Grace shares a journal entry:

Differences

• In my Lima host family, it takes much longer for the men to get ready than the women.
• A “pinch” of salt in Peruvian cooking is much more like a tablespoon.
• While in the U.S. I would prepare cucumbers (pepinos) and potatoes (papas) by cutting them into large chunks and leaving the peel on; this practice is not customary in Peru. It sure gets a big laugh, though!
• It is not considered rude or discriminatory to call someone fat, skinny, ugly, Chinese, or Japanese, or to mimic other ethnic-racial stereotypes to their face. Peruvians call it as they see it, and tend to confront issues head-on.
• Hanging your undergarments out to dry on top of your apartment complex for the entire city to see is not considered scandalous; however, walking home from a dance rehearsal wearing knee-length gym shorts will incite fits of laughter, hollers, snickers, kisses, and cat calls.
• Somehow my affection for rich foods like butter, yogurt, and cheese is perceived as strange and abnormal, but my host family’s copious consumption of mayonnaise and Inca Kola with every meal is perfectly acceptable.
• That sauce that looks deceptively like honey-mustard? Yeah, it’s not. In fact, it is actually ají, a spicy hot pepper sauce.
• In Peru, Hall’s brand cough drops are literally eaten as candy. When I tried to explain to my cousin how we regard them as medicine in the U.S., he laughed and said, “That’s silly. Everyone knows they’re for refreshment.”
• The idea that anyone would have a religious affiliation other than Catholic, or, heaven forbid, Evangelical, is rather difficult to explain.

Similarities

• We have sweet tooth cravings just the same.
• We coo over newborn infants and baby animals just the same.
• Brothers antagonize sisters just the same.
• We idolize music, movie, and sports stars just the same.
• Husbands demonstrate love for their wives by surprising them with flowers after a long day of work just the same.
• Adolescent girls scream in terror at gory horror movies just them same.
• Lovers neck in moon-lit parks just the same.
• Laughter warms a family meal just the same.
• Soap operas are just as ridiculously plotted and over-acted (cue the cheesy, over-dramatic music!)