Dogs in Lima.

Dogs in Lima



They seem to have an unusual relationship with dogs in Peru. Then again, we can be pretty odd about them in the UK too. You know how in the UK young men like to walk around with those snarling, ugly and seemingly inherently stupid breeds that they have clearly got to try and fulfil a stereotypical image of being a council estate hard man but they insist there is nothing wrong with their dog whilst it bares its teeth at anything that walks past and you read yet another article about how these particular breeds have maimed another child but it had "never bitten someone before"? Well, young men in Peru seem to have very different tastes. They prefer to walk around with silly little dogs that they have dressed in ridiculous outfits. Something that is only usually reserved in the UK for attractive young women who have a penchant for mild animal cruelty. If a young guy walked around with one of these Paris Hilton style abominations in the UK I'm pretty sure they would get laughed out of the park. However, I probably prefer this fad slightly to the child maiming breeds that you see outside the Costcutter's of the United Kingdom.

Another thing I have noticed Peru is how people you see walking around that don't own dogs seem to very often be terrified of them. Since I have been here I have been taking a very timid Golden Retriever and a friendly (if not a little annoying) Black Labrador for regular walks. On many occasions one of my dogs has gone and sniffed someone’s shoe only for them to recoil, run away, or in one case actually scream. My only explanation for this is that Peru is absolutely teeming with stray dogs (which can make dog walking quite difficult) and people are scared of getting rabies. But even so, you would think the fact that I'm casually walking them around would be proof enough that they probably don't have rabies. 

One of the favourite breeds of dog in Peru is the 'Peruvian Hairless Dog'. These are probably the ugliest canines I have seen in my life (apart from 'Sam: The Worlds Ugliest Dog'). A couple of times I have had one of these wander up to my dogs and they actually make me feel a bit sick. If you want to understand why I feel like this then just have a gander at one of the little horrors below.

Fancy a lick?

 

Things about Lima.

Things about Lima

About a week ago I arrived for in Lima for my two month stay with my brother and his girlfriend. One of the first things I did was join a gym. This is partly because I hate the thought of two months without proper excercise and partly because I'm a boring creature of habit. My brother lives in a part of Lima that isn't at all touristy. Being a pasty looking Brit is actually something of a rarity and you do get quite a lot of stares for being the only gringo on the street. Yes, I do like the attention. When I joined the gym I therefore knew it was going to be very local. My brothers girlfriend Amy took me to the tiny gym to explain that I couldn't speak a word of Spanish before signing me up and leaving me there. Since then, I have gone four or five times. 

The gym itself is probably the smallest I have ever seen but around half of it is dedicated to free weights. The equipment is all rusted and anything you use makes unhealthy sounding clanging and squeeking sounds. I am literally the only pale foreigner that seems to go there (apart from my brother who has gone once) so I do get a lot of curious stares. There is a large, hairy guy called 'Oki' who works there and shakes my hand everytime I walk past him and another guy who's arm is about as thick as my waist who can speak some broken English, usually to tell me "don't drop weights". 

I haven't actually dropped any weights since going there but the dumbbells are so loose that if you put them down at all quickly they make a loud "clang!". Everytime this happens someone rushes over to explain to explain to me using simple Spanish and universal hand gestures that I musn't drop the weights. This means that I now put weights down after each set with extreme gentleness and precision. Easing them down this slowly with aching arms whilst lying on a bench is actually an excercise in itself but the approving smiles from the locals at the gym assures me that this silly gringo has learnt his lesson.  

It is an absolute cliche for somebody to say this when they go abroad but Peruvians generally do seem to be very kind and polite, especially to someone who speaks no Spanish and has already made a few embarrassing mistakes when out and about. Definitely more patient than I imagine Brits would be to somebody that was bumbling around, not knowing any of the language and ordering three plates of food from a cafe before explaining I only ordered it because I thought it was part of the supermarket deli so I don't actually want any of it. Another cliche would be to say that the women are especially beautiful. When they stare at me in the gym I smile back and pretend they are admiring my perfectly sculpted physique rather than wondering 'where did that little gringo appear from?'