Living abroad in Peru – Going local in Ayacucho

I spent 6 months as an intern in Ayacucho, a big city in the Andes mountains. Of course, I explored a lot of Ayacucho and the rest of Peru. Read all about that in my Ayacucho travel guide or my Peru Travel Planner Package. If you are interested in living abroad in Peru, I tell you all about my experience in this article.

If you prefer to watch a video instead, this is a VIDEO I filmed about my experience including crazy stories.

Host family

I stayed with a host family for a month and a half. It was adventurous to say the least. I had lived with host families in Mexico and South Africa, so I expected something similar. I was not prepared for what was coming my way.

The family was super lovely! The grandma of the family made me breakfast and dinner every day. The food made me sick and it was very different to what I’m used to, for example chicken claw soup or a cooked egg and cooked potato for breakfast. However, I loved the conversations we had over dinner and how open they were towards me. Her granddaughter of 8-years-old and I got along so well and I loved the family dogs.

I really appreciated everything they did for me and how much effort they did to make me feel at home. But the lack of sleep due to everyone waking up 3 hours before I had to took a toll on me. I also couldn’t do fun things during my time off, because it was half an hour from the city center.

Back to before basics

I went back to before basics there though. I had to pull open my bedroom door with a cord that was attached to the handle on the inside. The cord broke several times and my host brother had to climb in through the window to open the door from the inside. There was a hole in the bathroom door, which I covered up with a towel. The bedroom had no curtains, so I had to hide from the neighbors when changing. There was no Wi-Fi, but I could make a hotspot with my unlimited data.

I had two options to wash myself, either a cold shower or a warm bucket of water. I preferred the warm bucket, but there was only water in the morning. Some mornings there was no water at all and I had to wash myself with the tea that was on the stove. After a month and a half, it all just got too much. Being sick all the time from the food, too little sleep, and the lack of freedom in my off made me move to an apartment in the city center. My studio had a balcony with an amazing view, two beds, a living room with a TV, Netflix and good Wi-Fi, a small kitchen and bathroom.

Transportation

To get from the host family to the city center I had to take a ruta. This is a small bus that is so full of people, it’s like a box of sardines. The fact that personal space is not respected was something I had to get used to but I don’t think I ever did. Especially in the mornings I struggled with this. Other options to catch a ride are taxis, tuk-tuks and motorcycles.

Internship

My internship was with the ViaVia Hotel but wasn’t that great. I spent most my time sitting on the coach in the reception. The first few weeks they did teach me how to use the reservation system and I got to help out in the bakery, which I was surprisingly good at. The first month or so I taught English to some of the staff, which was hard because they didn’t know a single word. In my time off I also taught some kids English and that was a lot more fun. If you want to travel South America whilst earning money, I do believe teaching English is a very good way.

What I was really meant to be doing, was using tourism as a lever for development there. After all I was studying development aid. I helped with the training of local youth to become guides, so they could help out their families. The farm Montefino focusses on agrotourism and also has a youth training program. I ended up writing my thesis about that farm. Centro Loyola with its Constructores de Paz organized a Memorial Walk to teach visitors about the awful terrorism that happened in Ayacucho in the 80s. I did like being part of all of this and ViaVia Hotel is a great place, I just felt quite abandoned most times.

Life in the city

Everything revolved around the main square. There were always parades going on, on Sunday the soldiers would come to raise the flag and for Christmas it was decorated ridiculously! My friends and I signed up to go to the gym. There we did aerobics, danced Zumba and even lifted weights. On the weekends you could watch a football game at the local stadium with the army as cheerleaders. We would often go for a drink or have a lovely dinner. I really loved living in the city.

Going out

Another cultural shock is that for one big bottle of beer, there is one glass for a group of about 4 people. You put some beer in the glass, drink it, throw the last bit on the flour or i a bucket and then pass it onto the next person. Not very hygienic…

There was only one real club in the city. We would go there on the weekends to dance to the reggaeton, my fave! If I could teleport anywhere on a Saturday night, it would be there. What I would give to watch the sunrise from my balcony again after dancing to reggaeton all night. I was once invited backstage with the international artist Don Chezina. I shared all my crazy adventures and trips with locals and fellow interns and volunteers working for Mama Alice and Solid Peru. If you want to you can volunteer with them, they are both great!

Food

Ayacucho has some amazing regional food. During the weekend they sell muyuchi on the main square, an ice cream made of peanuts and milk. With your breakfast you’ll probably be served the famous Ayacuchan chapla bread. You must try Puca Picante, the most typical dish in the city. It consists of potato in a red peanut sauce, rice and pasta. Lots of carbs! You can find it in the mountains along with fried trout or a guinea pig.

There is also plenty of internationally inspired food. Try the delicious Bubble waffles in Nugga or the best pizza at Magia Negra. They serve great sushi at Koi and you can find delicious burgers everywhere. I also really loved the food at ViaVia, especially the cheap lunch menu.

Intercultural exchange

What I love most about travelling is having intercultural exchanges. Since I wasn’t the only student in town living with a host family, I often invited to others. One of the host families asked us over to have a kind of Peruvian barbeque called Caja China. Another time, during Semana Santa they made un the seasonal local chorizo dish and explained us all about the traditions. Of course, we had to return the favor and we made them Belgian beef stew with fries and chocolate mousse. My own host familiy invited me to the baptism of the grandsons, which was quite the event!

During Semana Santa, the Holy Week before Easter I worked as a festival promotor. Whilst handing out flyers I handed out my number to a guy who later turned out to be a DJ inviting me to the biggest event in town!

I hope I have convinced you to visit this beautiful city and you liked this article. If you decide to visit the city or want to know more about participating in the Carnival or Semana Santa festivities, here’s my Ayacucho travel guide. I hope to travel Northern Peru next year, until then I’m enjoying the memories of this trip. Here is the Ayacucho Tourist Guide in video: https://youtu.be/GdoCNJ1TG90. If you want to visit Peru here’s my Peru Travel Planner Package.