Hola todos,
Sorry for the tardiness in delivering this post... Between the questionable WiFi at our hostel and my desire to spend every second that I can with my dad before he leaves, I haven't been able to keep up as much with posts!
I'm in Peru, adding yet another country to my been-there-done-that list, totaling to 6 cities in 4 countries thus far. This week started off in the Rio airport, and finished with me seeing one of the 7 Wonders of the World. Check out what I did below!
Day 29: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil to Cusco, Peru (with a layover in Lima, Peru); distance: 5881 miles/ 9465 kilometers
Well, needless to say, I stayed up all night. It was actually kind of cool to realize that I had seen the sun both set and rise over the air strip. I managed to keep myself occupied, and better yet, I found a café that was open all night with outlets to charge my stuff! By the time 4 am rolled around, I was super ready to sit in a comfy seat and sleep. Really, that's all I wanted. I checked in without a hassle, went through security in what was probably a world-record time, and passed through immigration. I was officially headed to Peru, and no longer (technically) in Brazil! I waited at the gate for the plane, willing myself to stay awake for an hour more. And I waited. And waited. And then my flight was delayed by an hour. AN HOUR. One more hour that I had to push through. Well, ladies and gentlemen, I did it. I got to my assigned seat on the plane before passing out, and I only woke up once- in time for the complementary breakfast! I arrived in Lima without any issues, passed through customs and immigration, and went to go check in for my flight where, lo and behold, my dad was waiting for me!!! I was so excited to see him, and I am so excited that we are going to be spending our time in Peru together. Although we took separate flights from Lima to Cusco (because he bought his ticket with frequent flyer miles and I bought mine with a huge student discount), they departed around the same time, so we were able to hang out until our flights boarded. Once in Cusco, we took a cab to a cute little hotel called El Mirador de Santa Ana, which has a great view of Cusco from our bedroom window. Once we had unpacked a little, we went to go check in with our Machu Picchu trek company. The company requires that you prove that you are in Cusco acclimating to the altitude at least two days before your trek, so we walked around the city a little on our way to and from the office. For dinner, we dropped by a local restaurant, and even though it wasn't super late, we were both exhausted from the day's travels (and I had gotten roughly 4 hours of airplane sleep in the past 38 hours) so we went to bed early so that we can be rested and enjoy the rest of our stay here!
Me at 6:30 am, getting ready to board the plane that was supposed to depart at 6:30 am. Oh boy, was I tired and done.
Christmas came a little bit late! My dad was able to bring down more clothes for BA, as well as some goods from the US and Christmas presents. Imports included: dry shampoo, the lifeblood of female college students (it doesn't exist in BA); a massive bottle of Advil (the largest size they sell in BA is 30 tablets... what?!); homemade soaps and lip balms; more sunscreen (which is super expensive in BA); a Swiss army knife from my brother (for protection as well as utilitarian purposes), and more!
We were both definitely travel-weary, but super excited to see each other! This is us at the hotel.
The view of Cusco from the balcony of the dining area. I can't wait to see it in daylight!
Some reference maps for you geographically-challenged folks.
Some of you might be wondering about my laundry. Considering my extremely limited number of clothes, one might anticipate smelly clothing after 5 weeks. And... you'd be right. Mostly. I have tried to do sink-based laundry, but it's just not the same. So... Today, my dad and I started off our Cusco adventure by going to a lavandería, or laundry shop, and getting my clothes washed! The price was killer- 2 nuevo soles for one kilo, or about 60 cents! After dropping off my clothes, we headed to the Inka Museum where we learned all about the Incan empire, their religion, society, economics, and politics. It was extremely comprehensive and even had some skulls and mummies! Once we were done, we walked around a little bit to find a local place for lunch. In order to avoid tourist-based restaurants, we walked outside the main Plaza de Armas by one block and were rewarded with a cute little place advertising local cuisine. After lunch, we walked to Qorikancha, also known as the Convent of Santo Domingo. Qorikancha was an Incan place of worship for their sun god (I think) until the Spaniards arrived and converted it into a Catholic complex. It was getting cold and had been spitting a little rain all day, so my dad and I headed back to the hotel (and picked up my laundry on the way!) to go warm up. Although the lavandería smelled like a dirty dog, I was pleasantly surprised to find that my clothes smelled fresh and clean! After we drank some tea at the hotel, we walked to the locals' grocery store (at the shopping areas meant for cusqueños, or Cuscans, things are a lot cheaper!) and bought some snacks and dinner. What a successful and adventurous first day in Cusco!
I definitely could have fit in this pot that we saw at the Inka Museum. I would have climbed in, but security was too tight...
The buildings on the left are the oldest part of the Qorikancha complex, most of which have Incan architecture. The buildings on the right were built by the Spanish when they converted the temple to a cathedral and convent.
Day 31: Cusco, Peru; distance: 5881 miles/ 9465 kilometers
Today, my dad and I decided to hike a little to the Cristo Blanco (white Christ) statue on a hill just outside of the main downtown Cusco area. We got lost (due to poor internet directions) but we eventually found our way behind some neighborhoods and up some dirt trails to the statue. (By off-roading our hike, we didn't have to pay the entrance fee!) We wandered around on the hill, looking at Cusco from high up. After we wandered back down, it was lunchtime. We headed to an upstairs pub that had a phenomenal view of the Plaza de Armas and ate some lunch before heading to the Catedral de Cusco. At this three-part humongous cathedral, we took the audiotour (included in the entrance fee) and learned a lot about the history of Catholicism in Cusco. We even got to see the very first cross in Peru, the very same one that accompanied Francisco Pizarro from Spain during his conquest! (I wasn't allowed to take pictures though.) After our tour, we headed to the Museo de Pisco which, although its name means "Pisco Museum", is actually a restaurant and bar that offers pisco-making and pisco-tasting informational classes. (Pisco is a grape-based alcohol that is produced in Peru.) We not only leaned about how pisco, the alcohol, is made, but we also got to make our own pisco sours! I chose a cranberry-infused drink, and my dad made the Andean mint, or muña, pisco sour. I felt like a professional bartender, and my drink was pretty good, if I do say so myself! After learning all about Peru's unique drink, we spent the rest of the afternoon souvenir shopping (I bought a sweater made from alpaca wool!) and packing at the hotel. Tomorrow, we leave early in the morning for our trek to Machu Picchu, so we prepared our bags. We did manage to get out of the hotel and go to the Plaza de Armas for dinner- which was both picturesque and delicious!
Day 32-35: Outside of Cusco, Peru, on the Inca Trail towards Machu Picchu
And now, I'm going to cheat a little. I really can't take you day-by-day through my trek along the Inca Trail, especially since almost all of my photos are on my camera and I can't download those until I get back to my laptop in BA! Sooo... I'll just post this teaser photo, and know that I will give my trek and Machu Picchu the post that it deserves when I get back! I had the best time of my life during this 4-day marathon (the trek was just over 26 miles!), and I can't wait to share my experience with you all!
Today, my dad and I decided to hike a little to the Cristo Blanco (white Christ) statue on a hill just outside of the main downtown Cusco area. We got lost (due to poor internet directions) but we eventually found our way behind some neighborhoods and up some dirt trails to the statue. (By off-roading our hike, we didn't have to pay the entrance fee!) We wandered around on the hill, looking at Cusco from high up. After we wandered back down, it was lunchtime. We headed to an upstairs pub that had a phenomenal view of the Plaza de Armas and ate some lunch before heading to the Catedral de Cusco. At this three-part humongous cathedral, we took the audiotour (included in the entrance fee) and learned a lot about the history of Catholicism in Cusco. We even got to see the very first cross in Peru, the very same one that accompanied Francisco Pizarro from Spain during his conquest! (I wasn't allowed to take pictures though.) After our tour, we headed to the Museo de Pisco which, although its name means "Pisco Museum", is actually a restaurant and bar that offers pisco-making and pisco-tasting informational classes. (Pisco is a grape-based alcohol that is produced in Peru.) We not only leaned about how pisco, the alcohol, is made, but we also got to make our own pisco sours! I chose a cranberry-infused drink, and my dad made the Andean mint, or muña, pisco sour. I felt like a professional bartender, and my drink was pretty good, if I do say so myself! After learning all about Peru's unique drink, we spent the rest of the afternoon souvenir shopping (I bought a sweater made from alpaca wool!) and packing at the hotel. Tomorrow, we leave early in the morning for our trek to Machu Picchu, so we prepared our bags. We did manage to get out of the hotel and go to the Plaza de Armas for dinner- which was both picturesque and delicious!
I didn't get a great Christ the Redeemer photo in Rio, so I found my second chance with Cristo Blanco!
Cusco from Cristo Blanco- wow!
The Cathedral of Cusco. What a stunning building with an amazing history!
Pisco sour making! I got to play bartender for a few minutes, and my dad got to relive his bar-tending days.
When we walked into a store to check out the souvenirs, a worker there practically assaulted us with these clothes and forced us to model. We've never been more fashionable!
Day 32-35: Outside of Cusco, Peru, on the Inca Trail towards Machu Picchu
And now, I'm going to cheat a little. I really can't take you day-by-day through my trek along the Inca Trail, especially since almost all of my photos are on my camera and I can't download those until I get back to my laptop in BA! Sooo... I'll just post this teaser photo, and know that I will give my trek and Machu Picchu the post that it deserves when I get back! I had the best time of my life during this 4-day marathon (the trek was just over 26 miles!), and I can't wait to share my experience with you all!
Told you it would be a teaser.
Check back soon for a legitimate post about the Incan city of Machu Picchu, as well as a description of my final week of travel during this vacation. I have less than one week left before I am back in Buenos Aires, and I can't believe that this break had gone by so quickly!
It's not over yet, though, so stay tuned...
Besos,
Tina the Exploradora
"Mmmmm ... pisco sour!" (Read in Homer Simpson's voice. ;-) )
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