Bill Nye, Neil DeGrasse Tyson, and Mariel JohnWednesday, April 1, 2009
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Peru Day 10 - Lima
Our last day in Peru was back where we started - in Lima. After breakfast, we decided to wander around Miraflores, the neighborhood in Lima where we were staying. While wandering in a park, the craziest thing happened - we ran into Francios! (Our friend from the ISU summer session.) He's on a year long trip through South America, and just happened to see us walking by!
We planned to meet up later for drinks, and then went on sightseeing. One of the highlights - the Mariel Hotel! I almost never find things with my name, so it was kind of exciting.
Jeff and I had lunch at Punto Azul again (the same place we had lunch the first day we were in Peru). We had ceviche, and Jeff had a beer, while I had frozen maracuya (passion fruit) juice. The food was amazing! (again!)
At 2pm, we met Francios at the Larco Mar mall and had beers at a restaurant called Mangoes that overlooks the ocean (another coincidence - the restaurant next to our ISU housing in Barcelona was called "Mango"). He told us about his trip through Argentina, Bolivia, and Peru. We recommended some things for him to do in Ecuador - his next stop (and the only American country Jeff and I have been to, other than Peru). It was such a surprise to run into him - what were the odds!
As the afternoon went on, Jeff and I went to Parc de Amor, overlooking the ocean. It was a pretty park with mosaic tiles and a statue of people kissing. A nice way to relax before heading to the airport and back to the states!
We planned to meet up later for drinks, and then went on sightseeing. One of the highlights - the Mariel Hotel! I almost never find things with my name, so it was kind of exciting.
Jeff and I had lunch at Punto Azul again (the same place we had lunch the first day we were in Peru). We had ceviche, and Jeff had a beer, while I had frozen maracuya (passion fruit) juice. The food was amazing! (again!)
At 2pm, we met Francios at the Larco Mar mall and had beers at a restaurant called Mangoes that overlooks the ocean (another coincidence - the restaurant next to our ISU housing in Barcelona was called "Mango"). He told us about his trip through Argentina, Bolivia, and Peru. We recommended some things for him to do in Ecuador - his next stop (and the only American country Jeff and I have been to, other than Peru). It was such a surprise to run into him - what were the odds!
As the afternoon went on, Jeff and I went to Parc de Amor, overlooking the ocean. It was a pretty park with mosaic tiles and a statue of people kissing. A nice way to relax before heading to the airport and back to the states!
Peru Day 9 - Lake Titicaca
We completed our Lake Titicaca tour on Saturday. After pancakes and Munya tea for breakfast, we headed back to the boat. Our final stop was the island of Tranquille. This island is run like a communist community - a closed community sharing all work and income equally.
They run restaurants for tourists, but only serve one meal - trout, rice, fried potatoes, bread, and a pancake for dessert. Our guide said it's the same every day, no exceptions. The island was pretty and interesting.
Back in Puno we did some last minute shopping - jewelry for me, an alpaca sweater for Jeff, and alpaca winter hats for some of our friends, and then headed back to the hotel. We grabbed sandwiches and bread to go and caught our arranged cab to Juliaca.
The airport at Juliaca was tiny, with just two gates, and presumably only a couple flights a day. Everything (stores, ticketing, security) was closed when we got there and stayed that way until about an hour and a half before our flight. But the flight home was nice and comfortable, and we were happy to land back in warm Lima.
Peru Day 8 - Lake Titicaca
On Friday, we headed out for our trip around Lake Titicaca and its islands. Our tour had 20 people on it - from France, Switzerland, Canada, Brazil, Australia, Norway, and England. The boat moved pretty slowly, so there was time to talk - about healthcare, Obama's economic stimulus plan, traveling, and more. The French couple was from Bordeaux and worked in the wine industry; they had just finished a two-year job in San Francisco, also in the wine industry, and then had driven south to Panama City, sold their car, and continued touring South America by bus and plane.
Our first stop was on one of the floating islands. It was so cool - the islands are made of many layers of reeds, so htey float and can move around the lake. All the houses and other buildings are made of reeds. It reminded me of when I was little and visited my friend's lake - I tried to make an island out of grass - I guess I gave up too soon. :) We met some of the people on the island and went on a trip on a reed boat to another floating island. With little local industry to provide funds, tourism allows these people to have money to buy extra food and other things from Puno.
Our next stop was Amantani, where our group was split up into groups of tow and three to live with a host family for hte night. Jeff and I went "home" for lunch - potatoes, cheese, rice, and soup.
The large group met again in the afternoon to walk up to the highest point on the island - lots more inclined path and stairs - this time at 4000 meters.
Then it was back for dinner before an evening get together in traditional dress for traditional dancing. It was fun, but we were a bit tired.
We talked to our host dad over meals a couple of times. He hosts people a few times a month, more or less. He has never been to Cusco or even further than Juliaca (45 minutes away from Puno). He said during his grandparents' time, there were no tourists, but his generation has grown up with them. Everyone on the island does some farming, though some also do other jobs, like making the roads.
We slept in an extra room in the house - which seemed to have two other rooms - one for eating and one where the family slept.
It poured rain and thundered all night, though we were lucky to glimpse some amazing stars before it started - at the high altitude and with no light polution at all, you could even see the Milky Way!
Our first stop was on one of the floating islands. It was so cool - the islands are made of many layers of reeds, so htey float and can move around the lake. All the houses and other buildings are made of reeds. It reminded me of when I was little and visited my friend's lake - I tried to make an island out of grass - I guess I gave up too soon. :) We met some of the people on the island and went on a trip on a reed boat to another floating island. With little local industry to provide funds, tourism allows these people to have money to buy extra food and other things from Puno.
Our next stop was Amantani, where our group was split up into groups of tow and three to live with a host family for hte night. Jeff and I went "home" for lunch - potatoes, cheese, rice, and soup.
The large group met again in the afternoon to walk up to the highest point on the island - lots more inclined path and stairs - this time at 4000 meters.
Then it was back for dinner before an evening get together in traditional dress for traditional dancing. It was fun, but we were a bit tired.
We talked to our host dad over meals a couple of times. He hosts people a few times a month, more or less. He has never been to Cusco or even further than Juliaca (45 minutes away from Puno). He said during his grandparents' time, there were no tourists, but his generation has grown up with them. Everyone on the island does some farming, though some also do other jobs, like making the roads.
We slept in an extra room in the house - which seemed to have two other rooms - one for eating and one where the family slept.
It poured rain and thundered all night, though we were lucky to glimpse some amazing stars before it started - at the high altitude and with no light polution at all, you could even see the Milky Way!
Peru Day 7 - Cusco to Puno
We spent Thursday on the bus headed from Cusco to Puno. We left the hotel at 8am and arrived in Puno at 5pm. There were five stops along the way. The first was a town with an old Jesuit church with lots of old paintings and gold-covered walls.
The next was a site of the Incan temple, houses and Incan storage buildings, followed by a buffet lunch.
We made a brief stop at the highest point on our drive - 4300 meters!
The last stop was in a town with a museum of pre-Incan artifacts. It was a cool museum, but we were only there for 20 minutes or so, and Jeff got mysteriously sick while we were there (we never figured out what made him feel so ill all of a sudden).
When we got to Puno, we wandered a bit, grabbed some dinner, and got to bed early.
The next was a site of the Incan temple, houses and Incan storage buildings, followed by a buffet lunch.
We made a brief stop at the highest point on our drive - 4300 meters!
The last stop was in a town with a museum of pre-Incan artifacts. It was a cool museum, but we were only there for 20 minutes or so, and Jeff got mysteriously sick while we were there (we never figured out what made him feel so ill all of a sudden).
When we got to Puno, we wandered a bit, grabbed some dinner, and got to bed early.
Peru Day 6 - Machu Piccu
Machu Piccu! 
Today we got up at 4:50am - it was still pitch black, and it was raining, but we made it to breakfast and then onto the first bus up to Machu Piccu at 5:30am. It got lighter as we climbed the switch-backs to get up the mountain. We waited for a few minutes in line for the doors to open and then went in.
We first climbed up to the Watch Tower. The view was spectacular - the rain was down to a sprinkle and the huge clouds and mist were moving quickly across the landscape, so it was constantly changing.
When the rain stopped, we decided to walk to the Incan Drawbridge. It's a 20 to 30 minute walk and is pretty level, but hugs the edge of the mountain, with sheer cliffs if you look over the side. It offers some beautiful views, but definitely makes you watch your step - at most points if you took a couple steps to the side, it'd be a long way down.
From there, we crossed the ruins and decided to head up to Waynu Piccu, the large mountain you can see in the background of pictures of Machu Piccu. I thought at first that the hike might take you up the smaller peak near Machu Piccu, but as we climbed what seemed to be endless stone stairs, we realized that wasn't the case. Jeff guesses we climbed the equivalent of 80 stories, maybe more. We were out of breath the whole way!
We started the hike at 7:45am (you have to sign in when you start, because they only allow 400 people per day to climb). By 8:45am we had made it to the top. The views of Machu Piccu as well as the surrounding mountains and valleys was incredible - worth the hike. We were pretty proud to have made it.
Having done quite a bit of hiking, at 10am we just found a shady spot in the ruins - against one of the terrace walls, and relaxed and read books. I finished "The New Invisible College" and started "The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao," which is a fiction book about a nerdy kid from the Dominican Republic.
Around 11:20am, we headed to the ticket gate to grab some food and meet our guide. After some very refreshing passion fruit juice and a chicken sandwhich, we were ready for the tour. We spent two hours being shown around and hearing about the monuments - normal houses, the temple of the three windows, the sun dial, the temple of the panther, and lots of other things.
After the tour we did a bit more reading, relaxing, and enjoying the view. Around 2:30pm, we could see storm clouds coming in, and content with our eight and a half hours at the ruins, decided to head back to town. We had some palm-heart pizza and Cuscquena beer before catching the train back to Cusco.
Today we got up at 4:50am - it was still pitch black, and it was raining, but we made it to breakfast and then onto the first bus up to Machu Piccu at 5:30am. It got lighter as we climbed the switch-backs to get up the mountain. We waited for a few minutes in line for the doors to open and then went in.
We first climbed up to the Watch Tower. The view was spectacular - the rain was down to a sprinkle and the huge clouds and mist were moving quickly across the landscape, so it was constantly changing.
When the rain stopped, we decided to walk to the Incan Drawbridge. It's a 20 to 30 minute walk and is pretty level, but hugs the edge of the mountain, with sheer cliffs if you look over the side. It offers some beautiful views, but definitely makes you watch your step - at most points if you took a couple steps to the side, it'd be a long way down.
From there, we crossed the ruins and decided to head up to Waynu Piccu, the large mountain you can see in the background of pictures of Machu Piccu. I thought at first that the hike might take you up the smaller peak near Machu Piccu, but as we climbed what seemed to be endless stone stairs, we realized that wasn't the case. Jeff guesses we climbed the equivalent of 80 stories, maybe more. We were out of breath the whole way!
We started the hike at 7:45am (you have to sign in when you start, because they only allow 400 people per day to climb). By 8:45am we had made it to the top. The views of Machu Piccu as well as the surrounding mountains and valleys was incredible - worth the hike. We were pretty proud to have made it.
Having done quite a bit of hiking, at 10am we just found a shady spot in the ruins - against one of the terrace walls, and relaxed and read books. I finished "The New Invisible College" and started "The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao," which is a fiction book about a nerdy kid from the Dominican Republic.
Around 11:20am, we headed to the ticket gate to grab some food and meet our guide. After some very refreshing passion fruit juice and a chicken sandwhich, we were ready for the tour. We spent two hours being shown around and hearing about the monuments - normal houses, the temple of the three windows, the sun dial, the temple of the panther, and lots of other things.
After the tour we did a bit more reading, relaxing, and enjoying the view. Around 2:30pm, we could see storm clouds coming in, and content with our eight and a half hours at the ruins, decided to head back to town. We had some palm-heart pizza and Cuscquena beer before catching the train back to Cusco.
Peru Day 5 - Aguas Calientes
It was Saint Patrick's Day, but it doesn't seem like that holiday is celebrated in Peru. Our day started early - we took the 6:50am train to Aguas Calientes, also called Machu Piccu Pueblo. We had some beautiful views of Cusco as we were leaving town.
Aguas Calientes is on the side of a river, surrounded by incredibly steep mountains, covered in green moss and plants - it's incredibly beautiful. Our hostel overlooked the Urumbamba River, which is beautiful - you can hear the rushing water inside the room.
We were hungry when we arrived, so we had lunch at a cute place with a balcony overlooking the river. We had a set menu and had a chance to try roasted Alpaca. After lunch it rained a bit, so we popped into a cafe with an overhang and a cup fof tea and read our books. Jeff was reading a philosophy book by Karl Popper, and I was reading "The New Invisible College," which is about science networks and international development.
When the rain stopped, we decided to walk to the Machu Piccu Museum, whihc is at the base of the walking path up to Machu Piccu. Though it was raining, it was a nice 20-30 minute walk with beautiful views - it's jungle-like here and very green. The walk back was even nicer, because we knew how far it was and it wasn't raining.
Back at our hostel we relaxed, rested, and read books again before heading to dinner. We ate at Chez Maggy and had a ham, sausage, banana, and egg pizza. Jeff tried the Chica Morada drink - made from purple corn - it was sweet and pretty tasty.
Aguas Calientes is on the side of a river, surrounded by incredibly steep mountains, covered in green moss and plants - it's incredibly beautiful. Our hostel overlooked the Urumbamba River, which is beautiful - you can hear the rushing water inside the room.
We were hungry when we arrived, so we had lunch at a cute place with a balcony overlooking the river. We had a set menu and had a chance to try roasted Alpaca. After lunch it rained a bit, so we popped into a cafe with an overhang and a cup fof tea and read our books. Jeff was reading a philosophy book by Karl Popper, and I was reading "The New Invisible College," which is about science networks and international development.
When the rain stopped, we decided to walk to the Machu Piccu Museum, whihc is at the base of the walking path up to Machu Piccu. Though it was raining, it was a nice 20-30 minute walk with beautiful views - it's jungle-like here and very green. The walk back was even nicer, because we knew how far it was and it wasn't raining.
Back at our hostel we relaxed, rested, and read books again before heading to dinner. We ate at Chez Maggy and had a ham, sausage, banana, and egg pizza. Jeff tried the Chica Morada drink - made from purple corn - it was sweet and pretty tasty.
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