More pics of Lima

Pictures of Lima

4/11  I think this might be my last post.  The last 3 days have been great. Sun, sand and water. No sightseeing or going anywhere. Lima, the Miraflores area, is beautiful. Right on fhe ocean. Below is a picture from our balcony.  The first day, we arrived about 4pm because we had an hour delay due to a mechanical problem with the plane. But, they immediately served us a hot sandwich and some drinks. No problem.  The ride from the airport was interesting. First off, our taxi driver got hit by another taxi while we were in the crosswalk, walking to our taxi. Scarry. Second, there are no traffic signs or lights in this city. Every intersection is a crapshoot and you just go. Picture NYC like that. Third, there are all walks of life. Women in andean costume to men in business suits. There are bike taxis, cars, burrors, etc all going at their own pace and whim.
T and I went out for a nice dinner in Larcomar. This place is a huge restaurant and shopping complex built into the cliffs. It is 4 stories deep, with all sorts of balconies to eat on. Really nice. It is only a 3 minute walk from the hotel.
The 2nd day we were going to rent bikes to explore  the "boardwalk".  However the rental place wanted to keep our passports to insure we would bring back the bikes. NO WAY!  Instead we walked down to the beach, 371 steps and some other downward inclines. This whole area is up on a 200 to 300 ft. cliff. I forgot to mention, when we woke up and until about 1pm, the entire area was socked in fog. Down by the beach it was clear.  We literally laid around on the beach area all afternoon. We watched the surfers (this is a big surf area). It made me think of our trip to Puerto Rico. These are pretty big waves for surfing. We met B and G around 6pm, went to the store and bought some food and had dinner on our balcony. So peaceful.
Yesterday was day 3 for us and back to the beach. T keeps himself busy picking up garbage on the beach. I know Nikki will be smiling. In the evening we went to Circuito Magico del Agua. A wonderful fountain show with 9 fountains, music and laser lights. We spent about 2 hours there. The taxi brought us back and we decided to go to the Casino. I put 10 soles in a penny slot machine and in 2 spins lost it. Seems the maximum bet button had been pushed. Oh well another 10 soles, one spin and I won 16, 000 credits which equaled 84 US dollars on a penny bet. G won 16 dollars. So, we immediately cashed out, went to Mangos in Larcomar and had a goodbye, double pisco sour. They were yummy. Lima is the birthplace of pisco sours.
Today we are all packed and have to check out at noon. We are going to take a double decker city tour, have a nice lunch and then leave for the airport about 6pm. In a city of 8 million, with a cab ride of at least 35 minutes, it is best to leave early. We learned that lesson in Arequipa with the taxi ride from hell.
See you all soon.

The Inca Trail

Our adventure started on Sunday with an overnight stay with a porter's family in an Andean village in the Sacred Valley. We met at the tour office, where we met our "family" for the 5 days.
Donna - 48, traveling for 10 days with her daughter, Liz, 17. She wants to be a marine biologist. They are from Saratoga, NY.  It was a grad present for Liz
Manate - 18, Liz's friend. She is asian and beautiful. Wants to be a doctor.
Alex - 27, from Wash. D.C., she is a political fund raiser for the DNC. Helped get Obama elected
Lauren - 26 from Seattle. She is a 7th grade english teacher in a private school
Brianna - 26 from Los Angeles, she works in human resource for Zillo, a company assessors hate because of how they determine property values.
Tatianna - 27 from Seattle. Not sure exactly what she does, but she travels all over the world
The 4 girls were college friends and roommates. When they 1st walked into the office the 4 of us were very worried. They were so disorganized and ditsy. We were always waiting on them, etc. But, they turned out to be so much fun and good company. Alex is extremely smart and we had interesting conversations. Poor T and B, the only men except for the guides and porters.
On the way to the porter's house we stopped at Izcuchaca, the largest market in the area. People come from villages 100km away. It is for locals only. There were all sorts of fruits, vegetables, grains, herbs, meat (we saw sheep heads with the wool still on ), and drinks like their homemade chicha. It is alcoholic made from corn, which was used in the Inca times to drug the children before they were sacrificed to the sun or mountain gods. Not very hygenic, as the liquid is in a 5 gallon pail and they just scoop it out with a glass that we all shared. Then they swish the glass in a pail of water, ready for the next customer. We joked about how we really are family now. The girls surprised us and just went along with the whole thing, earning our change of heart. We tried passion fruit, corn on the cob with cheese and a few other local treats. Of course we had to use the toilet. YUCK and GROSS is the best way to explain. Stinky stalls with a porcelain hole in the mud floors. When you are done a guy comes with a pail of water to rinse away whatever. Who knew this was going to be the norm for the next 5 days (except we had to rinse ourselves).
We arrived at the porter's house and were super shocked when we started putting up our tents in the middle of a barnyard...no exaggeration. We had to shoo away the roosters, dogs, a burro, and the 2 pigs. Good thing I packed my allergy pills at the last second. Needless to say, with all the animal noises (oh, can't forget the bull), no one slept much. After setting up camp (3 man tents for 2 people, 1/2 inch mats, warm mummy sleeping bags), we went into the fields to pick beans and potatoes for dinner. That was actually fun. We had to shell the beans (they were like lima beans in pods). There was a huge bowl to do. Enough for about 20 people. Dinner consisted of a yummy soup with potatoes and beans in it...no meat. We then had coca tea for dessert. The kitchen had a hard dirt floor, an adobe fire pit to cook on and a large plank table with benches. On the 2nd floor was the sleeping area. One room for the whole family. The Ingall's house on the prairie would have been considered luxurious compared to this. Although, 2 years ago they got electricity. They have one light bulb in the kitchen and a very small and very old tv upstairs. The government controls the tv stations... nothing westernized. This porter had 4 children. After dinner, the neighbors were invited. This included Mario, a carpenter/musician. He made his harp and played andean music, which we danced to. I volunteered first. Boy, was I out of breath. Lots of jumping around, but fun. We all had brought little gifts for the children. Things like candy, hair clips, colored pencils, notebooks and stickers. Our guide, Alfredo, had them sit on the floor and one by one they performed. Either dance or sing. So cute. Their eyes were like little ones at Christmas and for such little things. A very humbling experience. We took a group photo.
The next day we were off to start the trek. Up at 6am, gone by 7. Breakfast was boiled potatoes with the skins on, some chili pepper pesto and homemade cheese. Really quite good. This was served with bean tea. The tea is made from the same beans we had picked, but dried, which makes them sweet. Pretty tasty.
We took a little bus to Ollyantaytambo, the start of the trek. As luck would have it, the sun was beating down, but there was a breeze. Right at the get-go, the incline started. And that is how the day went...up, up, up, down, up, up, down etc. We passed a lot of homes. These people walk this trail daily. The kids walk over an hour to school. They are farmers and we saw burros with grasses on their backs being herded by women in local garb. So interesting. Our 2 guides for the trek, Jose and Edwin, would stop us every so often to explain local traditions, plants, etc. I loved learning all about that stuff. Both of them are Quechua and very proud and passionate about their ancestry. It was infectious. We learned that the Incas had 3 laws...Love, Learn and Work. What a better place the world would be if everyone lived by those rules. We picked some wild prickly pear and all shared them. We stopped for lunch and when we got there, what a surprise. A dining tent was set up with tablecloths, real silverware and dishes. The met us with a fresh cup of mango juice and bowls of water to freshen up. Lunch was...stuffed avocado as an appetizer, bowl of vegetable soup, grilled chicken, rice, carrots and potatoes. All with more coca tea. Our chef, Freddy, wore a chef jacket and hat. Super cool. A quick 15 minute rest after lunch and off we went. For the rest of the day we followed the Urambamba river to our campsite.
What is really amazing is the porters. We had 14 to take care of the 11 of us. Before we started off, the porters were packing their packs. There was an overseeer who weighed each pack to make sure it did not exceed 20 kilos. But the packs were huge. They carried propane tanks, eggs, crates of fruit, chairs, tents etc. The porters would leave camp about an hour after we did because they packed everything up and then would run by us on the trail. Incredible! Before dinner we had tea time. Complete with 6 different teas, hot chocolate, coffee, fresh popped popcorn and some pastry thing....everyday.  Dinners were trout, pasta, beef and always with an appetizer, soup and dessert. The last night we had a frosted cake that said "May Machu Picchu Be Magical.
That is how the days went, up at 5:30am with a cup of coca tea and a bowl of cold water. Yummy, hearty breakfasts (omlettes, oatmeal, pancakes -one thing each day), and off by 6:30. We trekked at our own pace. Sometimes you were alone, which gave you time to reflect amongst the majestic mountains, ruins, and clouds. Sometimes you walked with someone from our group or other groups. I met lots of people from all over the world, but very, very few were over the age of 30.  One guy from England had done the trail 30 years ago. He was back with his wife and 3 grown children. The cool thing was he had taken a picture with his guide back then. He brought it with him, showed it around the village to see if anyone recognized him, which they did. He met the guide , who is now in his 70s. So many interesting stories. Everyone was in it together and helped each other. Such comaradery.
It is hard to explain the days. I know for me, there was at least 2 dozen times where I thought I couldn't go on.....leaned over and almost couldn't breathe. But, you rest and move on. The first day we went up 250m and it was hard. The 2nd day we went up 1200m and it was nearly impossible. So steep with so many steps. We got up to 4215m about 14,000ft.  The pass is called Dead Woman's Pass. Up at the top there are lots of people cheering you on for the last 10 or so steps, when you really believe you can't make it...not one more step. By now, you can hardly breathe because the air is so thin and you are so tired. To top it off, your legs feel like jello and your shoulders and back ache from carrying your pack. I was surprised to see how many people did not carry their own packs. They hired a porter. It wasn't really that expensive, but we wanted to say we did it on our own.  And then.... you are up there too. What an exhilerating feeling. Hugs and kisses from all the guides, high 5s from the other trekkers.  But it is short lived because there is another 2 to 3 hours to go to camp. As a group we had decided to forgo lunch at noon (before the pass) and to just keep going. It was going to be hard enough without a full stomach. We just had a snack (granola bar).  It was pretty much all down hill to camp. That may sound easy, but it was a different kind of hard. Now that our legs were like jello and pretty weak, the stairs down were painful. Oh, the pass got its name from an Inca legend. It has to do with a boy and a girl running away from their villages to be together and the girl died on that pass. This was over 500 years ago. 
The 3rd day was very hard. First we had an hour up a very steep slope because our camp was down in a valley by the river. We had to go down about 3000 steps (yup, not 300). They call them the Gringo Killers. Sure is hard on the knees and calves, especially after the day before. And it is even worse, because there are parts where you have to go up just to go back down.
The trail itself is nice, either hard packed dirt or stone. The entire trail system is 27, 000 miles long and goes from southern Ecuador to lower Chile. Not all of it has been discovered yet. The only thing is, much of it is precarious. Sometimes only a foot or two wide with a sheer drop of over 1000ft. A couple of months ago a tourist fell off and died. That section now has a yellow tape railing. The section of the trail on days 3 and 4 are all original Inca work, which is over 500 years old.
The last day we got up at 3:20am. Not too bad considering we went to bed at about 8:30pm every night. We had a quick breakfast and were in line at the Machu Picchu Park gate by 4am. Of course this day it was raining. We waited in line until 5:30 when the park opened. Good idea to get there early. The line was enormous. And once again, off we trekked, a large part up hill. There was one section that consisted of about 40 steps, but was more like a wall. We had to go up the steps using our hands too. The hard part was to keep from falling back because we all had on our pretty heavy backpacks... it was that steep. It was about one hour to the magical sun gate, where we were suppose to see the sun rise and where all the pictures you see of Machu Picchu are taken from. But, no sun since it was raining. We all decided that the clouds and mist were even better. I had goose bumps looking at it. So magical. You could feel a presence.  We then continued walking over an hour to the actual site.
After the formal process of being admitted, Jose and Edwin gave us the best tour I have ever had. You are allowed to wander around on your own, but that would have been such a shame. The background information of the culture was amazing. How smart and organized the Incas were. These ruins were so big and how all the buildings, plazas and farming terraces were designed and built into the existing mountain was pure genius. They made use of existing outcrops, ledges and any flat parts. None of it would have had any meaning without the info Jose and Edwin provided.
After about 2 1/2hours of walking around, we took a bus to the little town of Aguas Calientes. Very cute and quaint. Our family shared one last meal at a nice little restaurant. The bathroom was a real treat.
We said goodbye to all and headed off to our hostel. We were too tired to go to the hot springs. Tomorrow. So nice to get out of our damp clothes and wet shoes. We immediately gave all our clothes to be laundered, enjoyed the 1st hot shower in 5 days and with nothing to wear, we took a long nap.  B and G did the same and we all woke up when the laundry was delivered. B went to get a bottle of wine, and we went up on the roof terrace to celebrate.
Dinner consisted of a quick sandwich. They have the best tomato, avocado and cheese sandwiches. By 9pm we were all in bed, and did that mattress feel good after sleeping 4 nights on hard packed dirt ground. The mats really didn't do much.
Friday we got a good breakfast and headed to the hot springs. Hard to believe it was a 15 minute walk up hill again. Everyone's thighs and calves were very, very sore. When we were walking round the ruins, it was actually painful. Whenever we stopped to listen to the guides all the muscles tightened up. It was funny to watch people go up and down the stairs. All the stairs have very high risers, so up hurts the thighs and down hurts the knees and calves.
Once at the springs, it was wonderful. The water was hot and deep. We ran into the 4 girls from the trek there and relived the past 4 days. After soaking for 2 hours, we enjoyed  pisco sours at the very colorful and tropical bar.
We spent the remaining 2 hours looking around, doing some market shopping and eating lunch. Perfect amount of time before the train left for Cusco. Turns out we couldn't take the train all the way to Cusco because there was a mudslide a little while ago during the rainy season and it was dangerous. So we went to Poroy and took a bus the rest of the way. Got back to Casa Carlos at 10pm. A quick repack of all our stuff, discussed Lima with B and G and went to bed.
This truly was a once in a lifetime experience.

The Hostels

Rio - Fabio's apartment
Iguazzu Falls - Garden Stone and Summertime
Puerto Madryn - Hostel la Tosca
El Bolson - La Cosana de Odile
El Calafate - I Keu Ken Hostel
El Chalten -  Aylen Aike Hostel
Puerto Natales - NaviMag
Viallarrica - La Torre Suiza
Talca -
Vina del Mar - Maria's apartment...Sporting Edifice
La Serena -
San Pedro - Hostel Mammatierra
Arequipa - La Posada del Parque
Cusco - Casa de Carlos
Aguas Calientas - Hostel de Tambo
Puno - Punuypampa Inn
Lima - Hotel Boutique Casa Inca

4/7  We are in Puno /Lake Titikaka. We arrived yesterday at about 4pm. For some reason the bus trip seemed very long. The trip took us through the Andes Mountains. We drove through many tiny, tiny villages and farms. We saw bulls, sheep and llama grazing along the road. There were lots and lots of people walking carrying grasses or herding burros with a load of grass. I really like this because it is so authentic. The homes still have thatched roofs and are about as big as Cory's bedroom.  Our hotel is amazing. A jacuzzi tub, sitting area and a super comfy bed, just what we needed after the Inca Trail.
Today we took a tour to the island of Uros. The entire island is made up of floating reeds. We took a boat there and then got off to walk around. It felt weird in spots, kind of squishy. We learned how they build the islands, the houses and how they cook without starting the island on fire. They took us into a home, which was also built of reeds (including the mattresses). They have boats made of reeds and we got a ride.  See pics below.
For some reason my stomach felt horrible this afternoon. Not sure if it is the altitude because we are at 3800m (higher again than Cusco). So, we napped and I felt much better after that and eating some soda crackers. Terry and I explored the historical center. So many beautiful buildings. We saw the oldest house in the Americas. We bought some fruit at the local market too. Terry and I love to shop in those markets. Everything is so fresh.
Well, I guess we will pack for the flight to Lima tomorrow morning. We have a reservation in the Miraflores area, right on the Pacific Ocean. Three days for relaxing before we head back home. It is hard to believe that the 2 months are just about over.

3/31 Church last night was amazing. 2 hours long that started with allmof us going back outside, where they started a campfire to light the Easter candle. We bought a little candle for the mass from a blind lady and she knew exactly what coin you were giving her.They had a table of snacks out front too. Once the candles were lit, we all went back into the church. Somehow listening to a mass in another language makes it seem almost magical eventhough for the most part you know what they are suppose to be saying. The priest did his reading and talking (other than the homily) in a chanting voice and used the pulpit high up. His robe was exquisite and all 16 altar boys (no girls allowed) wore very ornate robes. The nuns were in the old black and white full habits. The entire service was much more ceremonial than ours back home. The church itself had 40 to 50 ft. ceilings with a wooden floor and benches. The kneelers were padded, which is very unusual. The walls were rounded stones. Absolutely beautiful.
After church we went to a cafe, meant more for tourists and treated ourselves to a piece of elderberry cheesecake and a black forest cake with a good cup of coffee and tea. What a treat.
So, T is off to buy our supply of water and then we will be off.
Back on line Friday evening.
Adios!

3/30  Today was logistical day. Bought bus and plane tickets and packed our little packs for the trail. Had a couple of little snafus along the way
1. My towel blew off the balcony in Vina del Mar
2. Someone stole my little fleece "sleepingbag"on one of the bus rides
3. Terry can't find his warm hat
But all in all, we are ready. Here is what is in the pack for 5 days.......
1 pair of socks, 1 t shirt, 1 long sleeved t shirt, 4 pair of underwear, 1 set long underwear, rain pants, rain coat, 1 fleece, hat, gloves, toothbrush and toothpaste, new small camping towel (about the size of a washcloth), bandaids, comb, cheap flip flops (to rest your feet at night), swimmsuit (for the hot springs after the trek), flashlight, camera, sunblock, bug spray, 2 liters of water, and my quecha dictionary. I am wearing my zipoff pants, a t shirt, underwear (of course), socks, hat, sunglasses and my chapstick in my pocket. The porter will carry our sleeping bags.  NO shampoo, deodarant, soap, extra pants or pjs.
Sounds fun, right?
Tonight we are going to church for Easter. This is the big mass. There is none tomorrow, but on Monday instead. Then it is a light dinner, lots of water and bed. The guide comes tomorrow at 11am to take us to the porter's village for a home stay. We will help them, eat dinner with them and sleep there. Then , on Monday morning, after breakfast, we are off.
We will be incomunicado until later on Friday. Please say a prayer that we all have the physical and mental strength to finish.
Since I am not taking the tablet, there will be no pictures until we get home. It is too much extra weight.

3/29  Change of plans last night... no guinnea pig. Instead we went to a cultural center to watch some native dancing. Beautiful costumes and dancing. See pics.
After dinner we had a quicker local meal. Boy oh boy were we all tired. Off to bed we went. You should see our room. Can't open the door without hitting the bed, but the bed is really comfy. So if given the choice, extra room not so important since we hardly spend any time there.
Today we,really didn't do much. Some logistical-get ready for the trek stuff. We sat in the plaza and watched the world go by. We checked out a couple of amazing churches and saw the Good Friday processional. Amazing, people throwing rose pedals on the "casket with Jesus in it" float, a band, and thousands of people walking along saying the rosary. At the end was an enormous float of Mary with tears and her heart was "bleeding".  I have never heard of a religious parade in the USA.  The priest walks along and so do some nuns. Very emotional.
Dinner was bar b que alpacca for all but B. He tried the guinnea pig. When it came it looked like a char broiled rat, head and all. He ate the whole skinny thing. Not very much meat and it tasted a little gamey. YUCK!
We are now back at the B &B, making plans for after the trek. We may be splitting up. T and I want to go to Lake Titicacca, B and G are not sure. I made a reservation for a nice hotel there. One mile from the lake and some well deserved luxury (especially after the 5 days on the trail). After 2 nights we plan on flying to either Lima or a small fishing village 65km south of Lima. Not sure yet. The last 3 or 4 days will be relaxing on the beach before we head home.

3/28  We arrived in Cusco at 6:30am, grabbed a taxi to our bed and breakfast, right in the historic district. Beautiful old house and very big. Lots of open courtyards and such. None of us really slept last night. The best bus ever, but on the worst roads ever. We are pretty sure they were dirt roads. A couple of times it felt like the bus was going to tip over. So, we got a slow start...a couple of showers and Bob napped.
Eventually we took off to explore the city. It is much bigger than I thought. This area is very nice, but tons and tons of peruvians trying to sell you something. The rest of the city, that we saw on the way in, is quite run down, dirty and lots of poverty.
The 4 of us split up as B and G wanted to do different things. T and I went to a textile museum where they were weaving and to a gigantic market (like our Broadway market during Easter, but 10 times as big).  There was a small food fair, where we tried a couple of things. We then went further and entered the local area. Oh my goodness where there people. Reminded me of Chinatown in NYC. Lots of noise, commotion, people sitting on the sidewalk selling food stuff etc. etc. etc. Quite the experience. We then went wall hanging shopping. I am really trying not to get ripped off. I want something hand made with real alpacca wool. It is hard to tell sometimes. Nothing yet. We stopped at a monument to the Inca King who developed Macchu Pichu. Lots of interesting information and we could walk up the inside to the top. Great view of the city and surrounding hills. Now T is napping before we go to the cultural museum where they demonstrate local dancing and clothes.
Tonight it is off to a local restaurant our host recommended. The main dish....guinnea pig!
Even after all that walking and stair climbing, neither of us is feeling any altitude sickness. They say you should know almost right away. Our host this morning did give us some coca tea. Maybe that helped.

3/27  Right now I am in the lap of luxury. We are on the bus to Cusco. Our seats have more room than in 1st class on a plane. Even getting on is like a plane.... check in your bags, have your carryon inspected, wait in the lounge area and get on. So different than any other bus. The seats recline ALL the way and there is a power outlet to charge your electronics. We have trays to use and are now being served our meal, while watching Skyfall.  Love it.
The day was really nice. We slept in and had a nice breakfast. The day was spent exploring the city some more. First T and I went to the post office to mail more stuff home. What an experience. The lady was mean and very impatient and it took forever.
We toured the chapel and got to go on the roof. See pics. The organ has 1500 pipes. So beautiful. The bell in the tower was huge. In the plaza there were older men sitting with manual typewriters. People came up to them, started dictating to the men and then they paid him. Maybe for poorer people without computers??. There are also lots of people begging for money, many of which had physical deformaties or were very old. T and I felt very sad for the old people and gave some of them some money. There were also lots of police officers everywhere. We think maybe because it is Easter week and they have those parades every night. Not sure though, it could be like that always.
We had peruvian chinese food for lunch. Ordering was tough. Saying chinese thingsmin spanish.....Thought we would give it a try. Not bad, a lot like our chinese food. We did some window shopping and I ended up buying some silver jewelry. The silver is very inexpensive as Peru is a large producer of silver. We stopped at Starbucks so B and G and even T could enjoy a good cup of coffee. All they have here is instant Nescafe coffee, which is strange because Peru grows good coffee. T and I wanted to visit the museum where "Juanita" is. She is the Inca frozen girl they found in the Andes. They had the most interesting movie and artifacts that are 550 yrs old. Juanita was actually in the lab being worked on, but they had another young girl that was found in the same spot and just as old. The amazing part about Juanita is that all her internal organs were in almost perfect condition. She was actually frozen, not mummified. They sacrificed young children whenever a natural disaster (earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, floods, etc) happened to appease the gods.
Back to the hostel at 6 to do our final packing. We had the desk lady, Sandra, call us a cab for 7 because all the little cabs driving around can be dangerous. The scam is to take tourists to some dark area, take their cash and atm or credit cards and leave them there. The funny part is, we had quite the taxi experience. For some reason, the cab she called never came, so Sandra flagged down one of the bigger, more reliable ones. In the first 5 minutes we get into a traffic jam like none other. Makes what you see in NYC look like a casual Sunday drive. Cars everywhere and in no lanes. They are criss crossed cutting eachother off and I can't even explain it. Anyway our driver is doing a great job at being aggressive. We have been sitting in traffic for 20 minutes and are starting to get nervous about missing the bus. So we tell him and he tries to cut off a brown van and hits it. The guy jumps out and starts ranting. We didn't see any damage. Our driver blows him off and just then there was an opening in the traffic and he takes off. We look out the rear window and the van is chasing us. Our driver is taking all kinds of shortcuts and turns but the van keeps up. Finlly he stops and 2 guys get out of the van and start yelling. The driver opens his window just as we are locking our doors. G is pinching my leg, she is so nervous. Terry has his hand on his pocket knife, but luckily, after 5 minutes or so they come to some agreement. The driver just kept saying "listen to me... tourists...". So to end the story, we literally got to the terminal, went through the check in process, got on the bus, sat down and it pulled away. A little too close for comfort.
Tommorrow we get to Cusco. The plan is to follow all the suggestions we have heard and read about. We will, rest, drink lots of water and coca tea, no alcohol or red meat and take an aspirin. All this to avoid altitude sickness. Wish us luck!

3/25 Ok, so somehow the dates got mkxed up. Today is Monday the 25th. The high altitude lakes were on Sunday. We went out for dinner last night at a really cool place. We sat outside, which was most of the restaurant. There are very few doors and windows. They had chimineas in all the corners. Loved the atmosphere. The meal was quinoa soup, beef and for desert, red beet ice cream. Yum. I know it doesn't sound good and we were apprehensive, but it was sweet with a hint of beet flavor.
We are really getting into the South American culture... eating dinner at 10pm.

3/26  Today we leave. I think San Pedro is one of my favorite towns. It has such atmosphere, with the dirt roads, adobe buildings and friendly people. The sun shines 363 days a year. This time of the year, the days are nice and really warm, no humidity and the evenings cool enough to need a jacket and heavy blanket to sleep.
We went to Calama, where we took a tour of the Chuquicamata copper mine, the largest open pit mine in the world. It was amazing. The trucks look like matchbox cars and just the tires on them are as big as our tour bus (Greyhound size). See pics below. Terry was in his glory. They produce 1500 tons of 99.99% pure copper everyday. 
On our way to the pit, we stopped in the little town, which is now a ghost town. At one time 25, 000 people lived there, but due to environmental problems, they relocated them all to the big city near by. So weird to see  the bank, movie theatre, town square complete with Christmas decorations just like people where there.
After the tour, we walked around the city, bought some copper souvenirs and ate in a little local stand. The 4 of us shared a churrillana called The Titanic. See below. Yummy
Now we are sitting in the bus station waiting for our sleeper bus , which leaves at 11pm. This will be jnteresting, since there is not a full cama (full reclining)bus. Bet it will be a long night.

3/26  As expected none of us slept well. The bus stopped several times, which means lights and noise. Oh well, we have a 6 hour ride to sleep some more. It worked out really good. We found another awesome taxi drive in Arica who did the following: found us breakfast, helped us exchange money, drove us to the border and took care of all the paperwork (G lost her receipt we got when we came into Chile. You need it to leave, but Carlos made it happen), drove us the 1 hour to Talca and took us into the right bus office to get our next set of tickets...all for $20 US.
As we crossed into Peru, the landscape remained the same... dirt, sand, rocks and no trees or bushes. But all of a sudden we did see a cactus farm. Pretty cool.
Now, we are on the bus to Arequipa. We will spend 1 night there and will leave tomorrow night at 8pm. Another sleeper. It is the only time they go there, but it is the full cama seats. Much better. I will make some observations of Peru as I notice them.
One important thing to know is the money. No more 10, 000 bills. There are 2.5 soles per US dollar. We have to change mental gears.
The Inca Trail is coming soon. I am starting to get a little nervous. Although none of us felt any effects at 4,200m. That is a good sign. Plus we will be in Cusco 4 whole days before we start the trail. According to the travel books, plenty of time to acclimate to the elevation. Hopefully this is true.
This 6 hour ride went pretty quick. We saw a couple of solar farms and the bus had to stop to let the herd of goats cross. The herder was a little kid maybe 7 or 8 years old. Really cute.
Ariquipa is a big city. Our hostel is in an old colonial house right in the city. We spent the evening walking around towards the famous plaza. The architecture is amazing and so is the cathedral. On our walk we came across an Easter parade. The local churches all have a float of Jesus. The floats are carried on peoples' shoulders. There is a marching band that played a religious song and people follow with candles. Very interesting. We ate dinner on the balcony level in the plaza. Potatoes are the staple here. Peru has over 400 different types of potatoes, the most in the world. The food was delicious. I don't think I have eaten anything that I did not like so far.
Our hostel has a terrace on the roof overlooking the city. We spent a little time up there watching the world go by. The garbage trucks here have a loudspeaker and they play music. There is no traffic control at the intersections. A real free for all.
Our room is huge with a sitting area. Such luxury. The beds are comfortable. Thank goodness. We all need a good nights sleep.

Laguna pics

3/25  Today we took an all day tour to 2 little villages, a flamingo reserve and 2 high altitude lakes. On the way we saw the Alma Project antennas. They are high up in the Andes and there are 66 antennas which produce better pictures than satellites and now scientists can also hear in outerspace. They should be functional at the end of this year. There are 400 volcanoes in Chile, 150 are active. When they erupt, it is not magna flowing, only toxic fumes and ashes, which the wind always sends into Argentina.
The landscape chanes dramatically and suddenly, depending on the salt and water content in the ground. Anything from completely barren to lush greenery. It is mesmerizing.
The flamingo reserve was pretty cool. There are 3 different types here. The guide said in about 5 years there won't be any. Some company is draining the rivers underground for the lithium content, which has reduced their habitat by 80%. Chile exports 40% of the world's lithium for batteries.
We stopped in a small village Toconao, which farms on terraces. They do it just like the Incas from long ago. Channels bring water to each of the individual terraced plots. They grow apples. Pomagranates, nuts, oranges, etc.
The 2nd village, Socaire, has only 200 residents, high up in themountains. They grow quinoa, which only grows in dry climates between 3500 and 5000 meters above sea level.
The high altitude lakes are at 4200m. The cout bird can be found here and no other place in the world. Not many left. We saw a few and some wild camels that look more like a llama.
On the way home, we stopped for lunch. A local soup made from vegtables and chicken. Very good and filling. Pretty much everyone took a siesta on the way home.

3/25  The trip to Lake Ceja was fantastic. Swimming in the laguna was such fun. It was a little cold, which surprised me being that we are in the desert. The water comes from underground rivers which run off the Andes Mountains. The salt content is 38%. We were able to float without trying. See pic below. I have my legs crossed and my arms too. A womanmswallowed the water and T had to help her. After we got out (immediately), as the water dried, we turned completely white. The tour guide brought fresh water and a weed killer sprayer to shower us off. See pic below
We then went to another laguna with a much lower salt concentrate. It almost felt like fresh water. We all took turns changing out of our swimsuits behind the bus, naked in the desert sun.
We ended the tour at the flat salt flats. It looked like an ice skating rink. Incredible. The guide provided us pisco sours and some snacks as we watched the sun set again. A very nice ending to the tour. See pic below.

Salt flat pics

3/23  The sleeper bus night was not as good as I had hoped. The bus was on dirt roads which were extremely bumpy,, especially on the 2nd level. Plus we stopped in a lot of towns, which means lights on and noise. Also, for some reason, we got our snack at midnight and breakfast at 6am. Oh well, this is an adventure.  Once here, we realized we are in a desert for sure. The whole town is made of adobe. It only rains 3 days to a week a year here.  But when it rains, it's a flash flood. Our hostel is really cute, BUT super noisy. You can hear everything. People sneezing, turning over in bed, etc. Not much we can do.
We decided on the tour to the Valley of the Moon at 4pm. First we walked knto town, T and B found a barbershop and got haircuts, we took our laundry to be done(charge by the weight), checked out a couple of stores and stopped for lunch. We went with a place that has no menu. You eat what they are cooking for the day.mthese places are much cheaper. Today it was pork, stir fried veggies, tomato salad for an appetizer and peaches for dessert.
We left at 4 and what a beautiful trip. See pics on Valley of the Moon. The salt mountains, volcanoes, the Andes Mountains were stunning. We ended the tour with watching the sunset from the top of a 300ft. sand dune. That was a hard walk up. Sand is hard to walk in, but kind of cool. As we were leaving it was getting dark and we passed a few bikers. Can't believe they rode their bikes and I am nkt sure what they will do in the dark. The bikes had no lights. I know I would have been very scared. It is dark in the desert. Nothing around for miles and miles and miles and miles.
Got back at 8:30 and we went to a local pub like place for a hand made pizza, beer and pisco sours. Very good. This town is hopping at night. Very cool looking. Dirt roads, small adobe buildings with very small doors. The buildings are all connected like one big plaza.
Got home at 10:30 and to bed we went.
3/24  Just as expected, heard everything last night to include every dog in San pedro barking in unison. Ugh!  So, I got up early, took a shower, had a good breakfast, am blogging right nkw, and when G gets out of the shower, we will plan our next leg of this trip...to Peru. Today at 4 the tour leaves to Laguja Ceja. A lake like the Dead Sea, super high salt concentration, so you float. We will go swimming and stop at a few other places. Before then, we will go into town, buy our bus tickets, souvenir shop and eat lunch.
Pic below is our adobe hostel, Mama Tierra.

Valley of the Moon pics

Valley of the Moon pics 2