My dad and uncle arrived Wednesday afternoon. I managed to find them at the airport and shuttle them back to the hotel. Last night we all enjoyed a fantastic 500g steak! Beef from Argentina is suppose to be some of the best in the world...and it definitely lived up to the name!
Took a city tour this morning, visted some of the main sights. We are going to be booking our trip to Iguazú today, hopefully leaving on Sunday.
Friday, January 30, 2009
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Argentina
I must add, that Chileans are some of the nicest people I have met so far on this trip, and possibly throughout all of my travels. Even with the language barrier, they all seem to put an effort forward to help, even when not asked.
My first experience with Chileños, began even before stepping foot into the country. The family from Iquique welcomed me with open arms, made me feel more than welcome. Next was a stranger in Santiago. I was getting off the bus to catch a subway downtown when an old lady tapped me on the shoulder and motioned for me to follow her. She brought me to a map of the metro and explained where I had to go. On top of this she bought my ticket!
I won´t lie, I did have one one so friendly experience. Only one though! In the subway, I just finished buying a ticket when i was backing away from the counter and stepped on an old mans toe behind me. He started yelling (and cursing even though I couldn´t understand it), making a huge scene. I apologized numerous times. When he wouldn´t stop I just walked away. LOL Grumpy old man! Oh yah, and he was as tall as my Granny! I could have taken him!
My travels in Chile brought me from Iquique to Santiago, the capital city which is home to approximately 7 million people. My short 3 day visit to Santiago was enough time for me to see a few attractions. I visited the Palacio de la Real Audiencia/Museo Hisórico National, which walked me through the Conquest to paitings depicting modern political turmoil. Nothing was in English so I had to use my own interpreation a few times. After the museum I made my way to the central market. Basically, a huge farmers market. I loaded up on fresh fruit (no border crossings any time soon) and endulged with a few empanadas de pina.
Thinking that I am in decent shape, I decided to take to the challenge of climbing Cerro San Cristobal, a 730 hectare park. The goal was the 22m high statue of the Virgen de la Immaculadad Concepción, on the top. This was accomplished in the 32 degree scortching heat (and 3 stops for ice cream).
I made my way to Providencia, one of the ´to be´ areas in Santiago and had another ice cream serving. Participated in the BBQ at the hostel that night and got a decent night sleep.
Travelled by bus to Quintero and Playa Ritoque, where I spent the next 2 nights. I ventured to Valparaiso and Viña del Mar by bus one of the dayas. Valparaiso was the main port for ships sailing around the Cape Horn until the construction of the Panamal Canal. Viña del Mar is one of Chile´s most famous beach resorts.
Bused it back to Santiago´s airport where I luckily booked a flight 4 hours later to Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Arrived quite late to BA, straight to the hostel and to bed.
Checked into the Sheraton last night and tonight, to enjoy the comforts of a comfortable bed, my own room and Air Conditioning!!!!!! Cuz it´s crazy hot in BA right now!
My dad arrives in Buenos Aires in one hour!!!
My first experience with Chileños, began even before stepping foot into the country. The family from Iquique welcomed me with open arms, made me feel more than welcome. Next was a stranger in Santiago. I was getting off the bus to catch a subway downtown when an old lady tapped me on the shoulder and motioned for me to follow her. She brought me to a map of the metro and explained where I had to go. On top of this she bought my ticket!
I won´t lie, I did have one one so friendly experience. Only one though! In the subway, I just finished buying a ticket when i was backing away from the counter and stepped on an old mans toe behind me. He started yelling (and cursing even though I couldn´t understand it), making a huge scene. I apologized numerous times. When he wouldn´t stop I just walked away. LOL Grumpy old man! Oh yah, and he was as tall as my Granny! I could have taken him!
My travels in Chile brought me from Iquique to Santiago, the capital city which is home to approximately 7 million people. My short 3 day visit to Santiago was enough time for me to see a few attractions. I visited the Palacio de la Real Audiencia/Museo Hisórico National, which walked me through the Conquest to paitings depicting modern political turmoil. Nothing was in English so I had to use my own interpreation a few times. After the museum I made my way to the central market. Basically, a huge farmers market. I loaded up on fresh fruit (no border crossings any time soon) and endulged with a few empanadas de pina.
Thinking that I am in decent shape, I decided to take to the challenge of climbing Cerro San Cristobal, a 730 hectare park. The goal was the 22m high statue of the Virgen de la Immaculadad Concepción, on the top. This was accomplished in the 32 degree scortching heat (and 3 stops for ice cream).
I made my way to Providencia, one of the ´to be´ areas in Santiago and had another ice cream serving. Participated in the BBQ at the hostel that night and got a decent night sleep.
Travelled by bus to Quintero and Playa Ritoque, where I spent the next 2 nights. I ventured to Valparaiso and Viña del Mar by bus one of the dayas. Valparaiso was the main port for ships sailing around the Cape Horn until the construction of the Panamal Canal. Viña del Mar is one of Chile´s most famous beach resorts.
Bused it back to Santiago´s airport where I luckily booked a flight 4 hours later to Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Arrived quite late to BA, straight to the hostel and to bed.
Checked into the Sheraton last night and tonight, to enjoy the comforts of a comfortable bed, my own room and Air Conditioning!!!!!! Cuz it´s crazy hot in BA right now!
My dad arrives in Buenos Aires in one hour!!!
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Valparaiso
Headng out the the coast to get a day or 2 of the beach before heading to Buenos Aires. Staying in a town called Viña del Mar, which is right next to Valparaiso. I heard Calgary received another cold spell...I think it´s deserved after the 17 degree weather from a few days ago!
Santiago weather:
Sat: 31
Sun: 32
Mon: 31
Tues: 31
:o)
Santiago weather:
Sat: 31
Sun: 32
Mon: 31
Tues: 31
:o)
Friday, January 23, 2009
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Chile...part 2
We rush to the bus terminal to make sure there is a seat available for me on their bus...3 seats left! (horseshoe)
I travel 5 hours by bus through the Atacama desert, the driest desert in the world, 1674 km north of Santiago. The Atacama desert is home to giant sand dunes, salt pillars, boiling geysers and a volcano. None of which I saw besides the sand dunes.
Iquique is where I stayed for the past 3 nights. A fairly small coastal/beach city.
Anyways, the family brings me back to their place, shows me to my own room and explains that their house is my house. Their apartment - super nice! Overlooking the ocean!
I had a wonderful sleep after a late night ´´once´´ (a small dinner). Woke up to a traditional Chilean breakfast of bread with cheese and ham, toast, tea, coffee and juice. Walked downtown, checked out some of the sites, had lunch with Lily and then spent the evening at the beach.
Tuesday, slept in and sat by the pool all afternoon. 30plus degree weather is fine with me! The boys and I stayed up late playing cards and having a blast trying to teach eachother spanish and english. Wednesday morning, Lily´s husband, Carlos, came home and took us to the local museum. This is wehre the oldest mummy in the world is on display. Very interesting! That night, the son of Carlos arrived, adding one more person to the mix. We stayed up late eating cake, drinking wine and once again, trying to converse in broken ´´Spanglish´´
My new friends in Chile made my stay extremely enjoyable! Muchas gracias por todos!
I caught an early morning flight at 08:00 to Santiago. Instead of taking a taxi to my hostel, I decided to go with public transportation....lol
Let´s just say it worked out. I took a bus to the metro where this lady asked if I needed assistance (I msut have had the ´deer in the headlights´ look while wandering around the metro station). Nah, I think she overheard me ask someone for directions. Anyways, she basically took me by the hand, paid for my ticket and explained exactly where to get off!
I plan to spend another day in Santiago and then head to the coast for a fwe days before flying to Argentina.
See my dad in 6 days!!!!!
I travel 5 hours by bus through the Atacama desert, the driest desert in the world, 1674 km north of Santiago. The Atacama desert is home to giant sand dunes, salt pillars, boiling geysers and a volcano. None of which I saw besides the sand dunes.
Iquique is where I stayed for the past 3 nights. A fairly small coastal/beach city.
Anyways, the family brings me back to their place, shows me to my own room and explains that their house is my house. Their apartment - super nice! Overlooking the ocean!
I had a wonderful sleep after a late night ´´once´´ (a small dinner). Woke up to a traditional Chilean breakfast of bread with cheese and ham, toast, tea, coffee and juice. Walked downtown, checked out some of the sites, had lunch with Lily and then spent the evening at the beach.
Tuesday, slept in and sat by the pool all afternoon. 30plus degree weather is fine with me! The boys and I stayed up late playing cards and having a blast trying to teach eachother spanish and english. Wednesday morning, Lily´s husband, Carlos, came home and took us to the local museum. This is wehre the oldest mummy in the world is on display. Very interesting! That night, the son of Carlos arrived, adding one more person to the mix. We stayed up late eating cake, drinking wine and once again, trying to converse in broken ´´Spanglish´´
My new friends in Chile made my stay extremely enjoyable! Muchas gracias por todos!
I caught an early morning flight at 08:00 to Santiago. Instead of taking a taxi to my hostel, I decided to go with public transportation....lol
Let´s just say it worked out. I took a bus to the metro where this lady asked if I needed assistance (I msut have had the ´deer in the headlights´ look while wandering around the metro station). Nah, I think she overheard me ask someone for directions. Anyways, she basically took me by the hand, paid for my ticket and explained exactly where to get off!
I plan to spend another day in Santiago and then head to the coast for a fwe days before flying to Argentina.
See my dad in 6 days!!!!!
First glance at life in Chile
Wow, I don´t know if I have a horseshoe up my @ss or what but things so far in Chile have worked out great!
I caught a bus at 07:30 on January 18 from Arequipa to Tacn (both cities in Peru). Tacna is about 15 minutes from the Chilean border. The 5 hour bus ride went by fairly quickly. There was an unexpected stop where everyone had to get off the bus and put their bags through a scanner. This wasn´t at the border though, it was at a what looked to be a random spot on the highway. I asked the attendent why we stopped. The response....¨frutas¨ FRUIT?? My Spanish couln´t be right, a fruit checkstop. (I know the last few sentences are probably setting myself up for some comments but I couldn´t think of a different way to say it). My tranlation was right, they were inspecting the bags and disposing of any fruits being brought into the next region. Apparently, some species of larva are a huge problem.
As my bag goes through the scanner, I realized I have bananas and plums in my bag. Great...I am going to jail! For what??? smuggling fruit...I could have at least made it worth while. They said nothing and handed me my bag back. Once I got back on the bus I had figured I should get rid of the evidence some how...so I ate it all...6 bananas and 2 plums.
Once the bus pulled into Tacna, I grabbed my luggage and hurried across the street to the other station to book a taxi - a 1983 Crown Vic - to cross the border (the buses do not cross). I was told I had to wait until 4 other people bought tickets to fill the taxi before it would leave. Luckily, it took only 5 minutes for this to occur.
My 4 border crossing mates were Lily, Jonathan, Christor and Sebastian, a mom and 3 boys. We communicate through ther broken English that they had to learn in school but received just enough credit to pass, and my broken Spanish that I haven´t been using as much as I should.
The officer stamped my passport at the border and I was in Chile! As we were waiting for our taxi driver to finish his smoke to continue our drive, Lily asked if I wanted to be a guest at their house on my way to Santiago? They live in Iquique, a 4 hour bus ride in the direction of Santiago. I figured what they heck!? I have known these people long enough...33 minutes. What is the worst that could happen...they steal all my stuff, hide me in a basement and hold me for randsom.
I caught a bus at 07:30 on January 18 from Arequipa to Tacn (both cities in Peru). Tacna is about 15 minutes from the Chilean border. The 5 hour bus ride went by fairly quickly. There was an unexpected stop where everyone had to get off the bus and put their bags through a scanner. This wasn´t at the border though, it was at a what looked to be a random spot on the highway. I asked the attendent why we stopped. The response....¨frutas¨ FRUIT?? My Spanish couln´t be right, a fruit checkstop. (I know the last few sentences are probably setting myself up for some comments but I couldn´t think of a different way to say it). My tranlation was right, they were inspecting the bags and disposing of any fruits being brought into the next region. Apparently, some species of larva are a huge problem.
As my bag goes through the scanner, I realized I have bananas and plums in my bag. Great...I am going to jail! For what??? smuggling fruit...I could have at least made it worth while. They said nothing and handed me my bag back. Once I got back on the bus I had figured I should get rid of the evidence some how...so I ate it all...6 bananas and 2 plums.
Once the bus pulled into Tacna, I grabbed my luggage and hurried across the street to the other station to book a taxi - a 1983 Crown Vic - to cross the border (the buses do not cross). I was told I had to wait until 4 other people bought tickets to fill the taxi before it would leave. Luckily, it took only 5 minutes for this to occur.
My 4 border crossing mates were Lily, Jonathan, Christor and Sebastian, a mom and 3 boys. We communicate through ther broken English that they had to learn in school but received just enough credit to pass, and my broken Spanish that I haven´t been using as much as I should.
The officer stamped my passport at the border and I was in Chile! As we were waiting for our taxi driver to finish his smoke to continue our drive, Lily asked if I wanted to be a guest at their house on my way to Santiago? They live in Iquique, a 4 hour bus ride in the direction of Santiago. I figured what they heck!? I have known these people long enough...33 minutes. What is the worst that could happen...they steal all my stuff, hide me in a basement and hold me for randsom.
Saturday, January 17, 2009
Goodbye to Peru
It´s been a long three and a half weeks in Peru, but I had one of the top experiences of my life - Machu Picchu.
Just got back from a day tour to the Colca Canyon. You know how I was bitching about starting to hike at 5am, well, today I got picked up at 2:10am for a day tour. I managed to get about 5 hours sleep which definitely helped since I wasn´t really able to sleep on the bus. The tour consisited of driving 3 hours from Arequipa until Chivoy. This town consisted of nothing. We ate the typical Peruvian breakfast offerred at hostels - butter, jam, a hollow bun and coca tea. Luckily I was prepared this time and had my backpack stashed with fruit and trail mix! ¨My Trailmix........¨
Drove to Cruz del Condor where the bus stopped and we all jumped out in hopes to see the giant condors take flight. We waited, and waited...about 30 minutes looking out into fog...excited I know. All of a sudden you hear someone yell ¨there´s one!¨ A mad rush of turning on cameras to catch a glimpse of this giant bird...the wingspan is over 3 meter long!!!! I think I heard it´s the largest bird in the world. Correct me if I am wrong. I could google it right now but dont´feel like it. Took a few cool pictures which I will post on Facebook for now. I´m trying to get an account set up with flickr...it´s supposedly much easier to download photos while keeping the quality.
Back in Arequipa for tonight, meeting up with a few people from the tour for drinks a little later on. Wont´be a crazy night since I have a 5 hour bus ride at 7:30am tomorrow to Tacna, Peru. So I could go hard tonight and sleep on the bus...we´ll see how it pans out. From Tacna, I have to take another bus across to Chile, and then another bus to my next destination, which at this point I´m thinking will be Santiago. The one downside is I heard the drive is over 25 hours!
Just got back from a day tour to the Colca Canyon. You know how I was bitching about starting to hike at 5am, well, today I got picked up at 2:10am for a day tour. I managed to get about 5 hours sleep which definitely helped since I wasn´t really able to sleep on the bus. The tour consisited of driving 3 hours from Arequipa until Chivoy. This town consisted of nothing. We ate the typical Peruvian breakfast offerred at hostels - butter, jam, a hollow bun and coca tea. Luckily I was prepared this time and had my backpack stashed with fruit and trail mix! ¨My Trailmix........¨
Drove to Cruz del Condor where the bus stopped and we all jumped out in hopes to see the giant condors take flight. We waited, and waited...about 30 minutes looking out into fog...excited I know. All of a sudden you hear someone yell ¨there´s one!¨ A mad rush of turning on cameras to catch a glimpse of this giant bird...the wingspan is over 3 meter long!!!! I think I heard it´s the largest bird in the world. Correct me if I am wrong. I could google it right now but dont´feel like it. Took a few cool pictures which I will post on Facebook for now. I´m trying to get an account set up with flickr...it´s supposedly much easier to download photos while keeping the quality.
Back in Arequipa for tonight, meeting up with a few people from the tour for drinks a little later on. Wont´be a crazy night since I have a 5 hour bus ride at 7:30am tomorrow to Tacna, Peru. So I could go hard tonight and sleep on the bus...we´ll see how it pans out. From Tacna, I have to take another bus across to Chile, and then another bus to my next destination, which at this point I´m thinking will be Santiago. The one downside is I heard the drive is over 25 hours!
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Lake Titicaca
Who knew that people were living on floating islands made of reeds?! Well, there are on Lake Titicaca. I took a tour of the world´s highest navigatable lake at over 3000meters. On this lake, there are the Uros islands which are home to numerous families. A bus brought me out to one island where the group was greeted by 5 women wearing bright bright neon colored dresses. I guess they are in style since neon is back! haha We watched a ´performance´ explaining how they build the islands, how they trade food and do not use money - they trade goods for goods (however, when it was over, we were expected to buy their handcrafts with money....strange huh?!) I had a 3 course meal with Alpaca salad, alpaca steak and ice cream...mmmmm...alpaca. Tastes just like beef. The boat took us to another floating island of reeds where there was a convenient store. Got back to Puno, the port town, to catch my 5 hour bus ride to Arequipa.
Ventured around Arequipa (Peru´s 2nd largest city with approximately 700 000 people) and had a nap in the afternoon. Met up with 2 czech guys, Mira and George, at the front desk when inquiring about a tour to Colca Canyon. We grabbed a bite to eat...I had 3 filets of meat...Alpaca, Ostrich and Beef with a decent glass of wine! Good combo!!! Think I might go for that again tomorrow night.
Early night tonight and hopefully a full day of nothing tomorrow.
Ventured around Arequipa (Peru´s 2nd largest city with approximately 700 000 people) and had a nap in the afternoon. Met up with 2 czech guys, Mira and George, at the front desk when inquiring about a tour to Colca Canyon. We grabbed a bite to eat...I had 3 filets of meat...Alpaca, Ostrich and Beef with a decent glass of wine! Good combo!!! Think I might go for that again tomorrow night.
Early night tonight and hopefully a full day of nothing tomorrow.
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Machu Picchu
After 4 days of hiking I didn´t want to move. But walking all that way to miss the purpose of the trip would not be smart. Woke up at 4:00am to start walking up, up and up to Machu Picchu. It was about 1 hour 20 minutes of stairs. My calves were the size of tree trunks.
Machu Picchu - what an experience! Pictures don´t do it justice. And there is a reason why it was named one of the Wonders of the World.
I´ll let the pictures speak for themself.
Machu Picchu - what an experience! Pictures don´t do it justice. And there is a reason why it was named one of the Wonders of the World.
I´ll let the pictures speak for themself.
Salkantay Trail
People advise to stay a few days in Cuzco before attempting to hike to Machu Picchu. So I figured 3 days would be enought to get myself use to the altitude. Was I wrong!!!
On my 3rd day in Cuzco, I met Mariana (from Brazil) at breakfast. We started chatting and she mentioned she was going to visit Pisac and some ruins. I had similar plans so we paired up and took the local bus 32km weaving along the mountain roads. Explored some ruins and the Sacred Valley of the Incas. Had lunch, bartered with the local market people. I stuck my ground for a bunch of items. The lady wouldn´t budge either so I walked away. 2 minutes later she comes running up to me saying ´ok ok´! Boo yah!! I won!! Then again, I probably still got ripped off. There are always 2 prices when purchasing goods - Gringo and local. If you don´t know what gringo is, I´m sure you can find it on wikipedia.
After changing hostels, picking up my laundry, and running across the city to drop off my bag in storage, I managed to get 1.5 hrs of sleep before my tour bus picked me up at 4:20am.
Salkantay Day 1:
Picked up at 4:20am, drive around Cuzco to pick up the rest of the group. Drive 2 hours to Mollepata - a little town where we have a quick breakfast and embark on our 5 day hike to Machu Picchu. We hiked for 18km the first day, pretty much all up the mountain. Arrive at camp around 5pm. I try to eat dinner but felt sick so only squeezed down a few mouthfuls of soup. Bed by 8:30pm. WOke up at 11:45 to pouring rain and a huge puddle of water in the tent. My backpack was soaking wet! Great!! I woke up the guide and all he did was give me a cheap poncho to put under my sleeping bag. Did it work....no!!! It was a poncho! Rearranged everything in the tent and tried to get some more sleep.
Salkantay Day 2:
Wake up 5:30am. I couldn´t eat anything once again. Not good for the energy level. Going on nearly 6 hours of sleep in 2 days with no food...not good for physical activity. Today was horrible! I couldn´t walk more than 10 meters without having to stop to catch my breath. I was so close to using the oxygen tank. I asked for it once but was told to try to catch my breath first, and if I couldn´t than the O2 would be there for me to use. 4850 meters above sea level - there is not much oxygen!! Finally made it to the top of Salkantay mountain. I wanted to take pictures but decided to start the decent right away. Stopped for lunch, once again, could not eat much. The hike in the afternoon started getting better. It was all downhill!!! 20km hiking this day. Arrived in camp, beautiful spot. In a valley where you have the rainforest on one side and the highlands on the other. The downside, we were expected to dry our own sleeping bags and clothes that got wet the night before.
Salkantay Day 3:
Another 5am wake up. Got ready for the 13km hike today. I was feeling better! Had more energy and could stomach the food that was provided for us. So happy there was more oxygen in the air! Started hiking through the rainforest, such a difference from the day before. 6 hours hiking downhill, through streams, across rivers and passing waterfalls. We went from snow at the top of the mountain to the gorgeous tropical heat in the jungle.
Had lunch in a little village. There was a clinic across the street that was made of scrap metal and bamboo. 2064 meters at this point and loving the oxygen! Chickens, cows, dogs running around are all a regular sight by at this point. Bus ride down the twisting roads to Santa Teresa, where we set up camp. We stepped out of the bus and not within a minute, there were 2 monkeys climbing in and out of the bus. Across the street there was quite the site. On a concrete pad with a roof made of straw and 4 large bamboo posts, a group of Peruvians were preparing for a daily activity. A lady, who I coined ´´the lady of death´´ came strolling up the road with a bucket full of weapons. A cow was tied to the middle of the concrete pad and before you knew it, the lady of death came swooping in, putting an end to the cow´s life. 30minutes later there were fresh carvings of meat hanging all around. Unfortunately, they didn´t offer us any.
Salkantay Day 4:
5:30am wake up, really good breakfast (fresh papaya, bananas, quinoi (spelling) yogurt, pancakes and coca tea). Hiked about 8 km before lunch. We had to collect our luggage that the horses were carrying and say goodbye to our horseman. Hiked for another 2 hours or so along the railway tracks to Aguas Calientes, the town below Machu Picchu. Got a hostel for this night!!!! You don´t know how much you appreciate a hot shower until you haven´t had one for 4 days. Let´s just say I could smell my own stench.
....tomorrow - Machu Picchu!
On my 3rd day in Cuzco, I met Mariana (from Brazil) at breakfast. We started chatting and she mentioned she was going to visit Pisac and some ruins. I had similar plans so we paired up and took the local bus 32km weaving along the mountain roads. Explored some ruins and the Sacred Valley of the Incas. Had lunch, bartered with the local market people. I stuck my ground for a bunch of items. The lady wouldn´t budge either so I walked away. 2 minutes later she comes running up to me saying ´ok ok´! Boo yah!! I won!! Then again, I probably still got ripped off. There are always 2 prices when purchasing goods - Gringo and local. If you don´t know what gringo is, I´m sure you can find it on wikipedia.
After changing hostels, picking up my laundry, and running across the city to drop off my bag in storage, I managed to get 1.5 hrs of sleep before my tour bus picked me up at 4:20am.
Salkantay Day 1:
Picked up at 4:20am, drive around Cuzco to pick up the rest of the group. Drive 2 hours to Mollepata - a little town where we have a quick breakfast and embark on our 5 day hike to Machu Picchu. We hiked for 18km the first day, pretty much all up the mountain. Arrive at camp around 5pm. I try to eat dinner but felt sick so only squeezed down a few mouthfuls of soup. Bed by 8:30pm. WOke up at 11:45 to pouring rain and a huge puddle of water in the tent. My backpack was soaking wet! Great!! I woke up the guide and all he did was give me a cheap poncho to put under my sleeping bag. Did it work....no!!! It was a poncho! Rearranged everything in the tent and tried to get some more sleep.
Salkantay Day 2:
Wake up 5:30am. I couldn´t eat anything once again. Not good for the energy level. Going on nearly 6 hours of sleep in 2 days with no food...not good for physical activity. Today was horrible! I couldn´t walk more than 10 meters without having to stop to catch my breath. I was so close to using the oxygen tank. I asked for it once but was told to try to catch my breath first, and if I couldn´t than the O2 would be there for me to use. 4850 meters above sea level - there is not much oxygen!! Finally made it to the top of Salkantay mountain. I wanted to take pictures but decided to start the decent right away. Stopped for lunch, once again, could not eat much. The hike in the afternoon started getting better. It was all downhill!!! 20km hiking this day. Arrived in camp, beautiful spot. In a valley where you have the rainforest on one side and the highlands on the other. The downside, we were expected to dry our own sleeping bags and clothes that got wet the night before.
Salkantay Day 3:
Another 5am wake up. Got ready for the 13km hike today. I was feeling better! Had more energy and could stomach the food that was provided for us. So happy there was more oxygen in the air! Started hiking through the rainforest, such a difference from the day before. 6 hours hiking downhill, through streams, across rivers and passing waterfalls. We went from snow at the top of the mountain to the gorgeous tropical heat in the jungle.
Had lunch in a little village. There was a clinic across the street that was made of scrap metal and bamboo. 2064 meters at this point and loving the oxygen! Chickens, cows, dogs running around are all a regular sight by at this point. Bus ride down the twisting roads to Santa Teresa, where we set up camp. We stepped out of the bus and not within a minute, there were 2 monkeys climbing in and out of the bus. Across the street there was quite the site. On a concrete pad with a roof made of straw and 4 large bamboo posts, a group of Peruvians were preparing for a daily activity. A lady, who I coined ´´the lady of death´´ came strolling up the road with a bucket full of weapons. A cow was tied to the middle of the concrete pad and before you knew it, the lady of death came swooping in, putting an end to the cow´s life. 30minutes later there were fresh carvings of meat hanging all around. Unfortunately, they didn´t offer us any.
Salkantay Day 4:
5:30am wake up, really good breakfast (fresh papaya, bananas, quinoi (spelling) yogurt, pancakes and coca tea). Hiked about 8 km before lunch. We had to collect our luggage that the horses were carrying and say goodbye to our horseman. Hiked for another 2 hours or so along the railway tracks to Aguas Calientes, the town below Machu Picchu. Got a hostel for this night!!!! You don´t know how much you appreciate a hot shower until you haven´t had one for 4 days. Let´s just say I could smell my own stench.
....tomorrow - Machu Picchu!
Monday, January 5, 2009
Days 1 and 2 - Cuzco
Day 1 - Cuzco
Arrive at hostel: nice place, have my own private room for $12.
Within 10 minutes, had a knock on my door with an offering of Coca tea (a traditional Peruvian tea made with Coca leaves that is suppose to help with altitude sickness and an upset stomach).
Meet up with Ben and Petros at the Point hostel bar across town. Have a few drinks, play some pool and then head out to a couple of night clubs. Pretty much 2 for 1 beers all night long. 5 soles ($2CAD) for a large beer. Made it back to the hostel around 3:30am.
Day 2 - Cuzco
Slept until 11:30am (missed the breakfast they provide at the hostel)
Met up with Ben and toured around Cuzco all afternoon. It rained a little bit but you are jumping in and out of stores and shops so it doesn´t make it all that bad. Purchased some snacks for my hike starting on Wednesday. It is called the Salkantay Trail. 5 days and 4 nights of hiking and camping. Will definitely explain more when after I complete it.
Tomorrow will be visiting a few museums around town and drinking lots of water to prepare me for the hiking.
I´ve been light headed and lost my breath quite a bit since arriving in Cuzco. A little self reminder to breathe once and while definitely helps! Guess I should practice what I preach to the COPD patients at work.
Plan to get an early start tomorrow, a good breakfast and then explore the city some more.
Arrive at hostel: nice place, have my own private room for $12.
Within 10 minutes, had a knock on my door with an offering of Coca tea (a traditional Peruvian tea made with Coca leaves that is suppose to help with altitude sickness and an upset stomach).
Meet up with Ben and Petros at the Point hostel bar across town. Have a few drinks, play some pool and then head out to a couple of night clubs. Pretty much 2 for 1 beers all night long. 5 soles ($2CAD) for a large beer. Made it back to the hostel around 3:30am.
Day 2 - Cuzco
Slept until 11:30am (missed the breakfast they provide at the hostel)
Met up with Ben and toured around Cuzco all afternoon. It rained a little bit but you are jumping in and out of stores and shops so it doesn´t make it all that bad. Purchased some snacks for my hike starting on Wednesday. It is called the Salkantay Trail. 5 days and 4 nights of hiking and camping. Will definitely explain more when after I complete it.
Tomorrow will be visiting a few museums around town and drinking lots of water to prepare me for the hiking.
I´ve been light headed and lost my breath quite a bit since arriving in Cuzco. A little self reminder to breathe once and while definitely helps! Guess I should practice what I preach to the COPD patients at work.
Plan to get an early start tomorrow, a good breakfast and then explore the city some more.
Sunday, January 4, 2009
Lima to Cuzco, Peru
Made it to Cuzco safely! Although, there were a few delays at the airport. Weather was crap so all flights were pushed back about 5 hours. It was lucky for me I arrived early enough to the airport before my flight that Star PERU put me on the earlier flight which ended up taking off about an hour after my original one. So not much of a delay for me.
There was a guy on my flight that was staying at my hostel in Lima. We hung out at the airport listening to an American tour group complain about how they will be missing out on Machu Pichu. They were flying with a different airline that cancelled all flights today. About 15 minutes after they left, it was announced that my flight was going to be boarding in 10 minutes.
Shared a cab from the airport to downtown Cuzco with a few Brits: Ben, an English guy who has a very similar route planned for South America and another guy whose name I can´t remember at the moment. We are all staying at different hostels but plan on meeting up this afternoon at the main square for some lunch and a couple drinks.
So my Spanish classes finished on Friday. Learnt a lot of grammer and conjugation but not a lot of useful vocabulary at this point. I think it will benefit me more once I expand my vocab. There were two of us in the class, myself and Terry. I was invited over to his place on Friday for dinner. His wife made a fantastic meal and we enjoyed some pretty amazing views from their penthouse suit over downtown Lima. Thanks Terry and Norma!
There was a guy on my flight that was staying at my hostel in Lima. We hung out at the airport listening to an American tour group complain about how they will be missing out on Machu Pichu. They were flying with a different airline that cancelled all flights today. About 15 minutes after they left, it was announced that my flight was going to be boarding in 10 minutes.
Shared a cab from the airport to downtown Cuzco with a few Brits: Ben, an English guy who has a very similar route planned for South America and another guy whose name I can´t remember at the moment. We are all staying at different hostels but plan on meeting up this afternoon at the main square for some lunch and a couple drinks.
So my Spanish classes finished on Friday. Learnt a lot of grammer and conjugation but not a lot of useful vocabulary at this point. I think it will benefit me more once I expand my vocab. There were two of us in the class, myself and Terry. I was invited over to his place on Friday for dinner. His wife made a fantastic meal and we enjoyed some pretty amazing views from their penthouse suit over downtown Lima. Thanks Terry and Norma!
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Cuzco bound
Off to Cuzco tomorrow morning. The weather there is quite different than what I have experienced so far. I would go as far as to say it is COLD...but after hearing what the weather is like back in Calgary, it doesn´t sound that bad. Tomorrow is suppose to be around plus 19 celcius with rain. Hopefully, I can get some good dry weather when exploring Manch Pichu. From the sounds of it though, that probably won´t be the case.
Thursday, January 1, 2009
Feliz Año Nuevo
January 1, 2009
First post of the year. Like Christmas, I spent New Year,s Eve in Lima, Peru. The hostel I have been staying at for the past week or so put on a little party. There was champagne at midnight and a lot of rum to drink. There was a huge turkey, ham and salad dinner to go along. Considering I have spent every New Year in the snow with below freezing temperatures, it was a very nice change to be in jeans and a T-shirt outside at 2am.
The Spanish classes I have been taking this week are going well. My last day is tomorrow. Im finishing it off with a bus tour of Lima. When I am not stuck in the classroom, I have been taking it easy. Walking around the city, eating the delicious cerviche offerred at almost all restaurants. Cerviche is a Peruvian dish consisiting of raw seafood with lime juice and spices. Really good! However, I have learnt not to agree with everything the waiter is saying in Spanish. One dish I ended up eating was extremely spicy and I think it was because I agreed to adding more hot peppers.
I visited Plaza de San Martin and Convento San Francisco. I took a tour down into the catacombes - seeing the bones of clergy who died a few hundred years ago. It brought me back to my anatomy class in undergrad. The Spanish architectural influence here is amazing.
I am flying to Cuzco on Sunday morning. Cuzco is approximately 1200 meters in elevation and it is the city where you take a train or begin your hike to Manch Pichu. I plan to organize a 5 day hiking trip starting next Wednesday or so.
I will then head to Puno and Lake Titicaca - the worlds highest navigatable lake in the world. Might take a quick trip to Bolivia and then down to Arequipa, Peru. I want to do some rafting before heading to Chile.
Hope everyone had an enjoyable New Years!!!
First post of the year. Like Christmas, I spent New Year,s Eve in Lima, Peru. The hostel I have been staying at for the past week or so put on a little party. There was champagne at midnight and a lot of rum to drink. There was a huge turkey, ham and salad dinner to go along. Considering I have spent every New Year in the snow with below freezing temperatures, it was a very nice change to be in jeans and a T-shirt outside at 2am.
The Spanish classes I have been taking this week are going well. My last day is tomorrow. Im finishing it off with a bus tour of Lima. When I am not stuck in the classroom, I have been taking it easy. Walking around the city, eating the delicious cerviche offerred at almost all restaurants. Cerviche is a Peruvian dish consisiting of raw seafood with lime juice and spices. Really good! However, I have learnt not to agree with everything the waiter is saying in Spanish. One dish I ended up eating was extremely spicy and I think it was because I agreed to adding more hot peppers.
I visited Plaza de San Martin and Convento San Francisco. I took a tour down into the catacombes - seeing the bones of clergy who died a few hundred years ago. It brought me back to my anatomy class in undergrad. The Spanish architectural influence here is amazing.
I am flying to Cuzco on Sunday morning. Cuzco is approximately 1200 meters in elevation and it is the city where you take a train or begin your hike to Manch Pichu. I plan to organize a 5 day hiking trip starting next Wednesday or so.
I will then head to Puno and Lake Titicaca - the worlds highest navigatable lake in the world. Might take a quick trip to Bolivia and then down to Arequipa, Peru. I want to do some rafting before heading to Chile.
Hope everyone had an enjoyable New Years!!!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)