day 204: FELIZ AÑO NUEVO!

HOLA amigitos,

So! Looks like I'm ringing in the new year with a blog entry, hoping that this is something I continue with for the rest of 2012. Anyway, speaking of the new year, did you know that there are a number of customs fairly common in Peru regarding what needs to be done in order to have a lucky year? The most common one seems to be buying and then wearing yellow underwear. Why yellow? I honestly have no idea*. It's the lucky color and you'll see people wearing yellow, yellow balloons, yellow streamers, and just yellow decorations all over. Then there's the eating of 12 grapes (to represent the 12 months of the year). Again, why grapes? No clue. Finally, there are the burning of dolls in the street. You're supposed to write the things that were bad from the previous year and stick it in the doll, then set the doll on fire to burn away all that bad luck.

Of all these, the only one I participated in was the burning of the doll... Next year, I'm going to have get on that! But I figure, with how awesome things have been, why ask for more luck than I need?

Oh, and to celebrate the new year... I wore a dress.

No joke.

That's a first.

It wasn't mine, my friend B lent it to me, but I definitely wore a dress to celebrate. It was strange, but I felt pretty so that was nice :)

We were all on the beach to countdown (the beach, btw, is straight up crowded. Tents everywhere of Peruvians camping out. It was fantastic.) and there were fireworks (set off like just a few feet away. There are no laws that I can tell of when it comes to fireworks. Peru is freakin amazing, I tell you) and tons of drinking and dancing.

Tons and tons of drinking and dancing.

There is no partying done as well as any Peruvian party. For serious.

Anyway, I got back to the hostel, chilled out with my friend B on a hammock, and then called it a night around 3 or 4 in the morning. And I'm pretty sure the party was still going full swing when I crawled myself into bed.

Actually, I woke up around 8, came outside on the porch to eat breakfast and write this, and there is music blasting from the beach right now. Party's still going on, I'm sure.

God I love Peru.

Anyway, that's all for now! I wish all of you a very delightful, beautiful, wonderful 2012 and I do hope it doesn't end in a zombie apocalypse. But if it does, I do hope all of you spend the year training (remember the double tap) and that it is a successful venture.

PEACE AND LOVE TO YOU ALL!

p.s. There are a current number of songs that have been playing in Peru, on repeat. Last night was a good review of all the currently popular pieces, since every bar/club/car/mototaxi blasting music was playing the following:

1. Ai se eu te pego (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hcm55lU9knw)
2. yo no soy una loba (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pWhYbtWB6pg&feature=related)
3. lejos de ti (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7LEMiNcmMdA)
4. rabiosa (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tXMs3nrwGo4)
5. choque (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EUManRSe5KU&feature=related)
6. any and all music from the 80s and early 90s

There are more, but I can't think of them now... I'm gonna go finish breakfast, take a shower, and head back to site! Fun stuff.


*Edit: Just saw this posted on facebook (or as the slang goes here, just "face") that explains where the yellow and the yellow underwear comes from: http://www.rpp.com.pe/2010-12-30-ano-nuevo-2011-el-origen-la-cabala-del-color-amarillo-noticia_323219.html, if you don't understand spanish... more or less, the idea of the sun (it comes up every morning, renewing the day) is where the yellow arises from, and the underwear is because it's a private thing that could result in change... not sure about that part.