It has been awhile since we wrote anything extensive expressing the many adventures of our trip. But that is because we were too busy living and enjoying the adventures. As it should be. But I do apoligize for those who are living vicariously through us. Hope it wasn't too painful a wait.When we arrived in Cusco, we returned to high altitude. It was not as difficult to adjust the second time around. We arrive by plane and got dropped off at the bottom of the hill by a taxi in the middle of the afternoon. The Loki hostel was large and filled with young travelers mainly. People for whom it is normal to spend 6 months to a year traveling around South America or the whole world. I met an American who was a bit suprised that other Americans were traveling for as long as we are. A couple days later our friend Will joined us. The altitude affected him hard for one day and then he was running up stairs.
A couple days after Will's arrival we left for the Inca trail bound for Machu Picchu. By the way if you pronounce it the way most tourist do it means "old penis". Pikchu--with an accent on the first syllable is how it should be pronounced. This is Quechua, the language of the Incas. All our porters mainly spoke Quechua. Because we were camping I was expecti
ng simple no frills meals but we got gourmet...mainly typical peruvian dishes. And a lot of it. The second day we made it over pass that was almost 14,000 ft. and did it under the time that our guide expected. The last day we had to get up at 4am so we could watch the sun rise to shine down on Machu Picchu. It was worth it.I realized that next time though I need more sleep if I want to really appreciate everything about the magnificent site. It was a great place to explore but because of all the many tourist it was difficult to find a quiet place to take it all in.
After we got back to Cuzco, we stayed at a different place. Then the next night we had to move because that hotel was booked for Saturday evening. On Sunday we took a bus to Puno...eight hours and the most disgusting bathroom ever. One night in Puno and then the next day we got up at 5:30ish to be ready for our van to take us to the boat. The boat ride would take us to islands in Lake Titicaca...the only reason to go to Puno. And it was way worth it. The first inlands were the reed islands made of the tortora grass that grows in the shallow parts of the lake. The people had to anchor their islands and change the whole structure every year. And if a group of young adults wanted to have their own island away from the elders they could just make one and scuttle off. Sounds great, right?
The next island was Taquile where we stayed overnight with a family. No cars on this inland and no dogs. Now the car thing makes sense. No real need for a car on this island. They had boats to go across to the nearby island of Amantani though. Dogs didn't live on the island because there was no crime and every one including the animals has to pull his own wait. I gathered that dogs are only considered guards for house and not companions. There was plenty of sheep for that. Dogs are not needed so they don't live there. Apparently cats were useful for catching mice and other rodents so they could be members of the Taquile community.
Our guide, who was also the man of the house that we stayed at took us to the beach the first day and the next day, to the highest point where the Pachamama temple was. It was simple and beautiful. There we could see 360 degrees of the lake, the snow covered mountains in Boliva, and the other islands.
After returning to Puno for a night and another 8 hr bus ride to Cuzco we got our stuff back that we had stored at the South America explorers clubhouse. I called my mom and did some email. A couple days later Will left us to go back to the states and we went to Pisac. So here I sit cradled by the warmth and kindness of the mountains in the sunny lounge are of Paz y Luz inn.
More pictures will be forth coming but internet is still not enough to upload them all at the moment.
