Day Three of the Inca Trail

The third day of the Inca trail was over all easier, but it was definately the longest day. There was a lot of downstair walking which was quite hard for me. I'm pretty sure that I strained a muscle in the back of my knee on the second day, so walking at all hurt. We climbed more stairs for about two hours before we reached the part of all downhill. When we reached the top we could see Aguas Calientes, the town of Machu Picchu and the mountain of Machu Picchu.

Far away Aguas Calientes

It was also a big day of ruins. We visited quite a few, and of course past Lydia took no notes! Idiot... The fog was fanastic all day. I actually saw my life flash before my eyes one time that day too! I tripped on a stair and almost fell off a cliff! I started crying I was so scared, like I was inches away!! But I didn't fall to my death despite falling a few more times. We stopped at one ruin that was full of llamas and that was fun too!

We got closer and closer, but very slowly... We finally got to camp and slept like crazy for Machu Picchu the next day!

Addie and Julia goofing around. We had gone down 1388 Inca steps

L

Day Two of the Inca Trail

Day Two of the Inca Trail really sucked... Well, it was incredibly awesome, but it was so hard. They all say that the second day would be the hardest, and after the first exhuasting day, I was scared!! We started the day with a presentation of all the porters that went with us and carried all of the tents and food, and everything!! They all stepped up and said their names, ages, and what they were carrying. It was very interesting. We headed out after breakfast onto a fairly flat trail and at an altitude of 3,500 msnm, but in about 5 minutes in turned into climbing stairs for about 7 hours.

 It was crazy hard, but it was still fun to walk up the old stairs through the rainforest. I walked with India most of the day because we were at about the same speed.  We also walked near to a couple from England (Oliver and Gema) who weren't too keen to be stuck in a group of teenagers. We walked up and up and up, until we finally reached the top. When we looked down, we had literally climbed a mountain and were at 4,200 meters above sea level. 

Finally at the top! They are Oliver and Gema on the right

 We got to walk down super jenky stairs for two hours more until we reached lunch and the camp. We got to see some deer though, which I thought didn't exist in Peru, and I got a little taste of home. 

 It was a crazy day and I could hardly move, but the accomplishment was amazing! I slept very well that night! 

L

Day One of the Inca Trail

Ch'askañawi en Quecha = Ojos de estrella en Español = Starry eyes in English
The first day of the Inca Trail is something that is so awesome, and so weird to think back to. The trail starts out pretty flat, and then there is a huge freaking mountain that you have to climb. I found out that on flat ground, I can walk forever, but as soon as it starts to incline, I'm dead. We reached the lunch area in about 3 hours and had spagetti for lunch!! We saw the Inca trail bathrooms for the first time there too... It was like a porcelin hole in the ground, very nice... I think we walked another 4 hours that day until we reached camp. It rained a bit on the way there. I can't remember a huge amount of detail, but the view the whole way was beautiful and wonderful!! I loved the feeling of accomplishment I got the whole way too. I know we saw three ruins that day. I didn't take hardly any photos though because I wanted to make sure I'd have enough battery for Machu Pichhu.

L

Day Two - Chinchero y Maras Moray

Population of the Department of Cusco: 1,205,000
Pop. of the City of Cusco: 250,000
Number of tourists every year: 2,000,000
First stop was the pueblo of Chinchero in the Sacred Valley. We got to see a really cool demostration of how they make natural dyes and then use them to create llama blankets and scarves. It was really interesting how they still use the old methods! I liked the cute llama out back too! Everything there was very expensive of course because it was all hand made.

I was so excited for the next part because I had learned a bit about it (thanks Luke) and it seemed really awesome, and it was!! Moray was next on the list and it was super cool! It was huge! Way bigger than I had imagined. It's made up of a bunch of leveled terraces, each with a slightly different climate. The Incas used this to test which plants grow in which climate and whatnot. It was so cool. I couldn't feel the difference that much, but it was still super fun to walk down and up the crazy inca stairs and to sit all in a circle in the very center!

Straight to the natural salt flats next in Maras! The cool thing is that nobody knows where the salt comes from, but the salty river runs through and the built to flats to collect and sell the salt. It's very cool! The place doesn't have a tour or anything, but we got to walk around for a while and we tasted the salt fresh too. Really bad tasting!!! We headed back to Cusco after Maras to celebrate Luke's 19th birthday! What fun!

L

Trip to Southeast Peru - Day One - Cusco

On the first day of our second trip I literally wrote one sentence in my diary. (Gee thanks past Lydia) I can only look back at pictures and our intinerary for evidence of what happened that day. We went to the Temple of the Sun and Moon first. It was epicly constructed. You could see even today the precision and hard work that went into everything the Incas did. There was no mortar used to hold together the stone structure only a peg and hole system (macho and hembra). Each stone was perfectly fitted with it's neighbor. The sad part was that when the Spanish conquered Peru, they tore down about half of the temple and built a church above it.

The walls are perfectly made.

We drove a ways in bus to Sacsayhuamán. It was again breathtaking to see what the Incas did for their gods. It is thought to have been more of a guard post between different temples. It was built into a zig-zag shape to represent the serpent of the Inca world. The emense stones make up Sacsayhuaman and it's just gigantic.  



Mattieu and I by the biggest stone in the wall.

We went to sacred waters next in the temple of Tambomachay. In order to enter Cusco from the outside, an Inca had to be washed in the sacred waters to purify himself for the sacred city. It was very cool and I really wanted to drink some, but we weren't allowed to. It's very lucky! We couldn't stay very long because the sun was going down and we still had stuff left to visit. We drove by Pucapucara on the way out, but we just stopped to take pictures from afar. 

The windows and fountains from afar.

I think the coolest spot we visited was Qenqo though. We arrived at night, so we couldn't see it that well. It was kindof like a maze. They said that virgens were kept there for sacrifice to the gods. It had a great view of Cusco from the top and it was really good and creepy.

A table for sacrfice... It was super cold...

The hotel bed was so wonderful that night!

L

 

Follow up...

In the month that followed our trip to Arequipa and Tacna I feel that not many things happened. We had a few classes for dance and Spanish with Rotary. We learned a few passes of Salsa. Also in class, we are dancing a fun samba that is crazy sexy!! It's just like how I picture Brazil!

Dance teacher showing us the moves.

    I also went to my first party EVER and it was awesome! Don't worry, I didn't drink or do aything stupid. I did dance for about 4 hours without stopping though. I danced with a ton of different guys. I learned more salsa, a little reggaeton, and how the peruvians get down. When describing how they dance in my diary, I put 'con caderas' or with hips. I learned that dancing with slightly drunk people is HILARIOUS!

   The School of Parachuting was also in that time between trips. I also established that my school is a zoo with the constant screaming and occasional real animals.

Roy suited up for parachute practice

Torture time for Anthony

I love Peru so much!!

L

Day Nine - Rotary Reunions

We got to visit the Chilean consulate with meant free breakfast and a nice video about the dances and cultures of Chile. Peru and Chile are pretty much enemies still, so it was very nice to have a nice peaceful, amicable breakfast with a Chilean. It was a very interesting presentation and the consulate was beautiful! We then went to go talk to a group of interested students about youth exchange. We went up and said our names and did a little intro, but after we just sat in the back and were bored. A couple actually slept because after that hard trip, a meeting was just to boring to stay awake.

4 sleepy intercambistas

   It was finally time for lunch when we finished the meeting and we went to a district meeting of the Tacna area for lunch. It was a wonderful lunch (lamb again). There was dancing and music and it was very festive. Us kids walked over to the close park and played on the equipment for a while before heading back to the hotel to pack up and catch our bus. 

I of course had to have my pictures with the Arch of Tacna because of the St. Louis Arch. It's not nearly as big or awesome, but it's also a gateway. It's like the gateway to the rest of south America from Peru. It's very pretty though.

We left on the bus right after I squeezed in my visit to the arch! 27ish hours later our trip was officially over and we arrived in Lima.

L

Day Eight - Cambaya

After the crazy festivities of the previous day with the uncomfortable ceremony and very excited people. We were so happy to leave Ilabaya for a while to chill out and swim in a waterfall. When we headed out that morning, that's what we thought we'd be doing... Turns out that the president of the Tacna/Arequipa district "forgot" to tell us that we were going to Cambaya (another tiny town) and there we would be greeted by a huge ceremony as well. That whole situation was very uncomfortable for us, because not only were they treating us like kings, but also there were cameras everywhere to track our every move. There was chicha and confetti and we danced. They grow a special oregano in Cambaya that's supposedly the best in the world. 

Women of Cambaya in traditional dress

When we finally could leave though it was very nice. We drove to a parking spot and had to walk to the waterfall. We walked for about 30 minutes in the sun and dust on a narrow path, on the side of a mountian. When we finally arrived it was the best thing in the world! It was really beautiful and huge! We of course had to swim! It was so much colder than I had imagined. It felt like stepping into an ice bath and I lost feeling in my feet and legs very fast. As soon as I got in though it felt refreshing! The cameras followed us there too which was very uncomfortable in swimsuits.

Carter, Me, and Martine

 We walked back up the beaten path and took the bus back to Ilabaya to pack up all our stuff and for a final meeting to say goodbye. We recieved gifts from the officials of Ilabaya. Huge pieces of bread and a little statue scene of Ilabaya.

  That day was also the birthday of one of the exchange students from Arequipa, so we had a little cake for him. I was a great day and I think I remember this one better than most of the others.

L

Day Seven - Ilabaya

The first thing on the agenda was a tour of Tacna before we headed out. We got to see an old train station that was the gateway to all of Peru back in the day. We also walked to a beautiful old cathedral in the center of Tacna. It was gorgeous and for some reason super cold inside. We saw the arch in Tacna too. We took our drive to Ilabaya next, a few hours in bus. When we got there, there was a freaking huge reception of us. We were greeted with confetti and a band and the whole town there. We danced with some important people of the town while some camera crews taped us for a tourism video. It was so weird! We went to the church in the town for a much calmer reception. But lunch/dinner was another grand occasion with a professional chef and a ceremony. We got served a wonderful salad there and a dish with lamb (which I hated). We danced there too after dinner. Not a very eventful day, but we ended singing in the town square. Oldies with just a guitar. It was very nice.

L

Day Six - Tacna Reunions

I know the first guy we met today was an important dude in Tacna, but honestly I had no idea who he was... I just gave him my pin and smiled. We all split into groups after that to go visit schools and talk about Rotary Youth Exchange. We ended up in an all boys school and we went into a senior classroom to talk. We all said our names and a little something about ourselves. I of course said that I love Peru which actually got an applause.

 Girls school next with everybody, but that was pretty boring. Lunch was fun though, we had a singer and a traditional dancing pair for entertainment. This day was awesome because we got to rest between lunch and dinner (pollo a la brasa). We had a little dance party after eating which was super fun! Not a big day, but a nice rest!

L

Day Five - Arica, Chile

We got to get up late on this day... 8 o'clock. Then we waited to depart for about 2 hours. When we finally get moving, it really wasn't that far. We got to the border and it maybe took us 30 minutes for all 20 of us to get through. Then we headed to the center of Arica and visited a cathedral designed by Gustavo Eiffel. It was absolutely beautiful, but still very simple.

 We headed to lunch after that for a bit of Chilean, rice... potatoes... meat... Wow, what a suprise! We hit an art museum with an exhibit on wooden modern sculpture. We went to a market after to buy souveniors, but the money is crazy! 20 soles was 3,500 Chilean pesos!!! 20 soles is like 7 dolars. It was crazy!

The rest of the day was spent in a museum about the war between Chile and Peru. In that war, Peru lost Arica to Chile. We watched the sunset on the beach, and headed back to Peru. There was a Rotary meeting that night, and we had a talent night after. I tried to sing in the talent night, but it ended up horribly when I forgot the words. Oh well! We all slept well that night.

L

Yesterday...

I´m sorry to cut in in the middle of my Arequipa descriptions for a post like this, but yesterday was crazy. Yesterday I skipped school because I had to pick up a package from the cental post office. At first I thought it was silly to miss a whole day of school just for that, but when I finally did get my package, I understood completely. I got up at about the same time as I would have for school, but instead of school, I took 2 micros with my host dad to the central office. We were on micros for about an hour, and we walked 10ish minutes. When we arrived I was totally hopeful because there weren't that many people there at 9. We had to fill out a ton of papers and get tickets and things for about half an hour, and then we just played the waiting game. I thought we'd be out of there at 10 and I would be able to meet my friend, Roy, for lunch in Miraflores. Oh how wrong I was. We left the post office at noon. I´m surprised that I didn´t kill someone. It wasn't even like line waiting, just sitting there watching the workers ignoring us and just typing slowly on their computers. It was very frusterating. I love Peru, but the slow time thing is getting me down a bit.
L

Day Four - Arequipa

The fourth day was kind of a long- short day if you know what I mean. It felt very long, but we didn't really do a ton of stuff. The first thing that day was a viewing of the lovely San Francisco, which is made of a light colored volcanic rock that is native to Arequipa. We walked to the Santa Catalina monastery next and waited for a while to enter. The tour of the inside was awesome. There are actual nuns living there (we didn't see any though.) We got to see how the nuns lived so many years ago. It seems like an impossible life to me! When we left I bought a little cross that says Peru. I love it and wear it almost all the time now.

The courtyard of Monasterio de Santa Catalina

Next we drove in the general direction of Tacna before stopping for lunch. Lunch consisted of many... huhmmm.... "interesting" things. Pig trotters, for one, and a meat that I think was Alpaca. Also a stuffed pepper that was made with a pepper that I thought was bell, until I took a good sized bite and found myself doubled in mouth pain. It was soooo spicy!!! The kicker was the cuy, or guinea pig. You could really see the form left of the little guy and it was difficult to get past that (even worse when other exchange students decided to make a puppet...) Cuy tastes very good though. Like chicken, but super tender.

 We drove after lunch until Tacna, arriving at midnight to be greeted by some members of the Tacna Rotary Club. It was really amazing to have somebody that excited to see you!

L

CUY

Day Three - Colca Canyon, Civay, and Arequipa

 Condors, and only condors can get me up in the morning at 5. We got up early with promises of seeing the condors, but we still did some things along the way. First stop was a little town in Colca that was obviously just filled with tourists. There were women there with hawks and llamas for the tourists to hold and take photos with.. for a small fee of course. I couldn't miss that oppurtunity! I of course paid my 1 sol to hold a hawk! We also bought snacks for the road in that town and looked at a church that was made of white volcanic rock. Very beautiful!!

     The landscapes that we saw on the drive to Colca Canyon were just amazing. Like huge mountains with valleys that go for miles. Just gorgeous! One interesting thing we saw were the ancient tombs of Incas. They just look like holes in the side of the mountain, but there used to be bones and mummies inside (all in museums now.) The Incas believed that when a person dies, they are reborn, so they were mummified, or burried in a fetal position. I think that's why the holes are so tiny. When we finally arrived at Colca Canyon, it was so worth the wait. It's the deepest canyon in the world and the view is like nothing you've ever seen, and nothing you can see unless you actually go there, because the pictures do no justice to the real thing. The condors were so much bigger than I had imagined. I knew they were big, but they looked so humungous!!

The huge wonderful Condor

Lovely view of the canyon

    When we left we drove to and stopped at many little vendors, my favorite was the cactus fruit. It's called Tuna in Spanish, and I ate a bright pink, sweetish one and a super sour green one! Next we went to Chivay just to see the Plaza de Armas and the churchs and tours like that. Chivay was very pretty, despite the low set barbed-wire fences!! I did run into one.. There was a little boy with a llama there that was very persistant about recieving his tips. He was so cute that I gave him some money, but said, "this is for your llama."

   We left Colca and got back to Arequipa that night. It was dark when we saw the plaza de Armas of Arequipa, but it was all lit up and beautiful. I think that's pretty much all of our third day!

L