As quickly as it began the adventure is now coming to a close. It seems insane that we're already our way home, but we had a fantastic trip and I would not have traded it for anything.
Each week and place was so fantastically different and we have so many stories and new friends from every one. I will miss insane moto taxis and nights spent dancing at el cumplejo in Iquitos, crazy rubber boot treks through the amazon, the phenomenal wonder that is Machu Picchu, craziness in wonderful Cusco, and the ever expansive Lima. I've crossed off so many bucket list items on this trip and the list has only grown exponentially for new places and adventures to be had.
I've had a whirlwind three week introduction and I've officially been bitten by the travel bug. We felt so safe and at ease the entire time and we were blessed in so many ways along the ride. Could not have asked for anything more.
We're going home with lots of new friends, unforgettable memories, and a long list of places to visit next time we get to South America. Thanks so much again for all of the prayers and love that made our adventure possible.
So, until the next trip...iCiao!
Saturday, July 21, 2012
Checking into Pariwana we met James, our friend Eve from Cusco's friend from California. He helped us get settled in and then we were reunited with Eve. We all hung out and chilled celebrating the 4th and then a group of us ventured out to buy some groceries to BBQ some burgers. We had a great meal and spent the evening playing games with new and old friends at the hostel.
After a few hours we decided to go out downtown to try dancing, but on a Wednesday we had no luck and went to a place where we all hung out for a bit outside the hostel. We ended up running into our friend Alfredo
from Iquitos, such a small world. Lizzy was tired a little sooner then me and Chels so cabbed it back to Pariwana with one of our friends and Chels and I followed suit about an hour later.
We were really hungry when we got back and got directions from the people at the front desk to a sandwich place and two of the security guys walked with us to make sure we were safe. We messed up the directions and had to settle with getting instant cup of noodles from a gas station instead. It was a comic outing to say the least, but we enjoyed our makeshift meal and went to bed.
The next morning we all woke up, got ready, packed, stored our luggage, and grabbed Eve so that we could grab some food and watch the changing of the guards downtown. We made it just in the knick of time, but unfortunately the whole scene was overshadowed a bit by a woman who passed out in the street. The guards and paramedics acted quickly and were able to help her but it was quite eventful.
The four of us then walked across the square for a quick, cheap lunch at a cafe. We all got really excited after seeing a horse carriage in the square, learned it was only 4 soles and person, and had Juan the driver and Charlie the horse taking us for a spin around the square. We were quite pleased with our decision and enjoyed our moment to be majestic and touristy all at once.
After our wonderful ride with Charlie, we ran around taking silly tourist pictures and shopping around in some markets and stuff for more souviners before taking a taxi back to the hostel.
We spent the afternoon lounging and hanging out with our friends. In the evening we grabbed some sandwiches from a great place across the street from ten hostel. We ate them on a bench in the park that is filled with cats, (which Eve loved since she's all about the cats,) and then walked back to the hostel just in time to gather our things and take a cab to the water park.
Chels, Lizzy, Eve, and I enjoyed seeing all of the different fountains and taking lots of fun pictures. Once we'd finished up, we enjoyed some Anticuchos and took a taxi back to the hostel.
Sadly, we had just enough time to gather our bags, call a cab, and say goodbye to our friends before heading to the airport for the end of our trip.
After a few hours we decided to go out downtown to try dancing, but on a Wednesday we had no luck and went to a place where we all hung out for a bit outside the hostel. We ended up running into our friend Alfredo
from Iquitos, such a small world. Lizzy was tired a little sooner then me and Chels so cabbed it back to Pariwana with one of our friends and Chels and I followed suit about an hour later.
We were really hungry when we got back and got directions from the people at the front desk to a sandwich place and two of the security guys walked with us to make sure we were safe. We messed up the directions and had to settle with getting instant cup of noodles from a gas station instead. It was a comic outing to say the least, but we enjoyed our makeshift meal and went to bed.
The next morning we all woke up, got ready, packed, stored our luggage, and grabbed Eve so that we could grab some food and watch the changing of the guards downtown. We made it just in the knick of time, but unfortunately the whole scene was overshadowed a bit by a woman who passed out in the street. The guards and paramedics acted quickly and were able to help her but it was quite eventful.
The four of us then walked across the square for a quick, cheap lunch at a cafe. We all got really excited after seeing a horse carriage in the square, learned it was only 4 soles and person, and had Juan the driver and Charlie the horse taking us for a spin around the square. We were quite pleased with our decision and enjoyed our moment to be majestic and touristy all at once.
After our wonderful ride with Charlie, we ran around taking silly tourist pictures and shopping around in some markets and stuff for more souviners before taking a taxi back to the hostel.
We spent the afternoon lounging and hanging out with our friends. In the evening we grabbed some sandwiches from a great place across the street from ten hostel. We ate them on a bench in the park that is filled with cats, (which Eve loved since she's all about the cats,) and then walked back to the hostel just in time to gather our things and take a cab to the water park.
Chels, Lizzy, Eve, and I enjoyed seeing all of the different fountains and taking lots of fun pictures. Once we'd finished up, we enjoyed some Anticuchos and took a taxi back to the hostel.
Sadly, we had just enough time to gather our bags, call a cab, and say goodbye to our friends before heading to the airport for the end of our trip.
When we arrived in Lima our flight was delayed once again getting in but Chelsey's family friends Juan and Denise were waiting for us when we left baggage claim. They took us straight to a wonderful restaurant owned by a top 30 chef for a belated birthday celebration lunch for Chels. I still wasn't feeling well so food wasn't super appealing unfortunately, but I had some pork chops with apples honey and a side of mashed potatoes that were delicious. I ate as much as I could and we all appreciated such a treat from Juan and Denise.
We went back to their apartment and got the lay of the land, met their lovely dogs Larry and Lola, and settled in to chat and watch a movie. I went to bed pretty early hoping to feel a bit better since we wanted to go to the Museo de Oro (Gold Museum) the next day. I woke up nearly the next day still feeling under the weather but showered, got ready and laid low until we left. Since it was close we walked to the Museum and it was really interesting. There's everything from weapons to jewelry to textiles and it was amazing to take all of it in. The craziest is that the entire collection belongs to one man since it was so extensive.
After we finished walking through the museum, we took a taxi down to Laco Mar, a really cute outdoor shopping mall with lots of cute cafes overlooking the water. We enjoyed a nice lunch together and walked around a few of the stores before catching another cab back to Juan and Denise's. We were pretty tired and I was still under the weather so we spent a lazy evening watching movies once again and enjoying dinner that Denise was kind enough to prepare for us. I headed to bed once again hopeful that I would feel better for our bike ride the next day.
I awoke on our second morning finally having broken my fever and feeling well enough to take our bike tour of Lima thank goodness. We rode for a few hours along the water in Barrancas and enjoyed a nice lunch at a cute little green cafe along the way. After our ride we walked into Mira Flores to shop around in the Incan Market for some more souvenirs. It was about 6:30 when we hopped in a cab to get back to the apartment where Denise had cooked Peruvian for us for dinner. It was delicious, and I was happy to have my appetite back a bit after having been sick. We enjoyed another nice movie night and and went to bed excited for the 4th the next day.
We decided to head to the Pariwana Lima for our last couple days and night to see some of our friends from Cusco and celebrate the 4th. We said our goodbyes to Juan and Denise, thanked them for their marvelous hospitality, and cabbed it to Mira Flores for Pariwana.
We went back to their apartment and got the lay of the land, met their lovely dogs Larry and Lola, and settled in to chat and watch a movie. I went to bed pretty early hoping to feel a bit better since we wanted to go to the Museo de Oro (Gold Museum) the next day. I woke up nearly the next day still feeling under the weather but showered, got ready and laid low until we left. Since it was close we walked to the Museum and it was really interesting. There's everything from weapons to jewelry to textiles and it was amazing to take all of it in. The craziest is that the entire collection belongs to one man since it was so extensive.
After we finished walking through the museum, we took a taxi down to Laco Mar, a really cute outdoor shopping mall with lots of cute cafes overlooking the water. We enjoyed a nice lunch together and walked around a few of the stores before catching another cab back to Juan and Denise's. We were pretty tired and I was still under the weather so we spent a lazy evening watching movies once again and enjoying dinner that Denise was kind enough to prepare for us. I headed to bed once again hopeful that I would feel better for our bike ride the next day.
I awoke on our second morning finally having broken my fever and feeling well enough to take our bike tour of Lima thank goodness. We rode for a few hours along the water in Barrancas and enjoyed a nice lunch at a cute little green cafe along the way. After our ride we walked into Mira Flores to shop around in the Incan Market for some more souvenirs. It was about 6:30 when we hopped in a cab to get back to the apartment where Denise had cooked Peruvian for us for dinner. It was delicious, and I was happy to have my appetite back a bit after having been sick. We enjoyed another nice movie night and and went to bed excited for the 4th the next day.
We decided to head to the Pariwana Lima for our last couple days and night to see some of our friends from Cusco and celebrate the 4th. We said our goodbyes to Juan and Denise, thanked them for their marvelous hospitality, and cabbed it to Mira Flores for Pariwana.
Sunday, July 8, 2012
Cusco
After returning to Pariwana from our Machu Picchu adventures, we stayed in for the night catching up on some much needed sleep. Wednesday we woke up, had breakfast, and went to look around the city with a couple of Australian girls we had met at our hostel. We had a good time looking around the markets to see some souvenir options and such. After a couple hours of wandering we all got lunch together at a cute little cafe in downtown. We wanted to wander a bit more so Chels, Lizzy and I walked through some other parts of town. We stopped at a chocolate shop for some treats and then stumbled upon the best jewelry shop. The women running the store is the kindest, most wonderful person. She spoke very little English which gave Chels and I some good Spanish practice, and her store was full of beautiful handmade jewlery that she had done herself. She had American pop hits blasting through the stereo and started dancing a bit with us for her love of musica de moda. Not to mention, her prices were the most reasonable we´ve found anywhere, and we were stoked to support this lovely women. She individually packed all of our purchases in bags for safer travel because it´s her love, and hugged and kissed all of us call us her amors before we left the shop. We all wanted to adopt her into our families she´s so fantastic.
We wandered for a bit more around the city before heading back to the hostel. We grabbed a quick bite at the hostel and then hung out with some new friends that we'd made. There was a quiz night held for the activity that night and me, Chels, and three girls that we had met from Canada teamed up and ended up winning! We were pretty stoked and used our free beverage prize to make some more friends in the hostel. After waking Lizzy from her nap, we all geared up for our first night out dancing in Cusco. We had a great time living it up with all of our new friends and settled in to our new Cusco familia.
The next day we woke up to head to the Chocolate Museum. We first planned to wander and check it all out, but once we got there we talked to one of the guys who worked there and he encouraged us to sign up for the lall that lets you make chocolate from bean to the bar. We went back at 1:30 and started our class and lucky us the VIP treatment continued and we were able to take the class with no one but the three of us which was really fun. We learned a lot about the chocolate and got to make our own flavored candies. I also won the competition that our instructior had made for us and got some free cocoa tea which was awesome.
We went for some lunch after finishing our class and then returned to pick up our chocolate. The evening class had about 20 people in it so we were stoked at how spoiled we had been. We spent the night in hanging out with all of our friends and enjoying the performances of our hostel buddies and a bachelor party that was now staying at Pariwana. An entertaining night to say the least. Lizzy even convinced Chels and I to see a Ke$ha song with her at one point for a break in the Spanish ballads.
The next day we woke up and chilled reading and hanging with some of our friends before wandering out into the city. We wanted to check out some churches and stuff and our friend Nathan decided to take us up to a church on a hill over looking the city. The view was spectacular. We snapped some photos and hung out for a bit before wandering parts of Cusco that we hadn't explored yet and checking out new markets and churches and such. I was feeling a little tired so spent the rest of the afternoon reading and chilling until getting ready with Chels and Lizzy for our "splurge" dinner at this amazing restaurant called Fallen Angel. We'd heard really great things and had stopped by to chek it out and the decor and vibe were awesome. The meal didn't disappoint and we really enjoyed ourselves, I even got adventerous and tried alpaca and it was well worth it!
We got back to the hostel and met up with our friends hanging out for the evening before we all decided to go out dancing for the night. It was another great night at Mythology with our friends with fantastic music, and we all wandered back later to crash after another wonderful day.
On our last day in Cusco we went to the black market with our friend Jay to see if we could find some iPods or iPhones for Jay and Lizzy who had both lost technology since travelling. There was no luck at the market but it was definitely an experience to check out the culture that way. We wandered to the San Pedro market as well to see what else Cusco had to offer because we heard it was a must do. After wandering for a good part of the afternoon I wasn't feeling very well because (what I now know was an ear infection) was really starting to get to me and a fever setting in. I went back to the room and read and napped for most of the afternoon.
In the evening I wandered out to find Chelsey and Lizzy and found our friend Margaret who was also feeling a bit under the weather. We decided to stay in and watch a movie together so a small group of us enjoyed The Departed together. Feverish and exhausted I called it a night and went to bed while Lizzy and Chels enjoyed our last night in Cusco with our friends. The next morning we woke up, packed up, said our goodbyes, and headed to the airport. It was bittersweet since we had made such fantastic friends and really enjoyed our time there. Definitely will have to go back some day!
We wandered for a bit more around the city before heading back to the hostel. We grabbed a quick bite at the hostel and then hung out with some new friends that we'd made. There was a quiz night held for the activity that night and me, Chels, and three girls that we had met from Canada teamed up and ended up winning! We were pretty stoked and used our free beverage prize to make some more friends in the hostel. After waking Lizzy from her nap, we all geared up for our first night out dancing in Cusco. We had a great time living it up with all of our new friends and settled in to our new Cusco familia.
The next day we woke up to head to the Chocolate Museum. We first planned to wander and check it all out, but once we got there we talked to one of the guys who worked there and he encouraged us to sign up for the lall that lets you make chocolate from bean to the bar. We went back at 1:30 and started our class and lucky us the VIP treatment continued and we were able to take the class with no one but the three of us which was really fun. We learned a lot about the chocolate and got to make our own flavored candies. I also won the competition that our instructior had made for us and got some free cocoa tea which was awesome.
We went for some lunch after finishing our class and then returned to pick up our chocolate. The evening class had about 20 people in it so we were stoked at how spoiled we had been. We spent the night in hanging out with all of our friends and enjoying the performances of our hostel buddies and a bachelor party that was now staying at Pariwana. An entertaining night to say the least. Lizzy even convinced Chels and I to see a Ke$ha song with her at one point for a break in the Spanish ballads.
The next day we woke up and chilled reading and hanging with some of our friends before wandering out into the city. We wanted to check out some churches and stuff and our friend Nathan decided to take us up to a church on a hill over looking the city. The view was spectacular. We snapped some photos and hung out for a bit before wandering parts of Cusco that we hadn't explored yet and checking out new markets and churches and such. I was feeling a little tired so spent the rest of the afternoon reading and chilling until getting ready with Chels and Lizzy for our "splurge" dinner at this amazing restaurant called Fallen Angel. We'd heard really great things and had stopped by to chek it out and the decor and vibe were awesome. The meal didn't disappoint and we really enjoyed ourselves, I even got adventerous and tried alpaca and it was well worth it!
We got back to the hostel and met up with our friends hanging out for the evening before we all decided to go out dancing for the night. It was another great night at Mythology with our friends with fantastic music, and we all wandered back later to crash after another wonderful day.
On our last day in Cusco we went to the black market with our friend Jay to see if we could find some iPods or iPhones for Jay and Lizzy who had both lost technology since travelling. There was no luck at the market but it was definitely an experience to check out the culture that way. We wandered to the San Pedro market as well to see what else Cusco had to offer because we heard it was a must do. After wandering for a good part of the afternoon I wasn't feeling very well because (what I now know was an ear infection) was really starting to get to me and a fever setting in. I went back to the room and read and napped for most of the afternoon.
In the evening I wandered out to find Chelsey and Lizzy and found our friend Margaret who was also feeling a bit under the weather. We decided to stay in and watch a movie together so a small group of us enjoyed The Departed together. Feverish and exhausted I called it a night and went to bed while Lizzy and Chels enjoyed our last night in Cusco with our friends. The next morning we woke up, packed up, said our goodbyes, and headed to the airport. It was bittersweet since we had made such fantastic friends and really enjoyed our time there. Definitely will have to go back some day!
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