Amazonian Adventures

To conclude my wonderful travels with my dad and Erinn, we took an overnight bus to Puerto Maldonado in the Amazon then a rickety old wooden boat to a lodge in the Amazon. We had fun at night playing cards and admiring the stars- swatting away the bugs. We took the rusty boat out by day and explored a variety of different places. Two of our days were spent at Lago Sandoval, a big lake on a protected reserve. As we got onto our little wooden canoe we started paddling through the thick swampy water, listening to the Erie noises that filled the air. In the distance, it seemed as though wild monsters were roaming free and gave the whole experience a feeling as though we were boating through Jurassic Park. Howler monkeys screamed their wild calls and other noises of birds echoed from all sides. As we paddled through the water eventually the trees opens up and the beautiful lake was revealed in sunlight. We spotted a turtle perched on a log out of the water and a swarm of bright butterflies encircled its head, like colorful splotches of paint. Towards the middle of the lake there were otters playing, squeaking and chirping unlike anything we'd heard before. We ate traditional food from the Amazon region and swung in hammocks while the rain splashed and cooled our sweaty skin. One morning when we went for a hike to see Maccaws, we heard the branches swaying and colliding in from of us and watched as little specks turned into jumping monkeys. The squirrel monkeys hopped from tree to tree, catching themselves with whichever limb available. We watched as about one hundred of them jumped through the trees across the trail, right over our heads. Some were mothers and jumped slower as their babies clung to their backs. It was an incredible experience and I had to pinch myself as a reminder that is was real.

Misty Moments and Macchu Picchu

Macchu Picchu. The holy grail of Peruvian tourist destinations.
Although the ruins are nothing more structurally impressive than something you would find in the city of Cusco, the location is absolutely mind blowing and will leave you sitting on one of its terraces for hours on end, scratching your head as you wonder how they did it and why they chose to build it where they did. Perched on the top of a ridgeline with steep cliffs on both sides, its an incredible feat.
Every day thousands of tourists flood into this place, taking the bus up the steep and tight switchbacks. Despite the abundancy of people with matching hiking clothes and colorful rain ponchos, the magical feeling doesn't seem to dissipate and the energy felt while walking through the ruins in undeniable.
Hiking up to one of the mountains, either Montaña Macchu Picchu or Huayna Picchu affords an incredible view from above, looking down at the mystery that is Macchu Picchu. Though many people offer guided services with tours of all the areas, many of the sites still remain a mystery and one will quickly learn that Peruvians tend to say anything just to shut people up sometimes. With a blank slate, wandering through the ruins allows one to wander through their mind, letting creativity and imagination spin off into deep corners of the mind.
Macchu Picchu is absolutely incredible. 

Magical Mist

The mist conceals the magnificent peaks above as if they're shyly hiding their beauty and grandeur. It gives us an entirely new level of appreciation because we are only permitted to view bits and pieces at a time, forced to combine the puzzle in our minds. We sit, concentrating on the bright white mass in front of our eyes, with a fear that if we look away we very well might miss a magical glimpse through the layer of fog. Every once in a while we are granted with a view and stunned with its glory. This five-second image sticks in our minds and makes us hungry for more. We have a voracious appetite now that we know the possibilities of what's out there. 

Occasionally we hear a thunderous roar in the distance. We listen as a huge mass of glacier falls, tumbling and crushing down thousands of feet. The sounds are amplified because all else remains quiet. It makes us even hungrier to see more. To see what else is out there. 

Sometimes a warm cloud bubbles up from the valley below and we are sprinkled with minuscule droplets. We breathe the fresh air and despite how high we are, our lungs thank us. 

The mist is beautiful. There's a certain energy that accompanies it. A mysterious and eerie feeling in the air. It has a particular way of moving too. From above, it's as if the mist contains a thousand tiny ballerinas, twirling and swirling their way up the mountainside. Each with its own, unique choreography. 

El Día de San Valentín

I arrived in Cusco early in the morning on the 14th and walked through the Plaza de Armas one last time. This city has been my home base for the past two months and I have grown fond of its cobble stone streets, Spanish churches, Incan ruins and happy bustling city vibes. The sun shone down on the plaza as traditional Peruvian flute music drifted through the warm air. Couples walked the street hand in hand and flowers and red balloons filled the city. 

The one main difference however, between the traditional American and the traditional Peruvian Valentine's Day, was the water. In addition to the roses in hand, people strolled the streets armed with water balloons, squirt guns, silly spray and buckets of soapy, sudsy water. 

I walked through the plaza watching as sporadic battles between people broke out, foolishly thinking that I would be immune to the Peruvian tradition. I was wrong. In the end, I rode to the airport with a soaked and soapy shirt, dripping face and a taxi driver nervously double checking that I didn't get any water in my eyes, "esta contaminado" he said.

Felíz día de San Valentín to all!!!

Colca Canyon

In the Incan religion, the trilogy consists of a snake, a puma and a condor. The snake, or "serpiente," represents the underworld and the past. The puma is placed in between the snake and the condor and represents the land, "la tierra" and the present moment, the here and now. Above the two soars the famous Andean Condor, representing the next phase. It is said that the condor flies as a messenger from the gods to the people here on earth. For this reason, it is considered a very sacred bird to many Peruvians. The condor is one of the largest birds that is able to fly. These heavy and huge birds rely solely on the wind, gliding effortlessly and gracefully through the thermal currents above. 

On the first day of my trek through the Colca Canyon, one of these huge birds magestically floated over our heads. According to our guide, this was a good omen and he was granting us safe access through his home, the magnificent Colca Canyon. 

Claimed to be the second deepest canyon in the world, The tremendous cliffs and canyon walls were a beautiful place to wander for three days. On the first we hiked down into the canyon where we stayed in a family hostel near the river. For our second day we walked along the canyon bottom, passing through several very small and remote communities. Inside the canyon is a dry and barren dessert so we were very excited to see the oasis where we would be staying that night. Complete with palm trees and running water into bright blue swimming pools, we enjoyed our afternoon in the sun before hiking up and out of the canyon the following day.

Arequipa

One of the beautiful things about traveling is the spontaneity. One moment I was on a bus with a plan to go to the city of Juliaca to work on a farm, and the next I was buying an overnight bus ticket to the southern city of Arequipa with my new Belgium friend. Sometimes it's simply necessary to listen to the what the universe is telling us.
Arequipa was a wonderful city. It's nick-named the "white city" because of all the beautiful white buildings (compared to the darker stone constructions in Cusco and Lima).
While in the city, my new friend Stephanie and I walked the bustling streets, ate delicious foods and learned some history. We also managed to take a chocolate class and made delicious organic chocolates starting from cacao beans.
Being from a mountain town originally, it's always nice to enjoy a few days of city life. We would sip our coffee with breakfast from the terrace roof of our hostel and look at the three huge surrounding volcanoes while enjoying the sunshine and perfectly pleasant temperature.