The most fun activity was exploring the colonial Santa Catalina Monastery. Built in 1579, it is the oldest architecture of Arequipa. It is 20,000 square meters, designed as a city within the city, and features a church, tons of indoor and outdoor rooms where nuns and servants used to cook and eat, and a little shop and restaurant.
I have mostly been reading English as a Foreign Language (EFL) books in preparation for my upcoming English classes!
I did not play any sport this week, but I learned that volleyball is very popular around here.
I bought groceries at two places including a supermarket within a local mall and at an open-air market. The supermarket is similar to Walmart. There are more packaged, processed, and imported foods, and they have prices that compare to US prices. Then, I went to the open-air market. Everything is fresh and locally grown, most of which is also organic. In addtion, contrary to the U.S. the produce costs LESS than the food at the supermarket! I bought three bags full of fruits, vegetables, nuts, honey, and more for less than $15 USD! The local markets also sell meats and dairy products, but I had already purchased those at the supermarket before I went.
