Mateo came with me to the Immigration Office to sort out my passport issue. I met him at a local disco across from his University at 10am and we hopped on a combi bus where I am too tall to stand straight up but that costs the equivalent of 30 cents per person. We took the 30 minute bus ride and hopped off just 1 block away. I nervously walked in the front door with Teo, not knowing what the hell was going to happen. We sat down and waited just 10 minutes for our turn. Teo was called into the office while I was in the bathroom and when I met him in the tiny office, Teo was explaining my situation to the man behind the desk. Mateo and I planned ahead of time that it would be best if I played stupid and pretended that I didn't speak Spanish. The powerless man told us that the big boss comes in at noon and that we needed to come back to talk to him. He also let us know that there were 2 cases exactly the same quite recently (which was a bit comforting to know) but that the helpless victims were left with unresolved problems (this somewhat reversed my feelings) but I kept my hopes up. We walked to a park, sat down, and Teo flipped through his eight hundred and something pictures on his iphone to distract me from the hour and change we needed to wait for the big boss. At noon, we nervously walked back into the building, waited in the waiting area for 5 minutes, then were escorted to a more important office- the Big Kahuna's office. After explaining our situation, the Kahuna told Teo that I had to go back to the Ecuador/Peru border. Ha! Okay, not an option. Teo explained that I have a flight from Bolivia back to the States and that I had to sort this out now (my flight is actually from Lima on May 4 but Teo thought it would be best to make my situation even more urgent). The Big Kahuna picked up the phone and started dialing numbers. After speaking with a few different people (I could understand everything but had to play stupid), Kahuna said that my problem could be resolved in Lima. Well i'm not going back to Lima until May 2nd and I have plans to go to Bolivia this coming Sunday! If I don't have a stamp on my passport that says that I am currently in Peru, how the hell will I be able to enter Bolivia? I attempted to pull out the waterworks but was unsuccessful. Finally, Señor Kahuna said that most of the time, these issues can be resolved at a border. Well what if I go to the Bolivian border on Sunday with Tom and Jovana and I am completely turned away? I certainly have a solution but what about my friends? The best I can do is try. My backup plan: If I am turned away, I will see Lake Titicaca (yes that's the real name) from the Peruvian side and not the Bolivian side, go back to Arequipa for a night, then bus it back to Lima where the offices are official enough with sufficient authority to set me straight, then spend my final 2 weeks in the jungle in northeast Peru. I know everything will work out in the end, no matter what happens- it's just a pain in the tush and completely my fault that I didn't sort this out before heading to a border.
Lastly- Rob is in town! He and his German girlfriend whom I don't like (which has nothing to do with her nationality) took a bus from Cusco to see me in Arequipa before I leave for Bolivia. The reason I don't like her, and I am not afraid to admit it- is because I am jealous. I said it. I am jealous of Rob's girlfriend. I don't have romantic feelings for Rob, but we were 2 peas in 1 pod, meatloaf and mashed potatoes, Peanut butter and banana- spending every waking moment together as best friends. When Carina came along, she stole all of Rob's attention. And that's why I am jealous of Carina. Otherwise, this is going to be a fantastic farewell weekend in Arequipa!
