Llego en Chile

At last I am checking in! I have experienced a lot since Cusco, and I wish I could be posting images right now, but alas, I have some sad news....

On the bus ride from Cusco to Puno (on Lake Titicaca), my camera was stolen. It was a shitty situation, and I was partly responsible for not watching my bag closer. I am super bummed, obviously, about the photos more than the camera. I reported it to the bus company but there really wasn't anything they could do. Jess has been letting me take a lot of pics with her camera, and I will be posting some of those pics soon.

Lake Titicaca was incredible- from the floating islands (constructed by the people out of reeds), to the wonderfully quiet of Amantani, where we stayed with a family and attended a dance dressed in traditional garb. The altitude was still very high, and we did quite a bit of hiking in the area- so we were exhausted!

After the lake, the 3 of us headed to Arequipa which ended up being not at all what we thought it would be. It wasn't charming at all, and we decided to head to the coast instead of doing even more hiking at a canyon that was 3 hours away. Off to Mollendo we went, where we spent 2 days relaxing on the beach and enjoying our hostel's rooftop lookout.

Upon return to Arequipa, Ramon said goodbye to Jess and I :( He went north to do some surfing in Puerto Chicama, and Jess and I headed south into Chile. After about 3 days of buses (with a short respite in Arica, a beach town), we at last landed in Vicuña, Chile (Elqui Valley), in Pisco making country. Pisco is a liquor made from grapes, and the infamous drink, the Pisco Sour, was invented in either Peru or Chile... depending on whether you talk to a Peruvian or a Chilean.

We camped last night and it was beautiful- finally my tent got some use! We also met up with a couple from England that Jess had made friends with in Santiago de Chile. Today we are heading to Pisco Elqui for a distillery tour, and more camping! We should be next a river soon, so swimming is also in our near future! Yay!

I miss you, my friends and family, more every day! Hugs and kisses!!!!

Cuzco y mas

At last we have completed our trek to Machu Picchu after months of planning! It was the most difficult (and longest at 4 days) hike I have ever done! The second day we climbed about 1,000 feet and it was about 6 hours of hiking straight uphill. Jess and I were the first of our group (aside form the porters of course) to arrive at camp- Ramon arrived about an hour later. I am going to put up a few pictures from the journey, which was ridiculously beautiful. We kept repeating that we couldn't believe how amazing the scenery was. The only downside was that we really didn't have enough time in Machu Picchu on the last day. I definitely want to go back and just chill on the lawn capturing the energy.

When we returned to Cuzco after the trek, our hostel in San Blas had no water- which is apparently a frequent problem in this neighborhood. This was especially shitty since we hdan't showered in 4 days, except for baby wipe showers. Yesterday we switched hostels, however, and took loooong, hot showers. Amazing.

Cuzco is an awesome city, full of hippies from around the world. There are plenty of great places to eat, and even more places to go out and listen to live music. Our first night here (before the trek), we saw a small band that consisted of a singer/guitarist/accordian player, a clarinet player, and a stand-up bass player. They played a sort of jazz fusion type music with heavy french influence. Hard to describe but it was incredible! Our second day here consisted completely of preparation for the trek- buying last minute necessities and packing our backpacks as lightly as possible.

We had a great group on the trek; us, 2 other Americans (of asian descent), 2 Brazilians, 4 Argentinians, and 2 Austrians who were around 60 years old and rather high maintenance. We had a blast even though we were constantly sore and exhausted. Now I am battling the repercussions- feeling still pretty weak and tired.

Tonight we are taking an overnight bus to Puno- the starting point for Lake Titicaca. We are hoping to do a homestay on a floating island, as well as one of the other islands. Traveling with Ramon and Jess has been awesome- we have been cooperating very well and been keeping up good communication for our needs. por suerte!

Until next time, besitos y abrazos fuertes!

Salgo de La Punta

I know I have been promising photos and they still aren´t here, so sorry!

Anyhew, since Puerto Chicama I have been laying low here in La punta and Miraflores. I got a really nice tan, and burned a little- that was exciting!

On Sunday (I think), Luis Alberto (Bibi´s cousin) invited me to go jetskiing with him and his friend Farid, although Luis Alberto never got on the thing because, he claims, he is of the land only ("de la tierra solamente"). Farid and I, however, had a great time. At one point I got the jetski ("moto del agua) up to 50 mph- whoo hoo! Later that evening I met up with the daughter of one of my mom's book club friends, Leah. She, Luis Alberto and I went to a super fancy restaurant in Barranco, where I tried octopus ("pulpo") and scallops. Now, I am not a big fan of seafood, especially not shellfish, but these were "espectácular!" The restaurant is called Amor Amar and was recommended to me by a fellow foodie that read about it in the states.

The next day, Leah and I went on a shopping mission to find some nice lotion in Miraflores. We shopped for hours, I was exhausted, and we never found any... weird since all the women here always smell really good. Then I got home to La Punta and found some in a little store that I pass by literally every day. I scored some presents for my host family too- new flip-flops for Vaughn since his had holes in them, and a doll called "niño de la espina" for Pochi, which consists of Jesus as a tot, sitting down and crying because there is a splinter in his bleeding foot. Ahhh, Catholicism. Although Pochi is not inherently Catholic, she does go to church on Sundays and adores the baby Jesus.

Yesterday was definitely an exciting day! I´m sure you all heard about the giant earthquake in Japan, and the ensuing tsunami. Well that tsunami was also headed to the west coast of the Americas. Where I am staying, La Punta, we are surrounded by water. I mean, I can stand on one of the main streets and see water both the left and right of me, about 2 blocks away in each direction. That being said, I gladly evacuated with Pochi. Around 5pm we left La Punta for higher ground in Bella, at her parents house. Vaughn decided to stay home and "guard the apartment", which Pochi had the foresight to predict- having been through 2 hurricanes and an earthquake with him. She and I spent the evening hanging with 17-year-old Stefanya, who's family has known and worked with Pochi's family for years. Her father Miguel Ángel is our regular "taxista", and her mother does in-home care for Pochi's mom. Additionally, I was able to watch TV in english for the first time in almost a month.

Waking up today I felt refreshed, and Pochi and I headed to the market in Callao to pick up a couple dresses of mine. One I had requested be made after Bibi inspired me to do so with her dress projects, and the other was a strapless one I brought in to put straps on. When we arrived, we proceeded to watch the seamstress search her shop high and low, as well as track down another client, to try to find the dress I brought in. This was about the 4th or 5th time that Pochi and I had been to see her about dresses, and we were pretty over it. I thought I had lost the dress forever. Pochi advised the seamstress that if the dress was in fact gone, she would have to make me a new one- in less than 5 hours. We returned around 4pm and alas, a woman had returned it who had taken it home on accident. Whew! and the dress is like new, with beautiful straps that will allow me to dance without fear of flashing an entire club.

Tonight, Ramon arrives! Finally! We have both been so excited! And he has had an insanely stressful last few weeks. He had to finish finals early to get here in time for Machu Picchu, as well as move to LA, plus prepare for the trip! ¡Ay, Díos mío! Luckily for him, I have booked us an amazingly luxurious hotel for tomorrow night, and have beautified in preparation for his arrival... well, I got my nails done and shaved my legs- for me that´s a big deal!

On Monday we leave for Cuzco, and begin our trek for Machu Picchu on Wednesday. The next time I write I will most likely be exhausted from the journey. Until then, much love to my peeps! Say hello to California spring for me! Muchos besitos!!!

Olas largas

Returned yesterday from Puerto Chicama where I rode the longest left wave ever! The only sad part is that they were only about waist high. However it was very beautiful and I know I would like to go back when there is a swell, to experience near mile long waves! Eric was a really fun travel partner and he was very appreciative of my translating skills.

Today I spent the day with my Peruvian family and we went to Barranco, a really beautiful neighborhood in Lima. I forgot to take blog-friendly photos in Chicama, so I will post some from today. Tomorrow we are going to a BBQ at a friend´s house, and hopefully go out in Barranco!

BTW, I am writing down recipes for Peruvian dishes, yay! Today I had Tacú Tacú con Pescado, which is a beans and rice dish with fish... photos to come! MMMMMMMMM!