This one's for you, Mom!

My birthday celebrations continued Thursday when I was invited to Tamir's apartment for the lighting of the Menorah for the 3rd night of Channukah. I didn't want to show up empty handed (something I learned from my parents) so I offered to bring latkes! I don't think Tamir believed me when I told him I could whip up a batch of 'just like mom's' latkes because when i showed up with a foil-covered plate, Tamir was nothing short of ecstatic. I was told that Tamir would be picking me up at the hostel at 6pm but I forgot to keep in mind that he is Jewish AND lives in Peru which means I should have planned for an hour (minimum) late pick up. At 7:30 Tamir called reception to tell me that he was sending his 2 friends to get me. I hate waiting. The small Channukah get-together consisted of Tamir, 2 of his Peruvian male friends one of whom is a Jew, Tamir's BFF Shalom and his wife, and another couple. We lit the menorah, explained the miracle of lights to the non-Jews and ate my potato latkes which were a huge hit! I received several nods of approval that 'this is a girl I could take home to mom!' Munching on latkes was followed by dinner of pollo a la brasa with all the fixins; salad, french fries, 2 kinds of rice, 2 kinds of potato salad (Peruvians LOVE their starches!)and about 8 different kinds of salsas/creams depending on one's mood and their tolerance for spice. After our Channukah fiesta Tamir drove me back to The Point for my birthday party with all of my friends. I arrived to a group of people welcoming me with birthday shots and hugs. After a few minutes, the music was turned down in the bar and one of the receptionists who happens to be from Germany walked in with a home-made german cake in the shape of a heart with candles. I was so stuffed from dinner that I didn't have any room for cake but made sure to have a taste today. After much partying and more birthday shots we headed to my favorite disco, Help so I could dance the night away. I left the disco around 3:30am as I was exhausted and wanted to get back to fit in some games of pool with Rob and Lewis from England. I made it to bed by 7am and slept ALL afternoon today. I woke up and immediately began preparing for my evening of Jewishness. Last week at Help I met a nice Jewish Peruvian man named Dov who invited me to beit chabad for kabalat shabbat and dinner. I accepted his invitation as he is handsome and taller than me! Dov picked me up at 6:30pm (Peruvian time because he told me to be ready at 6!) and we headed to San Isidro to his synagogue which has a Macheetzah (sp?) and an altar in the middle of the sanctuary which I thought signified a Sephardic synagogue but it turns out that's not the case. Right off the bat I was introduced to Dov's mother and her friend so I could sit with them while Dov davened down below with the men. While the sermon was in Spanish, I understood about 70% but what i found most fascinating was that no matter where we are in the world, Jews are Jews and we follow the same prayer book, prayers, and methods to our madness! I'm not sure if this was a date or just Dov being a friendly Jew to an outsider because I didn't expect to meet his parents right away! Dov's mother, Rachel seemed thrilled that I was a nice Jewish girl who Dov brought into the Jewish community and I was happy that she was happy. Dov invited me back to his home for shabbas dinner with his mother and father and I felt welcomed into his home with open arms. I think they were impressed with the amount of knowledge I had regarding prayers, when to stand/sit and that I need to wait until I take a bite of challah after the washing of the hands. Dov sent me home in a taxi which was only about a 20 minute ride because I had to get to work in the bar. The rest of the night was tranquil and I couldn't wait to close so i could come relax in my room. It's officially Christmas Eve but it feels like just another day in the life. I'll probably go to the beach tomorrow! Life is just grand =)