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We know it´s been a while since the last blog, a mixture of us being very busy and us being in a routine so theres not been too much to say. On Friday we finished our 4 weeks of volunteering at the orphanage, really can´t believehow quickly its gone by it still feels like we should be the newbies! Can safely say it´s been an amazing experience getting to know the kids and tias, we fell in love with everyone at the orphanage and were incredibly sad to leave. The last 3 weeks at the orphanage have been a bit of a blur of washing nappies (we got photos as evidence in case you didn't believe we were capable), ironing, cooking and lots of cleaning. As well as of course plenty of nights out and getting to know all the new people as they arrive in the house.

As you have probably seen from our photos, the kids are absolutely adorable and our favourite part of volunteering has been playing with them and being able to get to know them well over 4 weeks. Theyre hard work of course, well what would you expect having 15 kids in a small 4 bedroomed house, but considering their backgrounds theyre amazingly well behaved and good natured. They´ll all run over and give you a hug or a kiss when they get back from school and they all look after each other. The full-time Tia´s do such a good job making it like a big family and being a part of that has been really special for us. One of the jobs you can get given is in the baby room which is probably the hardest work of the lot. 4 babies all under 9 months and when one starts crying they all tend to join in which can be pretty overwhelming when your in there by yourself. They are so cute though and the youngest, Victor Hugo, does a very impressive turtle impression. We could sit and talk about each kid for hours but we´ll save that for when we get back- bet you can´t wait!

We also started our Spanish lessons 3 weeks ago and are proud to say that it is finally coming along quite well. Hannah is very relieved as she was starting to get quite stressed about doing it at uni. The lessons were quite intense and our teachers really loved their grammar but the teachers were great and Becca in particular formed a special bond with Cindy her teacher who was really sweet and a fellow veggie. Cindy even knitted Becca a very attractive baby pink scarf as a goodbye present which prompted Becca to have a frantic rush round the shops trying to find an appropriate reciprocating gift.

Arequipà is a really great city and it really feels like home now- we all really want to return here one day and although we´re ready to move on now we´re going to miss it lots. Being us 3 though obviously everything couldn't go completely smoothly and Becca managed to get her bag nicked from the back of her chair whilst she was eating in a restaurant. What ensued was Laura and Becca spending 3 hours in a very old school police station trying to explain what had happened with the help of Hannah´s Spanish teacher Adolfo´s translation skills and great patience. Nothing too valuable was stolen- more just sentimental stuff which is a shame but it could have been a lot worse.

The weekend before last we decided we´d been lazy and wasted too many of our weekends here just being hungover so we booked to go horse riding for an afternoon. Hannah was slightly apprehensive as she´d never done it before and the Spanish instructions she was given weren't exactly extensive- even if she had been able to understand them fully. Nevertheless we had a great afternoon trotting along (and at some unnerving points galloping along) the a beautiful valley outside the city on Tornado, Speedy and Rio with views of the volcanos. Our guide was lovely and when we told him we were volunteering in an orphanage here he was quick to offer to take the kids for free. This is quite common when volunteers tell locals what they´re doing in Peru they feel guilty that we´ve come all this way to help people in their country and jump at the chance to help out themselves. Unfortunately we couldn't manage to organize it whilst we were here thanks to 2 days worth of transport strikes keeping us from going into the orphanage but we´ve passed on his details to hopefully the kids will still get to go- they would love it, they got so excited just looking at the photos of the horses on our cameras.

Our last day came around very quickly on Friday. We were on the morning shift which meant we were in by 8 but we didn't have to do much as there were lots of new volunteers in so we could pass off the nasty jobs to them. With it being our last day we decided to stay on for lunch and Laura and Hannah went with Gladys (the lovely Tia who works in the kitchen) to the market to buy all the food for the massive 35 people feast. Gladys got a little bit carried away and we came back with what was pretty much half a cow, 7 kilos of potatoes and 5 kilos of corn amongst many other things. The lunch was great though and we were all stuffed by the end of it. Was great sitting round the table with everyone in a really relaxed, happy mood and Lillia (the slightly scary head Tia) gave a really nice speech thanking us all for our hard work and saying that we had become part of the family. Well we think that was the gist of it- our Spanish still isn't perfect. We spent the whole afternoon playing with the kids and then it was cake time which we all chipped in and bought as a farewell present. Went down very well and one kid was even licking his plate clean. We made a big photo board for them with photos of every kid and they seemed really happy with it. They all crowded round to see and were all giggling at the photos of each other. Also made the mistake of letting the Tia´s look through the photos on our camera. They spent a good half hour giggling to themselves at all the photos of us on nights out looking somewhat worse for wear. Luckily they saw the funny side, probably helped along by the pisco sours which they had consumed. Not the first thing we expected the strongly catholic Tias to ask for when we asked what they wanted us to buy them for lunch but we weren't complaining.

After cake the kids all got up and took it in turns to sing to us in groups. This was actually the cutest thing- highlights being the Beatles Help! Sang/ mumbled (they had a bit of trouble with the English) by the older boys and a solo performed by 4 year old Rebecka in atiny high pitched voice as she twirled her pigtails- very sweet. We thought this was it and got up to leave after the singing had finished but were instead ushered downstairs where the boys performed dances to traditional Peruvian music they got very into it with high kicks, twirling and, our favourite, the chest shimmying whilst lying on the floor move. We were then dragged up to dance which was quite humiliating but we´re pretty used to that by now and still lots of fun.

After handing out the sweets we decided it was time to make a quick exit and leave the Tia´s to deal with the sugar-high kids. Very difficult to hold back the tears while saying goodbye- the little kids didn't really understand that we were leaving and Jon was just running round screaming Moto in excitement over the little car we´d just bought him and just as we were trying to leave Mauricio decided he needed a wee and Hannah got led back upstairs. After swapping email addresses with the 2 younger Tia´s (ones only 17!) we finally left after 11 hours on the go. We then had half an hour to get ready before going out for Kathryn and Ian´s last night at an amazing crepe restaurant. We were all exhausted so not exactly the life and soul but was still a good night, although Hannah and Laura decided it was probably time to leave when they were falling asleep on the sofa in one of the clubs- despite the banging music.

This weekend was spent mainly sleeping as we were all pretty ill although we did have a good bbq on Saturday where we introduced everyone to our melted chocolate on banana speciality which Laura and Becca have now perfected (as usual Hannah is allowed no where near such important matters.)

Monday was an exciting day for Hannah as Steve and Allison, Hannah´s dad and his fiancé, arrived after 2 days of traveling. We were so excited at the bus station waiting for them to arrive and it was great to see them although it did not feel like the last time we´d seen them was 9 months ago. They were pretty tired understandably so we took them to the hotel which we´d booked for them and then went out for lunch where we caught up. Laura and Becca spent the rest of the afternoon organizing secret things for the next day so Hannah spent the afternoon on her own with her dad and Allison drinking cappuccino (her first in months!) and beer on a roof terrace- not a bad life! That night we dragged a very jetlagged Steve and Allison out for a meal to a Turkish restaurant which does the best Falafals in Peru we would say. When we got back to the house we stuffed our faces with Galaxy chocolate and Percy pigs and brought a bit of joy to the house introducing all the different nationalities to the joys of English chocolate.

The next day was the most important of the year (some may say) as it was Hannah´s 19th birthday. Laura and Becca outdid themselves by waking Hannah to her favourite breakfast- bacon and eggs. As if this wasn't enough they then presented her with lots of cards and presents, including a lush Topshop top which they had organized to be sent over with her dad and, perhaps even more excitingly, a pen with a small Peruvian woman on the top. She was then led downstairs to discover that the house had been magically transformed overnight into a birthday grotto complete with balloons, happy new year streamers (obviously not just found in a drawer) and the biggest lemon meringue pie in the whole world, covered it sparkler candles. Hannah who had made it through the reunion with her dad and all the presents and cards from home without shedding a tear took one look at the cake and burst into tears. Glad she´s got her priorities right there!

Met dad and Allison in town for a birthday coffee and then caught a taxi to the river out of town where we had an amazing picknick complete with beers. Was very relaxing lazing in the sun and was nice to get out the city. It was then lemon meringue pie time- have to say it didn´t last long in this house but it was thoroughly enjoyed by all.

Continuing our theme ofthe day- eating a lot- we then got dressed up (Hannah in her new top) and went to the poshest restaurant in town (of course dad was paying) for the best meal we´ve had since we´ve been here. Hannah and Laura are now determined to find somewhere in England that does Alpaca steak. Also had the most genius drinks ever created- raspberry Mojitos which we introduced to Steve and Allison who are now determined to track down a cocktail book for when they get home. We´d arranged to meet everyone in the French bar which is probably the most happening place in town on Bastille day and is also our local in Arequipà. Hannah was very impressed by the turn out as all the volunteers from both the orphanage and the school came and she thoroughly enjoyed being the centre of attention for the night. Hannah would like to take this opportunity to thank Laura and Becca for being so lovely yesterday and would like to say that she now fully forgives them for missing her 18th birthday and will no longer mention it.

Today is our last day in Arequipà and, being us, we´re not only very hungover but also totally unorganized and have a very extensive To-Do list. Bus to Cusco tonight, leaving at 9 and we have a 4 day trek to Machu Picchu booked for Saturday which we are really looking forward to, especially because we´re doing it with loads of people from the house as well as Hannah´s dad and Allison. We really have loved Arequipa and are all in agreement that its been one of the best bits of the trip so far (we do realize we say that a lot so sorry but this really has been this time).

Exactly 3 weeks today until we see you all- we know this thanks to Lauras´ mums very accurate countdown calendar and her tendancy to remind Laura every single time she talks to her.

Hasta luego, mucho amor!!!

Las Chicas xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx