We have come and gone from Machu Picchu and it was really just incredible. I am not sure I have the words to express how beautiful and really breathtaking it is. We left Cuzco on Saturday morning by van and arrived in Ollantaytambo. Called Ollanta by the locals it is about a 2 hour train ride from Aquas Calientes which is the town at the footsteps of Machu Picchu (referred to as MP from here on out).
We ate lunch at a fabulous NGO cafe in Ollanta and caught out train to Aquas Calientes. We planned to hike up a mountain with a view of MP but about halfway up the trail there was a system of ladders in complete disrepair...more experienced climbers than us would have kept going but Bridget and I turned back. We had dinner at a fantastic restaurant in the town and headed back to our cell like hostel for the night. I am not joking about it being a cell. We went bare bones on price to get to MP taking the cheapest route possible which included sleeping in this dump. I joked with some other travelers we met along the way that we were at least hoping for some straw mattresses. We had actual mattresses but not much more...but in Aquas you can´t beat the price we paid...it is a town made for tourism so you have to deal with the prices that come with it.
I slept mostly okay minus one terrible dream about our room that I woke up too and thanked god it was time to get up because I didn´t want to go back to sleep. Bridget slept with her passport and money...just to give you a sense of this place. We woke up at 5am to get ready and get on the first buses to MP that start leaving at 5:30am. We paid the lady across the street for our hostel the night before and literally put our key back in its assigned box the next morning...and then let ourselves out the door with the broken window...that apparently doesn´t lock.
The ride to MP was literally straight up hill with at least 8 switch backs if not more. It was cloudy and drizzly so you couldn´t really get a sense of the beauty around us...other than that we were climbing and climbing. We arrived at the gate just before it opened at 6am. We made our way in and got our first views of this amazing city. Even with the clouds and rain you could get a sense of its immensity. We had tickets to climb Wayna Picchu which is on the back end of the site. It is the tall mountain you often see in the background of pictures in MP. There are some ruins at the top of this mountain and they let 400 people a day climb it.
On recommendations from my friends Sara who made this trek last year, we bought the tickets. Wow was it worth it. We couldn´t see anything on the climb up. The clouds and light rain were blocking views and you could only see about 50 feet in front of you and sometimes get a view of the surrounding mountains. We climbed and climbed and climbed...and by this I mean we literally just were stair climbing. It is basically a massive rock staircase to the top and at some points rather terrifying because the steps up were large or the rocks themselves were small. One misstep and you could literally see yourself falling off the edge. About an hour later we reached the top and the ruins. We made our way through and were rewarded with the beginning glimpses of mountains around us as the clouds cleared. We found a spot to sit and wait for the cloud cover to burn off with the rising sun.
Around 9am we were awarded with our first view of MP in the distance. It was breathtaking. I don´t think I understood until that moment how big the site is and just what an incredible undertaking it was to build this city on a hill. We stayed for about an hour as the clouds cleared and just marveled at this impressive sight.
We decided to do the whole Wayna Picchu hike which involves descending down the backside of the mountain to the great cave at the bottom and then climbing back up (we didn´t know this at the time...had I known I might not have done it. As I sit here writing this, my calves and quads are so so sore). We started hiking down with two other folks and quickly passed them. We reached the cave and ruins probably 45 minutes later with shaking legs. We took a well deserved break and tried to convince ourselves we didn´t have to climb back up....we were wrong. We started the climb up and by about 11am I was sweating profusely, inhaling as much air as possible and trying to convince myself I could make it back to the main trail. This is seriously the most intense hike I have ever done and totally worth it.
Just as we were about to reach the main trail I saw someone running the other direction. I wasn´t sure why until I started smelling something strange. About five feet later, I came upon a massive pile of shit. I should probably point out here that the only bathrooms at MP are outside the entrance gate. At this point we were about as far as you could be from the entrance gate. I understand the need to go but seriously the dude didn´t event try and dig a hole or cover it up...that is the least he could have done.
Minus the small incident we had finally made it back to the main trail and we headed back to MP proper. There was one shorter climb near the main gate back to MP and we decided to climb it as well. Most people bypass this climb so we were alone minus one other person. It provided us with awesome views just much closer up than Wayna Picchu.
By this time it was after noon and we had been hiking for over 5 hours. Bridget was going to pass out from starvation so we decided to bite the bullet and pay for the buffet lunch provided outside the gates. Don´t get me wrong here I was also hungry but running on adrenaline from being at MP. This buffet was awesome...it should be for what we paid for it. I think each of us at 3 plates of food and dessert. We were in there long enough to avoid the rain that fell for about an hour. I also took advantage of the bathroom and fresh purified water...again you should for what we paid for it. Funny thing though was they were selling hotdogs and ice cream outside but you couldn´t get them in the buffet...and honestly they were all I wanted...I settled for awesome peruvian food instead but man was I craving a hotdog after that.
You can get back into MP all day with your ticket so after lunch we headed back in to do a tour of the actual site. That morning we had buzzed right through on our way to Wayna Picchu and didn´t see much except for very high on the opposite mountain. We took our time going through the whole site, reading our guide book and marveling at the engineering, architecture and pure strength that put this place together. We spent about 3 hours going through the main part of MP.
Around 4:30pm I was so tired I couldn´t fathom walking anymore so we headed to the gates. As we were heading to the gate, I heard a pretty strange and awful noise coming from about 20 feet away from me up a hill. I couldn´t figure out what it was until I heard Bridget say look at the llama love. There are llamas who roam the site eating the grass and apparently two of them got frisky. We arrived at what was apparently the tail end of it. The male llama dismounted and looked back at the female llama who proceeded to spit at him two or three times. I was laughing hysterically....what a perfect end to our visit to MP.
We had managed to stay at MP almost as long as any tourist can. We arrived the moment the gates opened and left 20 minutes before it closed. We were able to see the cloudy rainy moments of the morning...the sun slowly rising and the clouds leaving and the setting sun on the mountains hours later. We had planned to hike down the mountain instead of taking the buses but I couldn´t fathom climbing up or down another stair. My legs were literally dead. The bus dropped us off and we made our way to the train station to catch our train back to Ollanta. We arrived in Ollanta around 8pm and dragged our tired bodies another half mile uphill and to our hostel.
It was an incredibly long day but one I hope to never forget. I have seen pictures of MP before but you never really grasp just how incredible it is until you see it in person. The Inca were absolutely amazing with what they were able to build....and it has not only stood the test of time but also many major earthquakes...all intact. I am really still processing this whole experience and what it was like to get that first view of MP from up high on Wayna Picchu. It literally took my breath away.
Machu Picchu was really the cherry on top of this whole trip for me. I am finding myself ready to go home but also looking forward to the next 12 or so days. Peru is an absolutely stunning country with a wide array of plants and animals. We are going to experience much more of it as we leave from Cuzco. From here we head to Arequipa and hopefully to see some of the worlds deepest canyons. To give you perspective these canyons are twice the depth of the Grand Canyon. From there we make our way to Lima and then back home. I am ready to get out of Cuzco as well. The main plaza is so touristy. You are seriously accosted every five feet by someone trying to sell you something....the quiet and serenity of MP was a welcome change to the chaos of Cuzco.
More posts and pictures to come. And for you readers local to the Lansing/Brighton area, Bridget and I are planning a small slideshow when we get back and before she heads back to DC. The date is to be determined...but we plan to show some of our best pictures, tell a few stories, and have some authentic food (if all else fails we will have some chips and salsa).
Monday, December 12, 2011
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
The Ancient City Awaits Us
Well it has been a long week and we are finally less than 24 hours away from Peru. I can barely contain my excitement. That said I have really loved Bolivia but Machu Picchu and the wonders of Peru are calling my name.
I am going to apologize again for not posting any photos...just too hard. I will put up a slideshow with then trip is over.
A quick recap of the last week and what our next plans our. Since my last post, Bridget and I spent the whole week in Sucre. We flew to La Paz this morning and fly to Cuzco tomorrow. I know we are living the high life...who travels by plane when they are backpacking...well we do...mostly because taking the buses would have taken much longer and we wanted to get the most time in Peru...so we compromised and flew. If I had all the time in the world, I would take the buses. It is cheaper, way more authentic an experience and so much more...but we became gringos to the max and flew.
Highlights....read as you please
Sucre
Beautiful town...it was the original capitol of Bolivia and they still claim rights to the Official Capitol even though all state business is now done in La Paz...long story behind that...just know folks from Sucre are very proud and constantly stake claim to being the capitol. It is a beautiful city among the mountains...like every city we have been to. It is also one of the most afluent cities in Bolivia. There is still a lot of poverty but you can tell this city has more money than others. In the main part of the downtown, they require all buildings to be painted white....going back to colonial times...see the pride I was talking about.
Living the High Life
Like I said Bridget and I lived the high life the past week. We need a day or two to rest and it turned into about four....and we were gringos to the max. We ate at nice restaraunts, got our nails done, went to the museums, etc. But you must know Sucre definitely caters to tourists...more than any other city we have been in so far. I probably saw more tourists here than in any other city...outside of the salt flats but that is a huge attraction for the beauty of that part of the country. As for doing our nails...well we just gave in and got a manicure and a pedicure for about 7 bucks...you can´t beat that...and my nails look great!
Basically in Sucre I can tell you where to get your nails done, where to get the best meal, where to see an authentic dance show, where to drink some great beer, where the best museums are, and where to relax and see the whole city. I have to admit one day I was getting very bored just being a tourist...but that comes and goes when you are spending each and every day visiting museums and figuring your way around.
Spanish
I sitll don´t speak it...but I understand much much more than I did when I arrive over two weeks ago. If the conversations are basic I catch most words and have a good understanding but don´t expect me to actually respond....that terrifies me a bit. Bridget is a great teacher though and is constantly encouraging me to be the one who asks for the check or how much something costs. She is a god send and her spanish is great even though she won´t say that. She did say to me today that if I understood more spanish I wouldn´t be impressed...She says sometimes she says things like ¨"we pay now"...whatever it gets the job done...
Food
I realized I haven´t really written much about the food minus Albina´s amazing cooking in Cochabamba. Honestly this is naive of me but I was really expecting a lot of rice and beans and was prepping myself for five weeks of basics...boy was I wrong. You can get whatever you want to eat here. It might taste a little different than in the states but I have had everything from gnocchi to pasta to pizza. Don´t get me wrong though...I am trying every bit of authentic bit of food I can get my hands on. This includes (and I am going to probably spell these wrong): pique macchu, silpancho, cunapie, llama meat (pretty good), empanadas, saltenas, and much much more. I have liked most and loved some. I of course am taking pictures of all the interesting food I eat so I can show it to you. Bolivia really is a bread basket of sorts so you really can get so so much to eat.
Observations
I am daily struck by the poverty here...it is so hard to comprehend. So many people really live on so little...less than two US dollars a day...and I gripe about a cab driver overcharging us...when really that money is going to great use. I really don´t know how people do it. It is really quite heartbreaking. Today in the airport we had multiple chidlren come up to us and ask for handouts. At one point we were eating a bag of chips and a small child, easily to older than 5, came up to us and asked for some. How can you not give a child something to eat when you are well fed and sticking your hand in a bag of chips at the exact moment he is asking you...of course we gave in and shortly after two more children came and aksed us for something. And the poverty is just so different than in the US...it is everywhere. You can´t avoid it even if you try.
We went to a cloistered convent the other day that sells sweets through a revolving door in the courtyard (which was totally cool and the sweets were good). There was an older lady there who started talking to us and we told her we were from the US. It led to a conversation which was mostly good but she made a comment about how we are able to travel and come here...but so many Bolivians don´t get an oppurtunity like us...and it is the truth. You can´t avoid it. It is something I think about a lot while seriously enjoying the ability and freedom and wealth to travel while knowing so many people around us struggle to find something basic to eat everyday. Mind you I amm typing this after writing all about how we lived a pretty blessed week in Sucre.
With all that said, I am having a great time. Looking forward to the next two weeks and soaking everything in. I am trying to process as much as possible and enjoy my time as well. If you haven´t traveled, I strongly ecourage it. It will change your worldview and well much more...
Bolivia as a whole has been a wonderful experience for me. I will take many memories with me and inspiration for further study of the spanish language. None of this would have happened without Bridget´s language ability. It is a beautiful country (although we only really saw the mountaineaous part) with really fantastci people. We have been treated to amazing hospitality at our hostals and host home and by kind strangers on the street. A pharmacist who we visited to buy some altitude sickness pills from later helped us find the correct micro (city bus) to get the the bus terminal...that will stick with me for a while...
What´s next...
Peru tomorrow if our travels go as planned. We will be in Cuzco for about a week and in the week visit Machu Piccu. From there we will head up the coast and eventually land in Lima for out flights home. I am so excited about Peru I can hardly stand it....pictures to come probably at the end of the trip.
Hope all is well in your neck of the woods...until next time.
I am going to apologize again for not posting any photos...just too hard. I will put up a slideshow with then trip is over.
A quick recap of the last week and what our next plans our. Since my last post, Bridget and I spent the whole week in Sucre. We flew to La Paz this morning and fly to Cuzco tomorrow. I know we are living the high life...who travels by plane when they are backpacking...well we do...mostly because taking the buses would have taken much longer and we wanted to get the most time in Peru...so we compromised and flew. If I had all the time in the world, I would take the buses. It is cheaper, way more authentic an experience and so much more...but we became gringos to the max and flew.
Highlights....read as you please
Sucre
Beautiful town...it was the original capitol of Bolivia and they still claim rights to the Official Capitol even though all state business is now done in La Paz...long story behind that...just know folks from Sucre are very proud and constantly stake claim to being the capitol. It is a beautiful city among the mountains...like every city we have been to. It is also one of the most afluent cities in Bolivia. There is still a lot of poverty but you can tell this city has more money than others. In the main part of the downtown, they require all buildings to be painted white....going back to colonial times...see the pride I was talking about.
Living the High Life
Like I said Bridget and I lived the high life the past week. We need a day or two to rest and it turned into about four....and we were gringos to the max. We ate at nice restaraunts, got our nails done, went to the museums, etc. But you must know Sucre definitely caters to tourists...more than any other city we have been in so far. I probably saw more tourists here than in any other city...outside of the salt flats but that is a huge attraction for the beauty of that part of the country. As for doing our nails...well we just gave in and got a manicure and a pedicure for about 7 bucks...you can´t beat that...and my nails look great!
Basically in Sucre I can tell you where to get your nails done, where to get the best meal, where to see an authentic dance show, where to drink some great beer, where the best museums are, and where to relax and see the whole city. I have to admit one day I was getting very bored just being a tourist...but that comes and goes when you are spending each and every day visiting museums and figuring your way around.
Spanish
I sitll don´t speak it...but I understand much much more than I did when I arrive over two weeks ago. If the conversations are basic I catch most words and have a good understanding but don´t expect me to actually respond....that terrifies me a bit. Bridget is a great teacher though and is constantly encouraging me to be the one who asks for the check or how much something costs. She is a god send and her spanish is great even though she won´t say that. She did say to me today that if I understood more spanish I wouldn´t be impressed...She says sometimes she says things like ¨"we pay now"...whatever it gets the job done...
Food
I realized I haven´t really written much about the food minus Albina´s amazing cooking in Cochabamba. Honestly this is naive of me but I was really expecting a lot of rice and beans and was prepping myself for five weeks of basics...boy was I wrong. You can get whatever you want to eat here. It might taste a little different than in the states but I have had everything from gnocchi to pasta to pizza. Don´t get me wrong though...I am trying every bit of authentic bit of food I can get my hands on. This includes (and I am going to probably spell these wrong): pique macchu, silpancho, cunapie, llama meat (pretty good), empanadas, saltenas, and much much more. I have liked most and loved some. I of course am taking pictures of all the interesting food I eat so I can show it to you. Bolivia really is a bread basket of sorts so you really can get so so much to eat.
Observations
I am daily struck by the poverty here...it is so hard to comprehend. So many people really live on so little...less than two US dollars a day...and I gripe about a cab driver overcharging us...when really that money is going to great use. I really don´t know how people do it. It is really quite heartbreaking. Today in the airport we had multiple chidlren come up to us and ask for handouts. At one point we were eating a bag of chips and a small child, easily to older than 5, came up to us and asked for some. How can you not give a child something to eat when you are well fed and sticking your hand in a bag of chips at the exact moment he is asking you...of course we gave in and shortly after two more children came and aksed us for something. And the poverty is just so different than in the US...it is everywhere. You can´t avoid it even if you try.
We went to a cloistered convent the other day that sells sweets through a revolving door in the courtyard (which was totally cool and the sweets were good). There was an older lady there who started talking to us and we told her we were from the US. It led to a conversation which was mostly good but she made a comment about how we are able to travel and come here...but so many Bolivians don´t get an oppurtunity like us...and it is the truth. You can´t avoid it. It is something I think about a lot while seriously enjoying the ability and freedom and wealth to travel while knowing so many people around us struggle to find something basic to eat everyday. Mind you I amm typing this after writing all about how we lived a pretty blessed week in Sucre.
With all that said, I am having a great time. Looking forward to the next two weeks and soaking everything in. I am trying to process as much as possible and enjoy my time as well. If you haven´t traveled, I strongly ecourage it. It will change your worldview and well much more...
Bolivia as a whole has been a wonderful experience for me. I will take many memories with me and inspiration for further study of the spanish language. None of this would have happened without Bridget´s language ability. It is a beautiful country (although we only really saw the mountaineaous part) with really fantastci people. We have been treated to amazing hospitality at our hostals and host home and by kind strangers on the street. A pharmacist who we visited to buy some altitude sickness pills from later helped us find the correct micro (city bus) to get the the bus terminal...that will stick with me for a while...
What´s next...
Peru tomorrow if our travels go as planned. We will be in Cuzco for about a week and in the week visit Machu Piccu. From there we will head up the coast and eventually land in Lima for out flights home. I am so excited about Peru I can hardly stand it....pictures to come probably at the end of the trip.
Hope all is well in your neck of the woods...until next time.
Saturday, December 3, 2011
Mountains, Dust, Buses, and More
Well we have been on the road for a full week now and are taking a few days in Sucre to rejuvinate...and do some laundry. After Sucre we are headed to Peru to enjoy our last few weeks there. So much has happened in the past week that would take forever to type so I will go over some of the highlights.
Salar de Uyuni
We spent one day in the massive salt flats and the other two days of our tour in Southwest Bolivia visiting a national park and the other amazing sights. It is one crazy mountainous and dusty place. I am pretty sure it is almost all dirt but incredibly beautiful. It is for sure high plains and desert. We were in a jeep with our driver and tour guide Enrique and four others. Three South Koreans who are spending two years volunteering in Paraguay and also a guy from Switzerland. It was definitely an ecelectic group but we had a great time sharing stories and learning from each other. I will try and share picture soon so you can see the amazing sights and get a picture of it. Our companions on teh three day journey were definitely a highlight for me....and they invited us to South Korea as well! Highlights of the southwest....the hot spring, the salar, and the people. Riding in the jeep was great but very bumpy and dusty.
Bikers
I saw seven people biking through the mountains...presumably on the Pan Am trail. I was able to talk to three of them. They were biking from Ecuador all the way to the south end of Chile. Driving on these roads was terrible so I can´t imagine how they did it on bikes. Very inpsiring to me though and made my little dream of wanting to bike the pan am trail a little bit more of a reality.
Road to Potosi
We arrived back in Uyuni were we started our three day trek through the Salar and national parks. We stayed the night and hit the road the next morning for Potosi. It is about a 6 hour bus ride on some of the most terrifying roads I have ever been on. I thought our first bus ride was bad...that one paled in comparison to this ride. It was paved sometimes and otherwise just dirt. We gained over 500 meters of elevation on the tiniest of mountain roads with construction...seriously I stopped looking out the window and just listened to music to distract me. No less than 10 times did my heart jump out of my chest. We made it though...thank you god...Potosi is at 4000 meters which is probably the highest elevation I have ever been.
Elevation Issues
I am doing just fine with the elevnation other than not sleeping well. I have read that insomnia can be a side effect and I have definitely been struggling with that. I have probably only had two good nights of sleep the whoel time I have been here. Bridget has more troubles than I but we are making it. Just have to slow down and take things easy.
Hacienda Cayara
In Potosi, we stayed in the Hacienda Cayara. I still think it was in my imagination....something like Narnia. It is about 9 miles outside of Potosi in this beautiful valley with farms and amazing scenery. We were welcomed by Coca and Arturo who run the hacienda. They asked Rene to accompany us. Rene is I think 21 and lives there but isn´t from there. Wonderful young man. He took us on a tour of the whole grounds and a waterfall in the back of the valley that feeds the entire valley with electricty. We climbed up the side of the waterfall and walked back down on a long winding dirt road. We got caught in a rainstorm and hid under a tree for about 10 minutes. Rene also took us to the Lecharria to see the cows. These cows supply milk for the whole area which also makes cheese and ice cream...which we tasted all of it. While we were there, we met Eduardo who was the veternarian for the animals on the hacienda. That morning he helped deliver a new baby cow and showed us the little guy. So cute...we got pictures with the cow which we will hopefully share later. The milk man, which I like to call Eduardo, was great. He took us on a tour of the farm and answered all our questions. Bridget and I both walked away with crushes on him. Again if I can figure out how to post pictures I will...
They served us an amazing dinner at the Hacienda with wine made on site. Arturo is a historian and the hacienda is a little piece of Bolivian history. Potosi was pretty much the center of the world in the 1600s because they found silver in the mountains. The city quickly grew to 200,000 people including many slaves. They mined silver for a few centuries and still do but the production is much much smaller than it was...The hacienda was owned by very rich people from Spain way back in the 1600s and has only changed hands three times. It is now owned by the Aitken family of which Arturo is a grandson (I think). He has perserved the Haciendia as best as he can with orginial furniture, paintings, books, etc. I literally was staring at books there were 300 and 400 years old in their library. He gave a long tour and I was so impressed by the amazing history preserved here. The whole place was amazing and beautiful but the people were probably the best part. Arturo and Coca were incredibly hospitable and Rene accompanied us for most of the day. He taught us a Bolivian dice game which is a lot like Yahtzee. We have amazing pictures from our time here to be shared soon.
And Now
We left Potosi and are now in Sucre which is really the cultural capitol of the country. It is very colonial looking. We have only been here 1 day and are going to stay until Tuesday probably. So far we are having a good time and enjoying the history.
Our travels are going well and we have met a lot of interesting people. I am getting to the point of being able to understand some basic conversations and can even order and pay for my own food. Bridget is a great teacher.
More to come soon and I am sure I have left out so much. I am convinced all should travel to South America at some point.
Salar de Uyuni
We spent one day in the massive salt flats and the other two days of our tour in Southwest Bolivia visiting a national park and the other amazing sights. It is one crazy mountainous and dusty place. I am pretty sure it is almost all dirt but incredibly beautiful. It is for sure high plains and desert. We were in a jeep with our driver and tour guide Enrique and four others. Three South Koreans who are spending two years volunteering in Paraguay and also a guy from Switzerland. It was definitely an ecelectic group but we had a great time sharing stories and learning from each other. I will try and share picture soon so you can see the amazing sights and get a picture of it. Our companions on teh three day journey were definitely a highlight for me....and they invited us to South Korea as well! Highlights of the southwest....the hot spring, the salar, and the people. Riding in the jeep was great but very bumpy and dusty.
Bikers
I saw seven people biking through the mountains...presumably on the Pan Am trail. I was able to talk to three of them. They were biking from Ecuador all the way to the south end of Chile. Driving on these roads was terrible so I can´t imagine how they did it on bikes. Very inpsiring to me though and made my little dream of wanting to bike the pan am trail a little bit more of a reality.
Road to Potosi
We arrived back in Uyuni were we started our three day trek through the Salar and national parks. We stayed the night and hit the road the next morning for Potosi. It is about a 6 hour bus ride on some of the most terrifying roads I have ever been on. I thought our first bus ride was bad...that one paled in comparison to this ride. It was paved sometimes and otherwise just dirt. We gained over 500 meters of elevation on the tiniest of mountain roads with construction...seriously I stopped looking out the window and just listened to music to distract me. No less than 10 times did my heart jump out of my chest. We made it though...thank you god...Potosi is at 4000 meters which is probably the highest elevation I have ever been.
Elevation Issues
I am doing just fine with the elevnation other than not sleeping well. I have read that insomnia can be a side effect and I have definitely been struggling with that. I have probably only had two good nights of sleep the whoel time I have been here. Bridget has more troubles than I but we are making it. Just have to slow down and take things easy.
Hacienda Cayara
In Potosi, we stayed in the Hacienda Cayara. I still think it was in my imagination....something like Narnia. It is about 9 miles outside of Potosi in this beautiful valley with farms and amazing scenery. We were welcomed by Coca and Arturo who run the hacienda. They asked Rene to accompany us. Rene is I think 21 and lives there but isn´t from there. Wonderful young man. He took us on a tour of the whole grounds and a waterfall in the back of the valley that feeds the entire valley with electricty. We climbed up the side of the waterfall and walked back down on a long winding dirt road. We got caught in a rainstorm and hid under a tree for about 10 minutes. Rene also took us to the Lecharria to see the cows. These cows supply milk for the whole area which also makes cheese and ice cream...which we tasted all of it. While we were there, we met Eduardo who was the veternarian for the animals on the hacienda. That morning he helped deliver a new baby cow and showed us the little guy. So cute...we got pictures with the cow which we will hopefully share later. The milk man, which I like to call Eduardo, was great. He took us on a tour of the farm and answered all our questions. Bridget and I both walked away with crushes on him. Again if I can figure out how to post pictures I will...
They served us an amazing dinner at the Hacienda with wine made on site. Arturo is a historian and the hacienda is a little piece of Bolivian history. Potosi was pretty much the center of the world in the 1600s because they found silver in the mountains. The city quickly grew to 200,000 people including many slaves. They mined silver for a few centuries and still do but the production is much much smaller than it was...The hacienda was owned by very rich people from Spain way back in the 1600s and has only changed hands three times. It is now owned by the Aitken family of which Arturo is a grandson (I think). He has perserved the Haciendia as best as he can with orginial furniture, paintings, books, etc. I literally was staring at books there were 300 and 400 years old in their library. He gave a long tour and I was so impressed by the amazing history preserved here. The whole place was amazing and beautiful but the people were probably the best part. Arturo and Coca were incredibly hospitable and Rene accompanied us for most of the day. He taught us a Bolivian dice game which is a lot like Yahtzee. We have amazing pictures from our time here to be shared soon.
And Now
We left Potosi and are now in Sucre which is really the cultural capitol of the country. It is very colonial looking. We have only been here 1 day and are going to stay until Tuesday probably. So far we are having a good time and enjoying the history.
Our travels are going well and we have met a lot of interesting people. I am getting to the point of being able to understand some basic conversations and can even order and pay for my own food. Bridget is a great teacher.
More to come soon and I am sure I have left out so much. I am convinced all should travel to South America at some point.
Sunday, November 27, 2011
On the road again
We are officially on the road. You could probably tell from my radio silence. It has been a busy few days since I last posted. We celebrated Thanksgiving with Nuestra Casa...which was a real treat for more reasons that I have time to write here. Let me just say the turkey showed up 3 hours late because the person bringing it got in a car accident or a motorcycle accident or something like that involving a dog. I still didn´t get the full story but it was quite enjoyable.
Our host family made an awesome meal for our last meal with them on Friday. Seriously I couldn´t get enough. We all ate together and even had some wine. I am already missing Albina´s cooking. Before we left Cochabamba on Saturday we had lunch at the house and she packed us tomato and cheese sandwhiches for our bus ride (which they were seriously the best sandwhiches I have ever had). She also walked us out to the road, hailed a cab, haggled for the price, and wanted to pay...but we wouldn´t let her do that. Seriously this family is so generous and hospitable. I was overwhelmed with their kindness. Pablo told us to be careful of anyone selling candy or anything on the bus because it is sometimes laced with a drug to put us to sleep so people can steal from us. He wanted to be sure we knew this. This kid is awesome.
Our bus ride was beautiful but I thought we were going to die probably 15 times. I decided it was safer to not look out the window. We gained about 3000 feet in elevation and the whole way was on a narrow road and it rained about a third of the time. Our bus driver was passing people constantly...and you would frequently see the road drop off on either side. Seriously scary....but we made it.
We are in Oruro now...well just for the day. We got in last night and found a place to stay. We toured the town today and have a 7pm overnight train to Uyuni where we are going to tour Salar de Uyuni which are huge salt falts. If I understand correctly you can see them from space.
More to come next time we have internet. Sorry this ins´t more detailed. Just know we are doing well and enjoying the trip. The colors, people, smells and so much more are amazing.
Our host family made an awesome meal for our last meal with them on Friday. Seriously I couldn´t get enough. We all ate together and even had some wine. I am already missing Albina´s cooking. Before we left Cochabamba on Saturday we had lunch at the house and she packed us tomato and cheese sandwhiches for our bus ride (which they were seriously the best sandwhiches I have ever had). She also walked us out to the road, hailed a cab, haggled for the price, and wanted to pay...but we wouldn´t let her do that. Seriously this family is so generous and hospitable. I was overwhelmed with their kindness. Pablo told us to be careful of anyone selling candy or anything on the bus because it is sometimes laced with a drug to put us to sleep so people can steal from us. He wanted to be sure we knew this. This kid is awesome.
Our bus ride was beautiful but I thought we were going to die probably 15 times. I decided it was safer to not look out the window. We gained about 3000 feet in elevation and the whole way was on a narrow road and it rained about a third of the time. Our bus driver was passing people constantly...and you would frequently see the road drop off on either side. Seriously scary....but we made it.
We are in Oruro now...well just for the day. We got in last night and found a place to stay. We toured the town today and have a 7pm overnight train to Uyuni where we are going to tour Salar de Uyuni which are huge salt falts. If I understand correctly you can see them from space.
More to come next time we have internet. Sorry this ins´t more detailed. Just know we are doing well and enjoying the trip. The colors, people, smells and so much more are amazing.
Thursday, November 24, 2011
Happy Thanksgiving
I hope you are finding a place to celebrate with family and friends this Thanksgiving. Bridget and I along with others from the language institute are going to Nuestra Casa which is a home for girls. I am pretty sure there are about 10 girls living there. Each of the language school students are bringing something traditional to Thanksgiving including a turkey and we are having dinner with the girls. I am really looking forward to it. Again I will probably be the only one there who speaks little Spanish but it will still be fun. There won´t be any football but I am getting over it. Go Lions!!!
Yesterday Bridget and I went to the Cristo de la Concordia. It is a huge statue of Christ up on a big hill in Cochabamba. It is actually bigger than the one in Brazil by a few centimeters. Here is a link to the wikipedia page so you can get a sense of what it looks like: http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cristo_de_la_Concordia. I took some pictures as well which I will add later.
We are leaving on Saturday for Sucre. Before leaving Cochabamba we are also going to the Cancha which is a huge market and a convent that has been in existence for 100s of years. Both should be fun and interesting.
A few corrections to yesterdays post about transportation:
Yesterday Bridget and I went to the Cristo de la Concordia. It is a huge statue of Christ up on a big hill in Cochabamba. It is actually bigger than the one in Brazil by a few centimeters. Here is a link to the wikipedia page so you can get a sense of what it looks like: http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cristo_de_la_Concordia. I took some pictures as well which I will add later.
We are leaving on Saturday for Sucre. Before leaving Cochabamba we are also going to the Cancha which is a huge market and a convent that has been in existence for 100s of years. Both should be fun and interesting.
A few corrections to yesterdays post about transportation:
- Taxis - They are called Trufis here and I forgot to mention that in my post. Also there are absolutely no seat belts which is sometimes terrifying. And the front seat always has room for three people so a small 4 door car will pack in 6 people. It is really quite impressive.
- Party Buses - Well they aren´t actually called party buses. Their real name is Micros. I found out from Bridget that she alone calls them Party Buses. I laughed out loud when I realized my mistake. They do look like a party though with all their bright colors.
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
Transportation, Yoga and some other things
Don´t get used to me posting everyday. I am lucky enough to have access to the computers while Bridget is in class so it is easy to check email and write a post.
A few notes on transportation in the city. Not many people own cars and there really isn´t public transportation in the city. There are a few options for getting around though:
The Party Buses are about the size of small school buses and are painted in many colors. They also run basic routes and you let the driver know when you want to get out. I don´t know why they are called party buses...my only guess is because they are brightly colored. They are a little cheaper than taxis and run a little slower.
There are no official pick up and drop off points for taxis or buses. You just stand on the side of the road and hold out your hand. This can cause drivers to pull over suddenly and pick up somebody on the side of the road and there is always a lot of movement in the car itself to make room for somebody or let someone out. These rides are not for the feint of heart. The drivers can move pretty quickly and make fast turns and stops.
And there is always walking...
Today I went to Yoga with Bridget and her other classmates. Two things I knew about myself and quickly relearned...I am not good at Yoga and I still don´t know Spanish. The instructor was incredibly patient with me as I was sweating a rediculous amount for doing nothing but stretching my legs. She kept wanting me to push my stretch more...mas mas mas...and I would say no no no...already thinking I was going to pull a muscle. Yoga is Yoga no matter where you are but yoga in Spanish is interesting when you don´t know the language. Bridget translated some for me and I understood some of what the instructor was saying...and again sweating way too much for yoga.
I haven´t been sleeping well for some reason. I literally woke up at 1:45am on Tuesday morning and 3:00am this morning and couldn´t go back to sleep. Needless to say I am thankful for the audiobooks I downloaded before coming because they are keeping me company in the middle of the night.
More to come later...
A few notes on transportation in the city. Not many people own cars and there really isn´t public transportation in the city. There are a few options for getting around though:
- Taxi
- Party Bus
- Walking
The Party Buses are about the size of small school buses and are painted in many colors. They also run basic routes and you let the driver know when you want to get out. I don´t know why they are called party buses...my only guess is because they are brightly colored. They are a little cheaper than taxis and run a little slower.
There are no official pick up and drop off points for taxis or buses. You just stand on the side of the road and hold out your hand. This can cause drivers to pull over suddenly and pick up somebody on the side of the road and there is always a lot of movement in the car itself to make room for somebody or let someone out. These rides are not for the feint of heart. The drivers can move pretty quickly and make fast turns and stops.
And there is always walking...
Today I went to Yoga with Bridget and her other classmates. Two things I knew about myself and quickly relearned...I am not good at Yoga and I still don´t know Spanish. The instructor was incredibly patient with me as I was sweating a rediculous amount for doing nothing but stretching my legs. She kept wanting me to push my stretch more...mas mas mas...and I would say no no no...already thinking I was going to pull a muscle. Yoga is Yoga no matter where you are but yoga in Spanish is interesting when you don´t know the language. Bridget translated some for me and I understood some of what the instructor was saying...and again sweating way too much for yoga.
I haven´t been sleeping well for some reason. I literally woke up at 1:45am on Tuesday morning and 3:00am this morning and couldn´t go back to sleep. Needless to say I am thankful for the audiobooks I downloaded before coming because they are keeping me company in the middle of the night.
More to come later...
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
Hello from Bolivia!
I arrived on Monday morning and my friend Bridget was waiting for me at the airport. I was pretty wrecked from the overnight plane ride so I slept for about 4 hours while Bridget went to her language school classes. She is in her last week and finishes up on Friday. This gives me about 4 hours everyday to do whatever I like...but I don´t stray too far from Bridget because well I would be hopelessly lost in the city and have no way to get home without a lot of pointing and pretending I know Spanish.
So a quick recap of my travels so far...I flew out of Detroit into La Paz, Bolivia and grabbed a local plane to Cochabamba. I am here for about 6 days while Bridget finishes language school. This is giving me plenty of time to read, enjoy the area, and also figure out where we are going next. We are most likely headed to Sucre and Uyuni and then onto Peru.
For those of you who don´t have the patience to read long blog posts (which includes me), I am writing short sentences on a few highlights and will expand further for those who have the insane desire to read everything. I hope to include pictures at some point as well....I have to figure out how to upload from my camera.
I arrived on Monday morning and my friend Bridget was waiting for me at the airport. I was pretty wrecked from the overnight plane ride so I slept for about 4 hours while Bridget went to her language school classes. She is in her last week and finishes up on Friday. This gives me about 4 hours everyday to do whatever I like...but I don´t stray too far from Bridget because well I would be hopelessly lost in the city and have no way to get home without a lot of pointing and pretending I know Spanish.
So a quick recap of my travels so far...I flew out of Detroit into La Paz, Bolivia and grabbed a local plane to Cochabamba. I am here for about 6 days while Bridget finishes language school. This is giving me plenty of time to read, enjoy the area, and also figure out where we are going next. We are most likely headed to Sucre and Uyuni and then onto Peru.
For those of you who don´t have the patience to read long blog posts (which includes me), I am writing short sentences on a few highlights and will expand further for those who have the insane desire to read everything. I hope to include pictures at some point as well....I have to figure out how to upload from my camera.
- First impressions...good food, good people, and much to learn.
- Our Host Family is wonderful and Albina, the grandma, makes the best food in copious amounts.
- I don´t know Spanish
- Cinnamon ice cream is not my favorite
- First Impressions...I love stepping off the plane, train or whatever into a new country and culture. I am initially overwhelmed by the sights, sounds and smells and just trying to get my bearings. This was no different when I landed in La Paz. I made my way through customs with no problem and found my connecting flight on another airline. I was paranoid I was in the wrong place and tried to sneak a peek at other passengers tickets to make sure I was in the right line without looking like a creeper. I didn´t feel solidly convinced I was on the right plane until the friendly German gentleman sitting next to me confirmed this plane was in fact going to Cochabamba. It was very hot when we first got in and thankfully Bridget was waiting for me. I loved the taxi ride through the city and all the new sights and sounds. And the mountains are incredible...stunning views from the airplane. We were literally flying past a stretch of the Andes and not looking down at them...literally flying right next to them.
- Our Host family is amazing. There are two parents, two kids and their grandma who lives there. I have interacted with Albina this most. She makes each of the meals and is very gracious with my lack of Spanish. Her cooking is amazing as well. We have fresh fruit and freshly squeezed orange juice everyday along with huge lunches that not even two people can eat. It sometimes seems strange being in another person´s house like this but at the same time I feel very comfortable. I have only known the family for less than 24 hours and I am incredible grateful for their hospitality. And there is nothing like being able to take a nap after a long flight and a hot shower.
- Spanish...well I don´t really speak it. I somehow managed to have a conversation with Scarlett our host mom. I used a lot of hand motions and about 5 of the spanish words I knew. She was amazing and helped come up with the words I couldn´t remember or think of or most likely didn´t know at all. I am excited to be here but at the same time I really feel like a fish out of water when everyone around you can have conversations...and you are often left to figure out the small bits you know. I am very glad Bridget knows Spanish and get us around...otherwise this trip would not have happened for me. I have almost five weeks here though so I will probably pick up some as we go. I am also alone in Lima for two days after Bridget flies out...so I am desperately hoping to pick up a few choice phrases to get what I need those two days after she leaves. And I am further motivated to study a language.
- Bridget and I walked around the city yesterday evening after I got in and just took in the sights and sounds. I saw some folks with ice cream and well really wanted some. We stopped at Dumbo´s which is really just a chain and nothing authentic. After much perusing of the menu (read...Mari was looking at the pictures to determine what to order), I decided on an ice cream float with what I thought was strawberry. Upon my first swig, I realized quickly it wasn´t in fact strawberry but cinnamon flavored. It honestly tasted like Big Red gum. I could only get through about half of it before I had to give up. Needless to say cinnamon ice cream is not my favorite. I am hoping my other forays into actual authentic cuisine go better than this one. We haven´t gone out much because our host family takes care of all the meals but we will more as the week goes on and especially as we hit the road.
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