Cusco

The Road to Puno

by Ekua on October 4, 2009 · 2 comments in Peru

July 29, 2009

It was time to move on from Cusco. Once again, I was up and running while my hostel remained silent. A lot of collective rest was needed after the wild and crazy Independence Day celebrations the night before. As I was heading out of Loki for the last time, I bumped into O.G. as he was exiting the bathroom. He was still wearing the same shirt he had on the night before, and on his bottom half was nothing but red briefs. The look on his face showed me that it was going to take awhile for him to recover from the previous night.

I caught a cab to bus terminal and found the company I’d purchased my ticket from a few days before. There was a problem. The date was July 29th and my ticket was for the 27th. I felt like such an idiot for not looking my ticket over after I bought it. I panicked. The people working at the counter brushed it off and said I’d be fine but did not explain how I could get a seat. They were too caught up with re-ticketing and refunding the entire bus.

They said the bus we were supposed to take had something wrong with it so they had to switch everyone from the nice tourist bus they’d paid for to a cheaper but junky one. One Canadian guy tried to insist on the nice bus, saying that it was what he paid for and what he wanted. But the only option was to take that bus or stay behind in Cusco. I nervously paced around until they finished the re-ticketing process. At the end, there was one seat available for me. Hallelujah!

Scenery along the road to PunoAlong the road to Puno

I was excited for my first real bus ride. Even though they can be long and uncomfortable, they are often a great way to see a country. I often find the space between major destinations more fascinating than the destinations themselves. Popular tourist cities tend to seem familiar because you’ve seen them on TV and in movies and pictures. They are also usually greatly influenced by the foreigners who frequent them. I love the rawness and realness of the simple everyday towns you pass through on the countryside.

We arrived in Puno in the late evening as the sun was about to set. Puno is the main jumping off point for exploring the Peruvian side of Lake Titicaca. When I was planning my trip before I left, I tried to figure out whether I’d explore the Peruvian side, the Bolivian side or both. I opted for the Bolivian side. On the Peruvian side, most people go to Floating Islands and do homestays where they dress up in local clothing. Most people I’d come across either loved it because it was silly fun or hated it because it was too touristy. In the end, the determining factor was that I was itching to get to Bolivia. For me, this trip was more about Bolivia than Peru. You always have to pick and choose in travel and hope that you’re making the right decisions. And if you don’t, it’s not the end of the world– there will always be amazing things to see further down the line.

Welcome to PunoWelcome to Puno

Since I was already at the bus terminal, I decided to booked a ticket to Copacabana, Bolivia for the following day. There were two main Lake Titicaca border crossings mentioned in my guidebook. The Desaguadero crossing was more direct but known for being shady. The Yunguyo crossing was less direct, but more scenic and not shady. It was an easy choice. I booked a ticket with the bus company recommended in my guidebook for Yunguyo crossing. Since I was by myself, I wasn’t interesting in taking a risk when it came to crossing borders.

When that I was all settled, I caught a bus to a hotel. The general consensus I’d gotten from travelers who had already been to Puno was that it was really cold at night and worth splurging for hotel. I forked over $20 which is still cheaper than most budget hostels in North America or Europe. When I was using the hotel’s free computer in the lobby, I struck up a conversation with a girl who had been hanging out there and reading a book.

We made plans to meet up later to go dinner at a pizza place across the street. It had a wood burning stove, a nice bonus that provided extra warmth in the heater-deprived Andes. The girl was a science teacher from England and turned out to be very interesting. She was traveling with a guy friend, but he had gotten really sick and was bed-ridden for days. She told me she usually traveled by herself on a bicycle! She had done this in Cuba and India among other places. When she finished university, she was looking for a research job but went into teaching because that’s what was available at the time. But then she fell in love with the teacher’s lifestyle (breaks and summers off to allow her to travel the world) and never looked back!

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Viva el Peru

by Ekua on September 30, 2009 · 1 comment in Peru

July 28, 2009

On the morning of Peruvian Independence Day, I woke up to a few surprises. The previous night I’d gone to bed early by Loki Hostel standards and found that my ten bed dorm room was full of people who were already sleeping. I thought it was strange, but awesome that I wouldn’t be woken up in the middle of the night by people stumbling in. When I got out of bed, I saw that the bulk of my dorm mates were a group of senior citizens. They weren’t aware of Loki’s reputation until they arrived. I heartily believe that getting older doesn’t mean you should stop having fun or stop hostelling, but it was very clear that Loki wasn’t the right match for them. They were already packing and looking for a new place to stay. One of them grumpily and groggily asked, “What is this place where people go to bed so late and wake up early?”

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The other surprise slowly emerged from the bed below me. First, a familiar mess of blonde hair, and then a face that I couldn’t place but I was sure I’d seen before. We struck up a conversation and he began to talk about a guy from his Machu Picchu trek group who talked loudly and incessantly. O.G.! (See the Machu Picchu entry if you don’t know who I’m talking about.) I asked him if he was in my tour group and he confirmed that he was. His two friends and O.G. were also staying at the Loki in another room. He told me O.G. was from Israel and promised that despite his shortcomings, he had a really good heart.

During the day I wandered around Cusco, trying to find something interesting going on for Peruvian Independence Day besides super loud and excessive gunfire. The children’s parades were canceled because of swine flu so there weren’t as many festivities that day. The first thing I came across was a protests of sorts. A guy was putting up a big banner that read, “¿Somos Libres?” which can be translated as,  “Are we free?” Artwork and articles were posted along the wall and many people went up to take a closer look.

Plaza de Armas

In Plaza de Armas, many people were gathered for a military band performance. I took a seat under a fountain to people watch and listen to the music. Little kids were splashing about in the fountain and people were filling up their water bottles with fountain water. I wondered about the purpose and usefulness of canceling the children’s parades because of swine flu if the public wasn’t educated on basic sanitation.

When the Andean sun became a little too bright, I headed back to the Loki where I found the three American guys and their Israeli friend. O.G. also promised that he was a good guy even if he was a bit obnoxious. I appreciated his self-awareness and audacity to be himself. I felt bad for automatically writing off both the American guys and O.G. at the beginning of the Machu Picchu tour when I first encountered them. They turned out to be nice people and a lot of fun.

I’d signed up for the hostel dinner and the American guys had as well. When the time rolled around, we got our plates of traditional Peruvian food, a special dinner for Independence Day. I didn’t finish my food and one of the guys took my plate and happily ate the rest. Funny how quickly normal boundaries get torn down when you’re on the road. Of course, the hostel was having an Independence Day party in addition to the dinner. Many people were already dressed in red and white, the colors of the Peruvian flag.

O.G. getting the Peru Indepence Day party started

After dinner, I changed into Peruvian colors as well and joined the festivities. It was by far the most fun night at the Loki and everyone was really pumped to celebrate Peruvian Independence. After awhile I took off to a club with the American guys and Brit we picked up along the way. They’d met a woman who was the lead singer of a reggae band that had a show in Cusco that night. Being a huge fan of reggae music, I was happy to go along.

When we got there, the band was just setting up and the show was no where near starting. But it was okay because there was a DJ spinning Top 40 hits so we hit the dance floor and worked it. We all had a blast, except for the British guy. He had a hipster indie thing going on and wasn’t into it at all. When it became clear that the band wasn’t going to perform until the wee hours of the morning, I decided to head back to the Loki. I had a bus to catch early the next morning. I can’t say much for Independence Day, but Independence Night was a raging good time.

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The Machu Picchu Express

by Ekua on September 17, 2009 · 0 comments in Peru

July 26, 2009

In the wee hours of the morning, when many Loki Hostelers were just returning from a night out, I was getting ready to leave for my two day, one night Machu Picchu tour. After putting Bessie into the hostel’s storage room, I grabbed my small backpack and got into a van from SAS Travel to head off to the train station. I was the last to be picked up; there were five other people already in the van– a couple from San Francisco, two women from Washington D.C. and, and a woman from England who was currently living in Dubai. Everyone seemed calm and composed which would be a nice change from the Loki for a couple days.

A rainbow we saw from the train

At the train station I headed straight for a little food stand to get some coffee. I learned that Claire (the woman from England) and I were the only ones taking the train straight to Aguas Calientes, which is the gateway to Machu Picchu. The other four were doing a short  Inka Trail tour and would be getting off the train early to hike the rest of the way to Aguas Calientes. Their seats were in a different cabin and the guide stuck with them so the two of us were left on our own.

A fancy train came and went and then it was our turn to board the Backpacker Train. The seats across from Claire and I were empty as time to leave approached. But just as the train was about to go, two girls hopped on to claim those seats. I gathered from the hoarseness of their voices and the conversation they were having that they had gotten a little too caught up in Cusco’s party scene and that’s why they almost missed the train. They slept almost the entire way to Aguas Calientes.

DSCN0125Claire turned out to be a great travel buddy. I thought I might sleep on the train, but we ended up talking about anything and everything, but mostly about travel. We had obviously both been bitten by the bug. She told me about the different places she had lived and what it was like to be a resident of Dubai. We exchange travel stories and talked about the interesting people  we’d met while traveling. Our conversation, combined with the wonderful views made for a fantastic train ride.

A waterfall and ruins we saw as we approached Aguas Calientes

Getting into Hot Water

When we got off the train, there was someone from SAS Travel waiting to meet us to take us to our hostel. It was a short walk through the market and across a bridge or two to get to the hostel. Aguas Calientes is an interesting town. By interesting, I mean awful. The natural scenery around it is stunning, but it’s obvious that the town sprung up like it did solely because of its proximity to Machu Picchu. The buildings are unattractive and some appear to have been hastily built with fake stone facades that attempt to look like the stones of the ruins at Machu Picchu. There is a limited selection of places to eat and things to do and everything is overpriced.

I was happy to have most of my arrangements taken care of through my tour. SAS Travel owns and operates a hostel in Aguas Calientes called the Viajeros Hostel and that’s where we stayed. They were flexible about letting us choose when we wanted to have lunch so we decided to get settled in first. I was given a triple room with three beds. On my trip I quickly learned to value being alone in a room with extra beds. Extra beds means extra blankets for those extra cold Andean nights.

A guy who gave us an orientation of sorts when we arrived didn’t seem too enthusiastic about the activities Aguas Calientes had to offer. He told us there was a waterfall and orchid farm to hike to, but it wasn’t that great and the orchid farm had no orchids. He talked about the hot springs (after which Aguas Calientes is named) but said they were dirty and not recommended. Way to sell the town. We decided to take a stroll to the main plaza to find an internet cafe.

A Foray into the Delights of Aguas Calientes

After a sufficient amount of net time, we went to a cafe next door for some hot beverages to warm us up. It looked cute from the outside, but it was completely disorganized inside. They were playing a delightfully horrible CD of popular movie music played on pan pipes. Imagine “My Heart Will Go On” and other such tunes played over and over again on a wooden flute. Good times. It wasn’t clear if we were supposed to order at the counter or sit at the table. We decided to go to counter. I asked for a hot chocolate and the girl I ordered from promptly disappeared without a word. When we eventually got everything sorted out, we saw drinks that we suspected were ours sitting on the counter behind the girl who was taking orders. We attempted to ask and get her attention, but she made no effort to give them to us. When we finally got our drinks, they were lukewarm and my earlier suspicion that they were making my hot chocolate with Hershey’s chocolate syrup was confirmed.

That afternoon, it was pouring and chillier than I expected it to be. The weather reports I checked in Cusco made it seem like it would be hot in Aguas Calientes. I wasn’t prepared for rain or cold and was worried that I would be freezing at night and soaking wet the next day if the rain continued. So Claire accompanied me to the town market. We both wanted socks for bed, so we visited several stalls until we found a pleasant vendor who gave us a deal on two pairs of knee high wool llama socks. Score! Next, I found a pan pipe stand and bought the pan pipe movie CD we heard earlier in the cafe. Score! The guy tried to sell me actual pan pipes so I could play along with the CD, but I declined. You have to draw the line somewhere. Then came the most complicated purchase, a pink poncho. I’d seen several tourists in bright colored rain ponchos they’d bought at the market and really wanted one in pink. We searched high and low for a pink poncho and couldn’t find one. Finally we came across a stand that had a purple poncho available. Score!

A Table for Two

Back at the hostel, they were setting up three long tables for dinner. One was for a large group that had just finished a trek. Another was for the four half day trekkers we met in Cusco and their guide. And the table in the middle was just for Claire and I. I thought it was silly that they set such a large table just for the two of us when there was space at other tables. I asked if we could join the group of five. The hostel staff refused to let us do that. I noticed in both Peru and Bolivia that they have a funny way of rejecting requests that may seem perfectly reasonable to you. It’s a shaking of the head with a drawn out and slightly whiny, “nooo.” And an exasperated smile that lets you know they think your request is absurd.

So during dinner at our extra large table for two, our guide for Machu Picchu came to tell us about the details for the next day. We would be waking up very early so we could get in line to catch the first buses going up the hill to Machu Picchu.  We returned to our rooms early that night get ready for the next day and get some rest. I hoped that the rain would wear itself out and that Inti would make an appearance the next day.

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What Happens in Cusco, Stays in Cusco

by Ekua on September 9, 2009 · 2 comments in Peru

July 25, 2009

My first night in Cusco was the coldest night of my life. Before you arrive, it’s really hard to understand just how chilly Andean winter nights can be. With uncarpeted floors (and in that particular room, a stone floor), no heating, and a lack of warm bedding, night time temperatures can be hard to handle. I tossed and turned until the sun came up and provided some heat so I could sleep for a few hours. When I got out of bed, I made stocking up on wool clothing my main goal for the day.

DSCN0113At breakfast I conversed with another Californian and a couple of the Australian girls I met the night before. It was a beautiful and clear day so I decided I needed to get out of the hostel. With my little hostel map, I found the tour agency I had booked my Machu Picchu tour with and went to check in. Afterward, I went back to Plaza San Francisco to listen to the entrancing live music I heard there on my way to the tour agency office. From what I could find online, I think the genre of music is Huayño. Whatever type of music it was, I heard it a lot during my trip. It turned out to be the perfect accompaniment for many long drives viewing the harshness of life in the Andes in contrast to the beauty of the bright blue sky, fluffy white clouds that were at times close enough to touch, and the barren mountainous terrain.

DSCN0115-2I spent the rest of the day wandering and getting lost and finding that Cusco was in fact a lovely city, even if a bit touristy. The locals were friendly and there were many pleasant squares to have a rest and people watch in the center of town. Because Fiestas Patrias (Independence Day) was coming up, there were many performances to stumble upon. In the main square, Plaza de Armas, I asked for directions to a market where I could buy wool clothing, my one requirement for the day.

DSCN0117In the market I stocked up on the ubiquitous and wonderfully unattractive gringo alpaca/llama gear. I say it’s for gringos because you very rarely see local people adorned in wool clothing covered with a llama design, unless they are babies. It seems to be almost exclusively for tourists. And it’s practically the Andean backpacker’s uniform. I’m  all about individuality, but I was happy to buy cheap local stuff that could keep me warm on my trip! Among my purchases were a zip up llama hoodie, two pairs of llama socks, llama gloves, and a scarf  which was the only thing that didn’t have a llama design.

DSCN0119After a sufficient amount of wandering, making my purchases, and a phone call home, I decided to head back to the hostel. Earlier I signed up for the hostel dinner. They have a dinner menu, but every night they have a special dinner you can sign up for before a certain time. If I remember correctly, it’s 10 soles (about $3.30). I grabbed my dinner and joined a few of the Aussies I met the previous night.

It was a Saturday so the bar was full, and a few people were clearly on the path to getting the party started. I saw one of the hostel bartenders dressed in a really random outfit; he was decked out in safari gear, or at least the cliche of safari gear, complete with binoculars. I wondered why until I remembered that there was a “Jungle Party” that night. I had to get up really early to leave on my Machu Picchu tour, but I decided I would stop by the party for a bit to see what it would be like.

I didn’t really participate in the party, I was sufficiently amused by sitting on sidelines and watching the scene unfold around me. Most of the people who dressed in  a “jungle” theme were hostel employees and long term hostel stayers and there was definitely a strange dynamic between that crowd. The one comparison I can think of is the movie “The Beach” if it instead of an island, it was set at a party hostel in the Andes.

I thought the Loki was a fun place to stay for a few days, but I didn’t quite understand the appeal of staying for an extended period of time and doing the same thing night after night. As I looked around around at the wild and crazy, something a guy said to me at dinner (with slurred speech and while hunched over the table) came to mind: “Cusco is like Vegas– what happens here, stays here.” I stayed through the thoroughly entertaining limbo competition, avoided being sprayed by the limbo winner’s celebratory champagne, and went off to bed.

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Take My Breath Awaaay

by Ekua on August 27, 2009 · 2 comments in Peru

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July 24, 2009

The flight from Lima to Cusco offered the most spectacular views I’ve ever seen from a plane.  My first sight of the Peruvian Andes was a completely unique experience for me. After taking off, it was just moments before we left the grayness of Lima behind for misty valleys, bright blue skies, and rippling mountains.

But after about an hour, I was literally and figuratively brought back down to earth. After stepping off the plane, it wasn’t long before I felt the chill of the air and the lack of oxygen. At 3,300+ meters above sea level, Cusco was very cold and left me gasping for air. Unfortunately, the airport transfer I had arranged through my hostel was nowhere to be found. I dodged taxi touts while struggling to catch my breath, manage my backpack, and make a call to the hostel. When I finally got through to the hostel, it sounded like they had forgotten to arrange my airport transfer and they said someone would be there to pick me up in ten minutes. To get the actual time someone will show up for you in Peru, you need to double or triple the time they tell you. It was a relief when a driver finally showed up with a sign with my name on it.

Approaching Cusco

Cusco from ground level isn’t as nice as Cusco from above.  The bulk of the buildings were depressing brick and cement structures. I’m not sure if it´s true, but I’ve been told Peruvians are taxed if their buildings are finished so many are left unfinished. I’ve also heard businesses are taxed if they want to put up a sign. It’s hard to believe they have such rules when tourism is a major source of income for Peru.

In Cusco, I decided to stay at the Loki Hostel. I heard it wouldn’t be the most cultural experience and I probably wouldn’t get much sleep there, but I figured it would be a good place to meet people. I had reserved a large dorm, but there was a bed available in a triple with two girls from Denmark. My roommates had also just arrived in Cusco but had been traveling for awhile. They had been making their way north through Argentina, Chile and  Bolivia. They had tales of winter storms and surviving the coldest nights of their lives. To them, Cusco felt like a comfortable temperature and altitude compared to some of the other places they visited.

I heard it was a good idea to eat light when first arriving to a high altitude destination so I ordered a salad and sipped a mug of coca tea which is supposed to help with altitude sickness. During this time, it dawned on me that I was alone and had no one to meet up with for the rest of my trip. Looking around the hostel’s common areas, it seemed that everyone seemed to know everyone else and I was on the outside. I thought about how much I enjoyed life in San Francisco and wondered why I would leave behind friends and comfort to travel by myself in cold, uncomfortable places where I knew no one.

First night in Cusco at the Loki

It turns out that was one of very few lonely moments on my trip. Later, I decided to go up to the bar for happy hour. Within seconds I was meeting new people and hanging out with a group of Aussies and my Danish roommates. We exchanged travel stories and talked about about our lives at home. I had a great time and forgot all about my plans to get to bed early. Thinking of all of the new places to see and the new friends to make, I went to bed excited about the possibilities and thrilled to be traveling again.

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