South American Superlatives

Please keep in mind that these are just my humble opinions. I know a few of these will debated through the ages (see "best empanadas")...


Food:

Argentina "Best Empanadas"
Argentina "Best Humitas"
Chile "Best Produce"
Chile "Freakiest Seafood"
Chile "Consistently Great Wine"
Bolivia "Best Place for Vegetarian Restaurants"
Bolivia "Birthplace of Quinoa"
Peru "Best Ceviche"
Peru "3,000 types of potatoes"
Peru "Best Raspadillas"
Ecuador "Best Roasted Corn"
Ecuador "Best Indian Food" (say what?!)

Culture:

Argentina "Best Catcalls"
Argentina "Craziest Nightlife" 

Chile "Most made up vocabulary"
Peru "Best Beaches"
Peru "Most Spanish Influence"
Peru "Most Irritating People" 

Colombia "Friendliest People"
Rapa Nui (Easter Island) "Hottest Men"
Santiago, Chile ties with Quito, Ecuador for: "Most like any US city"

Best of:

Peru "Most Amazing Things to See"
Argentina "Most Fun"
Uruguay "Surprise, we are awesome too!"
Bolivia "Best Value"
Chile "Widest Spectrum of Landscapes" (mountain/ocean, desert/glaciars, plus, tropical island)
Colombia "Least-Andean Andean Country"
Ecuador (Vilcabamba) "Best Hostel in South America"
Ecuador ties with Bolivia for "Best shopping"

Wildest Experience: fleeing a massive wave as a glaciar crashed around our dinghy in Chile
Coolest New Experience: sandboarding in Peru



Craziest Unsolved Mystery: Nazca lines in Peru


Best Experience: meeting my family in Argentina and Chile
Worst Experience: sleeping on a freezing, non-moving train for 8 hours in nowhere, Bolivia



Special Recognition to:
Pucón, Chile - gorgeous volcanic lake and adorable german feel


Córdoba, Argentina - totally the coolest city in all of south america


Salta, Argentina - home away from home


Puerto Madryn, Argentina - most wildlife if one area


Cartagena, Colombia - the most beautiful city in south america


Montevideo, Uruguay - just because


Huanchaco, Peru - raddest beach town and close to cool ruins too


Ollantaytambo, Peru - a hidden gem


Uyuni, Bolivia - mind boggling high altitude landscapes

Rapa Nui, my birthday and coming home

I spent 6 days on Easter Island, leaving Santiago on June 29. Rapa Nui is almost 2,500 miles from the coast of South America and 2,000 miles to Tahiti. It was a long flight, but well worth it! The Polynesians who first settled the island came between 400-600AD, floating out of southeast asia on rafts and miraculously bumping into land along the way. The huge maoi statues aren't so much of a mystery either; they can be found on other polynesian islands and typically each represent a chief or spiritual leader. The figures are made out of volcanic rock found near both of the island's volcanoes, and to transport them to the shoreline, the settlers used cut logs to roll them down the hill. They are all made of a single slab of rock at least 6 feet tall and can get up to 30 feet - there is even one still carved into the cliff where they were mined that measures 65 feet, 12 tons and was left there when they realized it was too heavy to move.

There isn't much else on the island, one town on the south end where you can find all the hotels and restaurants, and only one sand beach on the north end for tomando sol. On my first tour of the island I saw the Seven Explorers at Ahu Akivi, a representation of the 7 mythical explorers who found Rapa Nui when their chief sent them out looking for a new home. The legend goes that their archipelago home of Iva was sinking and the entire community to move, and quick. Rapa Nui is the fertile land they found, and for saving their people these moai were built in their honor. These are some of the only moai that face the sea, most face the center of the island as a constant vigil over its inhabitants.

The moai statues are everywhere. You can walk five minutes from the center of town and find them, all restored in varying degrees. At the end of the moai worshipping culture, wars between tribes had begun to break out and to remove a tribes power their moai were knocked off their ceremonial platforms. Besides those fallen moai there are many that never completed their journey to the coast. Some lay face down just yards from their intended homes, but there are dozens that never even left their volcanic quarry Rano Raraku. This spot is the postcard shot we all have seen: large rectangular heads sprouting from the ground. It really does look like they have grown out of the earth. The less romantic truth is that when they could no longer be moved they were just left where they were and their pressing weight combined with overgrowth left them sunken and half covered.

I spent plenty of time hiking around - climbing extinct volcanoes, walking across deserted coastal plains, getting dirty in underground sea caves and crawling across volcanic rocks. The island was much less tropical and balmy than I pictured. In fact, little grows here, produce-wise, and it seems like the Rapa Nui people have pretty hard lives. The culture is absolutely polynesian and Chile's claim is a random political decision. My last night on the island I went to the cultural center to see traditional dancing and was completely blown away. It was beautiful and loud and upbeat, something you can't miss if you are there. There was also the obligatory audience participation...luckily I don't have photos of how embarrassing I was.

As I walked through the santiago airport to baggage claim i realized this trip is effectively over. And for the first time I felt sad. I guess previously I have skipped the sad part to the "exciting new life" part. I now see how amazing this trip has been, even if it seems so commonplace to me now. oh here I am in the middle of the amazon, here i am at the top of an incan fortress...what's new? But just 365 days before I was boating down an amazonian river I was sitting in an office in Newton, MA. And only four months before I was at the top of Waynu Picchu, I never even thought about the Inca culture. So it's safe to say my perspective has been changed completely.

In my last ten days I did mostly unremarkable things. I had a dental appointment, I made a last crazed shopping trip, I ate birthday sushi, indian food and cake, celebrating with my family. I read books, I walked around in the cold, I drank Starbucks. I wished my trip were longer but was glad to see it end. I thought about who I am and was and want to be. This is the real luxury of travel: you get to decide not just your fate, but your character. And that you really shouldn't wait for traveling to make those choices, that you don't have to go a million miles away to find yourself, you just have to decide to do it.

1: Ahu Vai Uri ceremonial moai

2: Ahu Akivi and the 7 Explorers moai

3: moai "growing" out of the ground at the Raro Ranaku rock quarry

4: (extremely attractive) rapa nui traditional dancers

5: stepmother maria teresa, me, father mario at my birthday party

the last ten yards

My last stop in Bolivia was the Jesuit Mission region in the southeast. The Jesuits came to Bolivia in the 1500s, mostly from Switzerland, to teach Catholicism to the indigenous population. As opposed to other groups (dominican priests or franciscans) jesuits believed that education was the key to converting non-believers. Jesuits in this region were even able to convince a group of nomadic natives to settle down, build communities and empower themselves through learning spanish, how to read, manual skills, music, and of course, religion. This all seems lovely, I thought, why would they end up being expelled by the Spanish government? It turns out that the crown was receiving complaints from all sides:

1 - other catholic orders were having a hard time moving into the area and converting the indigenous population (their brand of "repent your sins you filthy ignorant indian!" conversion wasn't popular? hmm)

2 - the portugese were annoyed that the nomads were no longer roaming into their slave traps, and even worse, were being protected from slavery by the jesuits

and 3 - the spanish government itself thought the jesuits were holding out on them - where was all the region's gold?

So finally in the late 1700s the Spanish crown officially threw all jesuits out of south america. What they left behind were 7 simple but curious, strategically-placed churches. All have a distinct "swiss chalet" feel to them, with peaked rooves, dark woods and decorative work all the way up to the eaves. They are all white washed cement buildings but have been elaborately decorated in natural tints depicting local flora and fauna. I think my photos probably better explain, so I'll stop there. The countryside was a mix of pastures and palm trees and the weather was great over the three days I spent off - roading with my driver Ruben. If you are actually interested in the jesuit story (kind of inspiring group, which does make their expulsion sad) there is a film called The Mission with Robert DeNiro which deals exactly with their removal and though it's pretty heavy, it's a good movie.

I said goodbye to wonderfully cheap and vegetarian-restaurant predominante Bolivia on June 6 and entered Salta, Argentina (aka expensive by comparison and choc-full-o-beef). But Salta is lovely and there is a lot to do. In a week I got to see a lot of northwest argentina, scoping out the amazing multihued landscapes, tasting local cuisine and visiting typical small andean towns. Among those were Cachi, Pumamarca, Tilcara, Humahuaca and San Salvador de Jujuy. All are mostly tourist stops, so the trips were really about the scenery on the way to the different villages. One of the most striking sights is el Cerro de Siete Colores in Pumamarca. It is a hill striped with 7 different colores, due to the mineral make up of the land. Each color represents a different metal or mineral. In Salta I mostly taste-tested humitas and empanadas in a highly scientific research project that required a lot of dedication. luckily I was able to locate both the best and the cheapest of both, a feat that I can only feel will be celebrated by anthropologists years from now. I also checked out a little ethnological museum which is kind of a one-stop shop for all the native cultures from the tip of the continent through colombia (aka...i'd seen it all on my own already!). With some of the other travelers from the hostel, one night I went to a folkloric peña (music and dancing) and another night went to the symphonic orchestra starring a 17 year old violinst.

Buenos Aires felt even more like home than Salta, and I spent a week with my great-aunt going to symphonies, movies, and dining out. We also had some spirited (loud) discussions about the political crisis happening in Argentina right now: the country has been in an economic strike now for 100+ days and the government has taken a page from the Dick Cheney playbook, responding "we don't have to deal with your problems, we are the elected government! we are going to do whatever we want! ha!" which has led to food shortages and protests and highways being shut down and lots of poor people being arrested. Before leaving Isabel and I went on a music buying spree, bringing my CD total to 30. And securing my position as the only person in the world who still plays CDs instead of an ipod.

I had grand plans of taking the 27 hour bus from buenos aires across the andes to santiago, since my trip home leaves from santiago...then i remembered that it was winter and the andes pass often closes because of snow. to avoid another canabalistic disaster in the mountains I went for a 2 hour plane ride. the trip was fine until the chilean government asked me for 131 dollars and i had to give it to them. that was painful. The very next day I went with my father to the civil registry and we started the process to make me a dual citizen, which is something I never thought would actually happen. In four months I will have a chilean ID and passport...who'd have thought?

On the 29th I left santiago for Easter Island, my last real adventure in south america! I will have that update when I send out my very last "newsletter" on July 17. Only three weeks now until this unbelievable adventure is over. I'll have to try and create some more excitment in my life even in the United States.

1 - jesuit mission in bolivia

2 - me about to lead a catholic mass...

3 - la valle encantado in jujuy, argentina

4 - cerro de 7 colores in pumamarca, argentina

5 - dancing ladies in a salteña peña

amazonas, islas y wrestling

Coming back to Quito for the start of may was fun. I met a few british girls at the hostel and spent 4 days hanging out with them, eating out, going to pubs, wandering through the neighborhood. Jo and Rebecca told me about an 3 night amazon trip they'd gone on here in Ecuador that they adored, and after a little research I booked the flight for may 2 - 5. Yachana Lodge is a locally-sustaining reserve on 4,300 acres of protected rainforest. I left Quito on Friday morning and after a plane ride and then a canoe ride up the Napo River, I arrived at the lodge itself. In our first afternoon i spotted pygmie marmoset monkeys, parrots, and wandered up into the hills to check out the sunset over the river. That night along with my guide Juan and his girlfriend Gabriela, I went out on a night walk to spy on frogs, snakes and spiders in their icky glory.

The next two days consisted of long walks through the jungle seeing and learning about medicinal plants (amazonian coca, jungle garlic, wild lemon), birds, frogs and wild fruit. Juan showed me how to strip a palm leaf and turn it into a woven fiber bracelet! I visited the curandero (medicine man) who cleansed my ailments by blowing smoke at me, chanting, whistling, and waving a bouquet of wild lemon and ginger leaves over me. while we were there an owl came to perch on the porch of the house and gaze at us calmly; while Gabi told me how peaceful birds felt around the curandero a flock of toucans came in to say hello too! After we'd all been cleansed we went down to the yard to throw spears and blow darts. i was much more successful with dart blowing, getting 2 out of 3 into the papaya i was aiming for. On my last afternoon we saw a family of tamarind monkeys and Juan even caught a screeching baby for a photo op. I also walked down river to visit the school and community sustained by the eco-lodge, visiting the vegetable gardens, the school, the handcraft building and even some pigs who will one day get eaten. there was even a homemade butterfly house where a few lazy butterflies hung out sipping sugar water off of sponges. The food was great, Juan and Gabi were great and the lodge was really homey and rustic, but not too rustic. I was sad to make that long canoe ride back down the river on May 5.

Just a few days later, on May 8, I took another flight - this time for the Galapagos Islands. The plane landed on San Cristobal island and I met up with 7 shipmates and our guide Raul. Our sailboat, Sulidae, is a 100 year old Norwegian pirate ship, with room for 12 guests and a staff of 7. The accomodations were a little "rustic" but was much more charming than the boring fiberglass motor boats that sail around the islands. plus we had Carol, who prepared us the most amazing food in what was effectively a shoebox with a stove. Over 7 days we visited four of the main islands, San Cristobal, Santa Cruz, Floreana and Isabela, with stops to little islands off their coasts along the way.

One of the highlights of the tour was swimming with sea lions. The Galapagos Islands is the farthest north sea lions have ever migrated permanently; same goes for the galapagos penguins. They adapted to the warmer temps because they have no natural predators here and there is abundant amounts of food. We sailed to Isla Lobos where baby sea lions are protected from the elements and are extremely curious about the strangers who come slapping through with goggles and fins. My other favorite sighting were the marine iguanas that we saw on Isla Las Tintoreras. They can get up to 4 feet long and cluster in groups while sunning on rocks after swimming for up to an hour in the deep sea. We snorkeled a LOT, which was really great. there are some beautiful tropical fish, manta and sting rays, and on my last day there I saw a 4-5 foot long white tip shark!

And, of course, the turtles. We saw plenty of sea turtles while snorkeling, and even their nests on the golden beaches of Isla Bartolomé, but we got really up close and personal with the land tortoises, which are not only at the Charles Darwin Research Center, but in protected reserves on each island. Scientists are actively breeding the various races of land tortoises and they have actually come off the endangered species list because of it. There are three different species of tortoise on the island, and because it is so easy for them to find food, and they are relatively safe from predators, they can get up over 100lbs and live well into their 150s...

The cool science fact I learned about the Galapagos was that the tetonic land plate it is on is slowly shifting eastward towards mainland, but instead of crashing into ecuador, it is sinking below the South American land plate. There used to be even more islands in the group (circa millions of years ago) that have now sunk under South America and the islands that are here today will also sink below SA in the next million years. Luckily the islands are volcanic and new land masses are bubbling up out of the ocean in the west, slowly but surely. We hiked and rode horses across some volcanic fields and caldera rims and even crawled through an underground lava tunnel!

Sailing around for 7 days wasn't bad either. There were a lot of travelers my age on board and we got on really well, relaxing on deck, taking turns steering the boat, and even jumping off the prow together at sunset the last day. It was an all around amazing experience.
After Galapagos I made my way back through Peru, stopping for a few days in Lima, where the Flying Dog Hostel staff remembered me and made me free pisco sours, and then on to Cuzco where the city was in the middle of Corpus Christi celebrations! Parades of religious followers filled the street, dancing, playing instruments or carrying one of the 15 saints represented by churches throughout the area. there was an open air mass on the 22nd and the Plaza de Armas was just packed! I found a nice hostel that actually kept their word on hot showers, and I hung out with people there, and my last night in Cuzco, SAE hosted movie night.

By May 24 I was already back in La Paz, Bolivia. I was reunited with Jeremy, a traveler I'd met in Cuzco a few months ago, and along with my dormmate Helen and a group of guys we met, we all went to the outskirts of La Paz to see Cholitas wrestling. The concept is odd: traditional ladies with poofy satin skirts, multi-layered sweaters topped by a sparkly shawl, long black braids and a top hat get in a standard wrestling ring and fight it out. Sadly my camera spazzed out during a pre-fight fight, and the most interesting shot i got was that of the night's first dwarf wrestler. In reality the cholitas only fought one round, but it was the best one of the night. the crowd was active as well...a rouge ref got smashed in the back of the head with a raw egg, and a number of wrestlers took tomato hits.

I have been in Sucre since the 26th and even had a chance to visit the silver mining city Potosí. The Cerro Rico that has been plundered for over 400 years has reaped enough silver"to build a silver bridge from Potosí to Spain" - unfortunately since the mines are run by outside companies the city itself sees no profits and is really quite poor. I skipped the grueling 4 hour mine tour that most tourists do and enjoyed watching parades in the streets and stopped in at the museum chronicling the city's history. Now back in Sucre I have been, rather tragically, halted from traveling. The city is having a general strike (not sure why) and the airport closed in support on the day i was to head to Tarija, "the Andalucía of Bolivia." im disappointed in having to miss out on bolivian wine country, but next I'm off to Santa Cruz to visit the famous jesuit missions in the east...and who are we kidding, shop.

photo #1: being cleansed by the local curandero

photo #2: a hungry galapagos tortoise

photo #3: our pirate ship Sulidae

photo #4: a regal marine lizard

photo #5: a blue footed booby (seriously.)

photo #6: cholitas (non-wrestling) in Cusco during Corpus Christi

photo #7: before my camera crapped out at the wrestling ring

ecuador y colombia

On april 1st I was laying on a white sand beach while waves lapped at my toes and the sun kept me warm. not bad, huh? CJ and I had made it to Montañita, which in the end we considered an entirely missable town, but the beach is always delightful. We kept our chins up and headed to the next beach town, Canoa. In four days there the pendulum swung from a really uncomfortable visit to a really amazing visit. The not so great part was staying at the cheap "recommended" hostel and getting eaten alive by mosquitos (my face had over 100 bites alone) until we switched and went to a $12 a night place that actually had windows, screens, doors, etc. The really great part (besides the nicer hostel) was an extensive beach with rented colored tents and masses of beautiful seashells and sand dollars.

On the 8th we bussed, boated, and bussed again to Quito. The area most populated with backpackers is La Mariscal, called New Town and is replete with great restaurants, bars, shopping and young people. Old Town is where all the museums, government buildings and monuments are, and we did spend a day there walking around the hilly streets. We saw clowns, a military horn band, government guards who looked like nutcrackers, a strike, and a chorus and guitar band playing on the square. A very odd day. The rest of our time in Quito was about relaxing and planning...CJ planning to go back to the US, me planning my last 4 months in south america. and shopping. on CJ's last day (april 15, ominous for so many reasons) we ate a pancake breakfast, got manicures, pedicures, ate thai for lunch, walked all over the neighborhood, arranged my galapagos trip, watched movies at our hostel while drinking wine and had indian for dinner. At 3AM on the 16th CJ left for the airport and I wondered how i was going to make it on my own.

I didn't have much time to sulk though; on april 18th I hopped on my first flight in 4 months, to Bogotá, Colombia. Bogotá is enormous, the touristy center is fairly compact but the city itself goes on for miles and miles. they have an intricate transportation system called TransMilenio that weaves all over the city, and i used it to get me to the north end where i caught a bus for a day trip to Zipaquira. The town itself doesnt have much attraction, but the hills surrounding it are filled with salt - this is a premier salt mining town. i visited the catedral de sal, which was rebuilt on a grander scale in 1992 when the first one became unsafe to visit. historically it was made as a place for worship for the miners whose lives depended on the salt mines, but the rebuild was adorned by such formidable colombian artists that it is a very popular tourist attraction. our guide Marixa led us down 1,800 meters into the salt caves where we passed through abstract representations of the stations of the cross before weaving through a sinner's labyrinth to the main cathedral. Three naves served different purposes, the first was birth, were baptisms are performed and a wall of bright white salt shows the path of a trickling waterfall that enters the from runoff water. the second was life, where "the world's largest underground crucifix" is positioned and offers a neat optical illusion. finally there is the third nave where rememberances and eulogies are given for the departed, but at the back of the nave is a tunnel that leads right back to the first nave, representing reincarnation. it was pretty cool, and a lot different than i anticipated, as un-worked salt rock is black, not white.

Villa de Leiva was my next stop, an area that used to be completely submerged under a prehistoric sea. Thus the region has a lot of really freaky fossils - i saw a baby and adult kronosaurus - the baby only reached 13 feet, the adult about 29 feet..without its tail. there were a few other fossils in the complex and i was blown away at how huge even snail shells were. god was certainly not messing around with those creatures. "go big or go home" takes on a whole new meaning. that same day i went over to the an open air archeological museum to check out the remains of the Muisca tribes central passion...astronomy and the phallus. in a large field of rather indiscreet rock formations i learned that the way they were placed indicated to the Muisca people different seasons and times of day that would be useful for their agriculture. there was a half buried tomb that was somewhat unimpressive after wandering through a field of...rocks. yeah. back in Villa de Leiva, the town is chock-full of white wash walls, red roof tiles and droopy bouganvilla which was pretty to walk around.

On the 22nd I took a quick morning flight to Cartagena, which is the most beautiful city i have seen so far in South America. the historical center is enclosed in a thick stone wall with turrets and canons, and the city itself looks like a frosted wedding cake in beautiful vibrant colors. I spent some time just walking around the city admiring buildings, the portal de los dulces where candy and cookies are sold all along a portico and even stopping in the museo de oro to admire colombian goldwork. i was staying in a bit nicer hotel for the 2 nights i was there so in down time i sat on the roof terrace and read, or dipped my toes in the jacuzzi. the next day I had arranged for an excursion to the Volcan del Totumo and went along with a really fun group of brits and americans to this giant mud volcano. 20 feet high, the volcano I suppose is really more of a geyser, as it spews hot water into dirt and creates big mud explosions occasionally. it was tame for us (luckily) and we climbed a big dirty staircase up to the top and slipped down into the 500 meter pit of mud. It was a very strange feeling - being completely suspended in really thick creamy mud that kind of felt like pudding. after a few people received massages from the volcano workers we splashed around and tried to see if anyone could get all the way under, which all resulted in a mud fight. to clean off we splashed around in a lake nearby and had our suits and hair washed by the women who worked there. after a coconut and mango break to dry off, we went off to lunch in a restaurant by the caribbean. swimming in mud could be the most fun i've had so far!

I got a debilitating ear infection while in Cartagena, which did put a damper on my fun, but I got myself some antibiotics and got on a flight to Cali in the south of Colombia. The south is known for being unstable politically, and kind of violent in general. a cab driver I rode with at one point scared the hell out of me with stories of what they do to gringas alone in cabs late at night...luckily he worked with the pension i was staying at so i didn't panick too much. I found Cali rather unimpressive...a few museums to see, and after the talk with the cabbie I wasnt super enthused to go out to salsa clubs late at night...alone. I did take a bus out to Popayan which is a very small and very quiet town that has preserved its spanish colonial feel really well.

I am back in Quito today and leave for the amazon jungle on Friday, and the Galapagos Islands the following Thursday. I had a pretty nice time in Colombia, though it would have been more fun with friends, and I really enjoy Quito, it feels like home, strangely enough. not for much longer i suppose!

1 - me and CJ in Vilcabamba at the fountain of youth

2 - the tent man saved us a pink tent every day we were in Canoa!

3 - shortly before a rowdy mud fight broke out

4 - a lovely cartagena church

5 - flowers, emeralds and carriages in cartagena

peru es fascinante!

After el valle sagrado, everything has happened very quickly. On march 8 we set off for nasca, a delightful 14 hour bus ride straight out to the coast. we arrived the next morning and upon meeting two british girls, Lucy and Rosilyn, we found an overflight tour and went straight to the local airport. Nasca is the name of the town, but also the name of the indigenous culture that existed in between 100 - 500 AD, that thrived living in the arid desert of southern Peru. They were a nomadic bunch, so there are no remaining ruins to see because they never constructed cities. What they did leave behind is even more amazing. There are over 325 Nasca drawings carved into the desert plateaus all around Nasca, and even more straight lines, grid patterns and paths. The desert here used to be a sea, so the sand is very fine and yellow; what the Nasca did was clear rocks away to expose the yellow earth, which makes up the lines. Our flight was in a 6 seater plane and lasted 35 minutes. We were late in the morning so the air was a little choppy, but no one got sick (whew!). We only saw 12 of the 325 lines, but they were amazing! The area sees very little rain or wind, so they are perfectly perserved geoglyphs.

Back on land, the four of us left Nasca for Ica the same day, a much shorter bus ride. We ended up staying in a little oasis outside of Ica (as it is a rather unimpressive town) called Huacachina. surrounded by high sand dunes, the oasis is complete with a pond, palm trees, and some really good bars. our hostel itself had a pool, hammocks, a capuchin monkey, lots of parrots, and a tiki bar where jimmy the bartender made us homemade pisco sours! The next day we spent lounging around the pool reading, and in the evening we went out to the dunes in a dune buggy to sandboard. i'm pretty crap at sports, but i figured i wouldn't get terribly injured and it was really fun! we went down most hills on our stomachs, they were both long and steep and when i got to the bottom of a few i thought i was going to keep going and shoot off another dune. the not fun part was having every crevice filled with sand. i couldn't get it out of my right ear for the next three days! our driver spun us around the dunes while cassidy pretended she was on a roller coaster ride, and we stopped to watch the sunset before taking one last run down the biggest dune right outside of huacachina. On the 11th we enjoyed our last meal at Bananas, an outdoor bar and lounge that made massive fruit salads and fresh juices, before we went out on a wine and pisco tour. Ica is Peru's "wine country" though because of climate and location is really more apt to produce the famous pisco brandy. Besides a chocolate "tejas" factory, we visited two bodegas, one artesanal where we were allowed to stomp grapes with the workers, and one modern bodega, Vista Alegre, that does produce a few dry wines - a Malbec/Cabernet Sauvignon blend, a Chenin Blanc/Pedro Ximenez blend, and a rosé made from their pisco grape. The wine certainly wasn't on par with Chilean wine, but was decent, and Peruvians do have a leg up on the pisco production, which they maintain originated in Peru, not in Chile, as Chileans would have you believe. It is a debate worth examining in depth, so bring on the samples!

From Ica we wound up the coast to Lima, which may be the largest sprawling city i've seen so far. the neighborhoods are just huge, but we were lucky enough to be in Miraflores, an upbeat nice area with lots of hostels, bars, shopping, etc. Besides all the shopping and eating well, we spent a day in the center of Lima. The coolest place we checked out was the San Francisco monastery and catacombs. the monastery was extensive, and really interesting though the catacombs underneath were not so fresh smelling. The library was gorgeous, with handpainted texts and choral books done by the monks themselves, and in the dining hall was a painting of the Last Supper with all the apostles eating peruvian cuisine...even guinea pig!! by the way, we did not end up trying that highly rated cuisine. ick! In some restaurants they let you pick the little "cuy" you want out of the guinea pig pen.

Since Lima we have been beach hopping (it's a hard knock life...). We spent a week in Huanchaco, Peru, eating snow cones drenched in natural fruit juices (coconut, lemon, passion fruit, mango) and eating spicy and delicious ceviche in outdoor cafes. Now, we did also take a cultural detour to check out the ruins of local Moche and Chimu indians. The Moche built two pyramids (called huacas de la luna and el sol) that were filled with the remains of religious and political leaders. As these people died, a new level would be added to the pyramid, making it taller. Honestly you probably wouldn't look at these Huacas and think "pyramid," they really just look like giant mud hills, but under a thin layer of this fine mud remains some amazing artwork, still vibrant and very evocative. What I found the most amazing were the depicitions of sea life, crabs, catfish, manta rays, pelicans, octupi, and more assorted fish. It was all so beautiful, and so completely different than the ruins we have seen in southern peru. We also visited Chan Chan, a complex of 9+ cities built entirely out of mud by the Chimu people. The preserved and restored art we saw there was also very impressive, and beside the fact that they were able to well for fresh water in the middle of the desert, i thought it was amazing that when each of their kings died, they would close down the citadel they had built and the new king would build another one.

Right before left Peru we spent another few days in Mancora, Peru, a surfing hotspot. At the end of the first day we were there, there was even a surf competition! And we made friends with a local fruit man and feasted on juicy mangos, entire coconuts and big chunks of ripe watermelon. it was heavenly. We were rather sad to leave, understandably, but we were really excited about getting to Ecuador. After an exquisite and oh-so-comfortable 15 hour travel day in buses, Cassidy and I arrived in Vilcabamba, Ecuador. Vilcabamba used to be controlled by the Inca, and was the supposed site of the fountain of youth. We stayed at a superb resort hostel called Hosteria Izhcayluma, which cost $9 USD a person and included buffet breakfast, a laguna pool, movie room, and had the world's cheapest spa treatments available. On our first day we hiked through the neighborhood, took some bikes out to roll around the town, swung in hammocks reading, and finished the day with facials, and a hair mask. On our second day we decided to do a full day horseback riding tour of Vilcabamba and the Podocarpus National Park and cloud forest.

At 9AM a guide picked us up and brought us in to town where we mounted up, I was on Pálido, Cassidy on Tequila (heh). we rode for 2 hours up into the mountains, our poor horses were panting by the time we reached the national park limits. The region is so lush and green, and fat, happy cows meander all over the hillsides chomping grass and lounging. The view was amazing, and when we dismounted we started on a 2 hour hike down to check out a couple waterfalls. they had told us at the hostel that the tap water was safe to drink because it came straight from this park, and i even drank straight from the stream while we stopped for lunch. the water was clear and very fresh. After lunch our guide Alvaro turned sadist and made us climb up the mountain to get a view of the waterfall from above. after 25 minutes of hanging from slippery tree roots and bamboo shoots, we made it to the top. When we made it back to our horses we had another 3 hours of riding to get back to Vilcabamba. We crossed the river a bunch of times, cantered through shady paths and generally had a wonderful, though exhausting ride. I felt like both my kneecaps had been broken by the time we dismounted, but it was so worth the muscle aches!

After Vilcabamba we spent a night in Cuenca, where we essentially shopped and ate chocolate, and now we are back at the beach, having just arrived in Montañita, Ecuador. The water here is even warmer and calmer than the beaches in peru, and our hostel looks right over the ocean. We are truly blessed.

#1: the Astronaut geoglyph in Nasca, Peru

#2: me trying to sandboard

#3: stomping pisco grapes in Ica

#4: vibrant artwork at Huaca de la Luna

#5: the crowd and the tótora reed boats in Huanchaco

El Valle Sagrado

Peru's Sacred Valley happened like a drive-by: you are completely changed from the experience, but you're not exactly sure what happened. Good thing I took photos...let's see if I can piece it all together.

DIA 1
Cassidy and I made our way to the Cusco train station for our 650AM train to Aguas Calientes, the town outside of Machu Picchu. we arrived at 11AM and after being told that there were no discounts for 2 day tickets (stupid lying guide book!) we decided not to make the journey the same day. Instead, we would have a delightfully relaxing day in our hotel. Oh, but while we are here, why don't we do this 1.5 hour hike that my guide book recommends, to Putucusi, a lookout point where you can see all of Machu Picchu from afar. rad! We start up the trail, which was pretty much vertical the whole time. that was fine when it was a winding dirt path with a few clusters of stone stairs meandering up the side of the mountain. we came upon a set of ladders and i took some photos on it...oooh, look at the rustic ladder, we are such hikers! yeah, it was all a joke until we came upon the second ladder. the second ladder, and its two successors were first of all, stapled into the sheer vertical mountainside. also, they ranged between two and three stories tall. ps: we were in the damp tropical part of the forest. so we made our way up these neverending ladders, trying not to hyperventilate, and cassidy continuously asking "are we sure we want to see this?" we did. finally, oh finally we arrived panting and perspirating to the open clearing at the top. or so we thought. as we walked along the thin path with double sided dropoffs straight down the valley we couldn't see machu picchu. we looked everywhere. Cassidy pointed ominously at the second, higher peak beyond us and asked "do we have to go up there?" (it was more of a weeping really). "no, no that just couldn't be. let's continue on this trail though." my famous last words. we did have to continue onwards and upwards for another half hour, and though we both contemplated just throwing ourselves over the edge to end our suffering, the view was delightful. oh, but then we had to go back down.


DIA 2
The alarm went off at 430AM. By 530AM we were on a bus up to Machu Picchu, and by 6AM we were there. Unfortunately (maybe) we visited on a rainy day. We were there for 7 hours and it let up for about an hour. ah well. our first stop was Waynu Picchu (which means New Mountain, while Machu Picchu means Old Mountain). Waynu Picchu is so treacherous a hiking trail, that only 400 visitors are allowed to enter daily so as not to stress the path. there are also loads of warnings against unfit or unhealthy people from entering. there will be no emergency helicopter to come pick up your disfigured body...you will die there. well with all that buildup, cassidy and i were numbers 1 and 2 into Waynu Picchu. Here's my Machu Picchu secret: American explorer Hiram Bingham wasn't the first explorer to find Machu Picchu...he was just the first one who actually looked at all those stairs and said "come on guys, this will be fun!" stupid americans. More so than Machu, Waynu is like the stairmaster from hell (TM Cassidy Schindler). It would be awfully easy to just climb up a bunch of stairs to get to the top of a mountain, but wouldn't it be much more fun if we went up down, backwards and forwards, then up again? :) I was pretty bummed out that the clouds were obscuring the seriously steep view of the bottom of the valley as we scrambled along like billy goats, old asthmatic billy goats. Honestly it was fun, until cassidy admitted her fear of heights, and then i was glad for the clouds. We could tell we were really high up in any case, and clung appropriately to any rock we could grip. At the top we explored the ruins of a wealthy dignitary's cliffside home and extensive terraces. I found it amazing that this used to be a religious and vacation center for Incas living in Cusco. What, the beach was too far? After reaching the top, we once again followed an up-and-down path to the Temple of the Moon, which ended up being almost at river level. It was quiet and simple, the rain had let up and we paused there to eat lunch. Omnipresent in our minds was the fact that we had to ascend once more to escape Waynu Picchu. We'll just leave it at "not pretty". Wandering around Machu Picchu's urban center was really nice, even though the rain started a mass exodus from the clouds and we were soaked through. none of my photos do the sanctuary justice, sadly. It was a fully functioning city, with an observatory, religious temples, factories, cemeteries, homes for commoners and upper class, a main square and a lot of agricultural terraces. What I found interesting too, was the similarity between the site and what little of Ireland's ruins I have visited. Beside a similarly green and damp setting, the buildings look as if out of fuedal britain, stone buildings with peaked thatched roofs. I guess I had been thinking all the geometry of the Mayans of Mexico, but it wasn't that at all. In our last hour we trekked over to the Inca Bridge, which looks terrifying to cross, which tourists can't anymore. on absolutely a 90º drop on bald rock, the Inca's tossed a long plank across a 75-100ft gap and called it a bridge. After that we were done. hobbling and delirious we began our descent to the entrance gates, but not before Cassidy slapped a llama (a la Tim Allen's epic film Wild Hogs) and we ran screaming. okay, it was still hobbling.

DIA 3

Gluttons for punishment as we are, at 535AM we found ourselves on a train headed back down the valley to Ollantaytambo (say that five times fast). At 536AM we were asleep. In Ollantaytambo, a nice bed & breakfast owner tried to explain to us that we could not check into a room at 730AM so we stumbled down the dirt road to check out the Ollantaytambo ruins. Besides being a really beautiful town that i highly recommend visiting (you know, if you're in the area), Ollantaytambo is the site of one of the Inca civilization's last stands against the evil, twirly-moustached Spaniards. When the Pizarro brothers conquered Cusco, the Inca leader Inka Pachacutec had already retreated into the Valley. Not satisfied with what is considered to be over 20 billion dollars of gold that the Pizarros stole from Peru, he followed in hot pursuit. The day he launched his "surprise" attack against Ollantaytambo, he found that Inka Pachacutec had fortified the hillside city, and was waiting for Pizarro. His troops unleashed a hail of razor sharp arrows, launched boulders, and when the Spanish reversed course, Inka Pachacutec had the Río Urubamba diverted to flood the troops out! Scared and confused, Francisco Pizarro chose to wait for reinforcements coming up from Arica while Inka Pachacutec escaped to Vilcabamba. Go Inka! Ollantaytambo's ruins are also extensive and well-maintained, and because it was actually sunny, became the site of a rather off-beat Top Model Photo Shoot. (oh only the sevillanas will understand...) We noticed even more ruins across the valley, and headed over there for more billy-goating on non-existent paths. Turns out the facing ruins are store houses for all the delicious grains, potatos and vegetables that the Inca cultivated. By the time we wobbled down that hill, we were ready for the eucalyptus sauna our b&b offered.

DIA 4

We went to Urubamba. Urubamba is not a nice place and Cassidy and I are going to pretend that day never happened.

DIA 5 - 6

Oh sweet sweet, Pisac/P'isaq. we arrived early enough to catch yet another rain storm as we wandered around the Pisac Ruins. There are no great war stories regarding Pisac, but it was another really great ruins site with impressive stone work and clear division between neighborhoods (military, religious, agricultural, residential). There is also a tunnel to crawl through wondering if spiders are dropping into your hair. all thrilling really. The skies cleared while we spent the rest of the afternoon in bed. seriously, we were Tired. When we woke up the next morning, glowing from all the ibuprofen we'd taken, we ventured out early into Pisac's famous market. 2 pairs of earrings, a bracelet, 4 pairs of pants, pillow covers, and all of cassidy's purchases later, we were on a pure buying high with no more legitimate gift purchases to make. we ate lunch in town, played with the kittens at our hostal, and rather regrettably got on a bus back to Cusco.

After knocking on a million doors in Cusco looking for a hostel, we found one, and went over to the South American Explorers Clubhouse for a traditional Peruvian dinner buffet. As we chatted with other like-minded travelers storm clouds and lightning rolled into the city, and as we tucked into Rocoto relleno, tamales, and papas rellenas it began to hail. Seemed like a fitting end to our excursion.

Valle Sagrado Tip #1: Start in Pisac, busing your way in.
Valle Sagrado Tip #2: Don't go in rainy season.
Valle Sagrado Tip #3: Train for all the ruins by running the Boston Marathon.