Happy International Women’s Month!

Peru just brought the celebration of International Women’s Month (and specifically International Women’s Day) to a whole new level. In case you didn’t know, March is International Women’s Month and March 8th is the specific day to celebrate all the ladies. 

I am sad to admit, this is not a day I usually celebrate or even acknowledge in the U.S. And in recent memory, I don’t remember it being celebrated or acknowledged in other areas of my life, except by people posting empowering and sometimes humorous memes and reels on social media. 

Needless to say, I was pleasantly surprised when a female coworker invited me to an International Women's Day celebration at my university. In my mind, I imagined donuts and coffee with a nice little banner. Instead, it was a three hour long celebration which included a full meal of pork belly, sweet potato and choclo (Peruvian corn), decorations, live music, karaoke, dancing and plenty of speeches. It was lovely to see so many women from the university come together and celebrate with each other.

The next day (March 8th), I went to Lima to spend time with Chelsea, another English Language Fellow. She had heard about an International Women’s Day celebration through a friend and we thought it would be interesting to check out. Turns out, it was a full blown pool party at a beautiful house in the Molina neighborhood. Can you see the DJ in the back?! There was a mix of Peruvian and expat women who were so welcoming and joyful. We drank wine, we swam, we danced.

So let this be a call to action for all those who are reading that we can and should have a multi-day celebration of women in March of 2026 that includes good food, dancing, a pool and a DJ.