The trip is going fantastic. Our days are incredibly packed with us leaving most days around 6 AM. Today was a nice change which meant we got to sleep in until 8. This was especially good because it meant we could go into Cuzco during the night where there were having a festival Inta Romi. We have been very lucky with festivals.
Let me update the past week since it has been about that long since I have been able to post a blog.
The Nazca lines were fascinating. First we visited a cemetry where bodies and the textiles they were wrapped in have been preserved by the dry desert conditions for thousands of years. Then we saw how locals mine for gold and make pottery. Finally we got to fly over the lines. This was done in a small 6 person plane, and I got to be the co-pilot. Just going up in a small propellor plane like this was quite an experience. He would do 180 degree turns so each sign could be seen by people on each side of the plane. The lines themselves are 5000 years old made by the Nazca people across the desert. There is said to be 13000 lines, most just straight lines, but many made in shapes such as a monkey, hummingbird, whale, condor. These were the most impressive. They did this by moving stones to the side creating a line. The conditions in the desert have preseved these lines. How they built huge animals without being able to check them out from the air is a mystery. There are many theories as to why these were created. The one that makes the most since to me is they were religious and agricultural. These were made over a 900 year period. One note, Carrie who is an Aussie on the trip, was behind me gagging in a bag. We had a good laugh about that once we landed!
That night we went to a planterium where we got to see the Southern Cross which can only be seen from the Southern Hemisphere and we saw Saturn and Jupiter from a telescope, my first time doing that. Very cool!
Then we took a nightbus to Arequipa, Peru´s second biggest city. I actually slept quite well. Unfortunately for the first few nights I had been sleeping with Mike, a strange 66 year old American who incidentally has a snoring problem. He probably could put up a good fight with Jeff. I have since moved to staying with Alana, a 30 year old Canadian bartender. For the most part I go out with Chloe, Jo (English), Alana, Jade (Kiwi), and Chris (Manchester, hillarious with a weird accent). We have a great time together. Also, Carrie and Tony from Melbourne are a barrel of laughs.
Arequipa is a really neat city, one that is fun to walk around in. It is surrounded by mountains, most notably El Misti volcano. There we saw Juanita, an Inca girl who was completely preserved in the ice until she was found 20 years ago. You could still see her skin and eyelashes, pretty wicked! This was also a good city to relax and enjoy some drinks with a few of the mountains.
Early to rise again to visit the Colca canyon, the deepest in the world. We climbed our way up to about 15,000 feet, the highest I´ve ever been. It was a strange feeling at the top, I was very lightheaded and just felt like I was in a daze. It was also very tiring to walk even a little bit. The drive took us to some beautiful vistas and then we arrived in the town of Chivay, probably at about 12,500 feet, I am not too sure because they give all measurements in meters here. The Colca region was celebrating its anniversary, so we went to this festival where they had bullfighting. It was very interesting, pretty much all locals at the arena.
The next day we went further down the canyon to see the condors, the largest flying bird on earth. They were absolutely amazing, huge wingspans just floating with the wind. It is also a great spot because they fly right over your head.
Back in Arequipa that night was fun. Chloe, Jo, and I searched around the city and found a real local restaurant where we got three massive plates of food and drinks for about $3 per person. We beat that today though in Pisac where we got soup, drinks, and a main course for $0.75 per person. I gave the lady a tip of about $0.75 and she got the biggest smile on her face. Obviously things here are extremely cheap, even the places designed for tourist you only pay $7 or so for a full meal and some cervezas. In Arequipa we also ran into a street that had nothing but cake shops, massive cakes. We brought one back for the group that night to celebrate our seventh day.
Yesterday we flew to Cuzco, a magnificent town nestled in the Andes. I was expecting more of a tourist feel to it since everyone going to Machu Picchu has to go through Cuzco. Like I mentioned before, they were celebrating Inta Romi, a big festival in these parts. For about 10 hours in the Plaza de Armas (the main square in most South American cities is called Plaza de Armas) they had a parade with colorful costumes and music, and of course beer and alcohol. It was a real lucky treat to see it. I was oblivious that it was going to be happening, but Alana said she actually planned the time of her trip due to the festival. Cuszco also provided the first taste of Inca ruins. It is fascinating how they built their buildings using no mortar just precise positioning of massive stones. The Coriancha church has part Inca and part Spanish to its structure. The Spanish portion has had to be rebuilt numerous times because of earthquakes but the Inca portion always remains intact. Alana and I also got possibly the best room in Cuzco overlooking the Plaza from a distance. I took a shower with a gorgeous view listening to music from the festival! I also got to speak South American politics with an Andean priest which was great. He likes Evo Morales in Bolivia, but did not care much for any of the Peruvian presidential candidates.
Today we went through the Sacred valley, which without any Inca ruins is pretty remarkable. Here are some of the most intact and best ruins of the Inca. Temples, agricultural terraces, cemetaries, etc. It was really interesting and gets me more excited about the Inca Trail which we begin early tomorrow morning.
Here are some quick interesting tidbits--
Watching the World Cup here is awesome, though a bit sad because the U.S. did so bad.
Pisco Sour is better in Peru than Chile
Zippers problems have been nagging me-first my pants which incidently I have not changed since I left, then on my luggage. The zipper to the main compartment became defective. I was ready to buy a new bag but the man at the hotel said he knew someone who could fix it. For about $13 they put a whole new zipper on in about 3 hours. Mom and Dad don´t worry, it is as good as new!
Peruvian kids are super cute and get a kick out of us doing anything. They are a lot of fun, although a lot of time are trying to sell you something. In Nazca we ventured into a residential area where I am guessing they haven´t seen a gringo in some time. The kids were all yelling ¨Hello¨ and laughing and one rode up on a bike to shake my hand.
English and Aussies are great to travel with!
Tomorrow it is off to the Inca Trail for 4 days so I won´t be posting for a while. Take Care.
One last note: Happy Birthday to Julie Thomason and Karen Kalin whose birthdays I missed last week! And to Adrienne congratulations!
