10 Random Things about Peruvian Culture (Coastal)

1) Kissing- People don´t shake hands like North Americans do , they kiss on the cheek (guys shake hands with other guys). If you are sitting at a table with a big group of people and a girl walks up, she is suppose to walk around the table and give everyone a kiss on the cheek, the same thing if she would leave the table.

2) Personal Space- I noticed that the idea of personal space is much different than in the U.S. One thing that I still haven´t been accustomed to is the little invisible shield that gives you a couple of feet of personal space. It doesn´t exist here.

3) Sharing- Sharing goes to the extreme here in Peru. Since this is a collectivist culture (versus individualistic culture in the U.S.), everyone shares what they have, especially food. If you buy some cookies at the store and you eat those cookies in front of your friends you have to give each person a cookie. Sometimes you might not get a cookie that you purchased. The bottom line is that if you want your cake and you want to eat it too, you must do so in private.

4) Peruvian Style of Drinking Beer- It is very uncommon to go to a party and see a table filled with beer cans or beer bottles. What you will see is a couple of giant beer bottles and a bunch of glass cups. The norm is that you order one beer, fill your cup and pass the bottle to the next person. When you are at a club or festival, you will see a group of people (usually men) sharing one cup. After you drink your cup of beer pass the bottle and cup to the next person.

5) Whistling and Hand Signals- I´ve never seen so many talented whistlers than in Peru. Everyone can whistle here. It´s amazing. I think Peruvians are born with an extra organ that enables them to whistle so well. I´ve heard from some volunteers that in their comunities people communicate and have conversation by whistling. Also you will see people everyday using hand signals to communicate. I have learned all of them and use some of them each week. There are signs for, ¨I´ll be right back¨, ¨He is a robber¨, ¨They are going to drink¨, and many more that are vulgar and are to be used only in dire situations.

6) Driving- Driving in Peru is very interesting. First of all, don´t ever rent a car (I´m not even sure if you even can) because you won´t survive one day. Either you will get hit or your car will get stolen whether you are in it or not. In Peru, people drive crazy. It is a very offensive, random, and often scary style of driving. When I first arrived in Peru and took cabs, I often thought I wouldn´t make it to my destination. But, after time, I realized I couldn´t do what cab drivers do. They are experienced crazy drivers. You have to be a crazy driver or you won´t survive. So the bottom line is trust that your crazy cab driver will bring you safely to your destination even if you think you are going to die, becuase I promise you, you couldn´t have done it on your own. Another interesting note, you won´t see hardly any women who drive. I´ve seen only a couple women drive a car and that was in Lima.

7) Sugar- Lots of Peruvians like sugar. When I say suger, I mean they put about 8 spoon fulls of suger in their coffee cup. That explains why so many people have cavities, or no teeth at all. I prefer to drink my coffee strong, black and no suger or milk, and the Peruvians think I am crazy. They have never met anyone who doesn´t put suger in their coffee. Another thing about suger here is that it is real suger cane suger from the rain forest and it is excellent. Not like the chemically produced bleached suger in the U.S.

8) Theft- Petty theft is second nature here in Peru. According to Peace Corps, Peru has one of the highest rates of petty theft out of all of the PC countries. 14% of all Peace Corps Volunteers get robbed within their 2 years of service. So you always have to watch your stuff and be careful. If you leave something on the table at a restaurant and leave to go to the bathroom, your something will be gone when you return. That is a annoying fact of life here.

9) Caring Nature- Peruvians are very caring people (especially on the Northern coast, the region where I live). If you are sick, you better get ready for grandma to come in the room and bring her sack of herbs and remedies. They care about helping one another and doing what they can when they can. I had a friend in the Andes that had a hurt back and so the mom of the house rolled up newspaper into a funnel and set the top part on fire. The flame was huge. She let the newspaper burn all the way down to her back and then repeated the procedure several times. The idea was she had pockets of moisture in her back and the burning paper funnel sucked the moisture away.

10) Pride- Peruvians are very proud people. The majority of the people may be poor but they sure do have pride in their ancestry, thier country, and their family name. Some interesting notes about pride- Women keep their last name when they get married. Peruvians have about 4-5 names and many people have 2 first names (ex. Maria Fe, Maria Jose, or Maria Paz, Juan Manuel). Peruvians have tons of National holidays (more than in the U.S.). There is a real sense of national pride when traveling through Peru. It feels like everyone is united and their is a feeling of collectiveness. I think in the U.S. there may be a lack of national pride and unity becuase we have so many different cultures and religions.