Travel With Betsy

To Guide or Not to Guide……..

…….that is the question…….

In years past when traveling to new places, I never hired a guide to give me a tour of anything. I did my research, took along tour books and saw what I could. I still do that.  But, ever since my trip to Costa Rica a few years ago when I hired someone to walk me through Manuel Antonio Park, I have changed my leanings on this for some types of exploration. In Manuel Antonio, the guide pointed out animals that blended into the flora of the forest that I would never have seen had he not pointed them out. I find it the same with a walking tour when the walk is the main event.   Last week in the Cardesa and Roma sections of Mexico City, had we not opted to hire a private guide, we would have missed some of the interesting, more obscure things in these areas as well as their stories, which is the point of the exercise.

A private guide, you say?!

Isn’t that expensive?!

Well……it depends on your perspective. We had a full 9 hour walking tour that included transportation to and from our hotel, a multi-course lunch in a French deli……with a bottle of wine……,

……..a coffee at the “witches coffee shop…..here are the pictures of the witches……..,

and a special Mexican chocolate treat in the mid-afternoon just as we were needing a boost.   But, the best value of the tour was in the expertise and knowledge of our trained local tour guide, Roberto, who walked us through the neighborhood where he lives and the one adjacent to visit and view some of the places that are on his personal “hit parade”.

What is that worth? Let’s see………

As we walked along, we got a lesson on the history of Mexico City and how these neighborhoods were developed. Mexico City has 22 million inhabitants in a 60 square mile area. It is the third largest mass of people per square foot in the world. The city sits on a maze of canals that were filled in years ago, so the foundation of the city has some weaknesses. Some of the buildings are sinking.

The neighborhoods were developed and designed by European immigrants who came to Mexico City and incorporated elements of their own culture into the areas where they settled.

For example, the Roma neighborhood was an area where many wealthy French immigrants settled. Much of the architecture there reflects the Gothic style that is typical of the older sections of France. You can see this reflected in this old home.

Inside the house was a mixture of the Gothic, Baroque and Art Deco styles of design.

Across the street was another house that looked very similar. And, across the street from both of them was the church that anchored the neighborhood, built by the people who lived in these homes.

Next to the church was a small museum that most people miss that tells the story of Father Miguel Pro who was executed by the Mexican government in the early 1900s for going against the government’s ban on religion. The Mexican government thought that the church was getting a little too full of itself. Imagine that!

It’s all about control…..isn’t everything?

So, Father Pro went underground to perform church services, weddings, funerals and other religious rites. When his antics were discovered by the government, he was made an example and killed at gunpoint, execution style…..with his arms outstretched….a martyr. He is in line now to become a saint.

I can support that.   No one is asking me. But, if they do, he has my vote!

Our guide took us to several of his favorite art galleries, which are abundant in the Roma area. And, we visited the home of Ramon Lopez Valarde, a famous Mexican poet……deceased of course.

In the home, we walked through the closet in his bedroom…

yes, the closet….

….to a very secretive avant-garde museum that reflects his lifetime struggle with his own internal opposing thoughts. For example, he wanted to be a priest, but liked the ladies too much….had syphilis in fact when he died, which put him out of the running for priesthood. The whole museum was set up to reflect these dichotomies. It was highly unusual, but very interesting…..and off the beaten path.

In the Cardesa neighborhood we found a more residential feel with groupings of restaurants and shops at different intervals in between the houses and apartments.  This area was developed by a group of Jewish immigrants. Again, there was a mix of architectural styles reflected in the houses and shops that lined the streets.

It was also here that we saw some of the sad devastation from the recent earthquake.

Although the Cardesa section seemed more residential, both of these neighborhoods had lots of green spaces for the enjoyment of the residents.

They were delightful.

Now……back to the question on the value of the private guide.

We saw things that were obvious. But, we also saw many things we would have not found on our own. Without the guide we would have been looking at the sections and the buildings. But, we really wouldn’t have learned too much. And, we wouldn’t have gotten the personal insights into Mexico City and the neighborhoods that we gleaned from talking to Roberto.

And, honestly, in places like Mexico, a private guide doesn’t cost as much as you think it might. We were happily surprised when we tallied up our bill at the end of the day.

So, what’s a private guide worth, you ask?

I say….. it’s “priceless”…….

…by Mexico City….

I’m not sure what I was expecting from Mexico City when I agreed to meet my travel buddy, Jody, there for a few days before we headed out to San Miguel de Allende for a “girls” weekend with some former work buddies. Lately, I had read that Mexico City is an up and coming travel destination boasting excellent food, amazing accommodations, incredible art and interesting architecture. But, I had no idea that I would find so much there in my four days of exploration. I left there feeling totally blown away……..and totally wanting more.

Mexico City is divided into neighborhoods much like those that I found in Buenos Aires when I visited a few years back. We visited……or at least passed through……most of the neighborhoods that tourists frequent and found each one to be interesting in its own way with its own unique characteristic.

Our first exploration was in the area around our hotel in the “Zocalo” neighborhood, which is the heart of the city. Our hotel was directly across from a grand cathedral planted in the middle of a large square.

The hotel has a rooftop restaurant where we had breakfast every day, evening drinks and a few light dinners.

From this vantage point, we had a great view of the “action” around the cathedral as well as other interesting points in the square. Much to our surprise, this included an ice skating rink, of all things, at one end, which we decided was probably a leftover from Christmas.

We wandered through the square on our first day, which happened to be Sunday, and found a group of people who had come by to be “purified” in a traditional ceremony.

The “purification” ceremony was, of course, of interest to us, as we thought that we may also need to be “purified”.

One can never be too sure. After some close observation, though, we decided that we were “pure” enough and, so, didn’t participate. But, Jody did come across someone who we both thought would make a fine next husband for one of us….very cute…well built with a very tight butt….and, as a bonus, very creative attire.

We left the ceremony and did some more wandering through the Zocalo section and discovered a lovely park…..

……..lots of street vendors and a multitude of art museums.

One of the museums had a classical music concert being projected on a screen outside. There were lots of local people sitting in rows listening to the music. What a lovely way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

Jody and I are both veteran travelers, so this next point of interest will be hard to believe. Neither of us anticipated that we might have cool weather. Jody was a little more prepared than I was, with a light sweater, thin scarf and some closed toed shoes.

But, not me!

I came with the clothes I would wear at home at this time of the year….light tops, summer weight pants and summery shoes. I did have a sweater. But, as Jody pointed out, its weave had large holes, which wouldn’t provide much warmth with morning and evening temperatures anywhere from 35-55 degrees. So, we spent a fair amount of time on the first day on the shop-lined pedestrian street behind the hotel shopping for an outfit of warm clothes for me. I bought a sweater jacket, long sleeved shirt and a scarf that I used mostly as a blanket. With my funny brown packable hat, I looked like a true local.

I wore this getup every day…..same shirt, different day as they say. I am still wearing the outfit on my travel back home.

You are lucky to be reading this from another location! I desperately need a change!

In our Zocalo neighborhood we also found the first in a 10 day line-up of very inexpensive, but excellent food experiences. Our best deal on food, was at a pizza restaurant on one of the side streets from our hotel. We had 2 bottles of water, 2 Heinekens and 2 personal sized pizzas for about $10. And, it was good!

It was also here that we learned the Spanish word for bottle…..botella….for those of you who don’t know. The waiter had no English and I almost ended up with a “draft” beer, which would be just fine in the United States. But, I wasn’t sure about Mexico. I am a careful drinker in places where the water is suspect. Is there water in “draft” beer? No idea….and no reason to tempt fate. But, we had a good evening snack and a lot of fun trying to communicate with the wait staff.

So, we decided after our first day, that we were going to like this city. And, I decided that my maneuver through the complications of getting out of my small town for this adventure would be worth the effort if the other days were as good as this one!

I was hopeful………

….and blown away by my first day in Mexico City……

The thing I like most about travel…..especially travel in a disadvantaged country like Peru…. is that it gives you perspective. I am a thinker. I think about everything……good things…..bad things……in between things.   Frankly, in my everyday life, it wears me out. And, the worst part is that much of what I get focused on and think to death are things that don’t really matter in the grand scheme of things. For instance, who cares if my black pants are a different color of black from my black top! Doesn’t matter, yet I still give that some serious thought from time to time. Sometimes, I think I should just stop thinking and be grateful in the moment for the good fortune that I am experiencing right now. And, as I am now thinking about the local people that I have met along the way in Peru and the obstacles they have to overcome in their lives every single day just to stay afloat, I am even more convinced that I need to give the thinking thing a rest for awhile and just look around me and be grateful. That’s the benefit of travel. One gains perspective.

Throughout our trip, we have been exposed to people that have a hard “row to hoe”….every single day. They work hard to make enough money to take care of themselves and their families, to keep their families together and to keep their history and culture alive. They are an industrious and proud people who have a great love of country. Here are some of our most humbling moments……

My favorite stop was at one of the local schools in the Puno/Lake Titicaca area.

There, we met a small classroom of students who were learning about mammals, when we interrupted them with our visit. The students and teachers, of course, knew that we were coming and had prepared some questions for us and…….a little off-Broadway number. Ha! It was cute! This little boy………

…and his buddy were balls of energy…..

Education of the children is not an easy task in the outlying areas of Peru. There are not a lot of schools, so some of the children travel miles in order to get to school. And, because there is always a lot of work to do at home with farming or taking care of animals, education is not always the priority of the parents.   As an added bonus, the government pays for the salaries of the teachers. But, if there aren’t enough students to warrant a class, they can’t justify a school. So, the teachers don’t have jobs and the children don’t get educated. So, not only do the teachers have the responsibility to educate, in many of these areas they must also take on the task of getting the children to school. Many of them go around to the homes, collect the children and bring them in to the school. We saw this kind of a system twice in our travels. It’s quite a challenge for the teachers and also for the children. But, we met 2 very dedicated teachers who are doing this. I hope they will make progress in their classrooms.

We also had another unique experience in the Lake Titicaca/Puno area. We visited the floating islands of Uros.

Here, there is a small tribe of people who actually live on islands made of reeds. It sounds unbelievable, yet it’s true! The islands “float” in the lake on blocks of roots that grow in the lake. The inhabitants harvest these roots and then bind together with rope and anchor them to the bottom of the lake. After they get the root system in place, they gather reeds that also grow in the lake, bind them together into pads and stack them all up on the roots. When they get enough reed pads, it makes a very serviceable, albeit spongy floor. About every 30 days, they gather and stack more reeds on top because the water disintegrates them fairly quickly.

The inhabitants build reed houses and fashion cooking areas on the soft floors that this system of reeds creates.

There are quite a few of these “islands” all connected together into a community. One of the schools I reference above is also on one of the islands. The teacher, whom we met, takes a boat to each tiny island and gathers the children so that they can justify the school. Hard to believe! This group supports themselves with tourist activity and by selling beautiful, handmade crewel and embroidery work.

Arturo, our guide, said that they live on these “floating” islands because it’s cheaper and because they don’t have to pay taxes. It got me to thinking about where I could build a community such as this one near to where I live in California. We have lots of ocean there. But, I was stopped by the thought of the toilet situation. If one has to go to the bathroom, they board a tiny boat to go out into the lake to do their business. This would not work for me as I have many nights of multiple trips to the bathroom. Part of aging, it seems. It would be a real nuisance to have to paddle out into the lake at night each time I needed to relieve myself. Oh boy!! I am grateful for my indoor plumbing and solid floor.

In Cusco, we had an opportunity to have dinner with a local family.

This was also an interesting and educational experience. We entered their home through a typical shop stocked with an odd mix of water, food, sundries, and other goods that was similar to others we had seen just about everywhere. We walked to the back of their shop to enter their bi-level living space.

We emerged into a small, open, and very dark gravel covered courtyard in the shape of a small square that was enclosed by the walls of the housing. On the first level, on the sides of the courtyard was a cluttered jumble of extra inventory of goods for the shop. On the right and left and behind us on the second level were the doors to the living quarters. Strung across the open courtyard on the second level of the open space were criss-crossing lines where a good variety of clothing of all sizes and shapes were drying. There were at least 3 generations of the family living behind those doors.

The door directly in front of us led to a large room that was the full length of one side of the square area. This is where the family eats, all together….all generations…..from baby to great grandma. It was brightly colored with a long table that was enough to seat our whole group and the family.

There, we had a typical meal that had been prepared by and served by the family. After they served us, they joined us for dinner.

I can’t say that it was my favorite meal of the trip, but it was certainly interesting. We started with a thick, gelatinous green soup that was made from the dehydrated potatoes that are common all over Peru. Anything made with these potatoes has an odd, musty kind of flavor. Of course, this translated into the soup. It was the only thing on the whole trip that I was just unable to swallow. I had a small taste and left the rest. The next course was a simple, but delicious, chicken dish made with a sauce of sweet yellow peppers….

….that was served with rice and was followed by a dessert made with a type of sweet tomato that tasted much like a peach.

It had been stewed in a syrupy, sugar water concoction and topped off with cinnamon. And, then we had Coca Tea with Pisco.

While this meal was touted as a “typical” meal, my guess is that this is a much better meal than they would typically have. The family was so gracious….and, they seemed to be very happy all together in their small space, enjoying us and each other. It made me think about the importance of family and friends and how we, as Americans, sometimes overlook the simple pleasure and satisfaction of being together with people we care about. It certainly gave me something to think about.

I will add that the guides we had along the way, especially the ones I had in Nasca, all talked about how hard it is to make any real money in Peru, even if you are educated. The last guide I had, Oscar, who was running his own fairly extensive guiding business, said that he just wanted to be like me. He wanted to be able to make enough money to travel wherever he wanted to go. It probably won’t happen. Very sad…..

So, there you have it. Just a few of the things we saw in Peru that made me stop and think about how good my life is in the United States and how grateful I am to be able to pursue my interests. I no longer care whether my black top matches the black in my black pants. I think I will stop thinking about that now and just be grateful that I have a black top and black pants that I can launder in my washing machine at home and don’t have to string across my courtyard to dry at my beautiful home in California that sits on firm ground.

Perspective, my friends……perspective………

Condors take flight in Colca Canyon.

About mid-way into our tour of Peru, we had an opportunity to see the Peruvian Condors in flight……. and some other things, too, in Colca Canyon and Colca Valley.

The Condors were one of the most highly revered creatures of the ancient Incas and were a fundamental part of the culture. You see them depicted everywhere, particularly in artistry and craft work of the Peruvian people.  The Condor is the strongest and biggest of all of the birds. The ancient Incas believed that they were messengers, carrying the spirits of the dead to heaven. Because they had such meaning to the Incas, a trip to Peru would not be complete without making an effort to view them. The Condors spend a lot of their time in the Colca Canyon, so that’s where we went to try to get a glimpse of these majestic creatures.

On the morning of our visit to see the Condors, we were up and on the bus at 6:00 am (or something like that). It seems that the Condors have a schedule, too. They are up and at ‘em early. If you aren’t up and at ‘em at the same time, you will miss them. Not that the Condors have anything really important to do in, mind you. As far as I can tell, their lives consist of soaring through the air with their still wings spread wide as they glide along with the thermal current in and out of the crevices of the canyon, foraging for food….and that’s about it….except for the messenger thing….if you believe that!

I will say that they are beautiful to watch and create a kind of calming influence that is relaxing and peaceful as they float through the air. It reminded me, in a way, of the fish living in the tanks we put in the Alzheimer’s units in the nursing homes in which I have worked. Those suffering the agitation, that is symptomatic of the disease, would become mesmerized by the consistent, slow and fluid movements of the fish, resulting in a peaceful feeling for the affected person. It would be easy to become mesmerized by the smooth flight of the Condor, as well. In Colca Canyon, we were lucky to see many graceful Condors as we stood at the side of the ridge of the canyon. This is their “mating” season. So, we saw some flying alone and some in pairs, as they readied themselves for their “mating” rituals.

Aside of flying and “mating”, Condors really have no other goal than to look for food. They are scavengers, like the vulture. They don’t have any talons on their feet, so they are always on the look out for “roadkill” left by other animals or just animals with prey that they can steal. The Condors are also smart in their own way and wait for foxes and other animals to start to eat their prey before taking it away. If the fox…or his conterpart….doesn’t die, then it’s OK for the Condor to eat the dead prey. Pretty smart fellas!

Colca Canyon and Valley were probably my favorite places in terms of diversity and beauty of scenery. The canyon, of course, is like our Grand Canyon….only deeper (We were not able to go to the deepest part. It would have taken us about 4 days to walk in. No time on this little adventure.).….and, the valley is lush with farming and full of the tiered terraces left behind by the Incas.

The views from just about everywhere are quite dramatic. Our hotel was actually a lodge, nestled up against the side of the mountain in the Colca Valley. The hotel had the most spectacular backdrop and view of all the places we stayed in our travels.

It also had some fine amenities that Jody and I both took advantage of. This is where we had one of the few free afternoons of the trip. We each treated ourselves to an excellent massage and later a delicious Pisco Mojito in the lounge…..my new favorite drink!

We visited some small towns in this area that I also liked very much and had a fantastic buffet lunch that began with an avocado salad that was made with very simple ingredients, but boasted very complex flavors.  This is the chef.  She was very happy to share her recipe for the salad!

It seems that the Peruvians never need an excuse for a market or a party. In the small towns that we passed along the way, here and in other locations, we saw market after market with vendors selling just about the same kinds of goods made of baby Alpaca or “maybe Alpaca”, as Arturo, our guide, would often say. Regardless, I think just about everyone in our group, including me, fell prey to these roadside markets and bought something. The prices were unbelievably reasonable, so many of us didn’t care if we were getting “maybe Alpaca” instead of the real thing.

We also saw many of the young women with Alpacas in tow, hoping to make a small bit of money by providing photo opportunities to tourists who were enchanted by the animals. I contributed to this cause twice along the way. I just loved these doe-eyed, friendly animals.

This Alpaca was taking a little break.  As I walked by, I noticed that he was sleeping.  I was very taken by the affection that the young woman next to him had for her charge.  She was very carefully and lovingly petting him while he slept.  These animals are very important for the livelihood of the people.  I was happy to see that at least this one is well cared for.

We also saw a group of young people in the town square of Chivay, one of the small towns, demonstrating some native dances, skirts opening wide as they twirled and danced around the fountain in the square. They were also hoping for some tourist dollars to help in funding their prom. Teenagers are the same everywhere. I made a contribution here, too.

Peru has a lot of poverty and for some of these people, these strategies are their only means of support. I could afford 1 Sol (about 30 cents) every now and then to help them.

Our last big event in the Colca Valley came in the middle of the night. It was one of my better nights of sleep in the higher elevation areas. In the midde of the night, my peaceful slumber was interrupted with some fairly significant rumbling and a little bit of movement. We learned the next day that it was an earthquake. There had been one a few weeks before as well. They had to clear some rubble from the road before we could go on to our next destination.

I have lived in California for 8 years without an earthquake. I had to come to Peru to experience this. Go figure!

Soaring with the Condors and bopping with the bumping of an earthquake! Chalk up a few more experiences for this world traveler!

Cooking With Gas……in Cusco……

We finally had a “free” day when we hit Cusco. So, Jody and I decided that we would take a cooking class.   I love to cook…..Jody doesn’t. But, she likes to eat. So, she was more than happy to come along for the ride. And, what a ride it was!

As it turns out, the class was much more than just cooking. Jose, at the Marcello Battati restaurant, was our guide as we tasted our way through the yummy foods of Peru….. right there in his own kitchen. And, to top it off, we were in the class with Wade and his daughter, Natasha. They are from California…..San Diego and San Francisco respectively. We all exchanged information about what we did and where and then got down to the business of cooking! What a fun pair! Together we learned about, cooked, and sampled the foods of Peru! It was definitely a highlight of the trip for me so far!

We started in the bar area where we donned our aprons and toques (this was a sight to behold)

and then got some instruction on the ground rules in the kitchen……you know….washing of hands, bathrooms, how not to cut your fingers off with the knives…….

After we got all of that business over with, Jose introduced us to the fruits of Peru.

We tasted about 10 different fruits. Jody and I had seen some of them in the markets that we visited along the way. But, of course, couldn’t taste them because of sanitation issues. So, it was fun to be able to try them rather than just look at them. The flavors were all over the board and ranged from sweet to tangy and something in between. The textures were also varied from soft to runny and seedy and finally to firm. We learned that the Peruvians like things very sweet, so the sweeter fruits were the favorites of the locals. But, I honestly preferred the more tart fruits. Wakes up the taste buds!

We were then given several small appetizer that had been prepared in the kitchen of the restaurant.

It was at this point that we could see the real passion that Jose has for food! He talked to us about the flavors of the appetizers and the textures of the food and how important it is to mix these things together when eating. He was right. The combination of sweet, salty, crunchy, and smooth all in one bite was delicious and very satisfying! What a great lesson!

After these initial treats, we moved into another room where a small “market” had been set up that was reminiscent of our visits to the street markets along our journey. Although, it was set up solely for instructional purposes, it was quite impressive.

As I looked around the room, I saw bins of all types of vegetables and grains that are used in Peruvian cooking. Then, we became educated on the most important foods….potatoes, peppers, quinoa and corn.

The Peruvians don’t eat a lot of meat, so the diet is focused primarily on these grains and vegetables as well as fish and some chicken.

Qunioa is used often as a source of protein. Although it doesn’t have as much protein as meat, it is more efficiently and more easily processed in the body. So, it is a very good protein source that is actually better for us than meat. We looked at about 4 different kinds of quinoa that is grown and processed in Peru…fun colors, too! When I get back to cooking in my own kitchen, I am going to do more with quinoa. We have had it here in all kinds of dishes, both savory and sweet. We even had quinoa strudel on the train to Machu Picchu. It wasn’t my favorite, but I applaud the Peruvians for their creativity an healthy choices.

Here’s a fun fact for you. There are about 3500 different types of potatoes being grown in Peru!

We, of course, have not had all of them in the short time we have been gone, but we made a good dent. Potatoes are served at every meal here in Peru, often in addition to rice or quinoa. So, the meals are a bit “carb” heavy as compared to the American diet. We viewed about 12 varieties of potatoes here in Jose’s “market”.

We also surveyed all of the different kinds of corn. I forget now how many different kinds there are, but there are all shapes and sizes of kernels, as well as a rainbow of colors. Some corn is grown to feed the animals, but much of it is used for “people” food. I think my favorite preparation has been the roasted kernels that I mention above that are served in the bar…..crunchy and salty…..my favorite combination!

And, of course, there were the peppers ranging from the sweet bell peppers that we all know, to the more spicy kind that will make your eyes and nose run. Again, quite a range of flavors…..and colors. My favorite!

Now, down to business. We moved to the kitchen for our first cooking experience. We made “ceviche”, probably the most popular and known dish here in Peru.

I am not a big fan of raw fish. I find it to be smelly and “fishy” tasting and I don’t care for the texture. But, here, with a milder type of fish (we used Mahi-Mahi) and a quick “cook” in key lime juice, I thought it was fantastic! The combination of flavors and spices in the sauce were very complimentary and I loved the texture. We plated it up with some sweet potato cubes and some of the crunchy roasted corn that we have had as a snack in all of the bars along the way. Of course, we mixed all of this together on our forks to get the benefit of all of the flavors and textures. Just great!

This was followed by an education on the famed “Pisco” and a hands on tutorial on how to make a Pisco Sour, the national drink.

The official version has 3 shots of “Pisco” in it (YIKES!) and is shaken with 6, count ‘em, 6 ice cubes, some lime juice, simple syrup and raw egg white that adds a little fizz to the final product. We combined the whole mess in a metal “shaker” like you would use for a martini and shook until our arms just about dropped off.   But, we shook with a smile…

….one of the requirements of making this yummy drink! A finish of bitters and this little gem was ready…..and delectable!

All liquored up, we were now ready to make the main course, Lomo Saltados, the 2^nd most important dish in Peru. It’s kind of a stir-fry, made in a “wok” of all things, with fresh vegetables, soy sauce and, of course, a little “Pisco”…..to add a spot of flame action….

We used Alpaca meat for those of us who eat meat. The others used shrimp. You can also use chicken. The process on making this dish moves very quickly. Jose lit up the gas burners where we would cook our meals. He stood in the middle of our group and shouted directions. We quickly and chaotically added ingredients to the “woks” and shook and stirred until we thought our arms would fall off. At one point, we were swirling the “woks”, that were flat against the burner, to the right in a circular motion and swirling our hips in the other direction to create some momentum in the “wok”. If you think this didn’t send me into a laughing fit, you would be mistaken. I could barely contain myself as I did this and watched the technique of the others.

Once we completed the cooking, we had to let the dish “rest” for a few minutes while we feverishly plated the rest of our meal. As Jose shouted directions, we measured the rice, French fries and then finally topped the dish with the stir-fry. I felt like I was in that Gordon Ramsey show for amateur cooks!

Afterwards, we all sat down together to try our creations! Delicious!

As we came to the end of our time together, Wade looked at me and said, “I feel like I have met you before. What is the name of the winery where you work?”

As it turns out, I served him at “Talley” at the end of the summer when I was working behind the tasting bar. Now, that’s what we call a small world!

I just love travel! I get to meet people from all over the world and some from my own stomping grounds as well!

All in all, it was a hot time in Cusco cooking with gas……and Picso……and some new friends!

Salut!

“Be different…….. so people can see you clearly amongst the crowds.”

My travel buddy, Jody, is blonde and very tall. She always stands out in a crowd……in a good way, of course. Here in Peru, she is definitely one of a kind, as most people are short and chunky with dark skin and black hair. While I blend into the crowd a little bit, Jody often garners the attention of the locals because she looks so different from them and is quite a bit taller. Yesterday, on our day in Machu Picchu, we were both grateful for the difference. I could see her and she could see ahead of the crowds to help guide the way. I really think that she helped to keep our entire Gate 1 group together!

I can honestly say that in all of my travels….even in Rome….I have never seen crowds like I saw yesterday at Machu Picchu. All I could see as I stood in the line for the “Vistadome” train,  for the bus up to the site,

….to enter the attraction and the line we formed with our tour guide, Arturo, were the bumps of hundreds of hats with some black and white heads  sprinkled in, that were the same height as me.

I couldn’t see over them. But, Jody, with her head a bit over the crowd was able to see a little further ahead…..and, we all could see her. As we climbed up and down through the ancient Incan city of Machu Picchu, I would often look up to see if I could find Jody.

I am so glad to have seen Machu Picchu. It’s everything you always hear about….striking architecture and construction with perfectly symmetrical stones, ingenious strategies for providing food and water for those living in the intricate cities they built, and seriously unbelievable views. But….. I don’t need to do it again. The crowds were overwhelming and the experience of waiting in line with all of your stuff….walking stick, water holder and backpack as well as the frequent checks of tickets and passports was enough to make me realize that this is truly a “once in a lifetime” experience…..at least it is for me.

But, what an experience!

We have been learning a lot about the intelligence and ingenuity of the Incas since we have been in Peru. But, these ancient cities like Machu Picchu clearly illustrate how superior these folks really were. They are on par, or maybe even a step above, the Romans in building and construction. The Romans were also building very advanced structures, but they were doing a lot of it on flat land. The Incas were building cities on the sides of mountains.

It is absolutely mind-boggling what these people were able to do with just their brains, a lot of elbow grease and some very primitive tools. It took then awhile, but the result of their efforts was quite dramatic and lasting. They were experts in mathematics, geometry and logistics.

The major cities, like Machu Picchu, were all developed in and around the sides of mountains. The Incas believed that the mountains had special significance and mystical powers. So, they picked these seemingly impossible spots on which to build cities so that they could benefit from the powers. Many of the structures within the cities were built so that they could honor and please the gods, of which there were many.

For me, the thing that really showcased the skill of the Incas was that all of the walls were made of huge pieces of carved stone, many of which were carried from neighboring mountains. They brought the stones to their final resting places by pushing them up and down primitive ramps that they built for this purpose. Then, they cut the stones and used other harder sorts of stones to polish them.  No one knows exactly how the Incas were able to carve these stones so perfectly.  After the stones were carved and polished, they were lined up together perfectly fitted and aligned. Most of them are not attached together with mortar. They just sit perfectly together side by side and on top of each other in rows.

In order to have fruits, vegetables and grains for food, they made terraces that jutted out from the sides of the mountains and planted gardens.

When you see them from a distance, they look like stripes on the sides of the mountain. The terraces gave them flat surfaces for planting and the position of the terraces allowed them to take advantage of the melting snow from mountain peaks to irrigate their crops. They were also meticulous about what they planted where. Some things needed to be lower in a warmer climate and others did fine up high. At Machu Picchu, we could still see the terraces lined up in rows on the sides of the mountain.

The Incas also had a clever drainage system that allowed for water from the melting snow to run down the mountains and into stone ditches that ran into large waterfalls where the 1200-1500 people in the city would come to get their water.

I was very captivated with not only the genius of the Incas, but also their dedication to their culture and religion. They worked together as a society to build these cities and a way of life. It’s hard to imagine.

It was a remarkable experience to view these “wonders” and to wander around back in time with the Incas. You should do a little “wandering”, too. But, if you do, you should probably begin to line up now….or, at least bring your tall, blonde friend!

Once in a lifetime experience….literally!

…to buy…well, just about anything you can think of. What an interesting mix of items.

The market was the first stop on our tour of Arequipa. I have seen some markets in my day, but I can’t say that I have ever seen a group of items quite like this. I’m not kidding, we saw everything from the typical fruits and vegetables…..

…..to fish roe with the membrane still stretched over it…..

……to whole chickens with blank eyes staring down pointed, lifeless beaks and feet with limp talons reaching out towards us……

……to potatoes, and lots of them. We learned from Liliana, our very excellent Gate 1 Travel Guide, that there are about 3,000 different kinds of potatoes grown in Peru.   We saw only a fraction of them….and tasted even less of them in our time here so far. But, they come with every meal made in all different ways.

There was also a section of the market that was dedicated to medicinal herbs and other items used as good luck charms.

This little baby llama fetus is one of the good luck charms we saw. Strange, but nice to know they only use fetus’ that are found in the fields and are as a result of a miscarriage of the mother.  No killing is going on here.

Liliana would stop every now and then as she led us through the market to give us an explanation about what we were seeing and sometimes a small taste of the items that were safe for us to eat.

Then, she would pass around a roll of toilet tissue, and we would all rip off a piece and wipe our hands, which I found to be a very strange custom. I’m guessing that toilet tissue is cheaper to purchase than napkins……..not sure. This is all I can figure out! After all, everything is usually about money, isn’t it?

Our trip to the market was the start of an interesting, albeit long, day that culminated in the Colca Valley after a drive through the highest point that we would reach on this trip at a little over 16,00 feet. Whew…still trying to catch my breath!

Anyway, our next stop in Arequipa was at the Santa Catalina Monastery.

I can’t say that I have ever visited such a place on any of my trips, and I found the early customs of this type of life to be quite interesting.  The monastery was where they trained young girls to be nuns. So, it was a convent as well….and, still is. It’s story made me grateful that I didn’t live in the 18^th century when this institution was getting started…and, here’s the reason why. Around age 12, the direction of a young girl’s life was decided. If there were 2 girls in a family, the oldest one married and had a family. The youngest one went to the convent and was “married” to the church. Both of which, by the way, required a dowry. I am the younger of 2 girls in my family. So, in this scenario, I would have become a nun. Can’t imagine it…someone telling me what to do all the time? I don’t think so!

The upside to living in the convent then, was that the life was pretty easy especially if your parents had some money and could provide a nice dowry to the church. In that case, the girls had their own rooms that were actually pretty big and looked to be fairly comfortable. It also seemed that they were well taken care of and quite looked after. Later on in the girl’s life with the church, the wealthy nuns could run for office in the convent and had some freedoms to make decisions for themselves and the other nuns.. It seems that with money comes power……surprise…..surprise.

Over time, the life of the nuns changed with the oversight of Sister Joseph Cadena.   There were no longer the freedoms that the nuns had once seen. The transition was so dramatic, that the other nuns tried to poison her….3 times! Then, they went to confession and absolved of their sin. What a story! Suffice to say that the life of the nuns was changed forever.

The monastery itself is quite beautiful. It is divided up into streets that were designed and named after cities in Spain. Here are a few of them.

After the tour, we headed to a local restaurant for lunch before heading to Colca. At the restaurant, our group was treated to a fun concert by local musicians while we ate! Dinner and a show! Fun times!

After lunch, we boarded the bus and began our ascent to our highest point of the trip.

The guides had instructed us to drink lots of water in order to combat the altitude sickness. You don’t have to tell me twice.

On the way up, we stopped at a famous coffee stop for some coca tea, also a good cure for altitude sickness.

As it turns out, the copious amounts of water and the coca tea paid off, and I did pretty well with the high altitude point. Some of the others in our group didn’t fare quite as well and ended up short of breath, headaches, nausea and diahrea. I could definitely feel the altitude and had to remember to take deep, long breaths to capture every possible molecule of oxygen. When we descended to our hotel in Colca Valley, I did muster up a small headache. But, trusty ibuprofen did the trick in taking it away. It was actually one of the best night’s sleeps of the trip for me so far. Hoping for another one!

Off to a good start in Peru!

laugh……really hard.

I have been laughing…..really hard……for days as we have traveled up and down and up and down and up through the Andes Mountains in Peru. Yesterday, we hit about 14,000 feet, (not even our highest spot so far) to stop in front of a very picturesque picnic area overlooking Lake Titicaca…..

….to have lunch. I looked around at the 17 of us who are on this adventure together with the fine guides of Gate 1 Travel. We were all bundled up with down jackets, our heads wrapped in scarves to protect us from the wind and unending dust, eating with one hand, and holding on to the containers of our box lunches with the other to insure that they didn’t fly away. I stood in the middle of the group, surveyed this comical scene, and just started laughing. I couldn’t stop.

Then, I went to the bathroom at our stopping location and took the allotted piece of toilet tissue that went with the 1 Sol (about 30 cents) I paid to use the toilet, out of the tiny box next to the metal door of the bathroom…..

….did my business and threw the toilet tissue in the garbage pail next to the toilet, as is the custom everywhere in Peru, even in our very fine 4 and 5 star hotels. The plumbing here is not strong enough to process toilet tissue. Makes you wonder how they process anything more than peepee. As I came out of my tiny stall, I watched, as the attendant went to each small toilet stall with a bucket and fished out the toilet paper that people had forgotten to throw in the small trash cans. Once again, I looked around and started to laugh. I couldn’t stop.

Then, last night we finally came to the 5 star hotel destination in Lake Titicaca where we would spend 2 nights at about 10,000 feet. We were so excited at the prospect of a good night’s sleep. Sleep does not come easily at high elevations. By now, we have both had more than a few rough nights. I went to the room first after dinner and lay down on my bed hoping for sleep. Then, Jody came and lay down on her bed. The room was hot. We had no control of the temperature. We couldn’t open the windows. And, to top if off, we were provided down comforters as sheets. I heard Jody muttering, “What the hell”.  I looked at her and mentioned that we could be in the Swiss Alps with this massive covering, and we both just melted into laughter.   I couldn’t stop.

I’m still laughing!

So, here’s the first thing I have learned about myself so far on this trip. High elevations make me giddy. I couldn’t figure it out at first, but that’s my conclusion. If I want a good laugh, I can just head to the highest elevation that is near me and let loose.

I have also learned that, just like my blow up back pillow, my body, particularly my feet, swell up like water balloons. And, whatever is being harbored in my sinuses leaks out of my nose and eyes as fast as I can mop it up with a tissue. The last, and most important, is that alcohol and high elevations don’t mix. This grand mixture leads to sleepless nights, leg cramps and a light hangover. Even the 1 glass of wine that I am having now gives me an unpleasant vision of my night ahead. But, I’m still having it.

We have also learned that taking organized tours leads to many hours on the bus as we move from place to place and many early mornings as we get our luggage ready to put out for pick up in the morning.

This is not making us laugh…..

But it’s all part of the adventure and, now that we are this far in, we realize that it’s probably the only way to see all of the things we wanted to see here. Sites are very far apart. So, despite it all, we are having a good time in our first 6 days here in Peru and have seen an unbelievable amount of beautiful scenery, wildlife and very diverse towns…..and, of course, have met some very nice people.

I am going to give you some detail about these places in the next few posts. But, for now, I am heading to bed in hopes that I can sleep. We have a wake up call at 6 a.m. tomorrow morning so that we can get our luggage out for pick up at 6:45. We are leaving for the Sacred Valley tomorrow at 7:30.   So, it will be an early one. Jody and I have decided that we are going to share one of my Ambien pills so that we can get some sleep.

So, as I am thinking about this schedule of events, once again, I am laughing. And, I am mopping my nose and eyes and trying to relieve cramps in my legs……

Still laughing……really hard…….!

…for this little guy and his award-winning smile!

I’ll bet you thought I was talking about Jody and I……. Shame on you!

Truth be told, we would have had a “Pisco Sour”…..or maybe 2……for lunch on our first day in Lima. But, we are still advised by our tour guide to wait until closer to the end of the trip. The alcohol and the raw egg whites……either separately or together……could give us the “skitters”. If we aren’t careful, we could be dancing the “Aztec two-step” for the rest of the trip! No reason to temp fate so early in the trip. We’ll stick with water!

The little guy above is one of the many very impressive artifacts at the Museo Larco, where we spent a good chunk of our first afternoon in Lima.

Per the tour guide, this museum is the best one in all of Peru to get a good overview of Peruvian history and culture. He wasn’t kidding! The museum is chocked full of all kinds of examples of the fine artisan work of the ancient Peruvians.

The Peruvians were, and are still, known for their fine ceramic, textile, and metal work. Each area of the country focuses on one particular type of artistry. My happy little friend above was part of the extensive collection of ceramics in the museum.

It’s almost unbelievable that these fine pieces could have been produced with the primitive tools available to the Peruvians at the time.   The detail on the design, color and finish of these pieces is incredible. To me, one of the most interesting thing about the creation of these pieces is that the ancient Peruvians did not have access to pottery wheels, which would have helped them to shape the vessels.   Yet, they were all perfectly round and perfectly balanced. According to the guide, they had a very strong sense of proportion and an innate sense of symmetry.

We also looked at the textiles. We looked at 1 piece that had made the Guinness Book of World records. The cloth had something like 397 stitches in a linear inch. Of course the stitching was done without the aid of tools and modern equipment. It was stunning!

Take a look at this piece. What do you think it is?

We all had a lot of guesses to include a necklace, a belt, and a skirt. Wrong….wrong and wrong……It’s a type of Abacus that was devised by the ancient Peruvians. They had a very developed and strong sense of Mathematics, as well. There are only a few people in the world today that actually know how to use this little gem.

We also looked at a large variety of ancient jewelry pieces that were formed out of the gold and silver metals that were abundant in this area. Just beautiful!

The last section we visited was interesting……

This was filled with all kinds of ceramic couples in the act of….well…..coupling. The Peruvians were of the mind that life needs to continue. So, reproduction was an important part of their culture….both now and into the after-life. The collection of ceramics reflecting this was quite extensive…..and creative. I’m wondering if our little smiling, ceramic friend above had, perhaps, gotten a glimpse into this section of the museum. That could put a smile on his face. It did ours!

After our museum tour, we had a quick, down and dirty, tour of Lima. The city has kind of a chaotic feel about it. The traffic in the city seems somewhat unregulated and there were traffic jams everywhere. I give the tour bus driver a lot of credit for being able to negotiate the traffic without incident. Every now and then you would see people making money from the traffic jams by washing the windows of the cars that were stuck and then collecting money from the drivers. The economy is not great here, so people do whatever they can to make money.

The city square was very similar to many I have seen on my travels….nothing too new here…..

…..except for this cute lady dressed in traditional Peruvian garb!  Cute!

We learned that Lima is one of the culinary capitals of the world boasting a very high number of Michelin rated restaurants and 2 of the best restaurants in the world. I am hoping to hook into a cooking class during my stay here. We’ll see. I will say that, so far, we have had excellent food to include Ceviche, potatoes cooked in all different ways and some of the best Chilean Sea Bass (my favorite) I have ever had. I am already looking forward to the next meal!

I need to sign off now. It’s almost time for dinner. Don’t want to miss that! But, I wanted to share this as a parting “jolly”. This is sure to put a smile on your face………

These little guys were used to identify the gender of the bathrooms at the museum. Check out the detail.  No question about which is white here.  So, for those of you who have followed the “bathroom tales” of my previous trips, this is the first of what I am sure will be a long line of fun bathroom signs and tales. We are drinking copious amounts of water in order to battle the current and upcoming high altitude conditions. I have seen every bathroom in every stop we have made…..some more than once. But, I’m going to keep on drinking…….water…..

So, signing off for now……..with an award winning smile on my face. Hope you have one, too!