me. What's funny is that Alexander is English, married to an Irish woman, lives in Italy and had a complex and detailed conversation speaking in Italian with Javier who was responding in Spanish. They completely made it work! By 7am at Walters I realized I needed to work at 8am! You're probably thinking, 'but wait, Lauren, you work in a bar. Why would it open at 8am?' To answer your question, I was approached one week ago by the owner of the restaurant establishment in our hostel inquiring whether I would be interested/available to cover some shifts in the restaurant as the chef. Well he obviously had never met me before so of course I said yes! Freddy is one of the chef's in the restaurant. He's Peruvian, my height, down to earth, a really good chef, has years of bartending experience, and super nice. Except he got a bartending job with Costa Cruise Line and starts work 2 weeks before Christmas so he wasn't able to give the restaurant owner much notice. He started training on October 31st and wasn't even able to attend our Halloween bash in the bar! To come back full circle: It was 7am at Walters and because I was covering a shift in the kitchen I had to start working at 8am until 3pm- oy vey. I knew I was not going to go to sleep and as a result started making myself mugs of instant coffee to keep myself from feeling too sleepy. Rob even pointed out that with the big party the night before, barely anyone would be up to ask me to cook them breakfast. Boy was he wrong. On top of setting up and replenishing the free breakfast for guests which consisted of bread rolls, jam, butter, hot water, mugs, spoons, coffee, tea, sugar, and milk, I had a really busy morning and even got a bit overwhelmed with having to multitask- something that rarely happens to me in the kitchen! At one point I had an order for eggs and bacon, a banana smoothie, a cheese omelette, another banana smoothie, a pot of rice for staff lunch, and the pot of chicken stew complete with carrots, onions, potatoes, and chicken which I thickened with flour all going at the same time. Oh and I only had 3 burners- one of which had my stew and the other my rice. I impressively got everything finished in a timely manner. Then I had a pile of dishes to wash. 3pm finally rolled around and the chef who was scheduled to work after me had not arrived yet. I was miserably exhausted at this point and just wanted to lay down in my bed. Zuazette (Zu for short) finally showed up at 3:26pm. I couldn't be mad at her because she is just so adorable. I took a shower and crawled into bed. But I couldn't sleep. I kept Rob company in the bar as he was all by himself because no one was ready to drink after such a crazy party the night before. We played a few games of pool and decided to try the whole sleeping thing again. I finally got some shut eye from 6pm to midnight. Slept again from a 1am to 8am, went to the bathroom and slept some more until noon. I was not fully refreshed but felt significantly better than how I felt in the kitchen for 7.5 hours. Today Rob and I went to lay on the beach for a bit before his shift at 4pm. After an early evening shower, my friend Eric and his friend Ashley (who's a boy) came to ask me if I wanted to go for a ride in Ashley's new-to-him car! I didn't even hesitate and answered with an excited 'yup!' On Sunday Ashley bought a 1969 Peugeot so we went for a ride. It was pretty awesome. I'm working at 8:30 tonight and working the kitchen tomorrow 8am-3pm. Wish me luck!