6 things that made us laugh this week

We've been in Peru for a week. There have been a lot of adjustments, new faces, new Spanish words, new everything. And there have been a lot of laughs. Here are 6 things that made us laugh this week:


1. Singing garbage trucks
The garbage trucks announce their presence with music, much like an ice cream truck. The songs are quite varied. We've heard childish diddies, rock music and I'm pretty sure the Titanic theme song.

2. Butt jobs (and other excessive plastic surgery)
Evidently plastic surgery is accessible, affordable and popular on all body parts, including rear-ends.


3. Junk collectors
At least once or twice a day we hear a voice projected over a megaphone. Our Spanish is improving, but it's not quite up to the level of understanding static-y megaphone Spanish. So I'm not sure exactly what they're saying, but it's not hard to get the gist of what they're doing. They pedal their bicycle carts around the streets calling for junk. They'll buy just about anything--loose wires, scrap metal, old toilets. This is good news for us since we want to clear the junk off our roof and turn it into a patio.

4. The whistling watchimen
These guys are both hilarious and annoying. They are basically security guards for the block, and they wander the street 24-7 keeping watch (thus the name). The upside is the feeling of safety. The downside is the shrieking whistle at 11 p.m. and 1 a.m. and 4 a.m. and... yeah. Let's just say we're glad we brought earplugs with us from home.

5. Dogs on the roof

What's a dog owner to do in a city where houses are crammed together and yards are small and scarce? If the house rooftops are flat, as they are here, you can just stick the dog on the roof. The only downside is for the poor pedestrians walking below the house when the dog decides to bark its head off and give them a heart attack. (Then again, it's probably only the gringos and tourists who are startled by this; everyone else is used to it.)

6. Our (many) language errors
We've wandered by an Argentinian restaurant a few times, and the other day decided to pop in and check out the menu. Problem was, we both had a brain fart and couldn't remember how to say "menu." My request for a "cartera" was met with a blank stare, and after a few failed attempts we bailed out of the situation and continued walking. A block later we realized "cartera" was a word I learned earlier in the day. It means pocketbook.