Well, it finally happened- I became Peruvian today at an 11:00 AM ceremony!

We were asked to arrive at 10:00 AM for the rehearsal… and probably to make sure that everyone arrived on time for the ceremony (they said that there will be pictures and a video available this afternoon and I will add a link to this post when that happens: Link).  The ceremony did not start on time which, we were told, is extremely unusual but the official who was in charge had to take a “high level phone call.”

I was asked to be one of the speakers at the ceremony and I agreed.  I have no idea why I was asked to speak-  perhaps because others said no, perhaps because I was sitting in an aisle seat. There was also a woman from Dominican Republic who spoke; one man, one woman.

During the ceremony, the new citizens sat on the left side of the room while the guests sat on the right side of the room.  On the left side, the women sat in the first rows and the men sat toward the back.  Odd.  This separated some couples.

The ceremony ended by 11:45 AM.  It included an oath-taking, singing of the national anthem, a roll call of names where we received our new document and a rousing speech by the, um, head of migraciones?  I am not sure of his name.  Very Patriotic!

Now I will apply for my DNI (the national ID card) and then my Peruvian Passport.

A very good day!  It was also the first day of school here in Lima so I needed a substitute on the first day.

A big thanks to Ana Maria, my extended family, my school family and Peru for this opportunity and all of the support during this process.  ¡Viva Peru!