Impressions of Peru

Feb 11, 10:15 PM

Not that this realization is a surprise to any of you (you meaning my lone blog fan, G), but my first impression of Peru is that it is a very poor country. Homeless dogs roam. The streets smell of what I can only hope is animal waste. Actually, I think the stench is animal waste; I have not seen any homeless people in the small village of Ollantaytambo. Men and women in traditional Peruvian dress greet you in the streets in hopes of you paying to take their photo. Goods in shops are not priced, presumably so that shopkeepers can charge tourists a premium that locals aren't charged.

However, despite these not-so-pleasant aspects, Peru has a lot to offer (yes, I know, that statement was very cliche). The traditional dress is beautiful and vibrant, and the restaurants are cheap and the food is decent. Tonight, Alli and I shared a margarita pizza and a liter of Inca Kola for about USD $11. By the way, Inca Kola is a yellow-colored soda that takes like a cross between dreamsicle and bubble gum. It's all the rage here, and I hate to say that the flavor is growing on me. 

First Real Day in Peru

2/11/14  9.53 PM

Today we spent our first real day in Peru. The day started with an hour and a half flight delay in Lima. Apparently, the weather in Cusco made the flight impossible until later in the morning. We both snoozed upright in our seats while waiting at the gate. Normally, I'm not able to sleep except under very specific conditions, but this morning I was so exhausted that I was able to snooze just a bit.

The flight itself wasn't bad. I was expecting lots of turbulence due to bad weather, but there really wasn't much. After being treated to meal service (on an hour and forty-five minute flight), we were quickly ushered off the plane and into the arrivals hall, full of people looking for their bags and others pushing tours.

Normally, we wouldn't allow ourselves to be accosted by one of these gentlemen. Today, we didn't have much choice. Plus, we were tired. I can blame almost anything on being tired. A trip on the train to our destination, Ollantaytambo, would cost around USD $85 per person one way. A man selling tours approached us. We explained that we needed to get to Ollantaytambo. He offered us a private driver for $45. Not cheap, but better than the train. I wouldn't usually hand a man selling questionable tours my hard-earned money, but this time I did. He led us through the airport and out a sort of back way. 

Outside the airport stood dozens of eager young Peruvian men, all wanting to be your taxi driver. The tour man handed us off to one of these men who led us to his slightly-beat-up Toyota parked in the dirt parking lot of the Cusco airport. Apparently, everything that is said about drivers in Peru is true. The concept of lanes is very fluid - drivers tend to make their own lanes. Because of this craziness, drivers tend to honk ALL THE TIME. Essentially, they are honking to let pedestrians and other drivers know that they are there.

Somewhere across town, we were dropped off and ushered into a minivan. The driver introduced himself as Juan. Juan kindly announced each new town we passed through on the way to Ollantaytambo. Unfortunately, I was so tired from yesterday's activities that I couldn't even keep my eyes open and even snoozed a bit. Besides being a finicky sleeper, I am not at all known for my ability to sleep in any moving vehicle, so my extreme exhaustion is evident. 

I managed to open my burning eyes long enough to witness a girl with a large pig, another girl crossing the road with a cow, and some beautiful mountain and valley scenery. After we arrived in Plaza de Armas, the main square of Ollantaytambo, Alli asked me if I had seen the dead pig on the side of the road

No, no I had not.

Ollantaytambo is a small village in Sacred Valley between Cusco and Machu Picchu. The village was once the royal home of Emporer Pachacuti. Now, the town is a good resting point before seeing Machu Picchu.

We easily found Hostal Chaska Wasi and checked in. The man at reception handed us a key attached to a purple stuffed ape thing and led us to our room. 

After resting for a couple of hours, we ventured into the adobe-walled Incan village. Dirty dogs, many with simple red or blue collars, roamed the cobblestone streets. Beyond the main plaza, cars were forbidden; the ancient streets are too narrow. We meandered through the grid of streets as children played and local adults went about their business. It was already late, well after 3 PM, so we didn't wander for long before we stopped for dinner at a place that had a special on pizza.

After dinner, we headed back to the hostel to wind down for the night.

Tomorrow, we will acend to the ancient Incan ruins of Ollantaytambo.

Journey to Peru

Feb 11, 2014 1:42 AM

Months ago, my friend Alli and I booked tickets to fly to Lima, Peru. Neither of us had ever been, so we decided to venture together. We booked at different times on the same day. The result was that we were on different flights from San Francisco to Atlanta, but we were on the same flight from Atlanta to Lima.

After we booked the flight, we essentially forgot about it until a couple of weeks ago when we realized that we had to start booking hotels an tours. We also had to get the appropriate immunizations.

We rushed around to get everything done in time. We met a couple of times to make plans, and we both made doctor's appointments.

Suddenly, it was February 10th and time to fly out to Lima. We boarded our separate flights (Alli boarded hers about 8 hours before me as she had a much worse connection).

Now, we are at the Lima airport. We are basically stuck here for the next 5 hours until our next flight leaves. I was expecting a fairly empty airport, mostly shut down. I was wrong. Near arrivals, there are dozens of taxi drivers and hundreds of family members waiting to pick people up. Apparently, a number of flights come through Lima in the middle of the night, so the airport doesn't really shut down. All the restaurants are open, as are the kiosks and convenience shops.

Lima airport.

Every few minutes, an announcement comes over the speaker at a very high decibel. For the first hour or so, we were dealing with the loud scraping noises of metal chairs and tables being dragged across tile flooring as the cleaning crew. And now, we are being serenaded by music emitting from Manos Morenas (yes, that's the real name of a nearby restaurant).

From here, we fly to Cusco. From Cusco, we will take a bus or maybe a taxi to Ollantaytambo, Sacred Valley. Only another 7 or 8 hours of travel time left.

Sigh.