Saturday, October 30, 2010

Floating cities and Island of the Sun

Welcome arch on one of the Floating Islands
We arrived in Puno late after a long bus ride. After a good night sleep we wandered around the city a bit. We walked to the edge of Lake Titicaca and walked along the shore. The lake is huge. It looks like your standing next to the ocean, no sign of an opposite shore on the horizon.


We happened upon a little lady renting paddle boats. We picked a very fancy looking duck boat and headed out on the water. We paddled through the reeds for a while chasing ducks. I don’t think they knew what to make of us in our giant duck boat. It was pretty amusing. Michelle had another freak out moment. Every time we would start getting a little further out she would start yelling at me to steer us back to shore, if the boat sank we would drown. She supplied many humorous moments while we traveling with her.
The floating island we visited
That night we booked a tour for Uros, the floating islands. The next day we met a nice guy from Manchester, England who was on our tour with us. We kind of kidnapped him and he spent the next week traveling with us. The tour was cheesy and overly touristy, but the floating islands are like nothing I have ever seen. When you walk on them the floor squishes below you. It’s like walking on a giant pillow. If you got tired at any point in the day you could just lay down anywhere and take a nap. The Islands are made from the reeds that grow in abundance in the lake and their hollow structure makes them float very well. They make everything out of these reeds, from their homes to their boats and they even eat them. We took a ride on one of their reed boats and wandered around a bit. Oh, I almost forgot. Michelle walked too close to the edge of the island and fell through. Luckily she caught herself before she fell all the way through and under the island. She got her pants all wet and was screaming again. It was just another hilarious moment from Michelle. The men from the island said she was lucky because if you fall all the way through you can get trapped under the island and drown very easily.
Houses made of floating reeds

Islands are solar powered

Boat made out of floating reeds
We got back to the mainland and ate a quick lunch and hopped on a bus to Copacabana, Bolivia. Yes, it is called Copacabana. I did not make it up. We crossed the border and paid the $135 entrance fee for Americans, while all of our friends from other countries got in free. No bitterness behind these words, I swear. I guess it’s only fair. The US charges some of the highest visa entrance fees of any country. The bus driver told me that Bolivians have to pay $280 to enter the US. For a country so poor that is a large amount to charge its people compared to what they charge us.

We arrived to Copacabana and found a hostel for the night. Copacabana is a sleepy coast town overrun with hippies. It made for an interesting atmosphere. It is also on Lake Titicaca, so the next day we got a boat to take us to the famous Isla Del Sol. This is where the Inca’s believed that their people began. The myth is that their first people emerged from the lake here. There is a sacred rock that marks the spot.
Isla Del Sol with Andes in the background
Sacred Stone

Ruins on the Isla Del Sol

Sacred Rock
The island itself was beautiful and reminded me of the Greek Isles. The water was rich shades of green and blue with sharp rocky walls forming coves protecting calm, white sandy beaches. If we had more time I would have loved to camp on the beaches. From the top of the island you could see for miles. The snow covered peaks of the high Andes were visible in the distance. It was a spectacular view and I can see why the Incas were inspired by the place.
Funny picture of us on Isla del Sol

Me, Laura, Michelle, and Vernon on the Isla
On the way back to the mainland the tour also offered the chance to visit their floating islands. I was a bit skeptical since the only floating islands in existence were the ones we saw in Puno. When we arrived I was in disbelief at what I was seeing. They had fashioned wooden docks and covered them with reeds. The docks were maybe ten feet by ten feet. It was such a poor job you could still see the wood underneath in most spots and you could see the giant pieces of Styrofoam strapped to the underside keeping it floating. What a tourist scam! I couldn’t help but laugh and I strongly suggested that no one visit them, especially since they were charging an extra fee to go onto them.

Amazing fresh fish on Lake Titicaca in Copacabana
Christina

Sunday, October 17, 2010

4 Days in Colca Canyon


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The Colca Canyon
When we got to Colca Canyon I was sick with a cold and we had originally planned on just seeing the canyon and the Condor viewing location and then heading to Puno. This all changed the moment we talked to the bartender who was describing a 4 day hike through two canyons and seeing a waterfall and how it was just the most amazing hike. Well that was that and we left a day later on a four day hike with only a cartoon map as a guide.


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Resting by the river
 The first day there was a guided group in front of us so we followed them when our map failed us and yes this was in the first 15 min of the trek. Luckily the trail was pretty easily to follow once you found it and we passed the group right away. The girl was wearing KEDS that is all you need to know about how there trek was going to go. Anyway we had a steep dusty descent and the sun was blazing. I think Michelle had a sunburn with in the first hour. Right before the first town on the trek, after about 3 hours of walking, there is a river so we sat with our feet in the water and rinsed the dust from our faces. At this point we assessed the severity of our burns and we reapplied sun lotion. While we were sitting there a woman ran up to us in tradition garb and told us to stay at her hostel and that all we had to do was follow the signs up the path. When we were ready to move again we walked up the path and found the hostel she was talking about and it was really beautiful. It looked great and we would have stayed if the next town was not just an hour and a half away. It was just to close not to go ahead and walk there to save us the time for tomorrow. The next town was Malata which Michelle continually confused with Matala (kill her in Spanish).  The hostel there was run by a little couple and they were so cute. The man was trying so hard to make sure we had a good time. It was a very basic place with an outhouse and just a tub to wash our faces in. The dinner though was one of the best dinners we had in a long time. It was all vegetarian because it is too hard to get meat in the canyon, but no problem we had pastel de papa, layers of potato with cheese in the middle cooked in the oven with tomatoes in lemon juice with basil and rice. It all looked so beautiful served on plates made there in the town. We enjoyed our food while sitting at a table out on the patio. It was just a great meal all around.     

Our Resort in Malata
                

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The Bathroom at our resort
 The next day we woke up and had a lovely breakfast with them as well and then they pointed us in the right direction but not until after he informed us that he also had a museum and that we should take a second to look through it. Had he informed us any time other than right as we were leaving we would have enjoyed finding out what he had in his museum. It was kind of humorous because there were only about 30 families that lived in this village and even there they have a museum, what an entrepreneur.
Oh I almost forgot the night before as we were walking to the town square a small chiwawa like dog started barking a Michelle and she freaked out and did this little girl like dance were she screamed jumped and kicked her leg out at the same time. It was great and I wish I could have captured this moment on camera it was that good.
So we were on our way to the next town which was Fure. The hike was easy at the beginning but at the end it was steep up hills and slippery downhills with a cliff on one side. It only took us about 3 hours and 20 minutes to do a hike that normally takes a good 4 hours. The town which was smaller than Malata had four hostels. We ended up staying with an 18 year old girl who did all the cooking and ran the hostel and a store. Talk about making you feel lazy and useless.
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The mighty condor... this picture is not actual size
Close to Fure there is a waterfall that is supposed to be amazing so we headed out with some help from the hostel owner. The hike was nice and very beautiful. There was a river rushing below us with these giant boulders in it and every few feet a small waterfall. Unfortunately we should have gotten a guide because we got confused with all the trails and ended up on a donkey trail and unable to see the front of the main waterfall. The donkey trail did lead us to a lower section where we found two large birds hoping around on some rocks. After some thinking we realized that they were juvenile condors that were trying to fly. Above us were about 6 condors flying around and all of the sudden Michelle starts screaming and falls to the ground when I look back where she was looking I see a condor flying straight toward us about 2 meters overhead. I don’t know if it was trying to scare us off but it did a fly by several times. This was the second time Michelle freaked out and it was almost as good as the first time. She was the only one with a camera and she was too scared to look up and take a picture. I tried to reassure her that condors only eat dead things but that did not help. She kept clutching on to her hat saying the condors were trying to take it. On the way back we walked down to the water and had some cookies and put our feet in the ice cold water. We had planned on swimming until we touched the water.
The hike back was cool and easy and we were back in no time. We had dinner at the hostel a meal of some sort of pumpkin dish with rice. It was okay but not my favorite. There we met a French couple and their local guide. Luckily Michelle speaks French so she was able to communicate with them. The guide told us about a short cut for the hike tomorrow.
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The Cruz Del Condor

The sun is killer in the canyon so the earlier you start the better. We got up early ate a quick breakfast of eggs and toast and headed out. It was a pretty uneventful hike but by the end of the hike we were all worn out. Three days of hiking with killer sun and no showers has really taken it out of us. Luckily we were arriving to the place that we have been waiting for the entire hike. They are supposed to have thermal baths and great trout caught that day by the owner of the hostel.


A cool view of the canyon

We got there at about 12 and the owner was super nice. He showed us around the place and we immediately changed into our swimsuits and got into the baths. It was so nice to lie in the sun and relax. After about 3 hours I needed to get my poor skin out of the sun so Christina and I went back up to the hostel. Unfortunatly we left the key down the 10 flights of stairs with Michelle so we just sat in the dining room and read for 5 hours. Yes 5 hours. Michelle came back and she was so crispy. I am surprised that her skin did not just crack off of her.
It was almost time for dinner and we were so excited for trout. We had been waiting for this for three days. When it came out I was in shock. It was the size of a sardine. I did not believe that this was what I was eating for dinner. I was expecting a big nice piece of fish and all I got was a bait fish. Let’s just say that we were all disappointed.
Oh and by the way we had only taken out money in the town before for a couple of days thinking that we were not going to be hiking this long. By the third day we were really nervous about the fact that we may run out of money and not be able to make it to Puno, our next stop. We counted every sole we had and found out that we would not be able to eat breakfast or really anything until we got to Puno.
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Waiting for the cattle truck with the locals

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Ridding in the back of a cattle truck
Because of our lack of food we decided that we would do a short hike and then take a bus the rest of the way back to town, instead of a four hour hike in direct sun straight up the side of a mountain. Well the short hike was not bad although we were passed by a 87 year old man (sad). When we got there people were waiting for the bus and we took a cue from them and sat down in the shade. After about an hour we saw this cattle truck coming up the road and we thought oh the bus must be right behind it. That was the bus. We piled in the back with all sorts of goods for market. We were so crammed in that people were sitting on the top of the truck too. The top was open so dust was gushing over the top making everything look tan. After about 3 hours we made it to town and tried to buy a bus ticket. Unfortunately they do not sell seats for our stop outside of Chivay and the bus was packed. Yes that meant that we had to stand the whole way. When we got to our stop, a junction of two roads, we got off and went to the nearest police officer and asked him about getting a bus to Puno. We had heard that it was possible to catch a bus at this junction so we decided we would take our chances. The officer said that the bus usually cost double what we had budgeted. Um not a good sign. What the hell were we going to do if we could not get a bus? Well we waited and they flagged a bus down for us and we asked the driver if he would take 30 soles for the three of us and he paused and then said yes. THANK GOD!
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Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Cusco and Machu Picchu

Soccer Game in Cusco
After a luxurious plane ride of only two hours, versus the 22 to 24 it would have been on the bus, we arrived in Cusco. I wish we could fly everywhere we go. We met our couch surfer, Ronnie, and settled into his place. After a long nap, since we had gotten up at 4:30am to catch our flight, we went with Ronnie to see a soccer match. We had fun copying all the cheers and jeers of the crowd. We had delicious stadium food that was not sold out of booths but instead vendors had set up barbeques under the stands and were making all sorts of antichutos or meat skewers and other fair. It was definitely a different experience than going to a game in the states.

Main Square in Cusco


Cathedral in the main square in Cusco


Cusco at night

Native women weaving blankets
We spent three more days in Cusco exploring the city and tasting all the food. It is a beautiful city, with tight cobblestone streets, old building, and countless squares. Unfortunately, we had horrible weather. It was cold and rainy and grey the entire time. On the third day we made a trip out to this little town about an hour outside of Cusco that is known for its cuy, or in English, guinea pig. We had tried it once before in Loja, Ecuador and thought that was enough, but Ronnie insisted that it was much better in Peru. So that is how we found ourselves sitting at a table in the middle of nowhere staring at this little petrified rat. If you have never eaten it, they serve you the animal whole… legs, head and all. It was our friend Michelle’s first time trying it, and when it arrived at the table I think she started having second thoughts. But after a nice photo shoot, she bravely started picking away at it. It was definitely better than the cuy in Ecuador, but still not good enough for any of us to order it again. It’s just too much work picking around all those little bones, and it does have a strong gamey flavor.
Laura way too excited about the poor animal she is about to devour
After our culinary adventures we planned our trip to Machu Picchu. We booked the Inca jungle tour through Ronnie’s tour company. It sounded amazing. It had mountain biking, white water rafting, walking in the jungle, and walking on an original Inca trail. It was also less than half of the cost of the Inca trail. So we set out on our four day journey to Machu Picchu.

The brave few that continued cycling on the dirt/mud road
The first day we left really early and went in a van outside of Cusco where we would start mountain biking. What we didn’t know is that the mountain biking is not really mountain biking so much as riding a mountain bike down a busy highway that winds down the side of a mountain. We were already put off by this, but then throw in freezing temperature and rain; we almost stayed in the van. We were determined to enjoy ourselves so we put our raincoats on and headed down the road. After ten minutes I was frozen and the rooster tail spray coming off my back tire had drenched my butt and the insides of my legs. I already wanted off but didn’t want to admit it so I continued. After another ten minutes I round a bend and see a bike in the middle of the road and a guy flat on his face, motionless on the pavement. His girlfriend was freaking out. Laura and I stopped to help. The poor guy had blood all over his face and already had golf ball sized bumps in a couple of places. The vans pulled up a few minutes later and he continued down with them. That was more than enough for Laura and I to admit we were both frozen, soaked, and not really enjoying the biking enough to risk injury riding in the rain. So we also got back in the van. This then prompted about three others to admit they wanted back in the van. We were even happier with our decision when the road turned into a dirt road, which with the rain was now a mud road. The few who stayed riding were covered from head to toe with mud. It was quite comical.

We missed out on the rafting because they forgot to put our names on the list and there was no more space on the boats. We weren’t too upset because we were freezing and the thought of more cold water wasn’t appealing. We took a hot shower and got settled in for the night.
 
The next day we started our ten hour hike through the jungle. We walked through coca fields, and saw almost every type of tropical fruit plant growing in the wild. We made a pit stop at this lady’s home/store and had a drink and rested a bit. She had a monkey and parrots and this crazy beaver looking thing that I couldn’t identify. I tried to pose for a picture with the monkey thinking he was a friendly monkey. I was mistaken… the crazy monkey lunged for my face, and then started trying to climb up my legs. Damn crazy monkey!

Beaver type animal drinking Gaterade of all things
 
Crazy Damn Monkey!

Crayz Damn Monkey!

Wild Pineapple Plant
We walked for the rest of the day making a few more rest stops and a stop for lunch. We walked on part of an Inca trail that was built on the sheer side of a mountain. It was a little scary walking on these narrow steps with a sheer cliff on one side. I made sure I had one hand on the cliff wall at all times. It would just take one miss step and no more Christina, or at least a much uglier Christina that was maybe missing a limb or two. We walked through and along a river and then crossed it again in a basket they pulled across with a cable. It was quite humorous to watch. We finally made it to the end of the hike to the hot springs. I opted out of getting in the water because of all the mosquitos but Laura chose to get in. I have never seen so many mosquito bites on one person before! Her legs had at least a hundred bites per leg. They swelled up like sausages! I felt bad but it was so hilarious.
Part of the Inca trail

Big rock the trail went through

Crossing the river

Crazy Political add in the middle of no where

Our Machu Picchu Group
The next day we followed the train tracks to Aguas Calientes, a little town just outside of Machu Picchu. We would stay the night there and get up a 3:30 to start walking to the control office just outside of the stairs to Machu Picchu. Laura and I and this amazing Argentinian couple, which we had become good friends with over the hike, went to the market to buy food for the next day. We were advised to take a bag lunch with us since food at Machu Picchu was outrageously priced. So we made sandwiches and packed some cookies and went to bed.

We got to the control at just after four and there was already a line of about 50 to 60 people. In order to reach Machu Picchu you have to climb over an hour of old Inca stairs straight up the side of a mountain. The reason that you have to get there so early is that only the first 400 people to the top get their ticket stamped to be able to climb Huayna Picchu, the tall peak in the background of all the Machu Picchu pictures. So we waited in line to sprint up the stairs. Ok it wasn’t quite a sprint but it sure felt like it. When the gates opened people flooded through. Some people started running past us, but it was sweet justice when we saw them stopped on the side of the stairs gasping for air. We kept a fast and steady pace all the way to the top. We managed to do it in 45 minutes, faster than the hour our guide thought it would take us. When we reached the top we were drenched in sweat. It looked like we just finished a wet t-shirt contest. Luckily we had brought an extra shirt. We got our stamp for Huayna Picchu and entered Machu Picchu.
First view of Machu Picchu through the clouds
Let’s just say Machu Picchu is famous for a reason. It is by far one of the most mystical and beautiful places I have ever been. When we walked in through the gate the ruins were hidden in a fog. As you sat and watched the fog would part occasionally revealing another little section of the old ruins. As the morning progressed little by little the fog dissipated completely and the entire city was visible. Machu Picchu is huge and the ruins are very well preserved. We spent hours wandering around. It is amazing how they were able to fit huge stones together seamlessly. They had such a tight fit that earthquakes couldn’t move them.
Machu Picchu

Nap Time
We sat in the middle of the ruins on a large grassy field used for ceremonies and had our lunch, and a quick nap. After our siesta we headed for the entrance to Huayna Picchu and started our climb to the top. Over a hundred steps later we found more ruins at the top and an amazing view. I still don’t understand how they got all the stones up there. The stairs were built on the side of a sheer cliff and all the building were built perched on the edge of those cliffs. I had a hard time even climbing the stairs without holding on to something, let alone climbing up the side of a cliff with stones to build those steps. On a whole one of the best things we did in South America.
View from the top of Huayna Picchu

Me at the top of Huayna Picchu
After we got back down from Huayna Picchu we wandered around Machu Picchu a bit more. I didn’t want to leave but at the same time I was so tired I couldn’t walk anymore. We had walked for four day, gotten up at 3:30, climbed two mountains via ancient Inca stairs, and walked around Machu Picchu for hours. It was time to call it a day so we headed back down to Aguas Calientes. We managed to talk our hostel manager into letting us take a shower for a few soles. We all were covered with dry sweat and I didn’t really want to start the 4 hour journey back to Cusco like that. We got cleaned up, ate a bit of dinner and caught our train back to Cusco.
Machu Picchu

Christina
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