Whenever I tell people that I'm working at a hostel, they ask the same question, ''so, what exactly is it that you do there?'' So I thought maybe you might be wondering the same thing. I've been here for 3 weeks now, so I feel confident enough to tell you that my days don't really change much.
My day begins at 9am with a loud ''hola ereeeeeeeeeen!'' as I come down the stairs from Eduardo, who works with me every day. After a hearty breakfast of tea, white bread with margarine and jam and more bread, I plop myself down in front of the computer to check the reservations. There are approximately 4 different emails I get to check for reservations, so that can take me a while. Then I go back to the breakfast area and chat with any people that are there and clear dishes, etc. If I'm feeling motivated, I proceed to wash them or else I leave them in the sink for later (and secretely hoping that the cleaning lady will get to them before I do).
The next few hours are filled with people checking in/out, people asking questions about tours or the city or buses or other random information, making signs for different things around the hostel, or checking reservations again. Most of this doesn't take long so then until 2 o'clock I'm making myself busy by writing emails, blog posts or facebook updates. On some days the owner's mom brings lunch and is always impressed at how much I eat. Maybe she is trying to tell me something? One day she brought a dish with cow intestines and I surprisingly enjoyed it.
From 2-5 a have a little siesta time in which I lay in the hammock on the terrrace and try not to get sunburned, read, cook lunch, hand wash laundry in FRIDGID water, walk around town, buy pirated DVDs or watch said DVDs. I also had my first Spanish lesson yesterday that I will be doing twice a week. It's part of the perk of working here that the owner is paying for me.
At 5 o'clock I arrive back in the office to do pretty much the same thing I did in the morning. The only difference in the evening shift is that I have to call the other hostel that I do reservations for and tell them all the reservations for the next day. The system they have for all this is absolutely terrible but I've given up trying to fix it. So I get to do an awkward telephone call in Spanish in which I ask them to repeat things a lot. I'm getting better at it, though.
Arequipa: the main cathedral at night, on the left is the plaza
me and el misti, arequipa is in the middle
my little bed
My day begins at 9am with a loud ''hola ereeeeeeeeeen!'' as I come down the stairs from Eduardo, who works with me every day. After a hearty breakfast of tea, white bread with margarine and jam and more bread, I plop myself down in front of the computer to check the reservations. There are approximately 4 different emails I get to check for reservations, so that can take me a while. Then I go back to the breakfast area and chat with any people that are there and clear dishes, etc. If I'm feeling motivated, I proceed to wash them or else I leave them in the sink for later (and secretely hoping that the cleaning lady will get to them before I do).
The next few hours are filled with people checking in/out, people asking questions about tours or the city or buses or other random information, making signs for different things around the hostel, or checking reservations again. Most of this doesn't take long so then until 2 o'clock I'm making myself busy by writing emails, blog posts or facebook updates. On some days the owner's mom brings lunch and is always impressed at how much I eat. Maybe she is trying to tell me something? One day she brought a dish with cow intestines and I surprisingly enjoyed it.
From 2-5 a have a little siesta time in which I lay in the hammock on the terrrace and try not to get sunburned, read, cook lunch, hand wash laundry in FRIDGID water, walk around town, buy pirated DVDs or watch said DVDs. I also had my first Spanish lesson yesterday that I will be doing twice a week. It's part of the perk of working here that the owner is paying for me.
At 5 o'clock I arrive back in the office to do pretty much the same thing I did in the morning. The only difference in the evening shift is that I have to call the other hostel that I do reservations for and tell them all the reservations for the next day. The system they have for all this is absolutely terrible but I've given up trying to fix it. So I get to do an awkward telephone call in Spanish in which I ask them to repeat things a lot. I'm getting better at it, though.
Arequipa: the main cathedral at night, on the left is the plaza
me and el misti, arequipa is in the middle my little bed the office where i am sitting right now, just picture me sitting there waving at you
Love it! I like to hear what your days are like. So how are the health benefits?
ReplyDeleteHi Erin! You look great! :)
ReplyDelete