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
