Peg’s Journal

Sorry for the mass email, I hope this email finds you all well. Ít´s day six into my Peruvian adventure and it´s hard to believe that I still have 8 days left. Ít´s already been such an amazing experience and I´ve yet to hit the highlight of my trip which is the trek to Machu Picchu.

I can only speak for myself, but I think it´s fair to say that Dad and I are having a great time. We arrived on early Sunday morning, having taken the redeye to Lima, Peru from LAX. It´s only an 8.5 hour flight and Peru is only two hours ahead of Pacific time, so not much adjustment was needed. We spent our free day in Lima taking a private city tour, visiting the city center, a few landmarks and a monastery - including the monastery´s catacombs and enjoyed some self-guided exploring around the Miraflores district. We met the rest of our small group that evening for dinner. We´re the only two Americans. There are 4 Canadians (eh..), 2 Australians, 2 Irish and our tour coordinator hails from South Africa. It´s a nice group. Dad´s the oldest and I´m second to the youngest.

The next day (Monday) was a bit of a planes-trains-automobile kind of day, but more accurately, commercial flight-private charter plane-minibus-canoe. We were traveling from the capital city into Puerto Maldonado, a small town in the Amazon Rainforest. After a few hiccups, we made it there. I didn´t complain though. Since our commercial flight was sold out, me and dad got to take a 9 seater Piper Cheyenne III private charter flight, where I got a birds-eye view of the Andes mountain range and then eventually, the dense rainforest jungle and the Amazon River which literally snakes through the area. But the plane was tiny and the turbulence was nerve-wrecking so I can see why people were a bit apprehensive.

We got to our place via a motorized canoe that glides very low along the river and since it was dark by the time we got to our Lodge (since we were behind schedule), we hiked the 15-minute trail to our ¨home” by flashlight. Enough to see the path, some hairy huge tarantulas the size of my palm and some rodents scrurrying in the bushes. We´re talking rodents the size of a 40-pound dog. Nasty. Our lodge was literally in the middle of the rainforest - no electricity, no hot water. The plus was that due to the pitch darkness, you can see the Milky Way and all the constellations (well, at least, those visible from the Southern Hemisphere). We had only kerosene lamps, candles to light our way and I had to use my bottled water to wash my face and brush my teeth. Our beds had mosquito nets thankfully, but our room was open to the rainforest. The side that faces the jungle had no wall so that we can hear the monkeys, birds, insects, get the fresh air and of course, share our room with possums and other critters at night. They were looking in my backpack, I think, for my Balance Bars. Anyhow, I can go on and on, but I´ll try to provide a snapshot for the rest…. we awoke at 4am for the next couple of mornings. During my stay there, we hiked A LOT, rode on a catamaran, and thanks to my binoculars, saw some amazing birds - macaws, hawks, kingfishers, hoatzins, cardinals and monkeys swinging through the trees. Also saw lots of butterflies. The highlight was seeing a jaguar with my bare eyes. It was beautiful and according to the books, there is only a 1% chance of seeing a jaguar. So I guess I should go out and buy a lottery ticket. The last morning there, I climbed an 8-story tower to situate myself above the rainforest canopy to watch the sunrise. It was fantastic and well worth the early morning rise, the flashlight hike and the climb.

Now I´m in Cusco, which is the old Inca capital of the world. We´re roughly two miles above sea level, high up in the Andes mountains. Some folks are suffering altitude sickness. Luckily, I feel okay. Just a bit short of breath due to the very thin air and a bit slower moving. (Ivy, remember Haleakala? It´s higher than that.) The city is more, much much more, than I expected. It´s very hard to describe and I fear my pictures won´t do it justice. Some people say it´s like being in some fairyland, but I like the ancient (almost medieval) look and feel with the cobblestone streets, architecture and the surrounding mountain homes. We went to visit a few Inca ruins yesterday already — Saqsaywaman, Qénqo and Pukapukara. It´s hard to believe how those ancient civilizations built these fortresses and cities out of stone all by hand. Some of these boulders weigh 100 tons. I´ve had a chance, both yesterday and today, to eat some really good local Peruvian and Cusquenan food (and beer and spirits). Today, I got to sleep in (meaning I didn´t have to wake up at 4am) and I walked the city with dad. The city is bustling since it´s Fiestas Patrias today - Peru´s Indepedence Day. So there´s lots of celebrating. The city doesn´t get started with their partying until close to 11pm, so I imagine tonight, it will be sheer craziness. As it is, last night, the central plaza (where I´m at) was filled with about 1,000 people partying at a live concert. I keep forgetting it´s dead of winter, so it´s really really cold at night. But it doesn´t seem to stop people from coming out.

Tomorrow and the next day we depart for the Sacred Valley, Ollantaytambo and then onto Agua Calientes (some hot springs). These are all along the Inca Trail which will culiminate to our trip to Machu Picchu on Sunday. Although, I´m considering heading in myself first on Saturday after a soak in the hot springs, to explore at my leisure. Don´t think Dad is up to it, but I may go on ahead. I´d like to take in as much of Machu Picchu as possible.

Well, that´s the update thus far. I wish I could have everyone here to see what I´m seeing. It´s been physically strenous (and we didn´t shower for a few days while in the jungle), but all very worthwhile.

Okay, I´m done downloading my pictures onto a CD here to free up my memory card, so I´m heading back out to get accosted by the locals and their llamas :-). Dad and I had a nice lunch overlooking the square, but he headed back to our hotel for his own little ´´siesta.´´ As for me, I´m going to continue my solo exploration of the city.