Vayamos a Museo de Chocolate!

Only about 7 weeks left at AMAUTA! Time sure is flying while studying Spanish in Cusco! I think I finally became acclimatized, as walking up the hill from Plaza de Armas no longer makes me feel like I’m going to die from lack of oxygen. Of course, this may be helped by the fact that I found a gym in Cusco (wahoo!) and I have been working out three times a week. I’ve been told if I can work out here, I’ll be able to run for miles and miles when I return to Canada!

This past week I visited “el Museo de Chocolate” here in Cusco with my Spanish class. The museum is only about a ten minute walk from the AMAUTA school. (By the way, did you know AMAUTA means teacher in Quechua? Cool, huh?)  The museum is completely free to visit, and it’s full of really fun and interesting facts about Peruvian chocolate. Come on, who doesn’t like chocolate?! They offer you free chocolate tea upon entry as well as the option to try a piece of chocolate (you get to choose from over 15 different typesJ).

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Week 3: No money? No problem! Free drinks for all!

Yesterday, my Spanish class went on a field trip with my Spanish class to the Center for Traditional Textiles in Cusco. We had the opportunity to learn how textiles are traditionally woven as well as the complexity of skill it takes to create these masterpieces. I loved that we got out of the classroom to learn about Peruvian textiles, which is a staple of Peruvian culture.

Speaking of Peruvian culture, on our way to the textile museum, we also caught a glimpse of another interesting tidbit of Peruvian culture – the Caminos del Inca car race!
We saw a crowd of people gathered in front of the Plaza de Armas, and after inquiring our teacher told us that they were waiting for the cars to come through the Plaza in 2 hours!

I am really enjoying my time here at AMAUTA. Not only do we visit museums during Spanish class, but I also have the opportunity to get to know the people that work at the school. For instance, I asked the chef here at the school, Oscar, if I could watch him cook (because I love cooking) and he said “Yes, of course you can help me!” Lunch is served at 1:30PM daily, so I spent an hour and a half helping Oscar in the kitchen, talking about life, work, and food- in Spanish! (What a great opportunity to utilize my conversation skills that I have been learning in class!) We made a vegetable soup, pasta and rice pudding for dessert. ¡Que bueno!
(más…)